Based on the number of people I hear complaining about how hard it is to find qualified graphic design employees, I got curious about what employers are looking for. So I went to Monster.com and CareeerBuilder.com and did a basic search for jobs with the key words "graphic design" within 50 miles of Los Angeles. I found around 300 jobs posted within the last month, ranging from secretarial jobs to production managers to the directorship of an academic department.

After sifting through the requirements for these jobs, I learned that I am virtually unemployable.

Why? Because I do not have a degree in graphic design.

I've been a graphic designer for a long time—learned about the processes and the technology on the job, working with some of the most brilliant minds in the industry. I've written a number of books about graphic design software, and even trained other people how to use it.

But the vast majority of posted positions required, or at least "strongly preferred," a four-year degree in graphic design, marketing or similar fields. Since a lot of companies use computers to sift through resumes for key words that match the stated requirements, my resume would never make it past the gate.

Suggestions for Hiring

Hiring graphic designers is not difficult, especially considering the number of people who lay claim to the title. Hiring the right graphic designers requires a bit more time and effort.

So what should you look for when hiring?

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First, stop putting such overwhelming emphasis on a degree. (Don't get me wrong, I am not arguing that education is not important. It is just not the only—or even the most important—criterion on which to base hiring decisions in graphic design fields.)

By requiring a 4-year degree, employers are eliminating a large number of very talented, very capable designers. Desktop design is a relatively young profession. When desktop took over, a significant number of traditional craftspeople retrained on the job to master the new technology.

Many people take continuing education or career-retraining classes to learn graphic design, but never earn a degree. Others use books and available self-training materials to learn desktop publishing software, often with excellent results.

The point is, a lot of very skilled and knowledgeable people do not have degrees in graphic design. This lack, however, should not disqualify those people as prospective employees.

Second, look for people who are certified by the companies that make the software. Quark, Macromedia, and Adobe all offer user certification, which, although not guaranteeing that the person you hire will be a good designer, at least provides some reassurance that he or she will have more than a passing familiarity with the software.

Check the following sites for more information about software certification programs.

• Quark: www.quark.com/partners/certified_expert
• Macromedia: www.macromedia.com/support/training/certified_professional_program
• Adobe: www.adobe.com/support/certification/ace.html

Third, when you review portfolios, ask to see the digital files. Looking only at the printed job says nothing about the designer's technical ability to create successful files. Looking at the files can give you insight into how long it took to create the file, as well as how much intervention was necessary before the job could be output. If you don't personally know what is or is not a good file, find someone on your team who knows about the software to review portfolio files.

Fourth, ask potential hires to create a sample job that represents the type of work in your shop. You can make them do this in your shop and time the test, or let them do it on their own with a specific deadline. (This can be especially useful for evaluating candidates who don't have the digital files for their portfolio pieces, since there are legitimate reasons for not always having the files.) Again, if you don't personally know what to look for, ask someone who does to review the test files.

Finally, reconsider the compensation and position in the corporate hierarchy that you offer graphic designers, especially page layout or production artists (the people who use the software to actually implement designs in files that can be successfully output). One art director recently complained to me, "By the time [production artists] get up to speed with the software, they quit and go to another company for a better-paying job."

A lot of companies value these production artists somewhere between dot-matrix printers and used fountain solution. But without good production artists to create the files that are output, production workflow would virtually stop. Perhaps offering more competitive compensation would instill a bit of loyalty in your new hires.

Erika Kendra is a free-lance graphic designer and writer in Los Angeles.

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