#ranking

#ranking

The biggest challenge is that Learning and Development is not positioned as a strategic function in many organizations. Instead, L&D often operates as a function for the sake of having a function. It is rarely used by executive leadership as a strategic support capability and is more often treated as a nice-to-have necessity rather than an integral part of business decision-making.

The study surveyed 1,226 marketing decision-makers who work for businesses of different sizes and industries throughout the U.S., U.K., Australia, and Canada.

Before you can even get the opportunity to impress a human interviewer, you will first need to impress the algorithm! More recently, AI has also been used to assist current employees in doing their jobs and then to help their employers evaluate how well employees are performing in those jobs.

The 41st game of the season for each NHL team has been played, and there's now been enough time for us to digest that first half of the 2025-26 campaign. So as part of this week's updated edition of the ESPN NHL Power Rankings -- led once again by the juggernaut Colorado Avalanche -- we are identifying the midseason fantasy hockey MVP for all 32 clubs, according to analysts Sean Allen (Eastern Conference teams) and Victoria Matiash (Western Conference teams). And a reminder: It's not too late to sign up for ESPN Fantasy Hockey. New leagues start every Monday, and you can sign up for free today. How we rank: A panel of ESPN hockey commentators, analysts, reporters and editors sends in a 1-32 poll based on the games through Wednesday.

Beginning on June 22, 2026, we will discontinue the use of Nielsen's Designated Market Area (DMA) for automotive model ads. Comscore Markets, which we introduced in August 2025, will serve as the replacement solution. After this date, campaigns still using Nielsen's DMA for automotive model ads targeting will be paused and require an update to Comscore Markets to resume delivery.

The average CEO makes over 280 times what their company's line worker earns. This is more than 10 times the ratio observed in the 1970s. Looking just at the salaries and bonuses of Fortune 500 CEOs, financial executives, top university presidents, and even some directors of the larger non-profit organizations, you would think that these leaders are performing at high levels-at least levels high enough to justify their huge compensation. Unfortunately, that's not often the case.

Competitor analysis tools are software platforms that help marketing teams monitor and compare competitor strategies across SEO, social, PPC, and market intelligence. They expedite the competitor analysis process, so you can see where your competition is making moves and where the gaps are wide open. The best tools work passively, updating in the background while you focus on moving the needle for your business.

Performance has always been the foundation of commerce media because it tied spend to measurable behavior. From sponsored search to sponsored products, the category scaled by delivering outcomes that could be directly attributed to transactions. Automation, AI-driven optimization and closed-loop measurement accelerated that model and made outcomes-based buying the norm. Outcomes still matter. But as AI reduces friction and increases competition, outcomes alone no longer create separation.

Winning a prestigious award, such as our recent Gold at The Drum Awards for PR in the Entertainment category, is always a proud moment for us as an agency. It validates our expertise, builds credibility, and sets us apart in a competitive market. We leverage awards as a key part of our marketing and business strategy in various ways. Sharing the win with clients reinforces their choice to work with us - after all, everyone wants to partner with a winner!

Only a third of brands fully integrate search into their media mix according to new research from the Internet Advertising Bureau. In its Search Marketing Barometer 2012, which surveyed the top 200 advertisers according to ALF, 72% of brands stated that search is only partially or not at all integrated with the wider media mix. Some 94% said their is a greater opportunity to integrate search.

This week, The Drum is publishing our mid-year update to the World Creative Rankings, highlighting the advertisers, agencies and work leading the way so far at this year's awards festivals. In our first cut from the World Creative Rankings Mid-Year Leaderboards, we take a look at the campaigns bringing back the silverware from the industry's first-half majors, including The Drum Awards, Cannes Lions and The Clios. From humorous self-awareness to media subversion and gamified interaction, the most-awarded campaigns of 2025 so far have it all.