**1. Introduction**

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*Journal of Manufacturing Systems*, Vol.15, Issue 3, pp. 179-189

*Engineering*, Vol.3, Issue 4, pp. 353-362

*Technology*, Vol.139, Issues 1-3, pp. 394-401

No.7-8, pp. 663-672, ISSN 0268-3768.

978-953-307-622-5

210 Advances in Industrial Design Engineering

This chapter seeks to contribute to the elucidation of, not only, industrial designers, but also of educational institutions, both domestic and international, about how important it is to follow the development of markets and technology, in order to incorporate this in the curricula of future designers, with a view to further aid their transition to the labour market.The method‐ ology set for the completion of the work was divided into two stages. Initially, literature review was used to underpin research and then empirical work was carried out in the search for new information and clarifications from the world of praxis.

The primary data collection was carried out using data collection instruments, which consisted of two questionnaires, applied to two distinct groups of respondents, namely, industrial designers and employers. The application of a survey instrument was chosen because of its ability to enable distance of the researchers to the respondenys and more autonomy than, for example, interviews (Almeida and Pinto, 1995). Questionnaires free the researcher from presence at the time of the response by the respondent, enabling an indirect interaction (Carmo and Ferreira, 1998). The dissemination of questionnaires to industrial designers was performed with the support of the Portuguese Design Centre, which contributed to the high number of respondents achieved (141).

### **1.1. Scope of the research**

As this chapter reports on a study on the prospects for job market integration of industrial designers, it was necessary to point the investigation in a first phase to the jobs that are available in countries like Portugal, Germany, France, Italy, UK, Canada, Spain, United States of America, Macau, Brazil, East Timor, Guinea Bissau, São Tomé and Principe, Mozambique, Angola and Cape Verde, in order to unveil the true extent of demand for the profession of industrial designer in the Lusophone (Portuguese Speaking) Space, and Western Europe and

© 2013 Rodrigues and Coelho; licensee InTech. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2013 Rodrigues and Coelho; licensee InTech. This is a paper distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2013 Rodrigues and Coelho; licensee InTech. This is a paper distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

the United States and Canada. The authors deliberately chose to focus this study on entrepre‐ neurship and its importance for the industrial designer, as well as on the contents of training that are more valued by employers of these professionals. The authors chose to present the results of the survey of businesses employing industrial designers and of industrial designers in the final parts of the chapter. The focus of the chapter lies also to a greater extent on the first phase of the career of industrial designers, rather than on later stages, where the range of career paths is more diversified and more difficult to cover in a work of this nature. It is also believed that the initial phase of the designer's career is a critical stage for the affirmation of the individual professional and therefore it arouses a very high level of interest as an object of research.

ability to speak multiple languages, mainly English but also French, German and Spanish,

Early Stages of Industrial Design Careers http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/52857 213

Regarding interpersonal and relational skills, applicants must show that they are dynamic, balanced, revealing a character that is suitable to work as a team member and having an entrepreneurial, creative and innovative attitude is especially valued. Almost every offer seeks experienced professionals with at least 2 years of experience, to serve in the furniture and electronics industries, among others. The search for trainees (without experience) was not

In many job offers, the prospective employer was not specified, and with regard to the benefits (wages) in return for the services to be rendered, it is noted that only a few of the job offers

The analysis carried out in this section discusses the opportunities for integration into working life of industrial designers which were unveiled through a survey of international job offers available on the Internet, in the period from October 2010 to February 2011. The survey focused on job offers in the area of industrial, product and equipment design, identifying the positions advertised, the prerequisites for filling each vacancy and the benefits offered. United States, Australia, Germany, France, Italy, UK, Canada, Spain and Brazil were the countries included, given the perception of the authors that in these countries there are many companies looking for professionals in the field of industrial design. Regarding Portuguese speaking countries and territories, other than Angola, Brazil and Portugal, including Cape Verde, Mozambique, Macau, East Timor, Guinea-Bissau and São Tomé and Príncipe, the demand for industrial designers does not seem to have much expression, judging from the period when job offers

Among the most requested skills for the industrial designer, emphasis appears in many cases on packaging design and development of innovative products. The most valued qualifications concern holding at least a Bachelor degree in a design specialization. Besides up-to-date skills in 3D solid modelling, some companies place a premium on knowledge of CATIA software and having good overall designer computer skills, including experience with webpage design. Almost every offer surveyed sought experienced professionals with at least 3 years of experi‐

The survey carried out at national level about opportunities for integration in working life for industrial designers showed that, with regard to experience, companies often want designers with some experience and rarely ask for those looking for their first job. In relation to com‐

International demand for industrial designers is significant, both in European countries and globally. In what concerns Portuguese-speaking countries, with the exception of Brazil and

besides their native language.

found to be very expressive.

**2.2. International context**

surveyed did declare wage values.

placed on the Internet were surveyed.

**2.3. Discussion on opportunities for integration in active life**

pensation, very few companies disclosed earning ranges in their offers.

ence.
