Always the Victim?

UX Professionals are often frustrated about not being included early enough or not being taken seriously. But complaining won’t fix it. This article explores why UX still gets sidelined — and what to do about it.

Key takeaways:

UX must be translated into business value to earn influence.

Don’t wait for permission — embed yourself proactively.

Build trust through collaboration, not perfection.

Influence comes from consistency, empathy, and results.

Stop defending UX. Start leading with it.

Let’s be honest: the UX community hasn’t always helped its own cause. We roll our eyes at being left out of key conversations, we post sarcastic memes, and we write Medium articles about how nobody respects UX. It’s a lot of mimimi — and while the frustrations are often valid, this mindset solves nothing. In fact, it only reinforces the perception that UX is defensive, inflexible, and hard to work with.

It’s time to take a different approach. We need to stop expecting to be invited and start positioning ourselves as strategic collaborators. UX professionals must learn to work more closely with others like Product Owners, Developers, and Project Managers — on their terms, not just ours. To really make an impact, we need to build trust, explain our work clearly, and take shared responsibility for outcomes.

This article takes a different view. It argues that UX professionals should stop waiting to be asked and start working more closely with others like Product Owners, Developers, and Project Managers. To really make an impact, we need to build trust, explain our work clearly, and take shared responsibility for outcomes.

Many people still confuse UX with UI. They assume UX is mainly about making things look attractive, rather than helping users achieve their goals effectively. This leads to UX being undervalued, especially in technical teams that focus more on output than experience.

The truth is, UX includes understanding user behavior, solving real problems, and aligning design with business outcomes. When decision-makers don’t see that, UX is treated as a late-stage add-on — something to fix visuals, not shape the product. UX professionals must work to shift this perception through explanation, visibility, and collaboration.

In many organizations, key decisions — like product direction, feature scope, or roadmap priorities — are made before UX is even at the table. Budgets are allocated, timelines set, and deliverables defined with little to no understanding of actual user needs.

Executive Support vs. Operational Reality
Interestingly, the value of UX has started to gain real traction at the executive level. Many C-Level leaders now understand that user-centered design can improve internal processes, enhance product outcomes, and even increase employee satisfaction. For instance, in customer service settings, better-designed internal tools help support staff resolve issues more efficiently — freeing up time for higher-value tasks like personalized customer interaction.

However, this top-level awareness doesn’t always filter down into day-to-day operations. Developers and mid-level managers often still operate within outdated, delivery-focused frameworks. UX is treated as a “nice-to-have” or something that gets added later, if at all. This creates a disconnect between strategic intent and practical execution.

To bridge that gap, UX professionals must translate executive vision into actionable practices that integrate smoothly into existing team workflows. That means aligning with delivery goals, speaking the language of agile teams, and embedding user-centered methods into the everyday rhythm of development.

When UX is brought in only at the end, its role is limited to fixing interfaces or addressing usability issues. But when it’s embedded early, UX can help shape strategic priorities, reduce risk, and lead to better long-term outcomes. Our job isn’t to fight for a seat at the table — it’s to show why our presence there improves the quality of decisions being made.

UX professionals are great at understanding users — but not always great at communicating their value in a business context. While we might conduct solid research and gather useful insights, these don’t always resonate with stakeholders unless they are framed in terms of business outcomes. Presenting findings without linking them to goals like increasing conversion rates, reducing support costs, or boosting retention can make our work seem abstract or disconnected from company priorities.

To truly gain influence, UX teams need to show how their work contributes to metrics that matter to decision-makers. Whether it’s a streamlined flow that saves users time or a redesign that increases sales, translating UX outcomes into business impact is a critical skill we need to master.

To gain influence, we need to translate our work into the language others speak. That means talking about conversion rates, customer satisfaction, retention, and reduced support costs. When UX work clearly supports metrics leadership cares about, it becomes easier to gain buy-in and trust.

In many teams, the focus is on speed — shipping features quickly, meeting deadlines, and checking off tickets. Agile sprints and tight roadmaps often reward quick delivery over thoughtful design. In this context, user research and iteration are seen as slow, expensive, or simply optional.

This mindset leads teams to rely on assumptions rather than evidence. It creates a cycle of guesswork: features are released based on internal ideas or stakeholder opinions, and only revisited when things break or KPIs drop. When this happens repeatedly, UX is treated as reactive cleanup instead of a proactive guide.

The challenge is to reframe research as a time-saver, not a time sink. Even lightweight studies or quick user feedback sessions can uncover major usability problems early — problems that would be costly to fix later. Integrating these activities into existing development rhythms shows that UX doesn’t have to slow things down — it can help teams build the right thing faster.

UX research doesn’t have to be slow or complicated. Even quick tests or short interviews can reveal major problems and inform better decisions. The key is to integrate research into the delivery rhythm — showing that it supports, rather than delays, progress. When teams see that, they’re more likely to make space for it.

UX teams often aim to follow a well-defined, ideal process: start with research, move to ideation, test prototypes, then validate before launch. While that works in theory, it doesn’t always fit into real project timelines. Especially in fast-paced environments, teams may not have the time or space to go through each UX phase in full.

When designers insist on applying the full UX toolkit regardless of the context, it can create tension. Product Managers might feel pressured, Engineers might feel blocked, and the whole team can lose momentum. Being too rigid with process makes UX feel disconnected from the rest of the team.

Instead of treating the UX process as non-negotiable, it’s more effective to adapt methods based on time, goals, and the team’s rhythm. A small usability test is better than none. A rough prototype tested early can do more than a polished one tested too late. This flexible mindset is at the heart of the Pragmatic UX approach: small steps, smart timing, and building trust from the inside out. Flexibility builds trust — and makes UX feel like a partner, not a hurdle.

Many Product Owners, Developers, or Engineers believe they can “do UX” without needing a dedicated expert. From the outside, UX can look deceptively simple — just make some screens, follow a design pattern, maybe talk to a few users. This view reduces UX to a checklist rather than a discipline grounded in psychology, systems thinking, and evidence-based iteration.

As a result, teams often skip research or make design decisions based on assumptions or personal opinions. This may work temporarily, especially in early-stage projects or MVPs, but it tends to break down as complexity increases. For example, in one B2B project I observed, the product team decided to redesign a workflow without involving UX. While the UI looked cleaner, the change added six extra clicks for a key daily task — leading to complaints from users and a measurable drop in productivity. The team had to roll back the feature two weeks later.

These scenarios aren’t about bad intentions — they’re about underestimating the scope and value of UX work. Without proper research and user validation, even well-meaning design efforts can miss the mark. That’s why involving experienced UX professionals isn’t a luxury — it’s a necessity for sustainable product success.

To gain traction, UX efforts must be visibly and measurably connected to what the business truly values. That means showing how UX work impacts key metrics like customer retention, conversion rates, onboarding time, or reduced support costs. When UX can clearly demonstrate that its activities lead to tangible improvements in business performance, it earns trust — and a seat at the strategic table.

For example, in an enterprise onboarding project, UX research revealed that a confusing first-time user experience was causing a 30% drop-off in account activations. By simplifying the process and testing new flows, the team reduced onboarding time by 40% and improved activation rates by over 15%. These numbers made it easy for leadership to see UX as a business driver, not just a design resource.

UX that helps the business grow, scale more efficiently, or reduce friction for both users and internal teams is far more likely to gain long-term support and cross-functional respect.

Research insights and design decisions are far more persuasive when framed as compelling stories. Instead of simply listing usability issues or data points, UX professionals should construct a narrative that clearly communicates the user problem, the research process, the design response, and the business or user outcome. Stories help stakeholders relate to users as real people — not just abstract personas or metrics.

For example, instead of saying “three users failed to complete onboarding,” tell the story of one frustrated user who gave up halfway through the process. Describe what they were trying to do, what stopped them, and how they reacted. Then show how your design addressed that pain point, and what changed as a result — faster completions, fewer support tickets, or higher retention.

Sometimes, the most powerful way to create empathy is to show it — literally. A short clip from a usability test can make a huge impact, especially for stakeholders who don’t usually interact with users. Seeing a real person struggle with something the team thought was clear can shift perspectives instantly. It bridges the gap between metrics and human experience. This approach not only builds emotional connection but also makes the case for UX investments more memorable and harder to ignore.

This method creates buy-in because it combines empathy and impact. It makes your work understandable, relatable, and actionable across different teams — even those far removed from the user.

UX doesn’t need executive approval — it needs executive empathy. Instead of asking for permission or budget, UX professionals should focus on creating moments of shared understanding. One of the most effective ways to do this is to bring leaders closer to real user behavior. Invite them to observe usability tests, either live or through curated video clips that highlight user frustration or confusion.

This kind of exposure creates visceral reactions — far more impactful than any slide deck. When a CEO sees a user struggle to complete a task that was assumed to be intuitive, it creates immediate clarity about what needs to change. These moments help reframe UX as a strategic asset, not just a support function.

In addition, frame your findings in the context of business risks and opportunities. Don’t just say “users are confused” — explain how that confusion leads to drop-offs, lower conversion rates, or support costs. When leaders can connect the dots between UX issues and business outcomes, they’re far more likely to back your work — not just emotionally, but with resources and commitment.

This step helped prevent UX from being the first role to be cut when budgets got tight. In two cases, these UX professionals became so central to the team that they now hold broader roles — one of them even acting as Product Manager.

In short: Instead of waiting to be invited, we must create the conditions in which our presence becomes natural — and essential.

Many people still don’t fully understand what UX is or what it includes. They might associate it only with aesthetics or usability tweaks, overlooking the broader strategic and research-driven aspects. That’s why it’s crucial for UX professionals to actively educate colleagues across departments.

Offer short lunch-and-learn sessions, create accessible internal guides, or share concrete case studies showing how UX improved outcomes. Consider running collaborative workshops that allow non-designers to experience UX methods firsthand — like usability testing, journey mapping, or rapid prototyping.

At our company, we developed a UX basics course for exactly this purpose. It gives participants a hands-on introduction to our work by guiding them through a simple product development process. Along the way, they learn how to collaborate cross-functionally and discover the impact and complexity of methods like usability testing. Most participants come away with a much deeper respect for how much thought and structure goes into UX — and how critical it is to do it properly, rather than treating it as something you can do “on the side.”

These efforts not only help demystify UX but also foster appreciation for the discipline as a structured, evidence-based practice. Good UX isn’t magic — it’s the result of methodical thinking, user empathy, and continuous learning. When colleagues understand that, they’re far more likely to involve you early and treat UX as a shared responsibility, not an afterthought.

UX works best when it’s embedded — not when it operates from the sidelines or in isolation. That means being present where decisions are made and where priorities are shaped. Spend time with Product Managers, Engineers, and even Sales or Support teams — not just in workshops, but in regular stand-ups, planning meetings, or customer feedback reviews.

Take the time to understand their goals, constraints, and language. What pressures are they under? What does success look like for them? The more UX professionals can speak in terms that resonate with other disciplines, the more effective they become as collaborators.

Trust isn’t built through pixel-perfect designs — it’s built through reliability, mutual respect, and showing that UX is here to help, not to slow things down. In many cases, a thoughtful conversation or a quick usability insight, delivered at the right moment, creates more influence than the most refined wireframe ever could.

Don’t just deliver designs — deliver results. Start by setting clear, measurable goals that align with both user needs and business priorities. These could include increasing task success rates, reducing support tickets, or improving customer satisfaction scores. Once these goals are defined, track them actively and build feedback loops into your process.

Be transparent about the outcomes — celebrate what worked and openly analyze what didn’t. Sharing learning moments builds credibility and shows that UX is committed to continuous improvement, not perfection.

When UX teams take ownership not only of the outputs (like wireframes or prototypes) but also of the outcomes (like adoption, engagement, or satisfaction), they reposition themselves from service providers to strategic partners. This shift transforms the perception of UX from “nice to have” to “mission critical.”

If you weren’t involved in a project, ask why — and then work on building the conditions that make your involvement inevitable next time. If others don’t understand the value of research, invite them into the process. If a team cuts corners on UX, show them what they missed and how it can be better.

Real influence comes from action, not outrage. From presence, not protest. From helping others succeed — with UX as a collaborator, not a gatekeeper.

So let’s move past the frustration and step into action. Let’s stop defending UX — and start leading with it.