Pay Increases Provide Sponsorship Pros Reason To Give Thanks
As economists and other prognosticators hold out the possibility of a recession in ’08, at least sponsorship practitioners can look back at the past year and be grateful that they did well, on average, when it comes to personal income.
The average sponsorship industry pay raise was 6.3 percent in ’07, according to IEG SR’s 12th annual salary survey. That figure is a healthy jump from the 5.8 percent average of ’06, and represents the biggest hike since 2000, when the over-heated Internet economy helped drive pay hikes up 7.7 percent.
The 6.3 percent number also is well above the overall U.S. average. In the annual study conducted by human resources consulting firm Hewitt Assoc., Inc., the average raise for non-executive salaried workers—those for whom overtime pay is not required—was 3.7 percent this year, compared to 3.6 percent in ’06.
Continuing a positive downward trend, only 30 percent of sponsorship professionals did not receive a raise in ’07, down one point from last year. Factoring out respondents who did not receive a raise, the average pay increase among those who did was 7.1 percent.
The survey once again revealed some fairly wide pay-increase and compensation discrepancies between the four industry sectors tracked: nonprofit and for-profit properties, sponsors and agencies.
Average pay hikes ranged from a high of 8.4 percent for agencies to 4.1 percent for sponsors. Employees of for-profit properties earned an average raise of 6.8 percent, while their nonprofit colleagues received 5.9 percent increases.
Only 19 percent of sponsor personnel did not receive a raise, while 42 percent of those working at for-profit properties did not get a bump in pay. One-third of agency employees did not receive a raise, as did one-quarter of those at non-profit properties.
Compensation Breakdown By Sector, Property Type And Size
Those who work for agencies earned the highest total annual compensation—including salary, bonus and commission—reporting average earnings of $128,845.
The for-profit property category was next at $110,722, followed closely by sponsors at $109,717 and then nonprofits at $83,532.
Breaking out different property types, sports once again led the pack with average total compensation of $117,411. Causes were next at $84,979, followed by festivals and fairs at $80,631; arts, $78,053; attractions, $74,091; and government-owned properties, $55,557.
The survey shows it pays to work for a larger organization, no matter whether size is measured in sponsorship revenue (properties), sponsorship budgets (sponsors) or sponsorship billings (agencies).
Those who work for organizations above the $2.5 million mark in any of those categories averaged total compensation of $123,270. Between $1 million and $2.5 million, the figure was $106,310. Between $500,000 and $1 million it was $97,835. Between $250,000 and $500,000 it was $85,088. Below $250,000 it was $65,296.
Looking at properties alone, employees of organizations with less than $250,000 in sponsorship revenue averaged $66,264; those between $250,000 and $500,000 averaged $79,263; those between $500,000 and $1 million averaged $84,471; those between $1 million and $2.5 million averaged $99,008; and those over $2.5 million averaged $118,065.
Overall job satisfaction for sponsorship employees was down slightly this year, dropping from 7.4 to 7.3 on a 10-point scale.
Even though their average rating dropped from 8.0 to 7.7, agency personnel continue to be the most satisfied. Both sponsors and for-profit property employees registered a 7.4 satisfaction rating, while nonprofit workers came in at 7.1.
Results derive from responses from 591 industry practitioners—46 percent nonprofit properties, 22 percent agencies, 21 percent for-profit properties and 11 percent sponsors.