• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'

2

Trump pulls back after Iran crosses his red line as U.S. military breaks two-week streak of airstrikes amid talks for potential Hormuz deal

3

'The demographic dividend of the last 40 years is ending': J.P. Morgan says the world is running out of the two things that kept interest rates down

1

The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'

2

Trump pulls back after Iran crosses his red line as U.S. military breaks two-week streak of airstrikes amid talks for potential Hormuz deal

3

'The demographic dividend of the last 40 years is ending': J.P. Morgan says the world is running out of the two things that kept interest rates down
SuccessCareers

Marketing jobs are among the most exposed to AI. Adobe and LinkedIn are teaming up to ensure the industry is upskilled—not replaced

Preston Fore
By
Preston Fore
Preston Fore
Success Reporter
Down Arrow Button Icon
Preston Fore
By
Preston Fore
Preston Fore
Success Reporter
Down Arrow Button Icon
June 16, 2026, 3:00 AM ET
UX UI designers working together
While the demand for AI-skilled talent is surging, most marketers still don’t have the skills to match it—and Adobe and LinkedIn are exclusively launching a new course.seksan Mongkhonkhamsao—Getty Images
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Marketing is entering a sharp AI-driven divide.

Recommended Video

Job postings requiring AI literacy have more than doubled year-over-year, up 113% on LinkedIn, while just 4% of marketing professionals globally have added AI skills to their profiles—an imbalance that is quickly becoming one of the industry’s defining tensions.

That disconnect is sending alarm bells ringing for Rachel Thornton, chief marketing officer for enterprise at Adobe. With nearly three decades in the industry, including leadership roles at Amazon, Salesforce, Cisco, and Microsoft, she says this moment with AI feels fundamentally different. Many marketers are aware their profession is at a major inflection point, but they’re still searching for how to translate that awareness into day-to-day execution.

“The challenge is that AI is everywhere, but knowing how to learn it in meaningful ways is still difficult,” she told Fortune.

Now, Adobe and LinkedIn are moving to close that gap. In a Fortune exclusive, the companies are announcing a new “AI Essentials for Marketers” program, a set of free courses designed for marketing professionals. Four learning paths, based on specific roles, will be available at launch on LinkedIn Learning: digital marketing, content and creative, social and communications, and data and analytics. Each path is designed to be completed in two to three hours.

According to Jessica Jensen, LinkedIn’s chief marketing officer, the course will provide learners with the AI skills employers are looking for within areas like audience segmentation, message testing, campaign building, creative development, and ROI analytics.

“It’s mission-critical that all marketers embrace AI,” Jensen told Fortune.

Adobe and LinkedIn haven’t been immune to AI-related headwinds

The stakes for upskilling in marketing couldn’t be higher. Artificial intelligence is triggering one of the most significant reckonings the industry has faced in decades. Tasks like building marketing plans, generating creative assets, and conducting market research—which once could take weeks—can now be completed in hours or even minutes.

According to a report from Anthropic, the tasks of market research analysts and marketing specialists are exposed by some 65% to AI. Just behind computer programmers and customer service representatives—professions that have faced major headwinds.

The shift is also reshaping how companies think about marketing talent and spend. In some cases, firms—including LinkedIn—have pulled back on marketing budgets, contributing to layoffs across the sector.

Adobe, the company known for consumer creative products like Photoshop and Illustrator, has similarly faced headwinds as pressure mounts to deliver on AI. In March, the company’s long-time CEO Shantanu Narayen announced he would leave the company after a successor was named. Last week, the company’s CFO Dan Durn announced he was also leaving. Adobe’s stock is down over 35% year-to-date.

Marketing professionals aren’t doomed—as long as they are willing to adapt, according to Adobe and LinkedIn execs

Even amid AI-related headwinds, Thornton and Jensen remain bullish on marketing as a profession—if practitioners can adapt.

For Thornton, those who will be best equipped for success are those who can see the writing on the wall and “look around corners,” meaning if change is afoot in the broader business community, they stay ahead of it.

“People who are excited, people who are energized about change, people who are excited about looking around corners, people who can work well in a little bit of ambiguity—I think those types of skill sets are going to serve any grad, or really anyone, really well,” Thornton said.

It’s a view Jensen echoed: those who don’t sit on the sidelines of change will be best equipped for the future. And when it comes to AI skills in particular, she said be prepared to show—not tell—your abilities.

“Get your hands dirty. Experiment. Create. Build agents. Learn how AI actually works, not just how it’s talked about,” Jensen said. “And be prepared to show in a job interview real examples of how you’re using AI. It’s about showing what you can build with AI, and that you have great human creativity and judgement.”

The Fortune 500 Innovation Forum will convene Fortune 500 executives, U.S. policy officials, top founders, and thought leaders to help define what’s next for the American economy, Nov. 16-17 in Detroit. Apply here.
About the Author
Preston Fore
By Preston ForeSuccess Reporter
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Preston Fore is a reporter on Fortune's Success team.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Success

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Success

Jeff Bezos says being lazy, not working hard, is the root of anxiety: ‘The stress goes away the second I take that first step’
SuccessJeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos says being lazy, not working hard, is the root of anxiety: ‘The stress goes away the second I take that first step’
By Sydney LakeJuly 26, 2026
2 hours ago
Stressed out Gen X woman
SuccessRetirement
Despite nearing their 60s, nearly four in 10 Americans heading towards the end of their careers don’t even have a retirement account
By Emma BurleighJuly 26, 2026
2 hours ago
A Gen Xer sold his company for $1.6 billion. He kept less than $100 million and gave the rest away because he doesn’t ‘believe in billionaires’
SuccessHow I made my first million
A Gen Xer sold his company for $1.6 billion. He kept less than $100 million and gave the rest away because he doesn’t ‘believe in billionaires’
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJuly 26, 2026
2 hours ago
raikes
CommentaryMicrosoft
Jeff Raikes: The talent debt I warned about is now showing up in the data
By Jeff RaikesJuly 26, 2026
4 hours ago
Salary Transparent Street creator Hannah Williams
SuccessCareers
This millennial job-hopped every 6 months to $90K by the time she was 23—she left it all behind to become a salary negotiation guru
By Emma BurleighJuly 26, 2026
4 hours ago
Photo of young woman in a red dress observing the man she's talking to
Economylifestyle
College women are snapping up the highest-earning men without college degrees, leaving the rest further behind
By Mia OsmonbekovJuly 26, 2026
5 hours ago

Most Popular

The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'
Real Estate
The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 25, 2026
1 day ago
Trump pulls back after Iran crosses his red line as U.S. military breaks two-week streak of airstrikes amid talks for potential Hormuz deal
Middle East
Trump pulls back after Iran crosses his red line as U.S. military breaks two-week streak of airstrikes amid talks for potential Hormuz deal
By Jason MaJuly 25, 2026
20 hours ago
'The demographic dividend of the last 40 years is ending': J.P. Morgan says the world is running out of the two things that kept interest rates down
Economy
'The demographic dividend of the last 40 years is ending': J.P. Morgan says the world is running out of the two things that kept interest rates down
By Eleanor PringleJuly 24, 2026
2 days ago
An 11-year-old is cleaning his neighbors' trash cans for $10 each—he now has 100K followers as teens face the worst summer job market since 1948
Success
An 11-year-old is cleaning his neighbors' trash cans for $10 each—he now has 100K followers as teens face the worst summer job market since 1948
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJuly 25, 2026
1 day ago
Startups are installing tiny data centers in people’s homes to reduce strain on the beleaguered electrical grid
Environment
Startups are installing tiny data centers in people’s homes to reduce strain on the beleaguered electrical grid
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 25, 2026
1 day ago
A Hims cofounder fired his entire marketing team for AI. Now his 24/7 online vet service is growing 20% a month
Success
A Hims cofounder fired his entire marketing team for AI. Now his 24/7 online vet service is growing 20% a month
By Sydney LakeJuly 25, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.