If you’re on a good account, the work at agencies or smaller design firms can be fun, innovative, and creatively challenging but the hours can be brutal. On the client-side, as part of an in-house design or product team, the work-life balance can be better but the work itself can be less creative and innovative as it gets overwhelmed by organizational politics or suffers from tunnel vision and competing priorities for time and resources. Start-ups can be exciting but can suffer from poor business models or personality-driven processes.
I realize there are a lot of variables that factor into this question (brand, salary, title, personality of coworkers, company vision and leadership) and that we all value different things. But I’m interested in other perspectives from designers working in the industry.
What do you value most: the work itself, the salary, the team, the awards and industry recognition, or work-life balance? What are the best companies to work for as an interactive designer in NYC?
