AAT president emeritus Chaipranin Visudhipol, who initiated the Ad Academy project when he was president from 2004-06, said a high turnover rate among new graduates was considered a major problem by leading agencies.

"We've found that almost 70 per cent of new graduates recruited by advertising agencies resign and change their jobs within the first two or three years. The agencies allocate a lot of money to training these newly graduated people, and it is totally wasted," said Chaipranin.

The high turnover of new graduates has lead to a "head-hunting" problem within the industry, and salaries being offered by particular agencies to recruit the staff of others are sometimes 20-50 per cent higher than they are already getting, he said.

This practice costs the agencies - as well as the overall industry - too much to hire expensive experienced people. It is quite a lot cheaper to recruit new graduates, whose salary starts somewhere between Bt10,000 and Bt20,000, compared with salaries of Bt30,000 to Bt50,000 for account supervisors and Bt50,000 to Bt100,000 for account directors, said Chaipranin.

Meanwhile, the overall advertising industry has suffered a slow-down, because of economic and political uncertainties and cut-backs in advertising spending by corporate clients. Total ad spending grew only 1.6 per cent last month.

Chaipranin said the Ad Academy would solve these problems by developing high-standard qualifiers to join a high-standard industry, in order to maintain Thailand's position among the top five countries in the world for advertising and creative work.

"There are many graduates in the field of advertising today, but many of them are not qualified. They have a poor balance between academic knowledge and human qualities, based on determination and commitment, professionalism, team spirit, ethics, curiosity, creativity, an analytical mind and problem-solving skills," he said.

As a result, the AAT has launched a 13-week Ad Academy certificate course, including a three-day orientation camp, to be held at the training centre of the Public Relations Department in Soi Aree of Phaholyothin Road. The first course begins on April 20, is open to only 40 students and costs Bt40,000.

"Our lecturers are experts from leading advertising agencies who will teach students about marketing and advertising tools, various thinking tools and skills, including creative-idea development, presentation and project management and personal, advertising and professional ethics," he said.

Chaipranin said many leading agencies were already committed to recruiting students who passed the Ad Academy course as executive trainees, giving them a chance at permanent employment.

"The new Ad Academy programme will benefit all stakeholders in the local advertising industry," he said. "Students will win jobs, the agencies will win business, and the advertising industry will win the future."

Kwanchai Rungfapaisarn

The Nation