Findings from the A LIST APART Survey, 2008

As we did in 2007, A List Apart and you teamed up to shed light on precisely who creates websites. Where do we live? What kind of work do we do? What are our job titles? How well or how poorly are we paid? How satisfied are we, and where do we see ourselves going?

In 2008, 30,055 readers took part in the A List Apart Survey. Once more, data analysts Alan Brickman and Larry Yu crunched numbers this way and that. With a global recession in full swing as of December 2007, we were particularly interested to find out how financially and professionally secure web people felt, and whether there were discernible differences in the way people responded to questions about satisfaction and security in 2008, compared with 2007. This year we also improved our fact-finding on freelance and part-time web personnel.

Significant findings are broken out in the section entitled Headline Findings.

The more things change

For 2008, instead of a downloadable (PDF) white paper, we decided to present our findings on the web. Which meant, in addition to compiling and analyzing data and reporting our findings with words and charts, we had to design a website and convert XHTML table data into clear and beauteous charts, via the magic of advanced CSS. ALA’s Jason Santa Maria designed the website. Eric A. Meyer visualized the charts and crafted the mind-bending CSS that brought them to life. (Geeks, view source and enjoy.) Others who worked on these findings include editor Krista Stevens and publisher Jeffrey Zeldman.

We present each table twice: once with the raw numbers, and once with the corresponding percentages. The total responses may differ from table to table because the statisticians omitted blanks to compute percentages.

This report describes our findings, including, wherever possible, any major changes from 2007—the first year we conducted the survey. In many cases, direct year-to-year comparisons are impossible because categories, ranges, and other choices are different from 2007. Put simply, your feedback about the questions from 2007, along with the advice of our consultants, led us to update many of the questions and categories; these changes improved the quality of the survey, but prevent some direct year-to-year comparisons.

Analyses contained in this report should be considered primarily descriptive; no attempt was made to assess causality among survey variables. In plain English, be careful not to extrapolate the observations that follow into predictive or causal relationships.

Who are you?

Come here often? What’s your sign?

Respondents were asked basic questions about age, gender, job title, and so on.

Age

18 and under	1.7%
19-29	50.5%
30-44	39.5%
45-64	6.2%
65 and over	0.2%
No response	1.9%

The age ranges were different in this year’s survey, so a one-to-one comparison is difficult. The vast majority of respondents, as last year, are in their 20s, 30s, and 40s.

Gender

Male	82.4%
Female	16.0%
No response	1.6%

The respondents are overwhelmingly male, similar to last year.

Ethnicity

White / Caucasian	83.6%
Asian / Pacific Rim	6.2%
Hispanic / Latino	4.1%
Black / African	1.2%
Indigenous / Native	0.3%
Other	3.4%
No response	1.3%

The respondents are overwhelmingly white, but with a slightly higher percentage of Hispanic respondents compared to 2007.

Job title

Do we put “Other” in the stack with all the other responses (thus making it the second entry) or keep it at the end? If we mix it in, do we style it a little differently, or no? This is a question for all “Other” responses, really.

Developer	27.4%
Web Designer	12.6%
Designer	8.3%
Webmaster, Web Master	4.4%
Project Manager	3.7%
Interface Designer, UI Designer	3.2%
Creative Director	3.0%
Art Director	1.9%
Web Producer	1.8%
Information Architect	1.6%
Web Director	1.5%
Writer, Editor	1.2%
Usability Expert/Consultant/Lead	1.0%
Marketer	0.9%
Educator	0.5%
Accessibility Expert/Consultant/Lead	0.2%
Other	25.7%
No response	1.2%

A range similar to last year’s, but with a much higher percentage of people indicating “Other” (26.0% compared to 15.7%).

Geographic region

North and Central America	54.9%
Europe	33.1%
Oceania	5.3%
Asia	4.0%
South America	1.9%
Africa	0.7%
Antarctica	0.03%
No response	0.2%

We changed the categories in 2008. North and Central America and Europe account for almost 90% of the responses, and there is slightly more diversity than last year, with increased percentages from Asia, South America, and Oceania. Within North and Central America, 88% of respondents are from the United States. There were nine respondents who claimed to be located in Antarctica.

Top 20 responding countries

United States of America	48.3%
United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland	10.8%
Canada	5.3%
Australia, Commonwealth of	4.0%
Germany, Federal Republic of	3.1%
Netherlands, Kingdom of the	2.7%
France, French Republic	1.4%
Italy, Italian Republic	1.3%
Sweden, Kingdom of	1.3%
New Zealand	1.2%
Finland, Republic of	1.2%
India, Republic of	1.1%
Belgium, Kingdom of	1.0%
Spain, Kingdom of	1.0%
Norway, Kingdom of	0.9%
Denmark, Kingdom of	0.9%
Poland, Republic of	0.8%
Romania	0.8%
Brazil, Federative Republic of	0.7%
Ireland	0.7%

There were responses from 157 countries in total. The top 20 countries listed here represent 88.6% of all responses.

Education and commitment

Education

Stick with the bar chart, or use a pie chart like we did last year?

Grade/primary school	1.1%
High/secondary school	9.4%
Some college or university	21.6%
College diploma, associate’s, bachelor’s, or other degree	52.9%
Master’s degree	13.4%
Doctorate	1.0%
No response	0.6%

We changed the categories in 2008. A greater percentage of respondents in 2008 reported they had at least some college.

How much have your academic studies helped you in your work as a web designer/developer?

Not at all	19.0%
A little	29.1%
Some	35.0%
A lot	16.3%
No response	0.6%

As last year, those of you who say your education has at least some relevance represent just over 50%.

Do you find web design to be an exciting profession?

No	1.6%
Yes - once in a while	19.0%
Yes - frequently	43.7%
Yes - very frequently	33.8%
Don’t know	1.0%
No response	0.9%

The answers are very similar to last year’s: people are, in general, frequently excited by their web work.

Have a personal site/blog

Yes	71.5%
No	27.9%
No response	0.6%

Again, over 70% of respondents have blogs. The scales for the number of years were different in the two surveys, so comparisons are a bit tricky, but it appears that this year’s respondents have been blogging longer than last year’s, with over a third blogging for five years or more.

Time personal site/blog online

Less than a year	7.7%
1 year	5.8%
2 years	9.0%
3 years	8.6%
4 years	7.4%
5 years	7.5%
6 years	4.8%
7 years	3.9%
8 years	4.6%
9 years	2.3%
10 years (or more)	9.9%
Not applicable	27.9%
No response	0.6%

It’s a workaday world

Type of organization

Partner in a large company or organization	1.9%
Partner in a small business	8.0%
Employee of a company, university, library, museum, nonprofit, or other organization	56.3%
Independent contractor/freelancer or owner of small business	26.1%
Student, hobbyist, volunteer, or other uncompensated role	7.5%
No response	0.2%

The categories are different from the 2007 survey. Over half of the respondents do their web work as an employee, and just over a quarter do it as a freelancer—slightly more than in 2007.

Organization size

Self-employed / freelance	19.9%
2-5 employees	11.1%
6-10 employees	8.1%
11-25 employees	10.7%
26-50 employees	8.5%
51-300 employees	14.0%
301-750 employees	5.0%
751-3000 employees	5.7%
More than 3000 employees	9.3%
No response	7.7%

The responses are quite comparable to last year. The differences may derive from the fact that a greater percentage of people said they were “self-employed/freelance.”

Hours worked per week

Less than 20 hours	6.8%
20-29 hours	6.4%
30-39 hours	19.5%
40-49 hours	47.7%
50-59 hours	12.6%
60 hours or more	6.5%
No response	0.3%

The answers are comparable to last year, but in general, respondents are working more this year. Fewer respondents reported working less than 20 hours (6.8% compared to 8.3%), and a greater percentage reported working over 40 hours (67.1% compared to 60.8%).

Years in the field

Less than a year	5.0%
1 year	5.8%
2 years	10.9%
3 years	11.0%
4 years	8.7%
5 years	9.2%
6 years	5.8%
7 years	5.9%
8 years	9.0%
9 years	5.1%
10 years (or more)	19.5%
Not applicable	3.6%
No response	0.4%

Although the question was structured differently in 2008, the responses appear comparable. This year’s respondents seem to have more experience. This year, there were fewer people with three years or less experience (21.9% to 33.5%), and more people with ten years or more experience (19.6% to 9.0%).

Degree of web work

All or nearly all of my work is web-related	53.6%
Most of my work is web-related	25.8%
About half my work is web-related	10.7%
Around a quarter of my work is web-related	4.6%
Web-related work is a small part of what I do	4.2%
I don’t do any web-related work	0.6%
No response	0.5%

This year’s respondents appear much more involved in web work than last year’s. Among this year’s respondents, almost 80% indicate that all or most of their time is spent on web work, as opposed to just over half last year. This year, only 4.2% said that web design was a small part of what they do, as opposed to 16.5% last year.

Years at current job

Less than a year	26.4%
1 year	17.3%
2 years	19.8%
3 years	10.9%
4 years	6.4%
5 years	4.4%
6 years	2.8%
7 years	2.5%
8 years	2.9%
9 years	1.5%
10 years (or more)	4.4%
Not applicable	0.5%

Percentages are based on 19,880 responses to this question.

This question was only for partners and/or employees (what we call “corporates” in this report). Although the question was structured differently in 2007, the responses are fairly comparable.

Number of years freelancing

Less than a year	10.8%
1 year	9.5%
2 years	14.1%
3 years	11.3%
4 years	8.5%
5 years	8.4%
6 years	5.2%
7 years	3.7%
8 years	4.1%
9 years	1.7%
10 years (or more)	11.5%
Not applicable	11.2%

Percentages are based on 10,077 responses to this question.

This was only asked of the freelancers, and was not asked last year. The responses are quite evenly distributed, with the two largest being “2 years” and “10 years (or more)”.

Next career move

Get a promotion at my current job	15.8%
New job in a new organization	13.9%
Start my own business	12.9%
Stay where I am	12.7%
Learn a new skill	12.4%
Start pitching a better class of client	7.7%
Change my area of specialization	5.1%
Attend a conference/take classes/other educational activity	3.0%
Find a partner whose skills complement mine	3.0%
Begin (or expand) my professional writing or speaking	2.7%
Get my first job in the field	2.0%
Leave the profession	1.9%
Other	5.8%
No response	1.2%

We changed the question this year to include many more options.

Paid vacation

Not applicable	6.8%
Less than 6 days	3.0%
6-10 days	12.3%
11-15 days	24.3%
16-20 days	19.9%
21-25 days	20.9%
More than 25 days	12.7%

Percentages are based on 19,772 responses to this question.

Because the survey was restructured in 2008 so that this question was asked only of “corporates”, there is a lower percentage of “not applicable” responses than last year, and higher percentages in many of the other categories. Otherwise the responses are fairly comparable.

Paid holidays

0 days	6.0%
1-3 days	4.4%
4-8 days	49.8%
9-11 days	24.1%
11-13 days	7.1%
13-15 days	3.8%
More than 15 days	4.7%

Percentages are based on 19,741 responses to this question.

See comment on vacation days above.

Money, honey

Salary

Less than $10,000	13.4%
$10,000-$19,999	8.0%
$20,000-$39,999	17.1%
$40,000-$59,999	23.9%
$60,000-$79,999	17.3%
$80,000-$99,999	9.1%
$100,000-$119,999	4.4%
$120,000-$149,999	2.6%
More than $150,000	1.9%
No response	2.3%

Respondents reported a wide spread in salaries. In general, the 2008 respondents seem to make more than the 2007 respondents, based on higher percentages in the upper income categories. This may reflect people working a greater number of hours (see table TK). There are several ways we can quantify earnings across a segment of the sample, for comparison purposes:

1. Compute a weighted average using the midpoints of the ranges (and $175,000 for the over $150,000 category)
2. Compute the percentage of a segment making over $100,000 or under $40,000
3. Identify the category in which the respondent in the middle of the sample falls, to find a rough median

None is perfect (the weighted average tempts one to regard it as an actual average, which it is not; the over $100,000/under $40,000 segment is only a partial picture; and the median is too broad and misses significant differences), but all are useful. For future reference in the report, the entire sample quantifies as follows:

• Weighted average: $52,095
• Percentage over $100,000: 9.1%
• Percentage under $40,000: 39.4%
• Median range: $40,000-$59,999

We will most often use the weighted average for comparisons.

Amount of last raise

Two entries are 0.0%. Keep? Drop? Should we combine some of the upper levels anyway?

Not applicable	25.7%
My salary decreased	1.5%
1-5%	31.6%
6-10%	18.0%
11-15%	8.0%
16-20%	5.3%
21-25%	3.4%
26-30%	1.6%
31-35%	1.2%
36-40%	0.7%
41-45%	0.4%
46-50%	0.8%
51-55%	0.4%
56-60%	0.2%
61-65%	0.1%
66-70%	0.1%
71-75%	0.1%
76-80%	0.1%
81-85%	0.0%
86-90%	0.1%
91-95%	0.0%
96-100%	0.2%
More than 100%	0.5%

Percentages are based on 19,712 responses to this question.

The responses are very comparable with last year’s, approximately one third at 5% or less, and approximately half at 10% or less.

Time since last raise

Not applicable	24.5%
0-3 months ago	22.8%
3-6 months ago	17.6%
6-9 months ago	14.3%
9-12 months ago	7.4%
1 year ago	9.2%
2 years ago	3.1%
3 years ago	0.7%
4 years ago	0.2%
5 or more years ago	0.3%

Percentages are based on 19,668 responses to this question.

Over 70% of the 2008 respondents said they received a raise in the last year, as opposed to almost 90% in the 2007 survey.

Perceived biases

NOTE: We used the percentage of respondents who said either “definitely yes” or “cautiously yes” to compare perceptions of bias.

Perceived geographic bias

Definitely not	26.6%
Probably not	27.0%
Maybe	20.7%
Cautiously yes	13.4%
Definitely yes	11.0%
No response	1.2%

Approximately 25% say definitely or cautiously yes, slightly lower than last year.

Perceived age bias

Definitely not	38.9%
Probably not	31.9%
Maybe	14.2%
Cautiously yes	8.7%
Definitely yes	4.8%
No response	1.5%

Of respondents, 13.7% say definitely or cautiously yes, slightly lower than last year.

Perceived gender bias

Definitely not	67.5%
Probably not	21.7%
Maybe	5.3%
Cautiously yes	2.6%
Definitely yes	1.3%
No response	1.7%

Of respondents, 4.0% say definitely or cautiously yes, slightly lower than last year.

Perceived ethnic bias

Definitely not	73.5%
Probably not	19.0%
Maybe	3.8%
Cautiously yes	1.3%
Definitely yes	0.7%
No response	1.7%

Of respondents, 2.0% say definitely or cautiously yes, slightly lower than last year.

Perceived disability bias

Not applicable	69.5%
Definitely not	17.0%
Probably not	6.8%
Maybe	3.3%
Cautiously yes	1.2%
Definitely yes	0.8%
No response	1.5%

Of respondents, 2.1% say definitely or cautiously yes. (We did not ask this question last year.)