Leadership qualities that all managers must have

In episode 36 of The Product Design Podcast, Seth Coelen interviews?Adam Sadowski, Design Director here at?UX Cabin! Adam joined our team a few months ago and has been?doing fantastic work leading and mentoring the UX Cabin design team.

Adam?shares what he has learned along his career path, from?breaking into product design?to?moving up through mid-level management and then up to a senior-level role?where he leads an entire design team. His advice can?help you figure out what to do next to level up and set yourself on the right path for a senior-level product design leadership position. No matter where you are currently on your product design career path, there is so much to learn from this episode!

This article will focus on Adams's advice on how to level up to a senior-level role in product design!

Bridging the gap between mid and senior-level roles

Moving from mid to senior-level roles can carry based on the organization that you are in and the expectations for each position in your company. Adam shared that, first and foremost, from a design perspective, your information architecture, visual design, and ability to prototype have to be at a much more advanced level. You may be specialized in one area where you are more skilled.

Once that set of skills is well established, Adam shares some key areas to consider improving to move to the next level in your career where you are involved in more collaboration and helping move a team towards the desired goal.

?? Clear and consistent communication.?Practice your storytelling and public speaking since you will be leading more presentations at a senior level. You will need to be able to motivate, influence, or sometimes convince stakeholders or your team to go in a certain direction.

?? Organization is key.?Keeping track of everything makes you indispensable to a team. Organization and attention to detail are necessary for getting projects across the finish line when the details can get scattered. Managing a project's details, what it needs, and how to get it done is critical.

?? Ability to critique your own work.?You must be able to critique your work before it goes to the team review to show your ability to do the same for others on the team when you rise to a senior-level role. Show you can take a step back, realize your design is not working, and create other options that work better. In that case, you will show you are ready for the responsibility and accountability to get things right faster than in a junior or mid-level role.

?? Invest in your team.?Investing in your team is the most important thing a leader needs to do because it shows the team that you care about the team. From their growth and development to their well-being. If the team feels cared for, they will be happier and more engaged, leading them to produce better work.

In the complete episode, listen to Adam’s advice on the non-design skills you need to level up and his strategy that landed him the Design Director role at UX Cabin!

To listen to this episode, visit?The Product Design Podcast!

You can also watch the full interview on our?YouTube Channel!?