Two new research reports released recently by the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) show that overall, the interior design profession is strong and industry professionals are satisfied in their careers. Created to support interior designers across all professional levels, the “ASID Compensation & Benefits Report” and the “ASID Talent Acquisition Report” outline prevalent issues in the interior design workplace and offer data to empower the design community to a more inclusive and equitable future.
The “ASID Compensation & Benefits Report” examines the interior design workforce through data collected as part of the ASID Member Census, conducted in 2023. Authored by Michael J. Berens, M.S., Ph. D, the report covers trends impacting salaries, benefits, and job satisfaction to provide insights within the design profession for hiring professionals and job seekers alike. ASID’s “Talent Acquisition Report,” authored by Lisa Henry, Allied AIA, FASID, serves as a complement to the “Compensation & Benefits Report,” drawing from today’s market conditions detailing challenges and strategies that design firms can use to tailor their talent retention and recruitment methods.
In recent years, increased demand for interior design services has created a tight labor market for talent. Findings from the “ASID Compensation & Benefits Report” explore salaries and benefits across demographics including gender, education, region, race, job level, role, experience and more – along with job satisfaction by gender and firm size. With this information, employees can better assess their current job situation and make informed decisions about their future career choices, and employers can better understand the factors that most influence employees’ hiring decisions, performance, and retention. Notable findings include:
- Salaries have increased over the past five years.
- Education and certification affect salary levels.
- Employees place a high value on work flexibility, as well as benefits that contribute to their health, wellness, and well-being.
- Gender and age can affect employees’ benefits.
Firms that understand evolving employee expectations, prioritize employee engagement and invest in their people can create a virtuous cycle that improves their ability to attract, develop and retain talent. The “ASID Talent Acquisition Report” explores challenges and presents strategies that design firms can use to help leaders tailor and tune up their talent acquisition strategies. Regardless of the number of employees, different sized firms are impacted by the same demographic shifts and can customize many of these strategies and ideas to fit their culture and resource constraints.
Other findings from the report include:
- Employers are framing their strategy for talent acquisition differently in an effort to attract and engage earlier career professionals.
- Firms are re-evaluating their recruiting methods and taking advantage of remote work to attract candidates from new pools that were previously excluded due to geographical limitations or preferences.
- Compensation and other transactional benefits are just the baseline for keeping top talent; the relational side of work is what makes the difference.
Both reports are sponsored by Sherwin Williams and are now available for interior designers, industry professionals and members of the public. The reports are free for ASID members, and $150 each for non-members.
