Creative agencies are increasingly turning to project management professionals to help navigate rising campaign challenges, a new survey conducted for the Project Management Institute has revealed.

Released at the ongoing Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2025, the findings showed that 97 per cent of campaign professionals had experienced at least one major setback in the past year, prompting a shift in how agencies deliver marketing results in a fast-paced, saturated environment.

The online survey, commissioned by PMI and conducted by PSB Insights between April 28 and May 6, 2025, gathered responses from 130 professionals working across advertising, marketing, creative, PR, and in-house departments in the United States.

According to PMI, the most common obstacles facing agencies included campaigns going over budget (55 per cent), missing deadlines (54 per cent), and constraints on creativity (47 per cent).

Additionally, 34 per cent of campaigns were reported to have failed to resonate with their target audiences, while 35 per cent did not generate new leads.

 In response to these persistent problems, nearly all respondents (98 per cent) said their agencies were expanding their project management capabilities not by investing in more tools but by focusing on people. Of those, 32 per cent said they were training current staff, and 28 per cent indicated they were hiring new project managers.

Chief Marketing Officer at PMI, Ms Menaka Gopinath, noted that the current marketing climate with rising demands, shrinking budgets, and tighter timelines had made the execution side of creativity more crucial than ever.

She stated that 90 per cent of creative professionals surveyed agreed that strong project management was essential to delivering great campaigns.

 According to her, “Today’s CMOs are juggling more platforms, priorities, and pressure than ever before, and it’s easy for even the strongest campaigns to lose focus and veer off track.”

 Gopinath said effective project management helps creative teams maintain clarity and direction.

 “It provides the structure needed to drive momentum, work collaboratively, and deliver results aligned with business goals,” she added.

 According to her, project management professionals not only keep teams aligned and timelines on track but also foster creative momentum, transforming strong ideas into impactful brand activations.

She added that project managers enable leadership to focus on growth (52 per cent), ensure campaigns contribute positively to brand value over time (52 per cent), synchronise campaign components (50 per cent), manage growing complexity (45 per cent), and ensure campaigns are sustainable (45 per cent).

 President and Chief Executive Officer of PMI, Pierre Le Manh, said the role of marketing had become more important than ever, but so had the need for performance and scalability.

 “Every dollar must drive measurable impact, and every great idea must scale,” Le Manh said.

 He added, “That’s where project professionals become a force multiplier. They don’t constrain creativity; they operationalise it. They eliminate waste, manage complexity across teams, assets, and technologies, and translate ideas into results.”

 Le Manh stressed that project professionals boost execution efficiency and speed, which in turn drives profitability for both agencies and clients.

The survey further showed a shift in how project managers are perceived within creative teams. While 60 per cent of agencies rely on them to keep projects on track, more than half (52 per cent) said their most valuable contribution lies in motivating teams and injecting energy into the creative process.

In light of increasing project complexity, agencies are now placing higher value on strategic capabilities. Respondents ranked innovative thinking (67 per cent), growth strategy (60 per cent), and adaptability (57 per cent) above traditional functions like budget and resource control (49 per cent).

Le Manh explained that this change in priorities is why agencies, despite advancements in artificial intelligence and automation, are investing more in human capital.

 He said nearly all agencies (98 per cent) plan to expand their project management capabilities, mostly through people rather than tools.

Of those, 32 per cent are training existing staff, while 28 per cent are hiring new talent, reflecting a widespread belief that successful campaigns begin with skilled professionals.

 Despite their critical role, project managers often go unrecognised. Nearly half (48 per cent) of creative leaders surveyed described them as the “unsung heroes” of campaigns responsible for navigating complex execution challenges and keeping teams aligned from start to finish.

The survey also found that marketing teams led by certified project managers consistently outperformed those without certification, delivering stronger outcomes and more effectively engaging target audiences.

PMI concluded that sharpening project management skills offers agencies a decisive edge, allowing them to bring ideas to life faster, smarter, and with greater impact in a rapidly evolving creative landscape.