DESIGN MEETUP, MELBOURNE | Realising that your design leadership is all about influence and not authority can set you on a better path.
Article based on a design MeetUp talk given in 2023 to the in-house product design team at NBN Australia.
Let me start with a simple question: What are your current design challenges?
I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I’ve been in the field long enough to share a few reflections. Such as on change, on design leadership, and especially on what it really means to lead when your only tool is influence.
Part 1: The Inconvenient Truth About Humans
I was the kid in school who loved drawing. I designed the yearbook, the T-shirts—anything visual. But I hated speaking in front of people. I preferred the quiet world of sketching and making.
That reluctance followed me into the workplace. I focused on honing my craft, hoping my work would “speak for itself.” And maybe you’ve had a similar thought: If the work is good enough, surely people will see it, understand it, and act on it.
But then… it doesn’t land. You present something you’re proud of, and it’s met with a shrug.
“A common tactic of designers is to try to design their way out of a problem.”
– Peter Merholz, Adaptive Path
This was me. I kept designing harder, trying to solve with visuals what was actually a communication and influence gap.
Over time, I learned: craft is essential, but relationships are critical.
So how do we shift?
Key reflections:
- The early phase of a project is where our influence is most valuable.
- Bad decisions made early are the costliest to fix later.
- Don’t wait to be handed a design brief—help create it.
- Facilitation is a design skill.
- Tensions with PMs are natural. Structure and collaboration help resolve them.
- Ask yourself: How are designers plugged into your business? Is it working?
What you can do:
- Learn the language of your cross-functional peers
- Ditch the UX jargon at the door
- Take others on the journey with you
- Recognise that better structure supports better relationships
Part 2: Being Good at Design Is Just the Start
For a long time, I believed the equation was simple: develop skills → do great work → success.
But it wasn’t that simple.
Even when I created work I was proud of, I still felt blocked. It was frustrating. Marketing didn’t seem to “get” UX. I had expertise—why wasn’t that enough?
The truth: expertise alone doesn’t open doors. Especially in UX, where the work is less about appearances and more about systems, flows, and outcomes.
“Good design is good business.”
– Thomas Watson Jr., IBM President 1952
Design has been recognised for decades as valuable. But in many organisations, it’s still treated as a service—brought in late, siloed, or left out of strategic decisions.
McKinsey’s Business Value of Design study (2018) found that:
- Design-led companies outperform competitors
- Isolated design teams don’t work
- Design is now a boardroom-level topic
To be truly influential, we need to speak the language of the business.
That means understanding how our work affects:
- Cost – Are we reducing unnecessary spend?
- Efficiency – Are we helping users achieve more with less effort?
- Risk – Are we helping avoid costly missteps?
Designers often shy away from metrics—but we shouldn’t. The business loves numbers. And experiences can be measured too: satisfaction, effectiveness, usability, time on task, etc.
What you can do:
- Understand your organisation’s key business metrics
- Layer experience metrics into your work
- Self-serve insights using your analytics tools
- Always include data in your design presentations
- Triangulate insights from users, staff, and systems
Part 3: Have More Than Just a Design Rationale
So you’ve built relationships. You understand the business. Now what?
Well… things still go wrong.
Even with the best intent and clarity, design ideas often get lost in translation. Especially in fast-paced builds, misunderstandings are costly.
“Ideas are not really alive if they are confined to only one person’s mind.”
– Nancy Duarte, Resonate (book)
That’s where storytelling becomes essential.
Designers must not only explain what is, but paint a vision of what could be—and clearly show the gap between the two.
Use structured storytelling tools. Frame your message with “Start with Why.” Make your case clearly and memorably. Because while Figma will eventually be replaced, communication is a forever skill.
Remember, humans have passed down knowledge through storytelling for tens of thousands of years. It’s hardwired into us. And it’s powerful.
What you can do:
- Plan your story, don’t wing it
- Start with why
- Set the context clearly
- Show both the current state and the desired future state
- End with inspiration
In Summary: Influence Is the Only Mode We Can Rely On
We don’t always have authority. We don’t always have the final say. But we can lead through influence.
That means:
- Building trust and relationships
- Creating with, not for, others
- Understanding and speaking the language of business
- Communicating with clarity and vision
Facilitation. Metrics. Storytelling. These are not just nice-to-haves. They are essential tools that amplify your craft—and your impact.
That’s how we lead. Even when we’re not “in charge.”
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