Table of Contents
- Your title doesn’t make you a leader—how you treat your UX team does
- What to avoid as a UX leader:
- ❌ Taking people for granted
- ❌ Rewarding high performers with more work
- ❌ Not matching salaries for loyal employees with new hires
- ❌ Ignoring employee feedback
- ❌ Tolerating low performance from others
- What to do as a UX leader:
- ✅ Recognize Impact and Contributions
- ✅ Provide growth opportunities
- ✅ Help them connect the dots
- ✅ Ask for their input when making decisions
- ✅ Ensure fair compensation
- Be the leader you wish you had
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Your title doesn’t make you a leader—how you treat your UX team does
TL;DR
If you’re a bad leader, your team won’t stick around to tell you—they’ll just want to fuck off 🤡
Being a manager in the UX world comes with a unique set of challenges. You’re not just overseeing designers or researchers; you’re guiding a group of highly creative problem-solvers who live and breathe user experience.
But here’s the hard truth: having the title of ‘UX Manager’ doesn’t make you a true leader.
In fact, the UX team’s success or failure often hinges not on your title, but on how you treat the people working with you. The way you lead your UX team can either foster innovation and trust or drive people to disengage, burnout, and ultimately leave.
Loyal employees are your greatest asset. They’re the ones who understand your processes, your product, and your users at a deep level. They’re the ones who can bring your vision to life.
But when you lose their trust, you’ve lost your foundation. And in UX, where collaboration and empathy are crucial, trust is everything.
So, how do you earn—and keep—that trust? By avoiding common leadership mistakes and focusing on the practices that build a culture of recognition, growth, and fairness.
What to avoid as a UX leader:
❌ Taking people for granted
The day-to-day pressures of product development, deadlines, and stakeholder expectations can make it easy to overlook the contributions of your team.
But if your UX designers and researchers feel invisible, they'll quickly disengage.
UX work is often invisible by nature—great design goes unnoticed because it’s so seamless.
As a leader, it’s your responsibility to ensure the people behind the design don’t go unnoticed.
❌ Rewarding high performers with more work
In UX, it’s tempting to pile more work onto your top designers and researchers because they consistently deliver high-quality work.
You think: “They can handle it.”
But the harsh reality? High performers get burned out, and feeling like they’re being punished for their talent is a sure way to lose them.
Talented UX professionals often feel overwhelmed and undervalued when they’re given extra work as a "reward".
Instead of more tasks, reward them with opportunities to grow; whether that’s leading high-visibility projects or supporting their professional development.
❌ Not matching salaries for loyal employees with new hires
The UX market is competitive.
New talent comes at a premium, but it’s easy to overlook the value of those who have been with your company for years.
If you’re consistently offering new hires better salaries than your loyal team members, you're signaling that their dedication means less than a flashy resume.
❌ Ignoring employee feedback
Your UX team spends their days gathering feedback, analyzing user insights, and iterating on designs to better meet user needs.
When their own feedback about internal processes, tools, or team dynamics is dismissed or ignored, it creates a culture of frustration.
After all, if user experience experts can't speak up about their own experience in the workplace, what does that say about your leadership?
❌ Tolerating low performance from others
UX work is highly collaborative.
If one team member isn’t pulling their weight, the rest of the team suffers.
When leaders ignore underperformance, whether due to lack of skill or motivation; it sends a message to the rest of the team that mediocrity is acceptable.
UX thrives on high standards, and failing to hold everyone accountable is a fast way to erode trust and momentum.
Allowing underperformance to slide leads to frustration among high performers, which not only slows down project progress but also creates an unhealthy team dynamic where resentment can fester.
Want to learn more about UX Management?
Check out UX Management Playbook — made for first-time managers building healthier and happier design teams.
What to do as a UX leader:
✅ Recognize Impact and Contributions
UX work may be invisible to users, but it shouldn’t be invisible to you.
Build a culture of appreciation by recognizing the specific contributions of your team members. Don’t just say, “Good job!”—point out exactly what they did well and how it impacted the product or user experience.
💡 Tip
Incorporate weekly shoutouts or design critiques where positive feedback is prioritised.
Celebrating wins (no matter how small) boosts morale and reinforces the importance of every team member's contribution.
✅ Provide growth opportunities
Most UX professionals are naturally curious, always looking for ways to grow their skills and learn more. But too often, leaders assume they know what’s best for their team without actually asking.
Take the time to understand each individual’s career aspirations and provide opportunities for them to grow within the company.
💡 Tip
Have one-on-one career conversations that focus on their long-term goals, not just immediate project needs.
Before hiring externally, look for internal talent that could step into new roles or challenges.
✅ Help them connect the dots
The path to a successful career in UX is rarely linear.
Many designers and researchers come from diverse backgrounds, and their career progression isn’t always straightforward.
As a leader, one of your most valuable roles is helping your team members connect the dots between their past experiences and future growth opportunities.
💡 Tip
Sit down with each team member and map out their career journey.
Help them see how their unique skill sets can be applied to larger company goals and how they can grow in the organisation.
✅ Ask for their input when making decisions
Your UX team spends their time empathising with users, understanding pain points, and crafting solutions.
Imagine the frustration if you, as their leader, fail to bring them into important decision-making processes that affect the product or their work.
💡 Tip
Make it a habit to ask for input from your team during important decisions, whether it’s about design direction, tools, or timelines.
Not only will you gain valuable insights, but your team will feel valued and engaged in the process.
✅ Ensure fair compensation
Compensation isn’t just about the money—it’s about respect.
When your loyal team members discover that new hires with less experience are being paid more, it’s a major trust breaker.
Make sure your compensation structures reflect the loyalty, contributions, and expertise of your existing team.
💡 Tip
Regularly review salary benchmarks within the industry, and conduct annual salary audits to ensure that your long-term employees are not being undervalued compared to new hires.
Be the leader you wish you had
The UX field thrives on empathy, and as a leader, you need to extend that same empathy to your team.
Being a great UX leader means seeing your team as your most valuable asset, building a culture of trust, and providing them with the resources, recognition, and opportunities they need to succeed.
Your title may get you in the door, but how you treat your team will determine whether you’re truly a leader worth following.
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