Design Council research

I have started thinking about what type of designer I want to be and how exactly I go about this. Before completing the Enterprise tasks I needed to refresh my memory, so have gone through the lecture notes etc but also found a brilliant report from the Design Council.

I have pulled out the most important data for my future.

The majority of design consultancies have been operating over 15 years. I guess these businesses have more experience and more recommendations.

It seems digital design has decreased slightly while communications has increased.

This makes me happy! I would like to go into a small sized team in the private sector and this data shows that 65% of design consultancies in the UK private sector have fewer that 4 staff... and 18% have 5-9.

This also looks good to me. Design consultancies earn an average £100k-£500k. Compared to all other design businesses earning average of less than £50k.

The design consultancies also expect to see a moderate increase in their income which is positive!

98% working for the private sector... this is getting better and better.

90% of the clients based in the UK. Perfect for me. I am concerned about producing work for other countries as I cannot know how they are going to perceive a message as well as the UK market.

The majority of design consultancies target new clients by personal recommendation. It is good to produce good work and be memorable I guess.

This surprises me slightly, sustainable design expertise come in lowest on this data of things which are very important when targeting new clients. Even creativity and price are low down.

Even though it does not seem as important to the client, design businesses are still doing quite alot to make their own business more sustainable.

This looks a bit devastating... BUT I will be in a better position when coming out of uni with experience as well as a qualification. I think that you do get a load of knowledge from being in the industry, but I believe I would not have been interested in typography or understood loads of the tiny details that make a good graphic designer without coming to Leeds College of Art. Being a designer, in my mind, is not about academics, but rather a state of mind and attitude towards the work. You do not need a degree to have this, you just have it or you don't. However, for me personally, my degree has helped me make the most out of the skills I already had and put them into practise more effectively.

Yay, they are recruiting students, and they are satisfied! 

This looks quite promising for my summer placements.