Sticking With It
Longevity and happiness. Of gender and title, salary and satisfaction.
Longevity in current job by number of years in the field for corporate workers
| Less than a year | 1 year | 2 years | 3 years | 4 years | 5 years | 6 years | 7 years | 8 years | 9 years | 10 years (or more) | Not applicable | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Less than a year | 16.5% | 6.0% | 11.2% | 11.4% | 8.9% | 8.1% | 5.4% | 5.5% | 8.1% | 4.2% | 14.1% | 0.6% | 100.0% |
| 1 year | 0.7% | 21.2% | 12.8% | 12.0% | 8.8% | 8.8% | 4.9% | 4.9% | 6.8% | 4.7% | 13.7% | 0.6% | 100.0% |
| 2 years | 0.6% | 0.9% | 26.9% | 11.6% | 10.3% | 9.5% | 5.6% | 5.7% | 8.1% | 4.6% | 15.4% | 0.8% | 100.0% |
| 3 years | 0.8% | 1.1% | 2.3% | 29.8% | 9.1% | 10.0% | 5.9% | 5.7% | 10.5% | 5.3% | 18.3% | 1.2% | 100.0% |
| 4 years | 0.7% | 0.6% | 1.6% | 3.1% | 28.0% | 10.4% | 6.9% | 7.0% | 12.8% | 6.4% | 21.5% | 0.9% | 100.0% |
| 5 years | 0.1% | 1.4% | 1.5% | 3.5% | 2.4% | 30.5% | 8.3% | 9.4% | 9.7% | 6.3% | 25.1% | 1.7% | 100.0% |
| 6 years | 0.2% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 2.1% | 2.5% | 3.7% | 29.6% | 8.4% | 14.8% | 8.2% | 27.6% | 1.6% | 100.0% |
| 7 years | 0.0% | 0.6% | 1.4% | 1.6% | 1.4% | 2.8% | 2.4% | 33.9% | 11.6% | 9.8% | 33.3% | 1.4% | 100.0% |
| 8 years | 0.2% | 1.0% | 0.5% | 1.5% | 1.0% | 4.6% | 2.1% | 2.2% | 41.7% | 10.2% | 33.9% | 1.0% | 100.0% |
| 9 years | 0.0% | 1.0% | 1.3% | 1.6% | 2.0% | 4.6% | 1.0% | 4.6% | 3.9% | 39.0% | 38.7% | 2.3% | 100.0% |
| 10 years (or more) | 0.3% | 0.3% | 1.3% | 1.6% | 1.8% | 3.5% | 2.6% | 4.2% | 7.3% | 3.2% | 71.3% | 2.6% | 100.0% |
| Not applicable | 8.7% | 5.8% | 9.6% | 13.5% | 7.7% | 8.7% | 3.8% | 3.8% | 6.7% | 4.8% | 12.5% | 14.4% | 100.0% |
| Overall | 4.8% | 5.8% | 11.1% | 11.3% | 9.1% | 9.2% | 6.0% | 6.3% | 9.7% | 5.7% | 20.1% | 1.0% | 100.0% |
For “corporates” (i.e., partners or employees), on longevity in current job and as a web professional, the following patterns emerge:
- Approximately 20% have been web professionals for 10 years or more, and over half for five years or more.
- Over 40% have been at their current jobs for less than two years, and approximately 4.5% for 10 years or more.
- Approximately 1.5% have been at their current jobs for as long as they’ve been a web professional.
Longevity in current job by number of years in the field for freelancers
| Less than a year | 1 year | 2 years | 3 years | 4 years | 5 years | 6 years | 7 years | 8 years | 9 years | 10 years (or more) | Not applicable | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Less than a year | 32.4% | 8.3% | 8.6% | 9.7% | 5.1% | 6.4% | 3.9% | 3.9% | 5.3% | 2.9% | 9.0% | 4.5% | 100.0% |
| 1 year | 2.4% | 34.9% | 12.9% | 9.4% | 6.7% | 7.7% | 3.5% | 2.5% | 5.0% | 2.5% | 8.1% | 4.3% | 100.0% |
| 2 years | 2.3% | 3.2% | 44.0% | 10.3% | 6.3% | 7.5% | 4.6% | 3.4% | 4.9% | 2.0% | 8.2% | 3.4% | 100.0% |
| 3 years | 1.8% | 1.9% | 3.7% | 43.8% | 8.4% | 8.2% | 4.2% | 3.7% | 6.8% | 2.6% | 10.9% | 4.0% | 100.0% |
| 4 years | 0.9% | 1.6% | 4.4% | 3.5% | 44.6% | 8.4% | 5.5% | 6.5% | 6.6% | 4.4% | 10.7% | 2.8% | 100.0% |
| 5 years | 1.4% | 1.3% | 3.4% | 3.8% | 1.9% | 44.2% | 4.0% | 6.2% | 8.5% | 4.4% | 17.4% | 3.3% | 100.0% |
| 6 years | 1.0% | 0.6% | 1.3% | 3.8% | 2.7% | 3.1% | 41.9% | 5.0% | 12.7% | 5.4% | 18.8% | 3.7% | 100.0% |
| 7 years | 1.1% | 0.5% | 1.4% | 2.2% | 3.0% | 2.4% | 2.4% | 40.4% | 6.5% | 7.0% | 30.9% | 2.2% | 100.0% |
| 8 years | 0.5% | 0.7% | 1.2% | 2.4% | 2.4% | 3.4% | 2.2% | 1.9% | 53.5% | 3.8% | 25.2% | 2.9% | 100.0% |
| 9 years | 2.3% | 0.6% | 0.0% | 1.8% | 1.8% | 1.2% | 0.0% | 1.2% | 4.1% | 56.7% | 28.1% | 2.3% | 100.0% |
| 10 years (or more) | 1.1% | 1.6% | 2.5% | 2.7% | 1.8% | 5.1% | 3.2% | 3.1% | 4.1% | 3.6% | 68.6% | 2.5% | 100.0% |
| Not applicable | 7.3% | 4.8% | 6.9% | 7.7% | 4.0% | 4.8% | 2.5% | 1.7% | 2.2% | 1.2% | 5.3% | 51.7% | 100.0% |
| Overall | 5.5% | 5.9% | 10.7% | 10.5% | 8.0% | 9.4% | 5.7% | 5.0% | 7.7% | 4.1% | 18.6% | 8.8% | 100.0% |
For freelancers, on longevity in current job and as a web professional (table 4.1b), the following patterns emerge:
- Approximately 20% have been web professionals for 10 years or more, and over half for five years or more.
- Approximately 20% have been working independently for less than two years, and over 10% for 10 years or more.
- Approximately 3.5% have been at their current jobs for as long as they’ve been web professionals.
Longevity in the field by organization type
| Less than a year | 1 year | 2 years | 3 years | 4 years | 5 years | 6 years | 7 years | 8 years | 9 years | 10 years (or more) | Not applicable | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| partner in a large company or organization. | 4.9% | 4.7% | 8.6% | 11.4% | 7.2% | 10.7% | 5.8% | 7.2% | 11.7% | 5.1% | 21.4% | 1.4% | 100.0% |
| partner in a small business. | 3.9% | 4.6% | 9.6% | 8.9% | 8.2% | 8.9% | 6.3% | 7.2% | 9.8% | 6.2% | 25.6% | 0.9% | 100.0% |
| employee of a company, university, library, museum, nonprofit, or other organization. | 4.9% | 6.0% | 11.4% | 11.6% | 9.3% | 9.2% | 5.9% | 6.2% | 9.6% | 5.6% | 19.2% | 1.0% | 100.0% |
| independent contractor/freelancer or owner of my own small business. | 4.5% | 5.7% | 10.5% | 10.7% | 8.3% | 10.4% | 6.4% | 5.8% | 9.0% | 5.0% | 22.1% | 1.6% | 100.0% |
| Student, hobbyist, volunteer, or other uncompensated role. | 9.1% | 6.8% | 11.4% | 9.8% | 7.2% | 5.8% | 3.2% | 2.2% | 2.9% | 0.9% | 6.3% | 34.4% | 100.0% |
| Overall | 5.1% | 5.8% | 11.0% | 11.0% | 8.8% | 9.3% | 5.9% | 5.9% | 9.0% | 5.1% | 19.6% | 3.7% | 100.0% |
For all categories of “careerists” (partners, employees, and freelancers), approximately 10% have been in the field for less than two years, while approximately 60% have been in the field for five years or more. The hobbyists/students are much less experienced: over 15% have been in the field for less than two years, and just over 20% for five years or more.
Next career move by gender
| Attend a conference/take classes/other educational activity | 26.6% |
73.4% |
|---|---|---|
| Begin (or expand) my professional writing or speaking | 22.2% |
77.8% |
| Learn a new skill | 20.1% |
79.9% |
| Leave the profession | 19.1% |
80.9% |
| Change area of specialization | 17.7% |
82.3% |
| New job in a new organization | 17.4% |
82.6% |
| Stay where I am | 16.9% |
83.1% |
| Get a promotion at my current job | 16.2% |
83.8% |
| Get my first job in the field | 15.1% |
84.9% |
| Start pitching a better class of client | 11.7% |
88.3% |
| Find a partner whose skills complement mine | 10.1% |
89.9% |
| Start my own business | 9.5% |
90.5% |
| Other | 19.0% |
81.0% |
| Overall | 16.3% |
83.7% |
| Female | Male |
Women are 16.3% of the sample answering this question, but are more likely than the sample as a whole to: attend a conference (26.6%), begin or expand professional writing or speaking (22.2%), learn a new skill (20.1%), or leave the profession (19.1%). Women are less likely than the sample as a whole to: start pitching a better class of clients (11.7%), find a partner with complementary skills (10.1%), or start their own business (9.5%).
Satisfaction and inferred satisfaction
In the 2007 report, we used the following data to infer job satisfaction:
- “Satisfied” = next career move either “get a promotion at my current job” or “stay where I am.”
- “Unsatisfied” = next career move either “start my own business” or “get a new job in a new organization.”
By applying last year’s methodology to this year’s sample, and comparing the results with respondents’ explicit indication of their level of job satisfaction, we found that last year’s definition is not that effective, in that it significantly over-counts unsatisfied. That is to say, by last year’s methodology, 51.5% of the 2008 respodents would be counted satisfied, compared to the 70.7% who indicated they are at least somewhat satisfied. In addition, 25.9% of the entire 2008 sample would have been characterized as unsatisfied by the 2007 methodology, but identified themselves as at least somewhat satisfied.
This suggests that the decision to stay in a workplace might be resignation to an unsatisfying situation, and the decision to leave may not be dissatisfaction, but simply a desire for a change. The analysis of job satisfaction below uses only the self-indicated level of satisfaction, and the quantifier we use is the percentage of those who responded either “very satisfied” or “somewhat satisfied.” Because of the problems with the 2007 measure of satisfaction, we don’t offer any comparisons with last year’s findings in this area.
Satisfaction by age range
| 18 and under | 66.3% |
24.1% |
9.6% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19-29 | 70.4% |
14.6% |
15.0% |
| 30-44 | 71.3% |
12.7% |
16.0% |
| 45-64 | 69.3% |
13.4% |
17.3% |
| 65 and over | 80.0% |
14.5% |
5.5% |
| Overall | 70.7% |
13.9% |
15.4% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
All categories of age are satisfied in approximately the same percentages as the sample as a whole, except for those 65 years and older, who are more satisfied (80.0%).
Satisfaction by gender
| Very satisfied | 16.5% |
83.5% |
|---|---|---|
| Somewhat satisfied | 15.7% |
84.3% |
| Neutral | 15.0% |
85.0% |
| Somewhat dissatisfied | 17.4% |
82.6% |
| Very dissatisfied | 21.8% |
78.2% |
| Overall | 16.3% |
83.7% |
| Female | Male |
Men and women appear to be equally satisfied with their current work situations.
Satisfaction by geographic region
| Africa | 72.6% |
12.3% |
15.1% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asia | 63.2% |
22.5% |
14.3% |
| Europe | 68.8% |
15.7% |
15.5% |
| North and Central America | 72.5% |
12.2% |
15.3% |
| Oceania | 71.0% |
12.7% |
16.4% |
| South America | 61.6% |
18.0% |
20.3% |
| Overall | 70.6% |
13.9% |
15.5% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
Satisfaction is lower in Asia and South America, and at or near percentage for the sample as a whole in the other regions; Africa being the highest at 72.6%.
Satisfaction by education level
| Grade/primary school | 65.1% |
20.8% |
14.0% |
|---|---|---|---|
| High/secondary school | 66.6% |
17.4% |
16.0% |
| Some college or university | 69.6% |
15.3% |
15.1% |
| College diploma, associate’s, bachelor’s, or other degree | 71.5% |
12.7% |
15.8% |
| Master’s degree | 72.0% |
13.2% |
14.8% |
| Doctorate | 73.0% |
13.0% |
14.0% |
| Overall | 70.6% |
13.9% |
15.5% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
Satisfaction rises with educational attainment, from a low of 65.1% for those with a grade school education, to a high of 73.0% for those with a doctorate.
Satisfaction by organization type
| Partner in a small business | 79.3% |
9.6% |
11.1% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Independent contractor/freelancer or owner of my own small business | 72.1% |
15.1% |
12.8% |
| Employee of a company, university, library, museum, nonprofit, or other organization | 71.4% |
11.9% |
16.7% |
| Partner in a large company or organization | 70.5% |
14.8% |
14.6% |
| Student, hobbyist, volunteer, or other uncompensated role | 49.8% |
29.5% |
20.6% |
| Overall | 70.6% |
13.9% |
15.5% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
Partners in small firms are most satisfied (79.3%), and all other careerists (partners in large firms, employees, and freelancers) are at or near the percentage for the sample as a whole. Hobbyists/students are only 49.8% satisfied.
Satisfaction by organization size
| Self-employed / freelance | 70.6% |
15.7% |
13.7% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-5 employees | 76.4% |
10.8% |
12.8% |
| 6-10 employees | 73.6% |
12.1% |
14.3% |
| 11-25 employees | 72.8% |
12.2% |
15.0% |
| 26-50 employees | 71.9% |
13.2% |
14.8% |
| 51-300 employees | 72.1% |
11.8% |
16.1% |
| 301-750 employees | 71.2% |
11.7% |
17.2% |
| 751-3000 employees | 72.5% |
10.9% |
16.6% |
| More than 3000 employees | 70.1% |
12.0% |
17.9% |
| Overall | 72.3% |
12.7% |
15.1% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
Although the satisfaction of respondents in companies of all sizes is at or near the average for the sample as a whole, the highest levels of satisfaction are for respondents in companies with 2-5 employees or 6-10 employees.
Satisfaction by job title
| Creative Director | 77.5% |
10.4% |
12.1% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usability Expert/Consultant/Lead | 76.9% |
9.4% |
13.6% |
| Accessibility Expert/Consultant/Lead | 76.5% |
11.8% |
11.8% |
| Web Director | 76.0% |
8.7% |
15.3% |
| Interface Designer, UI Designer | 75.4% |
12.4% |
12.1% |
| Marketer | 74.3% |
13.2% |
12.5% |
| Educator | 74.1% |
14.4% |
11.5% |
| Information Architect | 73.6% |
12.2% |
14.2% |
| Developer | 72.4% |
13.5% |
14.1% |
| Other | 71.6% |
12.0% |
16.4% |
| Project Manager | 69.9% |
14.8% |
15.3% |
| Art Director | 68.8% |
14.9% |
16.3% |
| Web Producer | 68.7% |
14.9% |
16.4% |
| Web Designer | 66.8% |
16.5% |
16.7% |
| Designer | 66.7% |
16.4% |
16.9% |
| Writer, Editor | 66.6% |
15.1% |
18.3% |
| Webmaster, Web Master | 61.9% |
20.4% |
17.6% |
| Overall | 70.6% |
13.9% |
15.4% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
The job titles for which job satisfaction is over 75% are: Accessibility Expert, Creative Director, Interface Designer, Usability Expert, and Web Director. This seems to be either people with higher levels of authority (the director positions), or people whose work reflects the leading edge of the field. The only job title with satisfaction under 65% is Webmaster (61.9%).
Satisfaction by longevity in the field
| Less than a year | 73.2% |
13.7% |
13.1% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | 70.6% |
14.5% |
14.9% |
| 2 years | 70.4% |
14.8% |
14.9% |
| 3 years | 69.8% |
13.3% |
16.9% |
| 4 years | 70.2% |
14.9% |
14.9% |
| 5 years | 72.5% |
12.9% |
14.6% |
| 6 years | 71.6% |
13.3% |
15.1% |
| 7 years | 69.8% |
14.7% |
15.5% |
| 8 years | 71.6% |
13.2% |
15.2% |
| 9 years | 74.6% |
11.0% |
14.5% |
| 10 years (or more) | 72.8% |
11.4% |
15.7% |
| Overall | 71.5% |
13.2% |
15.2% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
For all levels of longevity in the web design field, the percent satisfaction is at or near that of the sample as a whole, ranging from a high of 74.6% for people with nine years in the field to a low of 69.8% for those with three years in the field. Interestingly, the second highest percent satisfied is for people with less than a year in the field (73.2%), perhaps reflecting their excitement about entering the field.
Satisfaction by longevity in present job
| Less than a year | 79.3% |
9.2% |
11.5% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | 71.6% |
12.0% |
16.3% |
| 2 years | 70.9% |
11.9% |
17.2% |
| 3 years | 69.4% |
13.6% |
16.9% |
| 4 years | 68.5% |
12.9% |
18.6% |
| 5 years | 67.7% |
15.4% |
16.8% |
| 6 years | 66.4% |
14.3% |
19.3% |
| 7 years | 67.9% |
11.0% |
21.0% |
| 8 years | 66.8% |
14.5% |
18.7% |
| 9 years | 66.7% |
8.5% |
24.8% |
| 10 years (or more) | 69.9% |
12.1% |
18.0% |
| Overall | 72.4% |
11.7% |
15.9% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
The subgroup with the highest percent satisfaction is those with less than a year in their current job (79.3%), again aligning satisfaction with newness. The percentage satisfied then decreases with each year in the job, but takes a slight upward turn for people in their jobs 10 years or more.
Satisfaction by years of freelancing
| Less than a year | 67.6% |
18.2% |
14.1% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | 72.1% |
15.2% |
12.7% |
| 2 years | 70.5% |
15.5% |
14.1% |
| 3 years | 70.2% |
17.0% |
12.9% |
| 4 years | 67.7% |
17.5% |
14.7% |
| 5 years | 67.3% |
20.3% |
12.4% |
| 6 years | 72.2% |
15.8% |
12.0% |
| 7 years | 67.8% |
17.2% |
15.0% |
| 8 years | 72.7% |
13.2% |
14.1% |
| 9 years | 72.1% |
16.9% |
11.0% |
| 10 years (or more) | 67.5% |
16.6% |
15.8% |
| Overall | 69.4% |
16.8% |
13.8% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
For all levels of longevity as a freelancer, the percent satisfaction is at or near that of the sample as a whole, ranging from a high of 72.7% for people working independently for eight years to a low of 67.3% for those working independently for five years.
Satisfaction by previous job situation
| Web design/development was my first professional job | 71.6% |
13.7% |
14.6% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Background in IT/technology | 70.9% |
14.0% |
15.1% |
| Background in print design/advertising/art direction, etc. | 70.1% |
13.4% |
16.6% |
| Before the web, my work was non-technical | 69.7% |
14.1% |
16.2% |
| Overall | 70.7% |
13.8% |
15.5% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
Although all categories of previous work experience are at or near the percent for the sample as a whole, the lowest percent satisfaction is for the respondents from non-technical backgrounds (69.7%) and the highest is for the respondents for whom web design was their first profession (71.6%).
Satisfaction by degree of web work
| All or nearly all of my work is web-related | 74.2% |
11.5% |
14.4% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most of my work is web-related | 70.2% |
14.8% |
15.1% |
| About half my work is web-related | 66.1% |
17.5% |
16.4% |
| Around a quarter of my work is web-related | 61.0% |
19.4% |
19.6% |
| Web-related work is a small part of what I do | 55.1% |
22.0% |
22.9% |
| I don’t do any web-related work | 39.7% |
33.0% |
27.4% |
| Overall | 70.7% |
13.9% |
15.4% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
The percent satisfaction increases significantly with the proportion of the respondents’ work responsibilities related to the web.
Satisfaction by salary range
| Less than $10,000 | 57.0% |
24.4% |
18.5% |
|---|---|---|---|
| $10,000-$19,999 | 67.0% |
16.0% |
17.0% |
| $20,000-$39,999 | 69.1% |
13.4% |
17.5% |
| $40,000-$59,999 | 72.4% |
12.0% |
15.5% |
| $60,000-$79,999 | 74.7% |
11.4% |
13.9% |
| $80,000-$99,999 | 75.3% |
11.4% |
13.4% |
| $100,000-$119,999 | 78.4% |
10.0% |
11.6% |
| $120,000-$149,999 | 78.1% |
10.0% |
11.9% |
| More than $150,000 | 86.3% |
6.2% |
7.4% |
| Overall | 70.7% |
13.8% |
15.5% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
The percent satisfaction rises with income, from a low of 57% for those making less than $10,000 to a high of 86.3% for those making more than $150,000. Further, 64.5% of those making under $40,000 are satisfied, as compared to 80.0% of those making over $100,000.
Satisfaction by amount of last raise
| My salary decreased | 56.4% |
13.1% |
30.5% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-5% | 66.8% |
13.0% |
20.2% |
| 6-10% | 75.2% |
10.3% |
14.5% |
| 11-15% | 76.7% |
10.6% |
12.7% |
| 16-20% | 73.2% |
12.5% |
14.3% |
| 21-25% | 76.4% |
11.6% |
12.0% |
| 26-50% | 76.4% |
11.9% |
11.7% |
| 51-95% | 77.7% |
12.2% |
10.1% |
| More than 95% | 85.1% |
10.1% |
4.7% |
| Overall | 71.5% |
11.9% |
16.6% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
The groups of respondents with higher percentages of satisfaction are those whose last raise was 6% or higher. But it is not true across the board that the higher the last raise, the higher the percent satisfaction.
Satisfaction by time since last raise
| 0-3 months ago | 76.4% |
10.8% |
12.8% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3-6 months ago | 71.3% |
12.5% |
16.3% |
| 6-9 months ago | 70.9% |
12.2% |
16.9% |
| 9-12 months ago | 70.3% |
12.3% |
17.4% |
| 1 year ago | 66.5% |
13.2% |
20.4% |
| 2 years ago | 59.1% |
15.0% |
25.9% |
| 3 years ago | 56.9% |
12.3% |
30.8% |
| 4 years ago | 51.2% |
11.6% |
37.2% |
| 5 or more years ago | 46.0% |
20.6% |
33.3% |
| Overall | 71.3% |
12.1% |
16.6% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
The percent satisfaction is higher the more recent the raise, from a high of 76.4% if the raise was in the last three months, to a low of 46.0% if there was no raise in the last five years. The frequency of raises seems to correlate more to job satisfaction than does the size of the raise.
Satisfaction by business prospects (organizational employees)
| Doing well. | 83.0% |
7.9% |
9.2% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doing about the same as usual. | 66.6% |
15.4% |
18.0% |
| Not doing quite as well as we would like. | 60.1% |
15.7% |
24.2% |
| Closing our doors for good. | 44.4% |
19.4% |
36.1% |
| In a slump. | 40.9% |
20.7% |
38.4% |
| In trouble. | 31.2% |
12.7% |
56.1% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
The better the perceived prospects of the company, the higher the percentage satisfaction, with one noteworthy departure. The percent satisfaction for respondents at companies that were closing is higher than those who characterize their company as “in trouble.”
Satisfaction by business prospects (freelancers)
| Business is really good. | 88.8% |
7.1% |
4.1% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business couldn’t possibly be any better. | 85.0% |
9.8% |
5.2% |
| Business is all right, but there’s room for improvement. | 67.1% |
21.2% |
11.7% |
| Business is poor. | 31.2% |
29.3% |
39.5% |
| Thinking of finding a job working for someone else. | 19.3% |
19.5% |
61.2% |
| Business couldn’t be any worse. | 16.8% |
23.0% |
60.2% |
| Overall | 67.6% |
18.0% |
14.4% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
Business prospects for freelancers appear to align closely with satisfaction. There are three possible responses that indicate a freelancer thinks their business prospects are poor or worse. Among the respondents who so indicated, the percent satisfied is 26.5%. By contrast, for respondents who indicated business is either “really good” or “couldn’t be any better,” the percent satisfaction is 88.3%.
Satisfaction by professional excitement level
| Yes - very frequently | 78.5% |
9.1% |
12.4% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes - frequently | 72.9% |
13.8% |
13.3% |
| Yes - once in a while | 55.1% |
21.4% |
23.5% |
| Don’t know | 53.2% |
23.6% |
23.2% |
| No | 36.6% |
23.9% |
39.5% |
| Overall | 70.6% |
13.9% |
15.5% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
Job satisfaction rises when respondents are more excited by the web design field, from a low of 36.6% satisfaction for respondents who don’t find the field exciting, to 78.5% satisfaction for respondents who find the field exciting “very frequently.”
Satisfaction by next career move
| Stay where I am | 87.9% |
7.9% |
4.2% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get a promotion at my current job | 86.9% |
7.5% |
5.7% |
| Start pitching a better class of client | 80.0% |
11.1% |
8.9% |
| Begin (or expand) my professional writing or speaking | 78.8% |
11.3% |
9.9% |
| Attend a conference/take classes/other educational activity | 76.7% |
11.1% |
12.2% |
| Learn a new skill | 74.6% |
14.8% |
10.6% |
| Find a partner whose skills complement mine | 72.2% |
13.1% |
14.7% |
| Other | 67.3% |
15.2% |
17.6% |
| Start my own business | 62.8% |
17.7% |
19.5% |
| Change my area of specialization | 60.0% |
18.6% |
21.4% |
| Get my first job in the field | 45.7% |
29.5% |
24.8% |
| New job in a new organization | 44.8% |
19.5% |
35.6% |
| Leave the profession | 39.5% |
20.7% |
39.8% |
| Overall | 70.6% |
13.9% |
15.5% |
| Satisfied | Neutral | Dissatisfied |
Not surprisingly, the respondents who are less satisfied are those who are seeking to change jobs, or even change fields. Respondents who are either going to start pitching new clients or who will begin or expand their professional writing and speaking are more satisfied than the sample as a whole. The subgroups with the highest percent satisfaction are those that indicated their next career move is either “stay where I am” or “get a promotion at my current job.”