The Push
The Push is a podcast for senior marketers eager to hear honest perspectives from peers who tell it like it is. We speak directly to your day-to-day reality and don't bother with superfluous tactics you don't need.
We understand that senior marketing is uniquely frustrating.
- You have to sell the 'why' more than any other department.
- You're held accountable for results beyond your control.
- You're forever dealing with non-marketers who 'know better than you'.
- Stakeholder politics, opinions, and “gut feelings” constantly get in the way.
- You're so busy dealing with stakeholders, there's little time left to conceptualise new strategies and hone your craft.
We bring together senior marketers to candidly share stories, analogies, strategies, and mental models they've used.
You can use these conversations to:
- Explain complex concepts to non-marketers.
- Get more client buy-in.
- Explore new strategy ideas.
- Better articulate your existing knowledge.
- Explain the 'why' behind your strategy.
- Keep your own team engaged.
- Better navigate marketing politics (which are inevitable).
- Remember that you're not alone in your experiences.
No empty buzzwords. No listicles. No generic advice.
Whether you’re in-house, agency-side, or a consultant, you’ll leave feeling empowered to speak up and lead with confidence.
The Push is hosted by Jack Ferguson, a Brand Strategist with 15 years of marketing and brand experience across 20+ industries.
The Push
S3 E49: Marketing’s Turbulent People Puzzle: How Recruiters Win While Marketers Burn Out (with Gerard Doyle)
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Marketing careers don’t stall by accident; they stall because the way agencies hire, reward, and manage talent leaves a lot to be desired.
This episode is co-hosted by:
- Brand Strategist Jack Ferguson
and
- Fractal Marketing Agency Owner Gerard Doyle
Here’s what the episode covers:
- Gerard shares a story of how a prominent brand fired an agency in the midst of a talent shortage, only for it to backfire
- Gerard explains why the best marketers are often the first to leave when agency redundancies hit, and what the early warning signs of an agency on the slide are.
- Gerard explains why junior marketers should avoid recruiters, and why senior marketers should engage them instead
- Gerard shares the hard truth about why agencies are often hired as a client’s “job insurance” and what that reveals about power dynamics, blame-shifting, and agency-client relationships.
- Jack talks about wildly overloaded marketing JDs and how it is all too common at the moment
- Gerard discusses how FIFA ticket purchases can be a ‘job security test’ and what it says about generational differences in career confidence
- Gerard talks about why he thinks pay secrecy fuels turnover, and how transparent pay could fix it
- Gerard discusses the importance of highlighting the quiet achievers in marketing agencies instead of rewarding the squeaky wheels
Helpful Links:
Find Jack on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackfergusonmymm/
Find Gerard on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gerarddoyle/
Follow The Push on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thepush/
Follow The Push on TikTok here: thepushmedialab (@thepushmedialab) | TikTok
Follow The Push on Instagram here: Instagram
Visit The Push website here: For Senior Marketers...By Senior Marketers | The Push
Visit Jack’s personal website here: Brand Strategist + Marketing Consultant — Jack Ferguson
Visit Gerard’s website here: The Startup Marketing Agency for Founders and Entrepreneurs – Helping Entrepreneurs find customers for their amazing services and inspiring solutions