Dribbble’s Global Survey of 17,000 design professionals shows why it’s time for companies to embrace flexible work models and adjust their hiring methods in order to better attract, identify, and vet potential talent writesÂ
Chloe Oddleifson Director of People Operations–Dribbble.
The state of work has changed significantly over the past decade. Even as recently as the past few years, companies attracted workers through perks like free snacks and fun office spaces complete with ping-pong tables and nap pods. But according to Dribbble’s Global SurveyOpens a new window of 17,000 design professionals, that’s all changing. Employees are increasingly looking for flexibility in their jobs, and the ways that they’re finding those jobs and growing their skill sets are changing, too. By recognizing these trends and adapting, hiring managers can attract the best and brightest talent to their organizations.
It Pays to Offer Remote and Flexible Work
It’s no secret that remote work is on the rise. With advances in technology, it has become simpler than ever to stay connected and take care of business, no matter where you are. The lifestyle benefits that remote work provides its employees are easy to see—better work/life balance, the ability to set one’s own schedule, and, in many cases, a more affordable cost of living. New data shows that there are significant financial benefits, too. Dribbble’s Global Survey found that 38% of fully remote employees make more than $75,000 a year, but only 23% of their on-site counterparts report making that much. While fully remote employees currently make up only 14% of the workforce (compared to 46% fully on-site), we can expect the numbers to shift significantly towards remote work in the coming years as demand from employees for flexible work opportunities continues to grow.
Generic Hiring Platforms Only Get You So Far
It may seem counterintuitive, but the rise of generic hiring platforms has actually made it more difficult to get hired—especially for workers in the design field, where visual portfolios demonstrate talent more effectively than a traditional resume. As a result, designers are turning to design-specific hiring platforms where they can showcase their portfolios in a captivating way and search through jobs that are relevant to their areas of expertise. And although online job boards are still an item on the hiring checklist for many (18% of designers said they utilize them), many designers are making a shift towards more personal interactions with hiring managers. Dribbble’s Global Survey found that 44% of designers pursue work opportunities through in-person means (like networking events and industry conferences), working with professional recruiters, and reaching out to companies directly.
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Design Education is Changing
It may be time to reexamine how heavily formal education weighs into hiring when it comes to design, too. Dribbble’s Global Survey found that while 50% of US-based designers report learning their skills in school, the global design community is largely self-taught. Globally, 42% of designers report learning design on their own—just 29% report learning in school, and 15% report learning their skills while on-the-job. As a company that works closely with designers and the organizations looking to hire them, we’ve found that examining a candidate’s active, current portfolio is a better barometer of one’s skills than traditional measures like education level.Â
Recent shifts in the talent marketplace have shown that it’s time to adjust our hiring methods in order to attract, identify, and vet potential talent, especially when it comes to design. By offering remote and flexible work (along with building out best-in-class processes for remote employee onboarding and remote company cultureOpens a new window ), focusing your candidate search on design-specific hiring platforms and in-person hiring opportunities, and looking beyond traditional education when assessing someone’s skills can help hiring managers to secure the most promising candidates for their respective organizations.
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