my PM doesn't get design 🍵 just design tea #20
Designers x Product Managers. Common challenges and how to work through them. Part 1/3.
I have worked with PMs all my working life - just at Bumble if I count my teams and the PMs that came along with it, the number is 11!
One of the best compliments my previous manager gave me was, you can work with any product manager.
I love working closely with my product managers. it’s one of my favorite partnerships at work.
…but let’s be honest. We all face similar-ish challenges.
Openly talking about a few of them, and what I have learned on how to navigate them!
💬 “My PM does not understand the design process”
The path to becoming a product manager is very diverse. So sometimes, it can so happen that your product manager
- has previously managed more technical projects.
- has worked in a different design culture/ not worked closely with a designer.
- has attended one design bootcamp or has read that one Don Norman book and now thinks they know everything.
And that’s okay! The beauty of building products together is all of our individual experiences and expertise is additive.
👀 What worked for me
- Create a quick slide deck or a FigJam and map out your design process. Detail out what are the activities and outcomes of different phases (eg discovery - definition -delivery)
- Have a 30-45 mins session to walk your team through it. You can also include your engineering, data, marketing, and legal counterparts.
- You can even ask for support from your design manager. We recently had similar sessions for our teams at Bumble.
- Use this artifact every time you present your work.
”I am sharing some low-fidelity sketches. This is part of the design discovery process. At the end of this, we expect to have xyz”
The narrative does not need to be “Oh you don’t know so I am telling you”. It must be along “Hey here’s how I work, and here is what you expect after each phase.”
💬 “My PM thinks design takes a lot of time”
If you are having a conversation about timelines or not having enough time, try and understand where the time pressure is coming from.
- Is it company’s current needs that this feature needs to be out asap?
- Is it that engineering team ready to pick up work?
- Is it upcoming performance review cycles for the team?
- Or is it your PM/team does not understand the value of design process itself?
If you look closely you can find the reason and take informed decisions rather than rushing and feeling the pressure of invisible product gods.
👀 What worked for me
Building an understanding of design process/ same vocabulary with the team.
Learning to communicate my rationale for taking more/less time.
”Sure we can skip user research, this will be the trade-offs. We can compensate by doing XYZ.”
Learn to pace your design process and adopt. Don’t cling too tightly to the textbook process or double diamond. Advocate for investing more time where you believe it is crucial. Try and work with your team to make sure the design process feels integrated, rather than a blocker.Having defined and agreed upon timelines in a shared working doc.
💬 “My PM tells me to just make screens for their solutions, instead of involving me from the start.”
I have definitely been here, especially early in my career. It underlines a bunch of issues.
👀 What worked for me
- When in such a situation, ask questions. Most common is asking Why 5 times/ trying to get thinking with first principles.
”What is the problem we are solving? How do we know this is the problem? What is the solution you have proposed? Why do you think this solution solves it?”
- Present the context you have gathered when you present your designs. Problem statement, goal, success metrics, risks. If you think you are solving the wrong problem, bring it up.
- Instead of just presenting that one solution, also present alternate ones you have explored. And most importantly, your recommended way forward.
- Having an understanding of the problems and an opinion helps you build credibility, doing it consistently builds trust. Rinse and repeat.
- Keep an assertive approach and reiterating that design is just not about the screens through words and your actions.
Hope this kinda helps x
🍵 Coming up next on design tea
Part 2: My PM acts like my manager (Thinks they are my design manager, Tries to design screens themselves, Constantly challenges my design decisions)
Part 3: My PM uses a lot of numbers (Uses a lot of numbers, Only cares about business metrics, Scopes out all my favorite design features from MVP)
If you relate to or are loving all the tea, consider sending me a DM here or sending this to your design besties or your PM! 🙃
💛 My favorites this week
📝 On being selective by Isabel
This felt like she was writing to me, for me. On being selective with your time and energy. If you feel you are being pulled in all directions, read this.
📝 Becoming a leader by
Loves how she framed leader vs manager. I am thinking through IC vs manager track for myself, so this really helped.
📕 Nora goes off script by Annabel Monaghan
I am very vary of celebrity falls for a commoner rom-coms, but this one was surprisingly fresh and set within believable realms. Would recommend for a light summer read.
📺 Ted Lasso, Love Island, Selling Sunset
I have had long days at work, so some wholesome Ted Lasso (just finished it yesterday), and reality TV is all I have been able to do!