Designing with influence; lessons beyond the craft
One of those timeless lessons is about something we rarely talk about directly: politics in UX. Not politics in the cynical sense, but the reality of navigating influence, relationships, and decision-making in complex organisations. It’s something I’ve had to learn and am still learning the hard way. And I think it’s time we talk about it more openly.
The invisible side of UX
As designers, we’re creative problem solvers. We know our craft, we have a toolbox full of UX methods, and we care deeply about creating the best possible experience for our users. That passion drives us, but it’s not enough on its own.
Even if you’re working in a startup or a large organisation, turning your design vision into reality means working closely with others. Your success depends not just on what problems you solve, but how you work with the people around you: product owners, developers, support teams, marketing, even legal and compliance.
And that’s where the politics begin, not in a negative way, but in the very real need to build trust, alignment, and influence across teams. Cultivating those relationships is one of the most important skills you can develop.
Bring the product team into the research
If there’s one shortcut to building empathy, it’s letting people see it for themselves. I’ve found that involving product owners and developers in user research, whether it’s interviews, usability tests, or playback sessions, completely changes the dynamic.
Suddenly, it’s not you saying “this is a problem”, it’s the user. And when everyone hears the same thing at the same time, it’s a lot easier to agree on what needs fixing and where to invest more time. It creates transparency, shared understanding and most importantly alignment. That’s when the product team starts becoming your ally.
Learn to compromise without losing your voice
We’ve all been there. You design the ideal experience, the one that solves real problems, feels great to use, and then the delivery timeline hits. Things get de-scoped, split into phases, or parked in the “next release”.
This is where the politics really show up. It’s easy to get frustrated. But over time I’ve learned that great designers don’t just fight for every design, they negotiate. You need to understand the constraints, then advocate for the elements that will make the biggest customer impact. That unfinished vision? It’s not wasted. It’s a conversation starter, and often, it becomes the foundation for future iterations.
Work with developers, not just alongside them
When I was working at a startup, we were all new hires, none of us knew each other, and everything was being built from scratch. It was the first time I’d ever formally handed over designs to that dev team, and I wasn’t sure how it would go.
I started small. During development, I’d casually walk over to their desks to ask if they needed help or had questions. Nothing big, just being present. Within a few weeks, something shifted. They started coming over to my desk with questions. We’d sit together, tweak designs, adjust CSS, explore alternative solutions. It became a fun, collaborative process where everyone felt like they had a voice.
That kind of open, cross-functional energy is easy to foster in a small team, but in larger organisations, it takes much more effort, especially in remote teams. Development and design often operate in parallel rather than together.
If you want to cultivate a better relationship with developers, invite them in. Offer to pair on UI challenges. Sit together to refine a layout or a UI component. Show that you’re not just delivering screens, you’re building the product with them. Be ready to compromise, suggest alternatives, and adapt. That mutual respect and co-creation mindset makes everything smoother and better.
Build trust before you need it
In large organisations, you don’t just work with your product team, you work across departments, hierarchies, and priorities. That’s why building trust early is so important.
Share your thinking before it’s polished. Invite feedback even when you’re not sure. Show how your work connects to both customer outcomes and business goals. When people see that you’re not just designing “pretty things” but solving real problems, they start to trust you, and they listen when it matters most.
Final thoughts
In the end, it’s not just about being the best designer in the room, it’s about being the one who helps everyone do better work. Product owners, developers, researchers, stakeholders, when they succeed, the experience you designed do too. That’s when real influence happens.
As John Scott Bowie writes in Navigating the Politics of UX: “Your success depends on your ability to make other people successful”.
