Last week we hosted a small UX strategy meetup with a group of designers. There were five of us in the room, all working in different companies, industries, and levels of UX maturity.

The goal was simple – to talk openly about a problem many designers face but rarely discuss honestly:

How do you work strategically when UX is not mature enough in your organisation?

What came out of that conversation was surprisingly consistent. Even though everyone worked in different companies, the same patterns kept appearing.

Here are the biggest insights from the discussion.

1. UX is often expected to be strategic, but designers were never trained for it

Many designers start their careers working on screens, flows, and product delivery. Over time, their role expands. Suddenly they are expected to participate in roadmap discussions, product direction, and leadership conversations.

But most designers were never trained for this.

They know how to design good experiences, most of them also know how to run research and usability testing. But, when the conversation moves to business strategy, growth, or market positioning, many designers feel unprepared.

This creates a strange gap. UX is expected to influence strategy, but the path to doing that is often unclear.

2. UX and leadership often speak different languages

One of the strongest themes in the room was language.

Designers tend to talk about:

• user journeys

• usability problems

• research insights

• design improvements

Leadership teams talk about something very different:

• revenue growth

• conversion rates

• customer acquisition

• churn

• operational cost

If UX work is not connected to these outcomes, it becomes difficult for leadership to see its strategic value.

Several designers shared the same realisation:

UX cannot stay in design language. It needs to connect directly to business impact.

3. UX often presents problems, but leaders expect solutions

Another interesting pattern emerged during the discussion.

UX teams are very good at identifying problems. Research findings, usability issues, friction points, and user pain are often clearly documented. But leadership conversations expect something more – they expect direction.

Instead of presenting only insights, UX needs to frame conversations like this:

• What is the problem?

• What is the business impact?

• What is the proposed solution?

• What result do we expect if we solve it?

When UX connects insights to action and outcomes, the conversation changes.

4. Strategic work starts before design begins

Several designers shared the same frustration. By the time UX gets involved in a project, many decisions have already been made – meaning that UX ends up reacting instead of shaping the direction.

One idea that resonated in the room was the need for structured collaboration early in the process.

Before design work starts, teams should align on:

• the business problem

• the success metrics

• the constraints and scope

• the drivers behind the project

When this alignment happens early, UX becomes part of the strategy rather than the execution.

5. Designers need to understand how their company makes money

One of the simplest questions asked during the meetup turned out to be one of the most powerful.

Can you explain how your company makes money?

For many designers, the answer is not always clear. Understanding the business model changes everything.. It helps designers connect UX work to outcomes like:

• growth

• customer retention

• acquisition cost

• operational efficiency

Without this understanding, it is very difficult for UX to influence strategic decisions.

6. UX strategy requires leadership support

Another insight that came up repeatedly was that UX strategy rarely works without leadership alignment.

In organisations where UX has strong influence, there is usually:

• a UX leader advocating for the discipline

• a leadership sponsor who understands the value of UX

• a shared vision across teams

Without this support, UX often remains stuck in delivery roles rather than shaping the product direction.

7. The real skill gap is not design

One of the most important conclusions from the meetup was this – the biggest gap for many designers is not design ability. It is the ability to influence decisions.

Designers need to learn how to:

• frame arguments in business terms

• communicate with senior stakeholders

• build credibility with leadership

• position UX as risk reduction and opportunity

These are not traditional design skills.

They are strategy and leadership skills.

The UX industry often talks about maturity models, design systems, and research practices.. and those things matter. But the real challenge many designers face is much simpler.

How do you influence decisions when UX is not yet part of the strategic conversation?

That is the challenge many designers are trying to solve every day, and it is definitely a conversation worth having more often.