UX Leadership
Growing Designers Into Leaders
Context
As a Staff UX Designer, I took on the mentorship of a junior designer who had been flagged for missed deadlines and unfocused work. I worked with her directly until she was leading design reviews with real confidence.
The Problem
A talented junior designer on the team was struggling with missed deadlines, visible stress, and unfocused work, and our UX Director had flagged it. She had the raw ability but not yet the structure or confidence to operate at the level her role needed.
The Strategy
Step in as a hands-on mentor, not just an encouraging peer. Build a shared gameplan, meet weekly, and give continual, direct feedback, treating the relationship with the same rigor as a formal management relationship.
The Solution
Built a shared spreadsheet and gameplan with clear goals. Ran weekly check-ins that doubled as a sounding board. As she improved, I deliberately stepped back. 1:1s became less frequent as her ownership grew.
Key Results
3-6 months
From flagged performance gap to leading design reviews
Full Ownership
Moved into owning the UX for a full product team
Weekly Occasional
1:1 cadence tapered as she gained ownership, confidence, and autonomy
Testimonials
"She taught me, both directly and by example, how to walk into a design review with confidence and lead it."
— Krissy, former mentee, later UX lead for a product team
