© Copyright 2014 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved.2014
ADOBE APAC CREATIVES PULSE
Methodology
Online survey among a total of 2,557 creative professionals
Survey �eld period: September 8 – October 5, 2014
Survey included creative professionals from di�erent types of organizations(corporate, government entity, agency) and across disciplines (web design, illustrator, UI designer, architect).
Margin of error at the 95% con�dence level is +/- 1.9%.
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 2
Respondent pro�le
Country of Origin
Gender
Male
Female
211INDIA
343AUSTRALIANEW ZEALAND
941GREATER CHINA
559KOREA
503SINGAPORE
71%
29%
Total -2557
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 3
Respondent pro�le
Employment Type
Years of experience
Corporation
Government entity
Non-pro�t
Small business
Agency
Educational institution
Self-employed
27%
32%
4%
4%
9%
3%
21%
6-10 years
0-5 years
30%
33%
21-30 years8%
More than 30 years
4%
11-20 years25%
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 4
Summary of key �ndings
Creatives place a high premium on producing business impact through their work, rating it well above recognition and �nancial success.
Creatives are largely optimistic about the future.
With design and creativity becoming more important in business, creatives feel they have to be ready to adapt to new tools, technology and platforms.
say that mobile is transforming the face of creativity and design.(Slide 9)80%
say the role of creatives is changing rapidly or very rapidly with 58% citing new technologies as driving this change. (Slide 10)78%
feel that app development skills will be most in demand over the next 12 months. (Slide 11)34%
say business impact is one of the most important measures of success in their work. (Slide 12)72%
say the best days of the industry lie ahead. (Slide 13)86%
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 5
Creatives are driven by learning and growth opportunities as well as by creative ful�llment.
54%say a desire to learn new thingsmotivates them at work while 50%
are driven by the satisfaction of seeingtheir ideas brought to life. (Slide 15)
Creatives feel good about their impact at work and believe that their contribution is viewed positively by employers and clients.
50%say that they are having signi�cantly moreimpact at work than two years ago. (Slide 16) 41%
indicate that they are perceivedas adding signi�cant value. (Slide 17)
Creatives seek inspiration from multiple sources, both o�ine and online.
37% Websites/ Online advertising 35%Online creativecommunities 29% Film
26% TV Advertising 26% Print/Magazine advertising
Summary of key �ndings(Contd)
lead the list. (Slide 14)
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 6
Creatives still rely on pen and paper as well as traditional computing devices for much of the creative process. However, there is evidence of increasing mobile usage in many of these activities.
Creatives cite several bene�ts to using mobile devices in the creative process.
49%say mobile makes their work accessible to a broader audience while
44%say they are using it topresent creative concepts 38%
believe it creates more output mediums which makes their jobs harder. (Slide 18)
48%say it allows them to captureinspiration on the go
However,
Summary of key �ndings(Contd)
Smartphones are being used for idea generation and for seeking inspiration. (Slide19)
Tablets and touchpads are being used for content sharing and display.
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 7
Creatives indicate they would like to use mobile devices to a larger degree during the creative process.
Summary of key �ndings(Contd)
Creatives largely value the insights they get from data.
72% feel empowered by analytics and metrics in their jobs. (Slide 21)
�ey would like to use tablets, touchpads and smartphones more o�en for idea generation,seeking inspiration, brainstorming, collaboration, content sharing and display. (Slide 20)
Creatives are fearful of not meeting expectations at work as well as of losing their creative drive and focus.
46%insu�cient trainingin new skills
43%di�culty in producing original or di�erentiated output.
50%losing inspiration/motivation
A few factors that keep creatives up at night are(Slide 22)
47%pressure to deliver more content faster
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 8
How creatives view industry trendsPercent who Strongly Agree/ Somewhat Agree with statement
With design and creativity becoming more importantin business, creatives feel they have to be ready to adaptto new tools, technology and platforms.
Creativity and design thinking are becomingmore important to business 83%
Technology is enabling creatives to be morein control of their professional destiny
78%
Mobile is transforming the faceof creativity and design
80%
Creatives are increasingly working acrossmultiple mediums and disciplines 84%
Creatives will fall behind if they don’t staycurrent with changes in the industry 84%
Creatives are expected to learnnew tools and techniques 84%
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 9Q. Please indicate whether you agree or disagree with the following statements.
What's driving change in role of creatives?
New technologies thatchange how you do your work 58%
New skills that rede�nehow you do your work 32%
35%New responsibilities added to
the creative function
27%Challenge of “breaking through
the noise” to reach audiences
37%�e impact of social media
27%Necessity to work on multidisciplinary
/cross-functional teams
29%New platforms forreaching audience
5%�e opportunity to crowd-
source projects
18%�e use of consumer data and
analytics to guide creative strategy
78%VERY RAPIDLY/
RAPIDLY
14%Very Slowly/
Slowly
Creatives believe they are ina fast changing industryHow fast do you feel the role of creatives is changing?
New and cu�ing edge technologies are transformingthe industry with more than half of creatives surveyed citing this as a leading driver of change.
Top driving forces behind the change
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 10Q. How fast do you feel the role of creatives is changing?Q. What are the top three driving forces behind the change in the role of creatives? (Please select up to three)
10%
7%6%4%2% 2% 2%3%
6%
Which of these skills will be most in demand over the next 12 months?
App development leads the list of critical creative skills for the upcoming year, followed by web design and digital story telling.
Web design Illustration Visual e�ectsGraphicdesign
PhotographyVideo editing 3D Modeling App develop-ment
Motiongraphics
Animation Digitalstorytelling
Other
12% 12%
34%
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 11Q. Which of these creative skills do you think will be most ‘in-demand’ over the next 12 months?
44%Recognitionfrom peers
72%Business impact 55%
Social mediafeedback & views
37%Industryawards
What are the ultimate measures of success in your work?
Creatives place a high premium on producing business impactthrough their work, rating it well above social media feedback, awards, recognition and �nancial success.
45%Personal�nancialsuccess
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 12Q. What is the ultimate measure of success in today’s creative world? Please rank the following from most important factor (1) to least important (5).
How do you see the future for creatives?
Creatives are largely optimistic about what lies ahead for them in the industry.
86%
14%
Best daysare ahead
Best daysare behind
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 13Q. How do you see the future for creatives?
What are the primary sources of inspirationfor the creative community?
Social media, �lm and advertising across media largely in�uence creatives in their work. However, they also draw inspiration from many other sources, both online and o�ine.
6%
12 %
16% 15%
22%
35%
46%
26% 26%
29%
37%
Architecture TV advertising Print and magazine advertising
Film Video games Social media(Facebook, Twi�er, etc.)
Websites/online advertising
High fashion Street style Cultural imports from other countries
Online creativecommunities
(Behance, Dribbble,or others)
Q. Which of the following do you see as the most in�uential source of creative sparks and inspiration for the creative community?APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 14
What are some of the things thatmotivate you as a creative?
Creatives are driven by a desire to learn new things and by the satisfaction of seeing their ideas brought to life. �ey rate these factors above �nancial rewards when it comes to motivating them at work.
Desire to learn new things 54%
Mastering new technologies 42%
I want to do great work 43%
Recognition from peers 20%
Reaching a broad audience 29%
Recognition and advancement from my employer 23%
Recognition from family members 10%
Recognition from my mentors/teachers 12%
Prestigious awards and accolades 17%
Seeing my ideas brought to life in the real world 50%
Financial rewards 40%
Knowing my work is having an impact on business 34%
Knowing my work is having an impact on causes/social issues 32%
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 15
I am having signi�cantly less impact
I am having the same impact
I am havingsigni�cantly more impact
Are you having more or less impact today,compared to two years ago?
50%38%
12%
Creatives feel positive about their contribution at work. Many feel that they are having signi�cantlymore impact than two years ago.
Q. Are you, as a creative, having more or less impact today than you did two years ago?APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 16
Creatives are addingsigni�cant value
52%
Creatives are addingsome value
41%
How does your company/clients perceive the value of creatives?
Creatives are secure about how they are perceived with more than half indicating that they are viewed as adding signi�cant value.
Q. How do you feel your company/clients perceive the value of creatives?APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 17
How have mobile deviceschanged your creative process?
Creatives believe mobile devices make their work more accessible and allow them to capture inspiration on the go. Many are using mobile to present creative concepts. However, by creating more output mediums to design for, it also makes their work more challenging.
49% My work is now accessible to a broader audience
44%I’m using mobile devices to present creative concepts
26% I’m using mobile to collaborate
30% I’m using mobile as a digital portfolio
48%I can capture inspiration in the moment and on the go
2% Other
32% I can create content anywhere
38%Created more output mediums which makes my job harder
Q. How have mobile devices changed your creative process?(Please select all that apply)APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 18
Desktop Computer
LaptopComputer
Touchpadlike a Wacom
Tablet likean iPad
Smartphone
Pen & paper
Which is your current go-to device for the activity listed?
Idea generation
Seekinginspiration
Brainstorming ContentCreation
Collaboration ContentSharing
ContentDisplay
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Creatives largely use pen and paper to generate ideas and still rely on desktops for content creation, collaboration and sharing. However, there is evidence of growing tablet and mobile device usage, especially for activities such as content sharing, idea generation and inspiration seeking.
Q. Which of the devices listed is your current go-to device for each of the following creative activities? (Please select one activity per device)APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 19
Which of the devices listed would you like to use more for each of the creative activities listed?
Desktop Computer
LaptopComputer
Touchpadlike a Wacom
Tablet likean iPad
Smartphone
Pen & paper
Idea generation
Seekinginspiration
Brainstorming ContentCreation
Collaboration ContentSharing
ContentDisplay
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Creatives would like to use mobile devices such as tablets, touchpads and smartphones to a greater degree during the creative process.
Q. Which of the devices listed would you like to use more, in the future, for each of the following creative activities? (Please select all that apply for each activity)APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 20
How do you feel about digital analytics and metrics?
While the majority of creatives feel empowered by analytics and metrics, a smaller group feels threatened by these elements.
feel empowered by analytics and metrics72%
feel threatened by analytics and metrics27%
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 21Q. Which of the statements below comes closest to how you feel about digital analytics and metrics (i.e. big data) as it relates to creativity?
Losing inspiration and motivation
What keeps creatives up at night?
50%
47%
46%
43%
35%
31%
28%
20%
20%6%
Pressure to deliver more creative ideas and content faster than ever
Financial or job security
Not meeting the expectations set for me
Losing my artistic authenticity and selling out
Being misunderstood
Never making it in my professionLosing respect of my peers
Creatives are fearful of not meeting expectations at work as well as of losing their creative drive and focus.
Not being original or di�culty di�erentiating
Not being trained su�ciently in new skills
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 22Q. What keeps you up at night as a creative? (Please select all that apply)
Top three sources of creative inspiration
53%Websites/Online Advertising
42%
Social media
43%
TVAdvertising
Sentiments of creatives in India
50%
�ey believe that they are havingsigni�cantly more impact than
two years ago
57%
APACINDIA
Likely to believe that creativity and design are becoming more important to business
72%INDIA
58%APAC
�ey largely believe that new technologies are changing their roles
Less likely to believe that creatives will fall behind if they don't stay current with changes
84%INDIA
83%APAC
72%INDIA
84%APAC
Creatives in India are:
Top three measures of success at work
Business impact
Social media feedback & views
Personal �nancial success
57%
38%
37%
Top in-demand skills for thenext 12 months
30%AppDevelopment
18%GraphicDesign
16%WebDesign
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 23
Sentiments of creatives in India
What keeps them up at night
Pressure to deliver morecreative ideas and content faster 55%
Insu�cient training in new skills 50%
Financial/job security 48%
62%
41%APAC
creatives in India feel positive about how their work and contributions are perceived at work and by clients
Creatives in India believe that mobile devices can help them create content anywhere. �ey are also using mobile:
Main motivators at work
Knowingwork is havingsocial impact
Financialrewards
Desire to learnnew things
54%
IND
IA
APA
C
35%
53%
32%
IND
IA
APA
C
46%
40%IN
DIA
APA
C
35%To collaborate
50%To present creative concepts
43%As a digital portfolio
74%
72%
feel empowered by analytics & metrics
APAC
INDIA
Importance of analytics to creativity
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 24
Sentiments of creatives in Australia-New Zealand (ANZ)
Sources of Creative Inspiration
41%Websites/Online Advertising
35%
Social media
11%
TVAdvertising
38%Onlinecreativecommunities
61%ANZ 58%
APAC
New technologies that change how you do your work
Feel that they are increasingly working across multiple mediums and disciplines
89%ANZ
84%APAC
Also realise that they are expected to learn new tools and techniques
89%ANZ
84%APAC
Creatives in Australia-New Zealand: Reasons for the rapid change in the role of creatives
Top three measures of success at work
Business impact
Personal �nancial success
Recognition from peers
66%
37%
46%
Top in-demand skills for thenext 12 months
20% 34%
12%
Appdevelopment
20%Digitalstorytelling
17%WebDesign
APAC
15%APAC
APAC37%ANZ
�e impact of social media
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 25
Sentiments of creatives in Australia-New Zealand (ANZ)
What keeps them up at night
When it comes to mobile, creatives in ANZ believe:
71% strongly agree or agree that mobile is transforming the face of creativity and design
Main motivators at work
Desire to dogreat work
Desire to learnnew things
Financialrewards
61%
43%
AN
Z
APA
C
50%
40%
AN
Z
APA
C46%
54%
AN
Z
APA
C
30%Allows them to present
creative concepts
52%It makes their work
more accessible
33%Allows them to captureinspiration on the go
71%
Pressure to deliver morecreative ideas and content faster 44%
Losing inspiration & motivation 39%
Financial/job security 52%
66%
72%
feel empowered by analytics & metrics
APAC
ANZ
Importance of analytics to creativity
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 26
Top three sources of creative inspiration
32%Cultural imports from other countries
43%
Social media
36%
Film
Agree that creativity and design are becoming more important to business
Believe that mobile is transforming the creative space
85%GC
83%APAC
83%GC
80%APAC
Creatives in Greater China:
Top three measures of success at work
Business impact
Social media feedback and views
Recognition from peers
81%
67%
75%
Sentiments of creatives in Greater China (GC) (Includes Mainland China, Hong Kong & Taiwan)
57%GC
58%APAC
New technologies that change how you do your work
�e necessity to work on multi-disciplinary/ cross-functional teams
41%GC
27%APAC
Reasons for the rapid change in the role of creatives Top in-demand skills for thenext 12 months
40%AppDevelopment
9%GraphicDesign
9%WebDesign
9%Digitalstorytelling
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 27
(Includes Mainland China, Hong Kong & Taiwan)Sentiments of creatives in Greater China (GC)
say they are using mobile devices to present creative concepts
as well as to collaborate (28%) & maintain a digital portfolio (28%)
When it comes to mobile, creatives in Greater China believe:
28%Allows them to create
content anywhere
56%It makes their work
more accessible
53%Allows them to captureinspiration on the go
What keeps them up at night
88%
72%
feel empowered by analytics & metrics
APAC
GREATER CHINA
Importance of analytics to creativity
Inability to be originalor di�erentiated 50%
Insu�cient training in new skills 45%
Losing inspiration & motivation 70%
53%
Main motivators at work
Mastering newtechnologies
Desire to learnnew things
Seeing theirideas brought
to life
63%
54%
GRE
ATER
CH
INA
APA
C
57%
50%G
REAT
ER C
HIN
A
APA
C
54%
42%
GRE
ATER
CH
INA
APA
C
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 28
Sources of creative inspiration
33%
TVAdvertising
49%
Socialmedia
33%Onlinecreativecommunities
33%Website/Onlineadvertisements
Sentiments of creatives in Korea
Reasons for the rapid change in the role of creatives
More likely to believe that they will fall behind if they don't keep up with industry changes
91%KOREA
84%APAC
88%KOREA
78%APAC
�ey are also:
More likely to indicate that technology allows creatives greater control of their professional destiny
Creatives in Korea believe creativity and design thinking are becoming more important to business
Top three measures of success at work
Business impact
Social media feedback and views
Industry rewards
79%
54%
26%
Top in-demand skills for thenext 12 months
28%Appdevelopment
21%Digitalstorytelling
11%3Dmodelling
11%WebDesign
New platforms for reaching audience
42% KOREA
29% APAC
Challenge of 'breaking through the noise' to reach
audience
39%KOREA
27%APAC
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 29
Sentiments of creatives in Korea
43%
72%
Only 43% feelempowered withanalytics. A majority (57%) ofcreatives in Koreaappear data averse
APAC
KOREA
When it comes to mobile, creatives in Korea:
46%But feel that it creates more
output mediums and makestheir jobs more challenging
42%Are using it to present
creative concepts
45%Believe it allows them tocapture inspiration on the go
36%Believe it makes theirwork more accessible
What keeps them up at nightImportance of analytics to creativity
Inability to be originalor di�erentiated 55%
Insu�cient training in new skills 59%
Pressure to deliver more faster 50%
Main motivators at work
Knowing thatwork is having
business impact
Desire to learnnew things
Seeing theirideas brought
to life
63%
54%
KORE
A
APA
C
49%50%
KORE
A
APA
C
41%
34%
KORE
A
APA
C
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 30
Believe that design and creativity are becoming more important in business
Feel they will fall behind if they don't stay current with industry changes
78%SIN
83%APAC
78%SIN
84%APAC
Creatives in Singapore:
50%
�ey feel they are havingsigni�cantly more impact
than two years ago
55%
APACSIN
Sentiments of creatives in Singapore
73% SIN
58% APAC
Top three sources of creative inspiration
58%
Social media
47%Onlinecreativecommunities
48%Websites/Online Advertising
Reasons for rapid change in role of creatives
Top three measures of success at work
Business impact
Social media feedback and views
Recognition from peers
56%
43%
33%
Top in-demand skills for thenext 12 months
38%Appdevelopment
9%Digitalstorytelling
11%GraphicDesign
14%WebDesign
New technologies that change how you do your work
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 31
What keeps them up at night
Losing inspirationand motivation 48%
Not meeting expectationsset for them 39%
Pressure to deliver more faster 61%
76%
72%
feel empowered by analytics & metrics
APAC
SINGAPORE
Sentiments of creatives in Singapore
When it comes to mobile, creatives in Singapore indicate:
57%�ey can captureinspiration on the go
41%Create content anywhere
39%�ey are using it to present
creative concepts
52%It makes their work
more accessible
Importance of analytics to creativity
Knowing thatwork is having
business impact /Desire to learn
new things
41%
34%
SIN
GPO
RE
APA
C
Knowingwork is havingsocial impact
50%
32%
SIN
GA
PORE
APA
C
Main motivators at work
Seeing theirideas brought
to life
46%
50%
SIN
GA
PORE
APA
C
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 32
Country Insights
Korea feels that design and creativity are becoming more important to business, more so than Australia-New Zealand (ANZ) and Singapore.
Korea is most concerned about falling behind if it doesn’t stay current with changes in the industry. India does not feel as much pressure on this front.
ANZ, Greater China and Korea report more pressure to learn new tools and techniques with India and Singapore feeling less pressure on this front.
ANZ is most likely to be working across multiple mediums and disciplines.
Korea largely agrees that technology is enabling creatives to be more in control of their professional destiny. ANZ is least likely to agree with this sentiment.
Countries across the APAC region broadly agree that mobile is transforming the face of creativity and design.
General industry trends
Singapore strongly feels that the role of creatives is changing rapidly while Greater China is least likely to believe this.
New technologies that alter how creatives do their work, the impact of social media and new responsibilities are most o�en cited as reasonsfor changes in the role of creatives across APAC.
India and Singapore also cite new skills that rede�ne how creatives do their work.
ANZ and Korea cite the challenge of 'breaking through the noise' to reach the audience.
Greater China cites the need to work on multidisciplinary/cross-functional teams.
Korea and Singapore cite new platforms for reaching the audience.
Change in the role of creatives
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 33
Country Insights
Across APAC, app development was most o�en cited as an in-demand creative skill over the next 12 months, followed by web design and digital story telling.
Singapore, Greater China, ANZ and India also cite graphic design.
Korea is the only country to highlight 3D modeling as a sought a�er skill.
Skills likely to be in demand
India and Singapore are most likely to view business impact as a key measure of success in their work, rating it above recognition, awards and �nancial achievements.
ANZ ranks personal �nancial success just below business impact while Korea and Greater China rank it lower in importance.
Korea views industry awards as important, ranking it above peer recognition and personal �nancial success.
Measures of success
India and Korea are more likely to be inspired by TV advertising while this is least prominent as a source of inspiration in ANZ, followed by Greater China and Singapore.
Social media is strongest as a source of inspiration in Greater China and Singapore.
Singapore is most likely to be in�uenced by online creative communities such as Behance and Dribble.
Sources of inspiration
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 34
Country Insights
Across APAC, a desire to learn new things and the satisfaction of seeing ideas brought to life are motivating creatives.
India and Singapore are also motivated by the knowledge that their work is having an impact on causes or social issues.
ANZ feels most strongly about producing great work .
Greater China are most likely to cite mastering new technologies as a source of motivation.
Korea and Singapore are motivated by the knowledge that their work is having an impact on business.
Motivators at work
India is most positive about how creatives are perceived by employers and clients and most likely to state that they are viewed as adding signi�cant value.
Value of creatives
Creatives across APAC see bene�ts to leveraging mobile devices in the creative process.
Korea is more likely to believe that they make the job of creatives more challenging by increasing the number of output mediums.
Greater China appreciates the fact that it has made creative work accessible to a broader audience.
Greater China and Singapore are more likely to report that they are using mobile devices to present creative concepts.
India and Singapore are more likely to state that mobile allows them to create content anywhere.
Mobile in the creative process
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 35
Country Insights
Greater China feels most empowered by analytics and metrics while Korea feels most threatened by this.
Views on data and analytics
Losing inspiration and motivation, the pressure to deliver more in a shorter period, and insu�cient training in skills are most o�en cited across APAC as keeping creatives up at night.
India also worries about being misunderstood and losing artistic authenticity and selling out.
Financial or job security is a leading concern for ANZ while this is least likely to worry Singapore.
Greater China and Korea are also more likely to worry about being unable to produce original or di�erentiated output.
Main worries
APAC Creatives Survey | 2014 36