As we head into a new year, Ireland’s digital, marketing and advertising sector remains cautiously optimistic about employment prospects according to the 2025 Prosperity Recruitment survey.
Carried out annual basis by the recruitment company Prosperity, which is headed by Gary Mullan, this year’s survey notes that salary growth will be “minimal” with average increases of below 1% which is says indicates “economic conservatism despite the demand for specialized roles such as CTOs, Directors of Marketing, and Heads of eCommerce. Account Managers and SEO professionals.”
When it came to employee sentiment, the annual survey notes that uncertainty prevails, “driven by recent workforce reductions, rising living costs, and concerns about market stability.” As a result of this, 67% of employees are considering a job change in 2025, presenting both challenges and opportunities for employers
The survey also notes that hybrid work models continue to dominate preferences, with 84% of managers favoring a flexible approach over full return-to-office policies. “This trend underscores the importance of adaptability, as rigid office requirements could lead to higher employee turnover,” the survey notes.
“Additionally, the emergence of fractional recruitment is gaining traction, allowing companies to outsource specific aspects of the hiring process for greater efficiency,” Prosperity notes.
With AI very much on the agenda this year, the Prosperity survey says that “81% of employees believe their roles will evolve rather than disappear.”
In terms of how AI is being embraced within the industry, last year’s Prosperity survey already indicated strong penetration for ChatGPT, with nearly 80% of people using it at least once a month. According to this year’s research, the biggest shift, however, is the rise in daily users with over 36% of employees now using ChatGPT every day. “This figure is set to continue growing in the coming years as AI improves, new tools emerge, and integrations expand, further embedding ChatGPT into everyday work routines,” the survey notes.
“ChatGPT continues to dominate the space, accounting for over 80% of LLM usage among respondents. A distant second is Gemini, with the rest of the field trailing far behind. However, this is still a sector in the process of consolidation, and ChatGPT faces strong competition from major players like Google, Meta, and even Microsoft. There are also outliers such as Anthropic with Claude, Perplexity, and potentially new entrants that could reshape the landscape in the near future,” the survey notes.
Elsehwere, the survey says that LinkedIn maintains its stronghold as the primary recruitment platform although it notes that “concerns about over-reliance and the need for alternative solutions persist.”
To download a copy of the latest Prosperity Recruitment Survey click HERE
