Product Managers + UX teams: working better together Masterclass
2 hrs 46 min
Product management groups often manage, lead, or heavily influence UX teams. Product management (‘Product’) plays this role due to its close proximity to Engineering and ‘the Business’. However, many product managers struggle to “play well” (get the most out of interactions) with UX process and team inputs and outputs. In Product’s defense, this line of business inherited UX in many ways to save it from being incorporated as a sub-function of Engineering. However, product managers must understand specifically what value UX brings and how to work with UX teams better.
Many Product teams appreciate and thrive on UX input. As a result, the product managers that ‘process share’ with UX teams, can get more business value from UX. Therefore, UX teams play a strategic role in Product organizations that want to realize the ROI from UX. In this Masterclass, Frank Spillers shares tested methods for improving relationships and interactions between UX and Product.
Topics we will cover:
- Defining roles: What UX teams do; what Product managers need; where the roles overlap
- How to understand and influence a Product Manager and a UX team
- Product management vs UX management
- How successful products are managed for better UX
- Product roadmaps vs UX roadmaps
- Mapping of types of Product Managers (from worst to best) to collab, the archetypes & how to Manage the managers
- Negotiating the MVP’s, Backlogs and Agile UX
- Key UX/Product collaborations- tools and templates
- Resolving conflicting agendas and avoiding collaboration traps
- Managing UX teams for better product outcome
(This is paid Member Content)
Member? Sign In to watch full
Who You will Learn From
Frank Spillers
Founder - UX Inner Circle
Frank Spillers, MS, founded the UX Inner Circle in 2020 to support senior practitioners facing complex challenges. The community exists to sharpen thinking, increase your confidence, and pressure-test real decisions. It’s built for people doing the work, not just talking about it. Frank founded an award-winning UX and Service Design consultancy (Experience Dynamics) and now leads UX and Service Design at numerous organisations, including the UK Government Digital Service. He has worked with and led teams to deliver hundreds of products and services over several decades. His work spans government, enterprise platforms, nonprofits, and global brands. He brings 25+ years as a senior UX and Service Design leader. His focus areas include Inclusive Design, accessibility, emotion-led design, cross-cultural UX, VR/AR, and UX leadership. His work has directly increased conversion by 88% and revenue by 300% for organizations including Nike, Microsoft, Intel, Capital One, Global Disability Rights Now!, the World Bank, and the City of New York.
