Earlier this month, the Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA) Board of  Directors convened a roundtable of San Francisco-based interior design practitioners to gather information about emerging factors impacting  interior design. Practitioners revealed that designers are being viewed as trusted advisors to clients, which creates value in being a generalist with the ability to offer guidance beyond a core set of design skills. Roundtable participants also noted that commercial clients are often asking for spaces that “feel like home” to users, suggesting a domestication of traditional workspace.

Participants commented on the positive results of  quality interior design education stating, “Every year we hire new  graduates, they are better than the year before.” The new generation of  designers is notably different in terms of work style and values. Social networking and technology tend to produce young designers who value community over self, are innate collaborators and multi-taskers, and can  readily find and apply technical information. Participants also noted that  technical skills pose some challenges. Young designers sometimes don’t  understand that digital manipulations do not always produce viable  solutions, and may create presentations that look very professional, but  lack quality design. Overall, roundtable participants were optimistic  about the next generation of design leaders and the changes taking place in practice.

The Council for Interior Design Accreditation is an  independent, non-profit, accrediting organization responsible for setting  standards and evaluating degree granting interior design programs. There  are 167 CIDA-accredited programs in the U.S. and Canada. Learn more at  www.accredit-id.org.