Many millions of column inches have been filled about AI’s effects on the job market. Now it appears the rubber has met the road, with fewer graduate marketing roles on the market, a weaker demand for basic content creation skills and commercial smarts being more important than ever to firms.

While AI is changing workflows, recruiters say the broader marketing labour market in Australia has already been shifting over the past year.

Dene Gambotto, founder of industry recruitment firm iknowwho, told B&T that hiring has become more cautious compared to the post-COVID surge, with companies focusing on roles that directly drive growth and customer engagement.

“The marketing job market in Australia is cautious, as hiring is more deliberate than it was during the post-COVID surge,” she said.

“Companies are still investing in marketing talent, but they’re prioritising roles that clearly contribute to growth and customer engagement.”

James Handley, founder of recruitment agency FLOW Recruitment also spoke with B&T, highlighting that overall job volumes have softened, even as targeted hiring continues for specialists.

“Organisations are still making targeted hires where candidates bring clear sector expertise, specialist capability or both,” he said.

Agencies, he added, are increasingly expected to operate as strategic partners to clients rather than purely executional service providers.

“The agencies that will succeed are those that remain true partners to their clients, operating as extensions of in-house marketing teams and adding value around brand strategy, positioning and development.”

Entry-level roles continue to shrink

One of the most immediate structural changes appears to be at the junior end of the workforce.

Several recent studies indicate that entry-level hiring in Australia has fallen significantly, with junior job postings dropping 29 percentage points since early 2024.

AI tools are now capable of supporting tasks traditionally handled by early-career staff, including initial research synthesis, basic analysis, reporting and first-draft insights.

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