From Decks to Desks

Which brands are hiring from agencies* and what kind of skills are they after?

To answer that, we turned to LinkedIn’s rich data set and analysed 370+ talent moves from the big four holding groups (Omnicom, Publicis, WPP, and Interpublic) over the past 12 months. We focused specifically on transitions into client-side roles to understand which companies are hiring, and what backgrounds, levels and skill sets they’re prioritising.

What we found is a clear trend: agency professionals are moving in decent numbers into Tech, Retail, Auto, and Financial Services firms. These sectors are leading in building in-house capabilities, and they’re actively recruiting for the kind of expertise agency folks know well: media strategy, programmatic, account management, creative production, and even software development.

The High-Volume Employers: Tech and Retail Giants

Opportunities are concentrated within a few major companies that are actively building out their in-house marketing, advertising, partnering and technical capabilities:

Amazon

Amazon is comfortably leading in agency hires across all four holding groups. The roles cover a decent spread, but there’s a clear tilt toward Account Management and Programmatic. In other words, if you’re well-versed in client handling, budget management, or digital ad operations, your skills are highly portable - and Amazon knows it. Most of the positions flagged sit in the junior-to-mid-level range, making it a strong landing spot for agency talent eyeing a move in-house.

On the other hand, their marketing hiring overall has slowed since July.

Google

Google’s another steady hand in the agency-to-in-house shuffle, regularly bringing on talent for Account Management and Programmatic or Partnerships roles. No surprise there: agency folks already know the lay of the land, speak the right lingo, and come with ready-made relationships. While many of the roles sit at the junior end, a fair few have stepped straight into manager-level Account Management gigs, proving there’s room to climb here and a lot to learn.

Google’s overall appetite for marketing talent has been steadily on the rise.

Apple

Apple tends to attract those with a flair for the craft - think Creative, Production, Brand, and Media roles. It’s a playground for the execution-minded, with most roles falling in the junior-to-mid-level bracket. Their appetite for marketing talent, though, has been a touch more fickle - plenty of movement, but not always in a straight line.

And we have to wonder about the timing of the collapse in openings in April. Tariffs, anyone?

General Motors

GM’s been dipping into the agency talent pool with a clear agenda - hiring across Paid Media, Paid Social, Media Strategy, Creative, and Comms. The pattern points to a push to build out specialised media and creative firepower in-house. That said, their hiring tends to come in waves and at a lower volume, making it more of a seasonal affair than a steady stream.

High-Demand Transferable Skills

Ex-agency pros would do well to spotlight a few key strengths: these are the skills client-side teams are actively hunting for.

Emerging and Specialized Sectors

There’s plenty of action beyond the usual suspects - some of the most interesting moves are happening in corners of the market you might not expect:

• Retail Media and E-Commerce: It’s not just Amazon calling the shots. There’s strong demand for e-commerce ad expertise across the board. Take Pacvue, for example: they’ve been building entire Retail Media teams, snapping up talent from OMC’s Flywheel. It’s a prime landing spot for agency pros with a technical or analytical bent looking to pivot.

• Financial Services: Not the first place you’d think to look, perhaps, but banks are bulking up on agency tech talent. Capital One has brought in ex-Publicis folks from Epsilon and Sapient for Software and Product roles, while JP Morgan’s made moves in Software Engineering. If your agency background includes dev, data, or product chops, don’t sleep on this sector.

• Pharmaceutical and Regulated Industries: Pfizer stands out here, hiring mid-level talent for Paid Media (with a strong lean towards Social), Programmatic, and Measurement roles. The takeaway? Deep agency experience in navigating regulated media spaces is a hot commodity - clients want specialists who know the rules and how to play within them.