i + D - May/June 2020 - 20

 

Design
by the
Numbers

ASID
CHECKS
THE DESIGN
INDUSTRY
PULSE
The American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) conducted a series of
surveys to identify the issues being faced by design professionals during
the COVID-19 crisis. Beginning on March 31, 2020, a "pulse survey"
was conducted every two weeks with each edition covering a variety
of topics including top concerns, greatest challenges of remote/virtual
meetings, anticipated recovery time, and more.
Susan Chung, Ph.D., director of research and knowledge management
for ASID, notes that "changes in work for the interior design community
continue to fluctuate. The community experienced a significant impact
on work at the beginning as major adjustments were required to
transition into virtual work for a profession that works in the physical
realm. We began adjusting to these changes over time finding some
stability in the April 28 survey; however, the pendulum seems to be
swinging back toward additional change based on the May 12 survey
with increased reports on changes in work."

Recovery time*

*	Concern from the interior design community began
decreasing mid-to-late April, but now at a slower pace.
The level of concern regarding the impact of COVID-19
on professional life in the first two surveys had an average
of 4.0 on a 5-point scale, but then dropped to 3.8 in the
April 28 survey and 3.7 in the May 12 survey.
*	The largest consensus among survey respondents in
their estimated time to recover to pre-COVID business
performance has consistently been one to three months since
the first pulse survey on March 31. Projections are slowly
getting longer (8 percent of survey respondents estimated
more than 12 months to recover in the May 12 survey,
compared to 2 percent in the March 31 survey), but the
group that is estimating less than one month is increasing.
*	The physical nature of interior design is challenging to
navigate through barriers placed by COVID-19. Top
challenges reported in topical questions from each survey
include projects being cancelled or put on hold (41 percent
of designers reported in the April 14 survey), getting access
to clients/consumers (51 percent overall from April 28
survey; 48 percent of designers, 68 percent of manufacturers/
retailers), and having to manage time through virtual
communications (19 percent overall from May 12 survey).

33%
30%
28%

23%

22%

Key findings from the
ASID COVID-19 Pulse Survey:

18%

*	Eighty-five percent of survey respondents representing
the interior design community are reporting some level
of burnout, with the majority at a medium level (38 percent).
People have been creating an exercise routine (19 percent),
practicing mindfulness (13 percent), and scheduling breaks
(12 percent) to improve physical, mental, and emotional
health during this time.

17% 17%

8%

For complete details from the ASID COVID-19 Pulse Survey,
go to asid.org/resources/covid-19/pulse-survey.

4%

Less than
a month

1-3
months

3-6
months

6-12
months

More than
12 months

*Note: Apr. 28 survey: bold colors on left; May 12 survey: muted colors on right

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i+D - May/June 2020

20-05-21 15:31
http://www.asid.org/resources/covid-19/pulse-survey
i + D - May/June 2020

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