So you love UX so much that you’re finally thinking of taking up managerial position. First and foremost, congratulations on being so bold as to essentially take on the position of the ultimate UX boss. If you came here expecting to hear that you would simply be changing your job title from staffer to manager you are in for a great deal of schooling. So without further ado let’s explore what it means to be a UX Manager!
UX managers are essentially in-house employees who handle UX from start to finish. They dissect what many of us do, analyze it, and build a better model. On a daily, consistent, and ongoing basis, these managers are essentially the core of the company’s UX strategy. They are usually in charge of assigning tasks to their team members by creating a daily to-do list for them and holding a scrum call with them to keep track of how much work is done by whom. They are also responsible for evaluating the performance of their team.
Seasons UX designers know that UX is so much more than the physical things that users see on websites. UX transcends the view of the naked eye and actually exists, at its core, in the code design of website frameworks. UX design managers work in that very core on an ongoing basis to ensure that websites function down to the script.
Despite what you may think, UX managers don’t do all of this meticulous work by themselves. As managers they have an entire group of people working alongside them as partners and of course staffers to take up bits of the work to complete the entire project.
This position requires more than a keen eye. It relies heavily on creativity to solve problems and innovation to come up with unique ways to tend to user needs. These individuals must also have amazing leadership skills since they will be overseeing an entire group of people. Furthermore, they need to be aware of various software systems similar to OKR software, that could prove helpful to optimize the performance of the remote workforce as well as in-office employees. UX managers often act as coaches and mentors to their staff- thus proving that this job is not for those who cannot handle responsibility.
Accountability is vital to this position. Many people think taking a step up the ladder means getting away with slacking off more often. Nothing could be further from the truth. As the UX manager you will be held responsible for everything that happens or does not happen concerning your team.
You must be driven and motivated to get results. UX is all about being on top of the user friendliness and usability games. You must be looking to maintain top notch UX elements at all time. This one thing is probably, and arguably, the core of UX management.
As the UX manager you will be held responsible for everything that happens or does not happen concerning your team.
If you want to be a manager you have to awesome communication skills. You, more than likely, will be overlooking a decent sized team and will have to answer to many people. This means that communication cannot lack when it comes to articulating ideas pertaining to your design project.
Communication is also important because if you cannot get your individual team members to produce the results you know they need to produce in order for the team to succeed you will undoubtedly fail.
You must be great at managing talent. This means being able to tell it like it is. If team members are lacking they need to be told about it. Action needs to constantly be made. Objectives need to be met on a daily and consistent basis- it is you, the manager, who is responsible for ensuring that this happens on a consistent basis.
The UX manager’s entire game is to deliver the ultimate user experience. UX management is no joke.
Last but certainly not least, you must effectively build teams. This means being able to vigilantly seek out talent in a manner that benefits the team and overall project. You can do this in any way you see fit; for example, many corporate team managers consider offline or virtual team building events so they can better understand their members, as well as allow employees to understand each other better. Team building can not only improve interpersonal communication and relationships, but it can also allow individuals to become more self-aware about their own abilities and talents, making for more effective work overall. It’s better to have effective than fast teammates. Be able to determine who is making moves and who is hindering the process.
Being a UX staffer is worlds away from what a UX manager does and is about. The UX manager’s entire game is to deliver the ultimate user experience. UX management is no joke.
Are you involved in UX? What do you love about the job?
