In the work of designers on product teams, when something does not work, the most immediate explanation is a single one.
The problem is in the design: in the skills, the tools, the methods.
Yet in most cases, that is not where the game is really played.
According to research by Nielsen Norman Group, the main difficulties that designers on product teams face are not about the quality of the design.
They are about the way organizations work, make decisions and collaborate.
The main difficulties for designers on product teams: a matter of alignment
At the start of their course Product and UX: Building Partnerships for Better Outcomes, Nielsen Norman Group asked about 150 participants what their main problem was in their daily work.
Once analyzed, the answers show a strong recurrence.
About half of the feedback concerns a single category: alignment.
Not the quality of the design.
Not research methods.
But the ability to bring people onto the same page and help define what is actually built within a product team.
The “invisible” work of designers on product teams
The most recurring theme is managing alignment between people and teams.
Designers on product teams often describe themselves as the “glue” of organizations, called on to connect:
- development
- product
- marketing
- leadership
This means working in complex contexts, characterized by:
- misaligned processes
- teams spread across several time zones
- unclear definitions of success
- communication difficulties between disciplines
In many cases, the problem is not only doing your own job, but also explaining what UX is and how to collaborate effectively with designers and researchers.
Influence on the roadmap: a central knot
Right after alignment, another relevant difficulty emerges: the ability to influence decisions.
Many designers and researchers point to the need to:
- be involved in the early stages
- contribute to defining priorities
- connect user needs and business goals
They do not want to be limited to executing decisions that have already been made.
They want to help build them.
Among the most cited difficulties is, for example, getting product teams to act on research insights and design strategies, rather than following roadmaps that are already set.
Role and responsibility confusion
Another theme concerns the clarity of roles.
Many designers and researchers do not have a clear view of where their responsibility ends and where the product manager’s begins.
This ambiguity can generate:
- misunderstandings
- tension
- difficulty making decisions
At the same time, there is a need to help organizations better understand the contribution of UX, especially in contexts with a low level of maturity.
A value that is hard to communicate
A recurring problem is the difficulty of translating design work into terms stakeholders can understand.
The value is perceived by those who produce it, but it does not always get communicated effectively.
In particular, many report difficulty turning ideas and initiatives into:
- concrete requirements
- clear deliverables
On top of this, in some cases, there is limited visibility into upcoming projects, which makes it hard to plan research and design activities effectively.
The “mid-level” difficulties not to underestimate
Beyond the main themes, other issues emerge with significant frequency:
- collaborating with product managers without giving up your own expertise
- balancing quality and speed
- being involved proactively, not only reactively
- keeping the focus on outcomes instead of outputs
- dealing with the low priority given to UX
- adapting to product trio models (product manager, designer, developer)
One element is particularly striking.
Almost none of these difficulties concern technical design skills.
An organizational problem, not a design problem
Looking at this evidence as a whole, a clear picture emerges.
The difficulties of designers on product teams are not about “doing design” in the strict sense.
They are about the ability to operate inside complex organizations.
It means knowing how to:
- influence decisions
- navigate organizational dynamics
- communicate with different counterparts
- advocate for the value of your work
These are different skills, often not formalized and rarely taught.
How to address these difficulties
There is no single solution to these problems.
The work requires a set of tools and practices that help manage organizational complexity.
Among them:
- clearly defining the role of UX through tools such as a team charter
- building shared collaboration models
- developing effective ways to handle complex conversations
- clarifying responsibilities and decision boundaries
The first step, however, is recognizing the nature of the problem.
How Then addresses these difficulties
These difficulties are not inevitable.
They often emerge when design is treated as an isolated function, involved too late or disconnected from decision-making processes.
It is the principle behind our Expert as a Service: senior experts who join the team and bring design skills where they are needed, without the lead time of a hire.
At Then we work on exactly this: bringing design into decisions, building alignment between skills, goals and organization.
To do so, we choose each time the professional best suited to the specific context, creating teams built around the real needs of the project and not on rigid or standardized structures.
In Experience Design, in fact, value does not come only from the quality of skills, but from the way those skills collaborate, communicate and contribute to decisions.
Because improving the experience does not only mean designing better.
It means creating the conditions for the right decisions to be made.
Conclusion
The difficulties that designers on product teams face are not mainly about design.
They are about the way organizations collaborate and make decisions.
When this aspect is not managed, even the best design risks losing effectiveness.
From an Experience Design perspective, the point is not only to improve outputs, but to act on the processes that generate them.
Because the quality of the experience depends, first of all, on the quality of the decisions that make it possible.
And for this reason, truly understanding the difficulties of designers on product teams is the first step toward improving products, services and organizations.
