We spoke with Peter Jacob, Managing Director, MENAT at Current Global, while researching industry salaries for Communicate’s 2026 GCC Advertising & Marketing Salary Survey earlier in Q3. His read on the GCC talent market is blunt: the bar has gone up, and average won’t cut it.
The first half of the year was rough. “Despite promising recent geo-political news, H1 was a massive hit for some agencies,” Jacob says. Costs are under close watch, clients want more value, and the pressure to deliver beyond scope keeps building. Hiring has changed shape as a result. “Right now, I think the market is less about adding headcount for the sake of growth and more about filling very specific gaps around specialist project roles and secondment opportunities.”
The real pay gap
Salary expectations are still running high, especially among mid- and senior-level people looking to hop between agencies. For Jacob, though, budget is the smaller problem. “The bigger gap is often between expectation and impact and what makes someone really unique and can add value.”
Employers want people who can lead clients, manage complexity and “bring calm into fast-moving situations.” Plenty of candidates fall short of that. “Not everyone is capable of that, doing the job isn’t a differentiator.”
The squeeze lands hardest on the middle of the pack. “Exceptional talent will always command attention and opportunity, average talent is finding the market harder,” he says. The competition now includes people already sitting in agencies who are quietly open to a move.
Jacob doesn’t expect this to blow over. “I do think the market is going through a reset rather than a short-term correction.” Employers have gained some leverage, but the top people still have options. What’s changed is that “agencies are being more selective, and candidates are having to prove not just what they want, but what they can really contribute.”
That puts a premium on qualities a résumé can’t easily show. “Human skills like judgement, curiosity, resilience, maturity and collaboration are more important than ever.” Agencies want people who use AI intelligently and know where human judgment, originality and experience still count.
Looking to 2027, the challenge for agency leaders is keeping great people motivated as the pace picks up and the tolerance for inefficiency shrinks. Money alone won’t do it. “Retention can’t be solved by salary alone it comes down to clarity, culture, leadership, learning, flexibility and whether people feel they are growing.”
For those willing to put in the work, the payoff is real. “Yes, agency life can be demanding but for ambitious talent, the region offers exposure, pace, senior access and variety that can be really hard to find elsewhere.”
How does your pay stack up? Explore the full findings of Communicate’s 2026 GCC Advertising & Marketing Salary Survey HERE.
