The Beautiful Harmony of Product, Strategy and UX

In the ever-changing world of product design, roles across teams are starting to shift and blend. User experience designers are helping more with Product Requirement Documents (PRDs), product managers are building MVPs in Lovable or Figma Make, and almost everyone is a certified engineer now. In this new environment, being an exceptional designer is no longer defined by how well you can use Figma to create pixel perfect products. It’s about how well you think like a strategist.

I’ve seen both ends of the spectrum. I’ve been a UX designer at a 400,000+ person corporation, where the product team alone was 250+ members. It was easy to feel like a small cog in a massive machine. At Nebo, I collaborate with folks from every team involved in each project, including our client. The difference isn’t just the headcount, it’s the proximity to the “why.” 

As someone who also worked in marketing strategy, my role was to take a bunch of insights, data and ideas and turn them into a clear, actionable and tailored marketing strategy. Simply put, I made things make sense. UX designers share a similar calling. Our role isn’t just to create great experiences in a vacuum. It’s critical to keep a panoramic view of every aspect of a project to account for the subtle details that go into an elevated user experience.  

I’ve learned that you must always be intentional with adopting a strategic mindset, because you can inadvertently get bogged down in the details of any given task. This approach has not only helped make my work stronger, but also my team’s. All that’s to say, I truly believe a UX designer can create work that’s remarkable by embodying these ideals. And that’s increasingly important as AI-generated digital experiences become more accessible.

1. Think like a strategist, not an executor. 

   Every UX designer has been given a last-minute dumpster-fire problem like “we need to add a primary CTA somewhere on this page – before lunch”. The gut reaction may be to simply add a primary button beneath the body copy and call it a day. Instead, put on your strategist cap and ask yourself the following questions:

   • Gathering insight: What are users doing on this page right now? What do we want them to do differently or better? Where does this experience fit into the overall user journey? 

   • Understanding the business goals: What is the business trying to achieve with this particular user flow? How does adding a primary CTA help elevate that success metric?  

   A strategist thinks in questions, constantly staying curious about what they already know and what they don’t. Once those questions have been asked, though it might take a few extra minutes, decide for yourself how everything fits together in the broader picture of the digital experience and business goals. Being inquisitive guides you towards a strategic UX recommendation rooted in insights, rather than defaulting to a quick, reactive fix. 

2. Move from task-based to outcome-based decision making.

   If you work in Jira, Asana or any other project management tool, it’s easy to see your job as a checklist of tickets. That mentality gets work done, but we’re aiming higher. Whether you work only within an internal product team or alongside a client, pull up a seat at the table and join the larger strategic conversations. Ask how each task assigned to you ladders up to the broader goal at hand and make sure that you understand why each is important. 

   To help you get there, create frameworks that help internal or external stakeholders make decisions with you (i.e., roadmaps, feature prioritization, etc.), so that all teams are aligned with the broader goal or vision for the more tactical tasks. Documenting the rationale will rally people behind the strategy, and you’re more likely to achieve the outcome everyone is working toward; or, better yet, one that’s exponentially better! 

3. Anticipate questions before they’re asked.   

   A strategic designer isn’t a mind reader; they’re just a smart planner. They anticipate the constraints before they become roadblocks.

   • For engineering: How does this scale within our existing library? What are our known engineering constraints and what is your recommendation on how to navigate those? 

   • For internal or external stakeholders: How does this specific flow improve user engagement within the product? How will this design increase conversions? 

   With this advice in mind, think about who will be reviewing or critiquing your designs. It could be other UX designers, C-suite executives, product managers, engineers, marketing specialists or someone completely unfamiliar with the project. Taking the time to understand your audience helps you to anticipate questions from all angles. 

How To Start Doing This as a UX Designer Today

In a world of automated design and rapid prototyping, the strategy-first designer is the one who leads the room. A few tips to keep in mind:    

• Always ensure you understand the business needs. Allow for room to connect design decisions back to business impact.  

• Know the product inside and out, even the parts you’re not designing. By understanding the overall product, you’re thinking about the full user journey, not just one user flow. 

• Anticipate questions and lead conversations. Be the leader who kicks off a culture of workshopping by encouraging more open, fluid communication. 

• Contribute to strategic decisions, not just tasks. You are in a position to help your team understand “this is what we need to get done now to get to X, Y and Z later.”  

With technology and AI improving so rapidly, these are going to be the skillsets that help you excel as a UX designer and distinguish great work from good. Product development is changing. Don’t just change with it — be sure you’re leading the way.