โ
Annexion Insights โข Interior Design and Architecture
Where Interior Design and Architecture Hiring Is Headed Across APAC
๐ 12 August 2026 โข Annexion Partners
Across the Asia-Pacific region, Interior Design and Architecture hiring is being shaped by a question that goes deeper than headcount: what does it actually mean to be a designer or architect right now, and who gets to count as one? Four markets are each answering a different piece of that question, and together they say more about where hiring is headed than any single national trend on its own.
Australia doesn't know how many designers it has.
The Design Institute of Australia has launched "Write Designer," a national campaign built around Census Night on 11 August 2026. The reason it exists is a genuine gap: design has never had its own dedicated occupation category in the Australian Census, despite the DIA estimating the sector contributes around A$67.5 billion to the economy each year. Under the Census's new occupation framework, design now sits within its own group, 242 Design Professionals, and the DIA is specifically asking respondents to name their exact role, including interior designer, so the profession can finally be measured with any accuracy [1].
A sector worth billions to the economy, and until now, no one has had an accurate headcount of who is actually in it.
Singapore's industry body is naming the hiring problem out loud.
The Singapore Institute of Architects ran a seminar this year built specifically around talent retention, workforce pipeline, and evolving employee expectations in the profession, with HR leaders from Arup and Mercer joining the panel alongside SIA's own Executive Director [2]. That a national professional body is putting hiring and retention on the same stage as design practice itself is notable. It signals that the talent conversation has moved from something firms handle privately to something the industry is willing to address collectively.
Thailand is redefining who, or what, does the designing.
TTF International Co., Ltd. and the Association of Siamese Architects under Royal Patronage (ASA) co-organized the 2026 national expo, Architect '69, built around the theme "SATI: WISDOM: PROMPT," directly addressing how architecture responds when design emerges from collaboration between humans and machines. The event ran alongside TIDA, Thailand's interior design association, and drew over 325,000 visitors, more than 70% of them industry decision-makers [3].
This is a different conversation from the BIM-and-compliance story that dominates much of the built environment sector. Here, AI is entering the creative and conceptual side of design work, which changes what a strong design candidate's toolkit needs to include.
This isn't the BIM-and-compliance story. It's AI entering the creative process itself, and that changes what a strong candidate's toolkit needs to include.
Indonesia is putting architecture and interior design on one floor.
The Indonesian Institute of Architects' ARCH:ID 2026 exhibition was organized by IAI together with CIS Exhibition, with support from Himpunan Desainer Interior Indonesia, Indonesia's interior design association, alongside lighting design, landscape, and green building bodies. The event's theme, "Skema Sintesa: Arsitektur Keterlibatan" (roughly, "synthesis scheme: architecture of engagement"), was built explicitly around the idea that architectural practice can no longer stand alone from the disciplines around it [4]. For hiring, that points toward candidates who can work fluently across the architecture and interior design boundary, not just within one side of it.
What this means for hiring across the region
Although each of these four markets faces a distinct challenge, their differences collectively reveal the fragmented yet evolving nature of design and architecture hiring across the Asia-Pacific region. Australia highlights foundational issues regarding professional identity and workforce measurement. Singapore brings attention to workforce stability and systemic retention concerns. Thailand demonstrates how technological advancements, particularly AI, are reshaping the conceptual core of design work. Indonesia, meanwhile, exemplifies the increasing interdisciplinarity between architectural and interior design practices. Together, these trends indicate that firms and professionals across APAC must navigate an environment where the definition of "designer" is not only becoming more precise but is also diverging by market and context. The synthesis of these diverse approaches suggests that the next phase of hiring and professional identity formation in the region will be characterized by both increased specificity and ongoing adaptation to changing industry expectations.
Sources
[1] ArchitectureAu, "DIA urges designers to 'Write Designer' in 2026 Census," 15 July 2026 โ architectureau.com
[2] Singapore Institute of Architects, "From Foundations to Skylines: Working Insights for Architectural Employment" โ sia.org.sg
[3] The Story Thailand, "Southeast Asia's largest building expo opens in Bangkok," April 2026 โ thestorythailand.com
[4] Property & Bank, "ARCH:ID 2026 Dibuka, Industri Arsitektur Kian Prospektif," April 2026 โ propertynbank.com
Hiring for Interior Design and Architecture across APAC, or building your next move in it?
โ
