The Emerging Careers of Creative People

Taking a historical view, creatives have generally found themselves confined to a handful of specific and competitive industries, which are difficult to break into and even more difficult to succeed in. However, new research from Deloitte Access Economics has found that many of the skills and traits of creative people will be in shortage by 2030.

At Experlio, this only confirms what we firmly believe, that creativity is, and will become even more of a sought-after skill and job title in almost every industry. Get ready for job titles such as creative farmers, creative engineers, and creative scientists, because the emerging wave of Australian creative talent will soon find themselves entering industries beyond the arts, design, film, and fashion.

Finding a creative career

However, not all industries share our enthusiasm for hiring creative talent just yet, so let’s take a look at some of the careers creatives can embark on now, to prepare themselves for the inevitable creative boom. Based on a UNCTAD report, these are some of the industries best suited for creative individuals now:

• Marketing
• Advertising
• Graphic design
• Project development
• Architecture
• Fashion
• Photography
• Filmmaking
• Music
• Finishing Art
• Performing arts
• Journalism
• Communications
• Television
• Radio

This is not to say that every industry doesn’t require creative, original, or imaginative thinking, however, these are some industries where such skills might be included in the job description. This being said, we hope to be part of a future where creative thinking and creative skills are a key part of every job and every job description.

Analysing creative job growth in the marketing industry

Take marketing as an example, in the last 5 years, content creator jobs have increased by 489,000%. By 2025, content creation is expected to become an industry of its own, with a marketing size exceeding $16 Billion and digital content overall becoming a $300 Billion industry and growing at 11% p.a.

As a whole, in Australia, the marketing industry is expected to grow by 11.4% this year alone. And over the next 5 years, there is expected to be an estimated 53,000 job openings across the industry. This growth is mirrored by a 2.5 million-person creative skills shortage in the international marketing, PR, and design industry. Confirming why it’s such a great place to have a creative career.

Looking closer at the marketing and advertising industry, LinkedIn data shows that over the past 5 years there was over a 30% growth in hiring marketing managers and copywriters, with 8000 and 1300 active job postings for these roles respectively. What’s more, new creative roles are being created every day, such as growth hackers, creative project managers, and creative solutionists.

This being said, one of the hardest parts about entering into the marketing industry is getting your start. If you are an emerging creative looking to move into the marketing industry, it’s no secret that businesses want to see industry-relevant past work and experience. At Experlio we are on a mission to use technology to connect emerging marketing talent with an innovative and forward-thinking business. Where you can hone, test, and develop your marketing skills in a judgment-free and supportive environment.

Further creative job growth in the design industry

From UI designer to UX designer, product designer, website designer, application designer, graphic designer, and finishing artist, there is a wide range of roles available within the design industry. Looking at a graph of the top design job searches on Google in 2020, it shows that graphic designer, UX designer, and creative director were all top job searches. Showing that both candidates and employers are looking to hire and work in these roles.

Consider, in 2020 alone there was a 289% increase in UX designer interviews on the popular British job portal Hired, which coincidentally is also one of the highest paying design-related jobs in Australia. This demand is only set to grow, as Google now includes UX as a key SEO ranking factor for websites.

Other roles such as product design, graphic design, visual design, and illustration are also among the most in-demand designer jobs right now. These roles require a certain human touch that creative people bring.

Video game designers have also felt the same growth, with demand and job postings for video game designers predicted to grow by 9.3%  globally by 2026. A survey by IGEA showed that the Australian game development industry generated revenue growth of 21% in 2019. That’s why game designing is a great career option for creative minds that are passionate about gaming, story design, and animation. 

Whilst the design industry is experiencing rapid growth and expansion, it is still one of the most competitive industries you can work in. Know for high pressure, long hours, and lofty expectations. That’s why it’s important to develop, improve, and expand your technical and creative skills as best you can. At Experlio we do just that, by giving emerging design talent the opportunity to work with real-life projects and businesses.

The future of creative careers

Looking at the predicted skills gaps and shortages graph below, you can see critical shortages in creative skills such as written and verbal communications, problem-solving, and innovative thinking. So it’s not hard to imagine a world where creative skills are a key part of every imaginable industry, and one of the world’s must-have skills.

Deloitte’s research also shows a broadening definition of creativity. Think about how many problems businesses across industries face every single day. The number is huge. Creativity is a necessary tool for innovating and solving these problems. This broadening definition of creativity will only increase the speed at which it will become the key skills of tomorrow.

Consider, a civil engineer is tasked with building a new apartment building where an old hospital currently stands. Whilst today in Australia, we might decide to knock the hospital down to make way for a large unsustainable steel and glass structure. Soon in the future, as more creative civil engineers enter the workforce, it might be decided that the existing hospital would be kept and re-imagined using reclaimed wood, mud bricks, and cross-laminated timber. Using the same thinking, it’s not difficult to imagine case studies like this across the accounting, legal, manufacturing, and other fields.

Creativity and creative skills always have been and will continue to be a critical part of any job. However, it is only recently that it has become a formally recognized skill and title. At Experlio we hope to empower creative talent by connecting them with business opportunities to hone their skills and help innovate and re-shape traditional business thinking.

At Experlio our creative talent platform has been designed to shape the careers of emerging creative people. If you are a business that is also excited about creative talent, why not visit our website to learn more about how you can embrace creative talent in your business. Or, if you’re creative, why not join the community of young creatives shaping their creative futures.

Looking for creative talent? Look no further. Discover top emerging creative talent with Experlio.