Are You Screening For The Right Skills When Hiring Designers?
In writing job descriptions and conducting interviews, technical skills can easily become an overriding focus of recruiting for design jobs. Is the candidate versed in the same software your creative staff uses to get work done? Are they experts in production flows? Do they possess the experience to make good specs? Technical abilities are the very foundation of a creative hire but from this base it is important to move on to assessment of other more general skills.
Why? A well-rounded contributor will make a difference on your creative team AND in your business overall. Creative talent can quickly evolve out of a day-to-day role using technical tools as they take on creative leadership or managerial duties. While the technical skills will make them valuable in the short-term, these general skills will make the valuable for the long-haul, so be sure to consider these on your next search for a designer:
- Creativity: The ability to come up with new and innovative ideas is essential for many creative roles, or, really, any role at all when you think about it. Creativity means more options when solving problems, be they big or small, inside your organization or in the marketplace.
- Communication: The ability to effectively communicate ideas and collaborate with others is important for many creative professionals, as they often work in teams or with clients. Again this is a skill that goes far beyond their role on the creative team. Clear communication is an essential component of smoothly operating businesses.
- Problem-solving: Creative professionals often face challenges and need to be able to find creative solutions to problems. Look for creative problem solving but seek examples of the candidate applying this skill outside the confines of a creative brief -- problems, as we know, are everywhere in a company's sphere.
- Adaptability: The ability to adapt to new technologies and trends is important for creative professionals, as the industry is constantly evolving. That adaptability is important as the toolset evolves for a specific design role but also critical on a career path that likely includes increasing responsibilities and a diversity of challenges.
- Attention to detail: The ability to pay attention to details is important for many creative roles, as even small mistakes can have a big impact on the final product. This is a particularly well-worn truism in the creative field, one that every designer is imprinted with in their formative stage. While there are certainly situations that call for ignoring the details, an attention to detail is beneficial to a company in most circumstances so should really be a baseline skill for all employees.
- Time management: The ability to manage time effectively is important for creative professionals, as they often have tight deadlines and multiple projects to work on. Always a welcome skill for anyone who is on staff, time management will only benefit the employee more as they grow their responsibilities.
- Passion: A passion for the field and a desire to stay up to date with industry trends and developments can be valuable for creative professionals. As a "cultural antenna" for a company, employees working in design need to be both receiving and dispensing all that they see. This is a skill that becomes even more valuable if it can be maintained as they ascend to positions that permit them a high-level stake in strategy and market approach.
If we would sum this up in a single sentence or sentiment, it'd be this: With creative candidates, you want the tech-grounded but well-rounded.
Post a design job today at Coroflot and get started on filling your creative positions.
Photo credits: @shaikhulud , @jasongoodman_youxventures