Use these 4 trends to hire top design talent and your firm will add outstanding architects and interior designers to your team.

With the industry evolving rapidly, architecture leaders must stay up-to-date on the latest trends in hiring and interviewing. In this article, we’ll explore four key trends shaping the architecture hiring process and why they’re important to consider.  And with the industry poised to quickly recover, if not in Q4, into next year, the sooner you firm can build an interview process to use these 4 trends to hire top design talent, the better off your firm will be when it does come time to bring on staff.

Use These 4 Trends to Hire Top Design Talent

To ensure success, use these 4 trends to hire top design talent.

1. Diversity, equity, and inclusion
2. Technology utilization
3. Soft skills and technology focus
4. Unique employee benefits.

Trend 1: Emphasizing Diversity and Inclusion

Making a good hiring decision is everything. Your new employee should bring skill and insight to every project. To harness that powerful creativity, consider emphasizing diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Diversity and inclusion have become hot topics in the architecture industry in recent years, and for good reason. Research has shown that diverse teams are more innovative and better equipped to tackle complex problems. Architecture firms are beginning to recognize the importance of diversity and are taking steps to make their hiring processes more inclusive.

Some examples of how firms are implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in their hiring processes include:

• Setting diversity targets for new hires and promoting transparency around these goals
• Partnering with organizations that promote diversity in architecture, such as the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA)
• Using blind recruitment methods, such as removing identifying information from resumes, to reduce unconscious bias

Recognized architecture firms use these 4 trends to hire top design talent.  ZGF has partnered with a nearby university to attract interns to the industry. Because their studios are worldwide, Perkins and Wells experience diversity, equity, and inclusion in unique ways.

Director of Global Diversity Gabrielle Bullock, FAIA, notes that DEI looks different in various locations. According to Bullock, “Recruitment and outreach in Minneapolis, for example, might have a different emphasis than in Los Angeles, where the talent pool is more diverse. Our international office, for example, has very different issues around diversity, which may be defined by religion or nationality.”

Trend 2: Utilizing Technology to Streamline Recruitment

Firms of all sizes have turned to technology to do more with less. With the right tools, firms can streamline recruitment and save time and resources. Some examples of technology tools that can be used for recruiting include:

• Applicant tracking systems (ATS) that automate resume screening and applicant communication
• Remote video interviews, saving time and resources
• Using AI to write job descriptions, interview questions, and record meetings

Using technology to create a more efficient hiring process for identifying architecture candidates allows firms to balance better the time they spend hiring.

Trend 3: Focusing on Soft Skills Over Technical Abilities

While technical abilities are essential for architects, soft skills such as communication, teamwork, and problem-solving are equally important. Critical thinking ability and interpersonal skills rank high in this industry.

Firms recognize the need for architects who can design beautiful buildings. They also look for designers who collaborate effectively with clients and team members. How?

Some examples of how firms assess soft skills during the recruitment process include:

• Conducting behavioral interviews that focus on past experiences and how candidates have handled specific situations
• Administering personality assessments better to understand a candidate’s working style and communication preferences
• Incorporating team-building exercises or group interviews to assess a candidate’s ability to work with others

The goal is to find a candidate who demonstrates soft and technical skills; then, you can teach them everything else.

Trend 4: Offering Unique Employee Benefits

With so many firms vying for top talent, if your firm can use these 4 trends to hire top design talent, you will be ahead of the market. Offering unique employee benefits can help attract and retain the best architects.

Some examples of creative employee benefits being offered by architectural firms include:

• Flexible work arrangements, such as remote work or flexible hours
• Pet-friendly offices
• Professional development opportunities, such as workshops or conferences
• Health and wellness perks, such as gym memberships or meditation sessions

Benefits like these create your company culture, which matters greatly to candidates.

Use These 4 Trends to Hire Top Design Talent

In Conclusion, the hiring process in architecture is evolving rapidly.  Your firm can use these 4 trends to hire top design talent.

By emphasizing diversity and inclusion, utilizing technology, focusing on soft skills, and offering unique employee benefits, firms can attract and retain the best talent in the industry. Ultimately, these trends can improve the architecture hiring process and ensure firms’ future success.

If you are interested in other data points you can review my article and use these 4 trends to hire top design talent.  Hiring talent, and ensuring it is the right talent for your team, firm, design, and project type is a complex and critical process.  Each candidate is different and each interview is a new discussion.  However, if you use these 4 trends to hire top design talent, you will have a strong toolset to help you win the war for talent.

If you’re ready to explore the latest hiring trends and use these 4 trends to hire top design talent, reach out to DBI.   Reach out to a professional recruiter who can help you discover some of the talent interested in a design career.

Contact us to discuss your career options or browse our open positions.