It’s always awkward talking about cold, hard cash – or more specifically, how much of it we earn. But hell, surely people who say they wouldn’t want to know what their peers earn are fibbing. Going into roles like account director and producer aren’t going to make you megabucks mega quickly (what role in the creative industries does?) but there’s definite career progression in these positions, and those at the top of their game certainly don’t do too badly.

We’ve drawn together average salaries for those behind-the-scenes creative roles to show what people earn at various stages of their careers, based on data from 2014 and 2015.

OUTSIDE LONDON

Operations Director — £90,000 Head of Project Management — £70,000–£120,000 Project Director — £60,000–£80,000 Senior Resource / Traffic Manager / Director — £45,000–£65,000 Resource / Traffic Manager — £24,000–£45,000 Client Services Director — £52,550 / £70,125 / £91,300 (Junior / Middleweight / Senior) Business Development Director — £37,625 / £44,276 / £61,250 Account Director — £35,750 / £42,300 / £50,150 Creative Services Manager — £32,170 / £38,100 / £46,950 Project Manager — £26,850 / £30,500 / £38,900 Account Manager — £24,633 / £29,640 / £33,200 Studio Manager — £23,328 / £31,770 / £43,056 Affiliates Manager — £22,405 / £30,350 / £42,630 Producer — £18,715 / £27,230 / £32,120 Account Executive — £17,220 / £23,230 / £30,075

WITH LONDON WEIGHTING

Client Services Director — £83,480 / £97,450 / £152,350 (Junior / Middleweight / Senior) Business Development Director — £40,689 / £62,370 / £118,410 Account Director — £34,100 / £45,250 / £55,000 Creative Services Manager — £33,210 / £42,215 / £52,650 Project Manager — £28,680 / £41,350 / £58,310 Account Manager — £28,425 / £32,412 / £39,824 Studio Manager — £27,910 / £32,350 / £38,210 Affiliates Manager — £26,280 / £34,280 / £45,650 Producer — £22,140 / £37,892 / £53,280 Account Executive — £20,055 / £27,076 / £32,120