Workfront Global Marketing Report
What marketers value most.
We set out to find what gets in the way of creativity, what empowers marketers, and what steps leaders can take to help them do their best, most creative work.
Our methodology.
We surveyed almost 900 marketers in five countries—the U.S., U.K., Netherlands, Germany, and Sweden—to get real answers to these questions.
Respondents work in financial services, healthcare, retail, manufacturing, or professional services/agencies.
What marketers value most.
Delivering quality work on time.
When we asked marketers to choose three skills that are most important to their jobs, the top answers were remarkably consistent across all five countries:
The ability to think creatively.
Quickly responding to changing market forces and disruption.
Delivering quality work on time.
Marketing's digital transformation.
The ongoing digital revolution has pushed marketing teams to evolve more aggressively than almost any other department. We discovered aspects of work that are evolving more quickly than others—and have the most potential to empower marketers’ creativity.

Marketing technology.
Marketers need technology solutions that integrate.
have already transitioned to a centralized work management solution.

Collaboration in context.
Today's marketers work remotely with a variety of tools and technology.
of marketers are using an enterprise work management solution for greater efficiency.

Connecting people and process.
Integration is key to streamlining processes and making room for creativity.
of respondents are actively working to connect their key systems to streamline and enhance technology.

Automation.
Automating tasks frees marketers up to focus on high-value creative work.
of respondents are actively working to connect their key systems.
Time is our most valuable commodity.
If creativity is a marketer’s most valuable skill, time is a marketer’s most valuable commodity. Workfront Global Marketing research shows that marketers spend just 19% of their time on their highest-value work. Marketers spend the vast majority of their workweek on other activities, including:
Attending both high- and low-value meetings.
Attending to administrative tasks.
Sending, receiving, and searching for communication in emails.
What does the future of marketing look like?
When asked what skills are essential to succeed in marketing departments of the future, the same three concepts rose to the top. All three require the top skills that we uncovered in our Global Marketing research: creativity, speed, and operational agility.
Enhancing the customer experience.
Communicating to the right stakeholders at the right time with the right tools.
Responding more quickly to market forces.

Conclusion
Empower creativity.
