The consolidation of the strategic role of the DIRCOM, the impact of artificial intelligence and the need to strengthen internal communication mark the immediate future of the sector
The Communication Directors Association (DIRCOM) has published the short version of the ECE 2025 studythat radiography the role that communicative function in organizations and challenges that will mark its evolution in the next three years. The results confirm that Communication has consolidated its strategic rolegaining influence on decision bodies and positioning itself as a critical area for the competitiveness of companies and institutions.
The presentation day of the report, held yesterday at the School of Industrial Organization (EOI), was welcome from Diego Crescent, general director of the EOI, and Miguel López-Quesada, president of Dircom. López-Quedas stressed that “when the DIRCOM participates in the governing bodies, it provides vision, criteria and capacity to anticipate, which strengthen both companies and society. Today, more than ever, communication helps open paths, to boost innovation and ensure that strategic decisions incorporate the gaze of all interest groups.” He also recalled that “we are in a process of evolution of the Communication Directorate towards the concept of Corporate Affairs, which reflects how our profession assumes more and more strategic functions to create value and raise its impact on decision making.”
The Professional Profile
Table of Contents
One of the most striking aspects of the report is the profile of those who exercise the profession. The accumulated experience is a defining feature: Two thirds of professionals have more than a decade in the sectorand the most numerous age section is between 46 and 55 years. Feminization remains a distinctive feature, with almost seven out of ten positions occupied by women, and the academic level is very high: more than 60 % have postgraduate or master’s studies, mainly in journalism and audiovisual communication, advertising or public relations.
Seven out of ten positions in the communication sector in Spain are occupied by women | Image: ECE 2025 study
Assessment and gaps assessment
The organizational position of those responsible for communication reflects the growing strategic weight of the discipline. More than half report directly to the company’s first executive and almost a third is part of the Management Committee. Despite this recognition, the report indicates that The most frequent salary sections are below 40,000 euros per yearwhich shows a gap between responsibility and compensation that the sector has not yet resolved at all.
In terms of valuation, communication enjoys broad prestige: More than 90 % of respondents believe that it is an important or very important function. However, a significant difference between the perception of external audiences and that of inmates appears. While half of the first place communication at the level of maximum relevance, only one third of internal audiences values it in those terms. This internal-external gap constitutes a challenge for the departments, which must strengthen their credibility and utility within the organizations themselves.
Communication and their leaders: to debate
The main conclusions of the report were presented by Ángeles Moreno, professor at the Rey Juan Carlos University and former president of the European Public Relations Research and Education Association, and Cristina Fuentes, professor of the same university and director of the University Master’s Degree in Research Applied to Communication. Next, a moderate colloquium was held by Ignacio Rodríguez, director of communication, institutional relations and sustainability of ING Spain and Portugal, in which outstanding professionals in the sector participated.
Vanessa Jaklitsch, Director of Communication, Marketing and Institutional Relations of the EOI, stressed that “one of the great challenges that we are posed every day is to unite the strategic vision with the routine of the multitasking to which we are subjected.”
Along the same lines, Roberto Sanz, marketing and communication director of HM Hospitals, said that “the professional moment is exciting because we have to see how to adapt to the context and adapt the messages for our audiences.”
For its part, Sara Vega, director of Marketing and Communication at FNAC, stressed that “we have to generate content thinking about the interest of the consumer and not our own, in addition to adapting the tone to the different channels.”
To which Antonio León, communication director of Renault Group Spain, joined remembering that “as communication directors we must have the ability to make attractive what in principle is not, and for this it is key to be present in the Executive Committee, where projects are defined from their origin”.
Priorities around 2028
The report draws the great priorities for triennium 2025-2028. The integration of artificial intelligence stands as the main challengeindicated by almost eight out of ten professionals as the axis that will transform the activity the most. To this is added the need to produce quality, attractive and relevant content For increasingly fragmented audiences, as well as the strengthening of internal communication, seen not only as a transmission channel but as a tool to turn employees into authentic brand ambassadors.
The reinforcement of the strategic role of communication in directive decision -making and the integration of sustainability and social responsibility criteria complete the priorities.
Consolidated areas and dissonances
In everyday activity, the most developed areas remain the relations with the media, the management of online communication and social networks, and the strategic coordination of the function. However, professionals perceive a certain dissonance between what they do today and what they consider a priority in the medium term: although the operational activity continues to be essential, the future goes through consolidating a more strategic communication, aligned with the corporate objectives and capable of generating tangible value.
Human and Budget Resources
Resource provision shows a relatively stable situation. More than half of the departments They maintain the same number of professionals That in previous years, although three out of ten have expanded their teams. Something similar occurs with budgets: about 47 % remains, while 36 % have experienced increases and 17 % reductions.
These data suggest that, despite economic uncertainty, communication is perceived as an area in which it is convenient to reinforce resilience and corporate reputation.
Excellence, still minority
A key study of the study is that Only 22.6 % of the departments reach the criteria of excellence defined by DIRCOMwhich include executive influence, strategic impact and alignment with business objectives. In those cases, the communication director usually enjoys greater visibility: almost six out of ten participates in the Management Committee and four out of ten reports directly to the first executive.
The activity of excellent equipment is more strategic than operational, which is associated with a greater contribution to corporate objectives | Image: ECE 2025 study
In addition, the function acquires a more strategic than operational character, with real ability to influence the definition of corporate strategy.
The ECE 2025 study confirms that communication in Spain is going through a moment of strategic consolidation, although they still persist challenges in resources, internal recognition and technological adaptation. The immediate future goes through integrating artificial intelligence ethically and effectively, raising the quality of the contents, reinforcing internal communication and ensuring that communication responsible occupy a prominent place in making business decision making.
Implications for marketing and communication
The conclusions of the ECE 2025 study have direct implications for marketing and communication in Spain. The digital and, in particular, the emergence of artificial intelligence, raises both opportunities and ethical challenges around transparency, privacy and authenticity of the contents.
The need to go from the strategic to the strategic requires reinforce the presence of communication in the decision bodies and provide teams More analytical tools.
At the same time, the gap between internal and external perception shows that the function must strengthen its role in organizational culture, forming committed employees and aligned with corporate values.
Finally, the growing requirement of metrics and accountability aims that communication must demonstrate with data its contribution to the business and reputation.
