CINXE.COM
Defining UX-Career Progression: What Practitioners Say
<!DOCTYPE html> <html lang="en"> <head> <meta charset="utf-8"/><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, shrink-to-fit=no"/><title>Defining UX-Career Progression: What Practitioners Say</title><script id="Cookiebot" src="https://consent.cookiebot.com/uc.js" data-cbid="721be388-83be-48ef-9882-002f0dc9dc4f"></script><script>(function(){ var FLAGS = { 'use_server_algolia_search_flag': false,'use_local_user_profile_cert_and_exam_meta_data_apis': false,'use_teamdesk_api_for_user_profile_override': false,'navigation_2024': true,'banner_sales': true,'use_new_homepage_template': true,'use_local_user_profile_attendance_api': true,'enable_user_auth_redesign': true,'can_generate_certificates': true }, SWITCHES = { 'stripe_invoice_auto_send': false,'exclude_bank_transfer_payment': false,'log_exam_access_at_event_records': false,'use_local_exam_data': true,'create_course_reminders': true,'use_teamdesk_message_etl': false,'slack-integration': false,'use_virtual_overview_redesign': false,'use_course_redesign': true,'allow_course_new_fields_editing': false,'send_sign_in_reminders': false }, SAMPLES = { }; window.waffle = { "flag_is_active": function waffle_flag(flag_name) { return !!FLAGS[flag_name]; }, "switch_is_active": function waffle_switch(switch_name) { return !!SWITCHES[switch_name]; }, "sample_is_active": function waffle_sample(sample_name) { return !!SAMPLES[sample_name]; }, "FLAGS": FLAGS, "SWITCHES": SWITCHES, "SAMPLES": SAMPLES }; })(); </script><!-- Google Consent Mode --><script data-cookieconsent="ignore"> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; function gtag() { dataLayer.push(arguments) } gtag("consent", "default", { ad_personalization: "denied", ad_storage: "denied", ad_user_data: "denied", analytics_storage: "denied", functionality_storage: "denied", personalization_storage: "denied", security_storage: "granted", wait_for_update: 500 }); gtag("set", "ads_data_redaction", true); gtag("set", "url_passthrough", false); </script><!-- End Google Consent Mode--><!-- Google Tag Manager --><script type="text/plain" data-cookieconsent="statistics">(function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start': new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src= 'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl+ '>m_auth=oQvLGCv6ryZLP7PJLlpI-g>m_preview=env-2>m_cookies_win=x';f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f); })(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-THJDDHK');</script><!-- End Google Tag Manager --><script> window.addEventListener('CookiebotOnConsentReady', function () { if (window.Cookiebot.consent.marketing && window.Cookiebot.consent.method === "explicit") { // the experiment will load in any case but, according to the support, // "Cookies are set, tracking is sent, and integrations send data only after consent is given." window._conv_q.push(['consentGiven']); } }) </script><script src="//cdn-4.convertexperiments.com/js/10041905-10042313.js"></script><link rel="preconnect" href="https://media.nngroup.com/"/><link rel="preconnect" href="https://consent.cookiebot.com/"/><link rel="preconnect" href="https://consentcdn.cookiebot.com/"/><link rel="preconnect" href="https://www.googletagmanager.com/"/><link rel="preconnect" href="https://dnn506yrbagrg.cloudfront.net/"/><script src="https://media.nngroup.com/static/js/output.2e14f0aaa8d0.js" async></script><link rel="stylesheet" href="https://media.nngroup.com/static/css/output.55aab3a9e87a.css" type="text/css"><meta name="description" content="UX career progression is not singularly defined, though it typically involves a mix of measurable signals and gut feelings. Growth in the industry is often described as slow and inflexible due to a lack of consistent, measurable criteria and reliable personal-tracking tools."/><meta property="og:description" content="UX career progression is not singularly defined, though it typically involves a mix of measurable signals and gut feelings. Growth in the industry is often described as slow and inflexible due to a lack of consistent, measurable criteria and reliable personal-tracking tools."/><meta name="keywords" content="career progression, career growth, careers, career ladder, career research, role grid, career track, levels, career path, individual contributor, IC, people manager, management, advancement"/><meta name="robots" content="noarchive"/><meta name="twitter:dnt" content="on"/><meta property="og:title" content="Defining UX-Career Progression: What Practitioners Say"/><meta property="og:url" content="https://www.nngroup.com/articles/career-progression-practitioners/"/><meta property="og:site_name" content="Nielsen Norman Group"/><meta property="og:type" content="article"><meta property="og:image" content="https://media.nngroup.com/media/articles/opengraph_images/defining-ux-car-prog-eng_1.png"><meta name="twitter:site" content="@nngroup"/><meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image"><link rel="canonical" href="https://www.nngroup.com/articles/career-progression-practitioners/"><link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" title="NN/g Search" href="/opensearch.xml"/><link rel="shortcut icon" href="https://media.nngroup.com/static/img/favicon.ico"/><link rel="stylesheet" href="https://media.nngroup.com/static/css/output.df057ffb02d7.css" type="text/css"> <script type="application/ld+json"> { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Article", "headline": "Defining UX-Career Progression: What Practitioners Say", "image": [ "https://media.nngroup.com/media/articles/opengraph_images/defining-ux-car-prog-eng_1.png" ], "datePublished": "2023-10-13T17:00:00+0000", "dateModified": "2024-01-30T22:40:32+0000", "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rachel Krause" ,"url": "https://www.nngroup.com/articles/author/rachel-krause/" } ] } </script> </head> <body class=" article-detail " > <div class="skip"><a href="#main">Skip to content</a></div> <div class="banner-sales hidden"> <div class="text"> <strong class="label-small"><span>Save up to 20% when you</span> <span>register for 2+ <a href="/course-calendar/"><span class="visually-hidden">upcoming</span> courses</a></span></strong> Until January 21 </div> <button> <svg class="open-nav" aria-hidden width="16" viewBox="0 0 22 22" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <use href="#icon-close" /> </svg> </button> </div> <div class="svg-definitions"> <svg width="0" id="icon-error-svg" viewbox="0 0 16 16" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" > <path fill-rule="evenodd" clip-rule="evenodd" d="M16 8C16 12.4183 12.4183 16 8 16C3.58172 16 0 12.4183 0 8C0 3.58172 3.58172 0 8 0C12.4183 0 16 3.58172 16 8ZM8 3C8.55228 3 9 3.44772 9 4V9C9 9.55228 8.55229 10 8 10C7.44772 10 7 9.55228 7 9V4C7 3.44772 7.44772 3 8 3ZM8 13.5833C8.55229 13.5833 9 13.1356 9 12.5833C9 12.031 8.55229 11.5833 8 11.5833C7.44772 11.5833 7 12.031 7 12.5833C7 13.1356 7.44772 13.5833 8 13.5833Z" fill="currentColor"/> </svg> <svg width="0" id="icon-error-svg-outlined" viewBox="0 0 24 25" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" > <circle cx="12" cy="12" r="11" fill="currentColor" stroke="black" stroke-width="2"/> <circle cx="12" cy="18.625" r="1.5" fill="black"/> <path d="M12 6L12 13.5" stroke="black" stroke-width="2.5" stroke-linecap="round"/> </svg> <svg width="0" id="icon-confirm-svg" viewBox="0 0 32 32" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" > <path d="M3.52197 18.3985L10.5027 25.3792C10.9079 25.7844 11.5699 25.767 11.9532 25.3411L28 7.50989L27.0315 6.63916L11.1992 24.2311L4.44338 17.4753L3.52197 18.3985Z" fill="currentColor" stroke="black"/> </svg> <svg width="0" viewbox="0 0 22 22" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" > <g id="logo"> <path d="M0 26.8755V3.69629H4.93343L11.244 17.4356H11.3146V3.69629H15.4258V26.8755H11.1128L4.18181 11.9141H4.11623V26.8755H0Z" fill="currentColor"/> <path d="M23.2194 26.8755V3.69629H28.1579L34.4684 17.4356H34.534V3.69629H38.6503V26.8755H34.3373L27.4012 11.9141H27.3357V26.8755H23.2194Z" fill="currentColor"/> <path d="M65.1485 15.8523C65.1485 18.0045 64.1699 19.0682 62.2177 19.0682C60.1646 19.0682 59.0902 18.0094 59.0902 15.9513C59.0902 13.7348 60.1343 12.7057 62.1521 12.7057C64.301 12.7057 65.1485 13.6705 65.1485 15.8573V15.8523ZM67.1713 11.4738C65.1838 11.4738 64.6945 10.5684 62.2177 10.5684C58.6664 10.5684 56.2098 12.7651 56.2098 15.981C56.2098 18.1034 57.6828 19.9241 59.872 20.597C57.6525 21.2649 56.9311 22.0318 56.9311 23.3132C56.9311 24.7678 58.0813 25.6385 60.0032 25.6385C60.5228 25.6385 61.8595 25.6088 62.5103 25.6088C64.1043 25.6088 65.0829 25.7672 65.7034 26.1877C66.2885 26.5736 66.5811 27.2514 66.5811 28.1172C66.5811 30.1111 65.1485 30.9175 62.6414 30.9175C61.34 30.9175 60.1343 30.6306 59.3525 30.1754C58.7673 29.8241 58.4092 29.1463 58.4092 28.3102C58.4092 27.7956 58.6362 27.2168 58.8682 26.8606L56.1846 27.0882C55.9525 27.7313 55.8567 28.2162 55.8567 28.795C55.8567 31.0759 57.824 32.8619 62.9088 32.8619C66.8484 32.8619 69.3707 31.3034 69.3707 27.8303C69.3707 26.445 68.846 25.3169 67.5698 24.4462C66.5861 23.7684 65.547 23.5408 63.6553 23.5408H61.0524C60.2403 23.5408 59.751 23.2538 59.751 22.7739C59.751 22.2297 60.4975 21.6855 62.6818 20.9186C63.8521 20.9186 64.8963 20.7256 65.7084 20.221C67.2066 19.2958 68.1247 17.6285 68.1247 15.8276C68.1247 14.7985 67.7968 13.898 67.141 13.0965C67.4386 13.2252 67.8321 13.2895 68.2558 13.2895C69.2395 13.2895 69.9911 13.0322 71.005 12.3198L69.4362 10.7712C68.6493 11.2858 68.0288 11.4837 67.1763 11.4837L67.1713 11.4738Z" fill="currentColor"/> <path d="M44.1991 33.5001C44.1184 33.5001 44.0326 33.4852 43.9519 33.4605C43.5282 33.3269 43.2962 32.8767 43.4374 32.4611L53.8642 1.04428C54.0004 0.62869 54.4544 0.401103 54.8781 0.539634C55.3018 0.673217 55.5288 1.11849 55.3926 1.53409L44.9608 32.9509C44.8498 33.2824 44.5371 33.4951 44.1941 33.4951L44.1991 33.5001Z" fill="currentColor"/> </g> <g id="icon-burger"> <path fill-rule="evenodd" clip-rule="evenodd" d="M0 1.5C4.82824e-08 0.947715 0.447715 0.5 1 0.5L19 0.500002C19.5523 0.500002 20 0.947717 20 1.5C20 2.05229 19.5523 2.5 19 2.5L1 2.5C0.447715 2.5 -4.82821e-08 2.05228 0 1.5Z" fill="currentColor" /> <path fill-rule="evenodd" clip-rule="evenodd" d="M0 17.5C4.82824e-08 16.9477 0.447715 16.5 1 16.5L19 16.5C19.5523 16.5 20 16.9477 20 17.5C20 18.0523 19.5523 18.5 19 18.5L1 18.5C0.447715 18.5 -4.82821e-08 18.0523 0 17.5Z" fill="currentColor" /> <path fill-rule="evenodd" clip-rule="evenodd" d="M0 9.5C4.82824e-08 8.94772 0.447715 8.5 1 8.5L19 8.5C19.5523 8.5 20 8.94772 20 9.5C20 10.0523 19.5523 10.5 19 10.5L1 10.5C0.447715 10.5 -4.82821e-08 10.0523 0 9.5Z" fill="currentColor" /> </g> <path id="icon-search" d="M29.921 27.5861L22.1292 20.034C24.0015 17.8554 24.9351 15.061 24.7359 12.2322C24.5367 9.40331 23.2199 6.75782 21.0594 4.84601C18.899 2.9342 16.0613 1.90327 13.1366 1.96769C10.2119 2.03211 7.42541 3.1869 5.3568 5.19186C3.2882 7.19681 2.09674 9.89755 2.03028 12.7322C1.96382 15.5669 3.02747 18.3173 4.99997 20.4113C6.97248 22.5053 9.70196 23.7815 12.6206 23.9747C15.5393 24.1678 18.4224 23.2629 20.6702 21.4481L28.462 29.0002L29.921 27.5861ZM4.12735 13.0002C4.12735 11.2202 4.67195 9.48015 5.69228 8.0001C6.71261 6.52006 8.16284 5.36651 9.85958 4.68532C11.5563 4.00413 13.4234 3.8259 15.2246 4.17317C17.0259 4.52044 18.6804 5.3776 19.9791 6.63628C21.2777 7.89495 22.1621 9.49859 22.5204 11.2444C22.8787 12.9903 22.6948 14.7999 21.992 16.4444C21.2891 18.0889 20.099 19.4945 18.5719 20.4835C17.0449 21.4724 15.2496 22.0002 13.4131 22.0002C10.9512 21.9976 8.59091 21.0485 6.85009 19.3613C5.10928 17.674 4.13008 15.3864 4.12735 13.0002Z" fill="currentColor"/> <path id="icon-open-nav" fill-rule="evenodd" clip-rule="evenodd" d="M8.19398 11.5945C7.85227 11.9362 7.29825 11.9362 6.95654 11.5945L1.29969 5.93763L2.53712 4.7002L7.57526 9.73833L12.6134 4.7002L13.8508 5.93764L8.19398 11.5945Z" fill="currentColor"/> <g id="icon-cart"> <circle cx="11.3124" cy="22.5204" r="1.83485" fill="currentColor"/> <circle cx="25.5299" cy="22.5204" r="1.83485" fill="currentColor"/> <path d="M7.56201 3.11621H28.2498C28.8012 3.11621 29.2054 3.63495 29.0707 4.16965L27.1371 11.8434C27.0424 12.2195 26.7041 12.4832 26.3162 12.4832H10.6505" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="1.75" stroke-linecap="round"/> <path d="M1.82202 1H5.3761C5.74546 1 6.07219 1.23947 6.1834 1.59169L11.2469 17.6284C11.3581 17.9806 11.6848 18.2201 12.0542 18.2201H25.8257" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="1.75" stroke-linecap="square"/> </g> </svg> <svg id="icon-close-svg" viewbox="0 0 22 22" width="0" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" > <g id="icon-close"> <path d="M1 1L20.5 20.5" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" /> <path d="M20.5 1L1 20.5" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" /> </g> </svg> </div> <header class="banner-image" > <nav class="nav-main desktop" aria-label="main"> <button class="burger-button"> <svg width="20" viewBox="0 0 20 19" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" > <title>Open main navigation</title> <use href="#icon-burger" /> </svg> </button> <a href="/" class="logo" aria-label="Home"> <svg width="71" viewBox="0 0 71 34" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <title>Nielsen Norman Group</title> <use href="#logo" /> </svg> </a> <ul> <li class=" has-subnav"> <button aria-expanded="false">Training & UX Certification <svg class="open-nav" aria-hidden width="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <use href="#icon-open-nav" /> </svg> </button> <ul class="visually-hidden"> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/courses/">All Courses</a> </li> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/training/live-courses/">Live Online Courses</a> </li> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/team-training/">Private Team Training</a> </li> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/training/bulk-discounts/">Bulk Discounts</a> </li> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/ux-certification/">UX Certification</a> </li> </ul> </li> <li class="selected "> <a href="/articles/">Articles & Videos</a> </li> <li class=" "> <a href="/consulting/">Consulting</a> </li> <li class=" "> <a href="/reports/">Reports & Books</a> </li> <li class=" has-subnav"> <button aria-expanded="false">About NN/g <svg class="open-nav" aria-hidden width="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <use href="#icon-open-nav" /> </svg> </button> <ul class="visually-hidden"> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/about/">Overview</a> </li> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/people/">People</a> </li> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/about/about-client-list/">Clients</a> </li> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/news/">News</a> </li> <li class=""> <a tabindex="-1" href="/about/contact/">Contact Us</a> </li> </ul> </li> </ul> <div class="cart empty"> <a href=/cart/> <svg width="30" viewBox="0 0 30 25" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <use href="#icon-cart" /> </svg> <span></span> </a> </div> <div class="profile has-subnav"> <button class="loading" aria-expanded="false">Profile <svg class="open-nav" aria-hidden width="16" viewBox="0 0 16 16" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <use href="#icon-open-nav" /> </svg> </button> </div> <button class="search-button"> <svg title="Search" width="32" viewBox="0 0 32 32" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" > <title>Search</title> <use href="#icon-search"> </svg> </button> <form role="search" action="/search/" method="get" data-algolia-app-id="ORI4VVAEA5" data-algolia-search-api-key="9f70340d433027a479c60e38395a089c" data-index="Document_production_query_suggestions" > <label class="visually-hidden" for="search">Search</label> <div id="search-autocomplete"><input id="search" name="q" type="search" /></div> <button type="reset" class="reset-button empty" disabled> <svg width="13" viewBox="0 0 22 22" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" > <title>Reset</title> <use href="#icon-close" /> </svg> </button> <button type="submit" class="search-button"> <svg title="Search" width="32" viewBox="0 0 32 32" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" > <title>Search</title> <use href="#icon-search"> </svg> </button> </form> </nav> </header> <main id="main"> <section class="padded"> <div class="wrapper"> <article> <span id="gaDataLength" class="ga-data-layer" aria-hidden="true">5</span> <div class="article-header"> <h1 class="article-h1">Defining UX-Career Progression: What Practitioners Say</h1> <div class="article-authors"> <span id="gaDataAuthors" class="ga-data-layer" aria-hidden="true">Rachel Krause</span> <div class="author-tile multiple body-small"> <div class="author-photos"> <img height="64" width="64" class="author-photo fluid" src="https://media.nngroup.com/media/people/photos/Rachel-2021.jpg.256x256_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg" alt=""> </div> <div class="author-meta"> <span class="authors-list"><a class="ga-article-author" href="/articles/author/rachel-krause/"> Rachel Krause</a></span> <p class="publication-date"> October 13, 2023 <span id="gaDataPubDate" class="ga-data-layer" aria-hidden="true">2023-10-13</span> </p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="article-share"> <a class="article-share-title ga-share" href="#"> <span class="article-share-icon"></span> <p class="article-share-label body-medium">Share</p> </a> <div class="share-links tooltip"> <div class="tip-arrow"></div> <ul> <li class="body-medium"> <a class="ga-share-email" target="_blank" href="mailto:?subject=NN/g Article: Defining UX-Career Progression: What Practitioners Say&body=https://www.nngroup.com/articles/career-progression-practitioners/" data-share-type="Email"> <span class="icon envelope"></span>Email article </a> </li> <li class="body-medium"> <a class="ga-share-linkedin" target="_blank" href="http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=http://www.nngroup.com/articles/career-progression-practitioners/&title=Defining UX-Career Progression: What Practitioners Say&source=Nielsen%20Norman%20Group" data-share-type="LinkedIn"> <span class="icon linkedin"></span>Share on LinkedIn </a> </li> <li class="body-medium"> <a class="ga-share-twitter" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=http://www.nngroup.com/articles/career-progression-practitioners/&text=Defining UX-Career Progression: What Practitioners Say&via=nngroup" data-share-type="Twitter"> <span class="icon twitter"></span>Share on Twitter </a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> <div class="article-container"> <div class="article-content"> <div class="article-summary article-heading-small-light"> <span class="article-summary-label"> Summary: </span>UX career progression is not singularly defined, though it typically involves a mix of measurable signals and gut feelings. Growth in the industry is often described as slow and inflexible due to a lack of consistent, measurable criteria and reliable personal-tracking tools. </div> <div class="article-body"> <p>The field of user experience has expanded to many different roles over the past few decades. Many new opportunities for career growth have come along with this expansion of UX. While the breadth of opportunities provides flexibility to practitioners, it also makes it challenging to assess growth.</p> <p>Our previous <a href="https://www.nngroup.com/articles/designops-maturity-low/">research assessing organizations’ Design Operations efforts</a> showed that 89% of teams did not have a documented career ladder for UX professionals, and only 18% had advancement pathways outside managerial roles. Because of these dismal statistics, we conducted further qualitative research to understand existing pathways for career progression in UX and their desirability amongst practitioners.</p> <p>This research aimed to provide guidance for UX practitioners looking to make sense of how their careers evolve over time. Since UX practitioners come from many different backgrounds, growth in the field will look different for everyone.</p> <div class="table-of-contents"> <div class="content"> <div class="header"> <div class="toc-header"> <h2 class="toc-title article-heading-small"> In This Article: </h2> <span class="expand-icon"></span> </div> <a class="current-element" href="#"></a> </div> <ul class="toc-items"> <li class="article-table-of-content"> <a class="ga-article-toc-item" href="#toc-our-research-1">Our Research</a> </li> <li class="article-table-of-content"> <a class="ga-article-toc-item" href="#toc-existing-career-ladders-2">Existing Career Ladders</a> </li> <li class="article-table-of-content"> <a class="ga-article-toc-item" href="#toc-career-progression-mental-models-3">Career Progression: Mental Models</a> </li> <li class="article-table-of-content"> <a class="ga-article-toc-item" href="#toc-takeaways-4">Takeaways</a> </li> </ul> </div> </div><h2 id="toc-our-research-1"><a id="Our Research" name="Our Research"></a>Our Research</h2> <p><a href="https://www.nngroup.com/articles/career-progression-methodology">This study</a> aimed to answer the following high-level research questions:</p> <ul> <li>What are the expectations of UX practitioners surrounding career growth, both in their organizations and the field as a whole?</li> <li>How do UX practitioners measure their own growth and progress?</li> <li>How can organizations provide clear paths for UX-career growth?</li> <li>How does having (or not having) a clear path for growth affect the morale of UX practitioners<em>?</em></li> </ul> <p>Due to the breadth of these questions, several research methods were used:</p> <ul> <li>Desk research, involving an analysis of existing career ladders — also referred to as role grids, tracks, levels, or career paths — in UX and adjacent fields</li> <li>Cognitive-mapping sessions with 7 UX practitioners</li> <li>Remote interviews with 4 UX practitioners</li> <li>A survey of 465 UX practitioners</li> </ul> <p>The journey of this research led us down several paths:</p> <ul> <li>Desk research enabled us to understand what progression models the industry currently offers practitioners.</li> <li>Cognitive mapping allowed us to hear how practitioners felt about progression models and how they envision their own career growth.</li> <li>Interviews revealed that traditional career ladders were seen as limiting, prompting us to shift our focus toward promoting individual and flexible growth tracking.</li> <li>A large-scale survey further emphasized the pain points of practitioners when it comes to tracking growth.</li> </ul> <p>The varied methodologies brought a more comprehensive understanding of UX career progression, making space for more tailored and flexible approaches to career growth.</p> <h2 id="toc-existing-career-ladders-2"><a id="Existing Career Ladders" name="Existing Career Ladders"></a>Existing Career Ladders</h2> <p>Our desk research uncovered two typical UX-career ladders in organizations: the management path and the individual-contributor path. Our respondents frequently referred to these career paths in their responses to our questions.</p> <figure class="caption"><img alt="Two separate career tracks, splitting off after IC2 into four people-management roles on one track and five individual-contributor roles." height="809" loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/media/editor/2023/10/03/charliehr-levels.png" width="1430"/> <figcaption><a href="https://www.charliehr.com/blog/building-a-career-progression-system/"><em>CharlieHR's career-progression framework</em></a><em> separated individual-contributor and manager roles into two tracks. This type of separation is common in organizations.</em></figcaption> </figure> <h2 id="toc-career-progression-mental-models-3"><a id="Career Progression: Mental Models" name="Career Progression: Mental Models"></a>Career Progression: Mental Models</h2> <p>We asked each participant in the study — whether they participated in a cognitive-mapping session, interview, or survey — to define career progression in UX. This question was interpreted differently by different people. Most answers fell into one or more of the following categories:</p> <ol> <li>Signals of career growth</li> <li>Characteristics of the career-growth process</li> <li>Typical career paths</li> </ol> <h3><a id="1. Signals of Career Growth" name="1. Signals of Career Growth"></a>1. Signals of Career Growth</h3> <p>Many respondents identified one or more signals of advancement in their careers. Alongside traditional ways of thinking about career growth — title change, increase in pay, moving to a new industry or organization, and so on — respondents also mentioned:</p> <ul> <li>A specific skill or set of skills gained</li> <li>Being recognized by team members as an expert</li> <li>Taking on more strategic responsibilities</li> <li>An increase in trust or freedom from leadership</li> <li>More confidence in their work</li> </ul> <p>Since most survey respondents did not use specific tools for assessing their career progression, many of these signals were judged subjectively or based on rubrics provided by their organizations.</p> <h3><a id="2. Characteristics of the Process" name="2. Characteristics of the Process"></a>2. Characteristics of the Process</h3> <p>While signals of growth were the most widely reported from respondents, many definitions included one or more descriptors of the career-progression process. The overwhelming sentiment from this category of definitions was that growth in UX is not clearly defined and haphazard in nature.</p> <blockquote> <p><em>Non-linear, with some trial and error. Difficult if there’s no formal guidance or mentorship. And having a variety of levels and labels across companies doesn’t help either.</em></p> <p><em>I don’t have a clear understanding of the differentiation between ‘junior,’ ‘senior,’ ‘principal,’ ‘lead,’ or other job levels/distinctions. This has introduced a level of imposter syndrome as I try to clarify where my skill set lies relative to others and makes it difficult to evaluate job titles/descriptions effectively.</em></p> </blockquote> <p>Others described the need to be self-driven to advance in the UX profession, since there is no formal career ladder adopted by the field. And, because technology is constantly changing, the responsibilities of UX professionals are continuously evolving to keep up. This makes it difficult for UX professionals to know which new skills to build.</p> <p>Opinions were split when categorizing career progression in UX as <em>fast</em> or <em>slow</em>. Those that described the process as <strong><em>slow</em></strong> discussed feeling unappreciated by their organizations, stagnant at one level, or limited in their options to move forward, especially early in their careers. In contrast, those that described career progression as <strong><em>fast</em></strong> cited high demand for UX, quick promotions within their organizations, and the ability to pick up on fundamentals quickly.</p> <h3><a id="3. Typical Paths Available" name="3. Typical Paths Available"></a>3. Typical Paths Available</h3> <p>Most interview participants and survey respondents described nonlinear growth paths dependent on the organization and the professional’s individual interests. A few respondents mentioned strict organizational hierarchies and office politics that defined more-linear pathways.</p> <blockquote> <p><em>In order to progress any further within my career, I would need to move to the product development and engineering path or switch companies. I find that once you have reached senior level or above, UX overall is relatively limited in the direction and opportunities for advancement within and across companies.</em></p> <p><em>Career progression in UX is highly nonlinear and self-driven. I’ve met too many professionals who’ve switched to different parts of UX that I’d say it’s hard to define what the career path looks like that isn’t company specific.</em></p> </blockquote> <p>Many responses discussed having to decide whether to go down the individual-contributor path or the management path. Since numerous organizations still equate growth with progressing into management roles, the lack of nonmanagerial growth options felt limiting to those who wanted to be involved in strategic or focused UX work.</p> <blockquote> <p><em>It stops at a certain level within the government, unless you want a supervisory role.</em></p> <p><em>There are a lot of different ways people can grow in their UX careers. There are many different areas of expertise in UX from strategy and research to interaction design, visual design, design systems, etc. For some, their progression is to grow into people management; for others that want to continue as an individual contributor, their growth looks different. There needs to be clear paths forward for both.</em></p> </blockquote> <p>One survey respondent suggested that career progression should be focused on impact to the organization or team in specific areas:</p> <blockquote> <p><em>Some individuals are great at teamwork; some want to delve deeper and become experts in a specific area; others are influential and great at leading; and some others prefer to work alone as individual contributors. We need to redefine career progression based on the increasing value that an individual can contribute to the organization or teams they work for.</em></p> </blockquote> <p>A few respondents mentioned <strong>the role of luck</strong> in their career progression — whether they were trusted to take on a big project early on or found themselves in the right place at the right time.</p> <h2 id="toc-takeaways-4"><a id="Takeaways" name="Takeaways"></a>Takeaways</h2> <p>In our research, many practitioners cited career progression in UX as difficult, stagnant, slow, or undefined. While there were also positive reactions, the adverse reactions outnumbered the positive. These frustrations were due to company-specific processes, lack of clear definitions in the UX field, and the inflexible linear view of career progression in many organizations.</p> <p>This career progression research has four clear takeaways:</p> <ul> <li><strong>Career progression is dependent on the individual.</strong> While it’s essential to align yourself to company metrics to measure your growth, you should not use those metrics as your <em>only</em> measure of career growth, as they won’t set you up for success outside of that specific company. Create a definition of career progression that is unique to you.</li> <li><strong>You don’t <em>need</em> to go into management to progress in the field.</strong> Think about how your work impacts your team and the organization to understand how you affect the business. Speaking about your increasing impact on the business will give you more leverage in growth-related conversations with leadership.</li> <li><strong>Some aspects of growth are not easily measured.</strong> While some attributes of growth can be used as a checklist — gain a<em> </em>skill, get promoted to a new role<em> </em>— others are based on feelings and emotions, such as increased confidence and feeling trusted to take on new responsibilities. Though they are more challenging to measure with numbers, tracking how these feelings change over time is important.</li> <li><strong>There isn’t a straightforward way to track individual career growth. </strong>More research is needed to better understand tools and frameworks for tracking career progression individually and within organizations.</li> </ul> </div> </div> <div class="article-sidebar"> <div class="sidebar-wrapper"> <div class="sidebar-item related-courses"> <h2 class="article-heading-small">Related Courses</h2> <ul> <li> <a class="tile ga-article-related-course" data-course-title="Becoming a UX Coach" href="/courses/ux-coach/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article"> <h4 class="title heading-small">Becoming a UX Coach</h4> <p id="becoming-a-ux-coach" class="description body-small"> Empower and guide UX and product teams to reach their full potential </p> <div class="ux-specialties"> <p class="ux-specialty ux-management">Management</p> </div> </a> </li> <li> <a class="tile ga-article-related-course" data-course-title="Becoming a UX Executive" href="/courses/ux-vp-director/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article"> <h4 class="title heading-small">Becoming a UX Executive</h4> <p id="becoming-a-ux-executive" class="description body-small"> Lead and manage UX at the executive level </p> <div class="ux-specialties"> <p class="ux-specialty ux-management">Management</p> </div> </a> </li> <li> <a class="tile ga-article-related-course" data-course-title="Becoming a UX Strategist" href="/courses/becoming-ux-strategist/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article"> <h4 class="title heading-small">Becoming a UX Strategist</h4> <p id="becoming-a-ux-strategist" class="description body-small"> Envision, plan, and successfully lead a user-centered culture </p> <div class="ux-specialties"> <p class="ux-specialty ux-management">Management</p> </div> </a> </li> </ul> </div> <span id="gaDataAllTopics" class="ga-data-layer" aria-hidden="true">careers in ux,Managing UX Teams</span> <div class="sidebar-item related-topics"> <h2 class="article-heading-small">Related Topics</h2> <ul> <li> <span id="gaDataTopic" class="ga-data-layer" aria-hidden="true">Managing UX Teams</span> <a class="ga-article-related-topic" href="/topic/ux-management/">Managing UX Teams</a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> </div> </section> <section class="learn-more"> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="related-content-container padded"> <h2 class="article-heading-small learn-more-title"> Learn More: </h2> <div class="article-videos"> <div class="related-content related-videos"> <ul class="no-bullet three column grid"> <li> <div class="tile video"> <div class="media"> <a class="ga-article-related-video" data-video-title="UX Resumes: 10 Tips for Seasoned Professionals" href="/videos/ux-resumes-seasoned-professionals/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article" tabindex="-1" aria-hidden="true"> <div class="thumbnail-image"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/media/videos/thumbnails/UX_Resumes_-_10_Tips_for_Seasoned_Professionals_Thumbnail.jpg.650x364_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg" srcset="https://media.nngroup.com/media/videos/thumbnails/UX_Resumes_-_10_Tips_for_Seasoned_Professionals_Thumbnail.jpg.650x364_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg, https://media.nngroup.com/media/videos/thumbnails/UX_Resumes_-_10_Tips_for_Seasoned_Professionals_Thumbnail.jpg.1300x728_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg 2x" alt=""> <div class="overlay"> <span class="color icon fab fa-youtube"></span> </div> </div> <div class="content"> <p class="related-content-title"> UX Resumes: 10 Tips for Seasoned Professionals </p> <p class="related-content-details"> <span class="related-content-authors body-small"> Evan Sunwall</span> · <span class="related-content-duration body-small">5 min</span> </p> </div> </a> </div> </div> </li> <li> <div class="tile video"> <div class="media"> <a class="ga-article-related-video" data-video-title="How to Break Into Design: Don’s Advice" href="/videos/break-into-design/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article" tabindex="-1" aria-hidden="true"> <div class="thumbnail-image"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/media/videos/thumbnails/Don_San_Diego_2023_Video_10_Thumbnail.jpg.650x364_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg" srcset="https://media.nngroup.com/media/videos/thumbnails/Don_San_Diego_2023_Video_10_Thumbnail.jpg.650x364_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg, https://media.nngroup.com/media/videos/thumbnails/Don_San_Diego_2023_Video_10_Thumbnail.jpg.1300x728_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg 2x" alt=""> <div class="overlay"> <span class="color icon fab fa-youtube"></span> </div> </div> <div class="content"> <p class="related-content-title"> How to Break Into Design: Don’s Advice </p> <p class="related-content-details"> <span class="related-content-authors body-small"> Don Norman</span> · <span class="related-content-duration body-small">4 min</span> </p> </div> </a> </div> </div> </li> <li> <div class="tile video"> <div class="media"> <a class="ga-article-related-video" data-video-title="10 Steps for Better Storytelling in UX Job Interviews" href="/videos/storytelling-in-ux-job-interviews/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article" tabindex="-1" aria-hidden="true"> <div class="thumbnail-image"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/media/videos/thumbnails/Ace_Your_UX_Job_Interview_by_Practicing_Storytelling_Thumbnail.jpg.650x364_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg" srcset="https://media.nngroup.com/media/videos/thumbnails/Ace_Your_UX_Job_Interview_by_Practicing_Storytelling_Thumbnail.jpg.650x364_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg, https://media.nngroup.com/media/videos/thumbnails/Ace_Your_UX_Job_Interview_by_Practicing_Storytelling_Thumbnail.jpg.1300x728_q75_autocrop_crop-smart_upscale.jpg 2x" alt=""> <div class="overlay"> <span class="color icon fab fa-youtube"></span> </div> </div> <div class="content"> <p class="related-content-title"> 10 Steps for Better Storytelling in UX Job Interviews </p> <p class="related-content-details"> <span class="related-content-authors body-small"> Evan Sunwall</span> · <span class="related-content-duration body-small">5 min</span> </p> </div> </a> </div> </div> </li> </ul> </div> </div> <div class="related-content related-articles"> <h2 class="article-heading-small related-articles-title"> Related Articles: </h2> <ul class="no-bullet three column grid"> <li> <a class="tile ga-article-related-article" data-article-title="Growing in Your UX Career: Study Guide" href="/articles/growing-your-ux-career-study-guide/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article"> <p class="related-content-title">Growing in Your UX Career: Study Guide</p> <p class="related-content-details"> <span class="related-content-authors body-small"> Taylor Dykes</span> · <span class="related-content-duration body-small">4 min</span> </p> </a> </li> <li> <a class="tile ga-article-related-article" data-article-title="5 Tips for UX-Internship Applicants" href="/articles/ux-internship-tips/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article"> <p class="related-content-title">5 Tips for UX-Internship Applicants</p> <p class="related-content-details"> <span class="related-content-authors body-small"> Raluca Budiu and Amy Zhang</span> · <span class="related-content-duration body-small">7 min</span> </p> </a> </li> <li> <a class="tile ga-article-related-article" data-article-title="What a UX Career Looks Like Today" href="/articles/ux-career-advice/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article"> <p class="related-content-title">What a UX Career Looks Like Today</p> <p class="related-content-details"> <span class="related-content-authors body-small"> Rachel Krause and Maria Rosala</span> · <span class="related-content-duration body-small">5 min</span> </p> </a> </li> <li> <a class="tile ga-article-related-article" data-article-title="Salary Trends for UX Professionals" href="/articles/salary-trends-usability-professionals/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article"> <p class="related-content-title">Salary Trends for UX Professionals</p> <p class="related-content-details"> <span class="related-content-authors body-small"> Jakob Nielsen</span> · <span class="related-content-duration body-small">4 min</span> </p> </a> </li> <li> <a class="tile ga-article-related-article" data-article-title="User Experience Career Advice: How to Learn UX and Get a Job" href="/articles/ux-career-advice-original/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article"> <p class="related-content-title">User Experience Career Advice: How to Learn UX and Get a Job</p> <p class="related-content-details"> <span class="related-content-authors body-small"> Jakob Nielsen and Susan Farrell</span> · <span class="related-content-duration body-small">9 min</span> </p> </a> </li> <li> <a class="tile ga-article-related-article" data-article-title="A 100-Year View of User Experience" href="/articles/100-years-ux/?lm=career-progression-practitioners&pt=article"> <p class="related-content-title">A 100-Year View of User Experience</p> <p class="related-content-details"> <span class="related-content-authors body-small"> Jakob Nielsen</span> · <span class="related-content-duration body-small">8 min</span> </p> </a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </section> </main> <footer class="footer"> <div class="wrapper row"> <div class="subscribe"> <h2 class="title-large">Subscribe to Our Newsletter</h2> <p class="body-medium">Get weekly UX articles, videos, and upcoming training events straight to your inbox.</p> <form class="form-validated" action="https://nngroup.us4.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=538d934a891681a5d850bb4e5&id=7f29a2b335" id="subscribe-form" method="post" name="mc-embedded-subscribe-form" novalidate="" > <div class="form-field"> <div class="outline"> <label class="label-medium">Email</label> <input class="body-small" id="newsletter-subscribe-email" placeholder="norman@gmail.com" name="EMAIL" type="email" value=""> </div> <div class="error-local"></div> </div> <input class="button-fill button-small" name="subscribe" type="submit" value="Subscribe"> </form> </div> <div class="follow"> <h2 class="title-large">Follow Us</h2> <ul> <li class="label-large"> <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/nielsen-norman-group"> <img width="32" loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/static/img/icons/icon-social-linkedin.svg" alt=""> LinkedIn </a> </li> <li class="label-large"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/nngux"> <img width="32" loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/static/img/icons/icon-social-instagram.svg" alt=""> Instagram </a> </li> <li class="label-large"> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2oCugzU6W8-h95W7eBTUEg"> <img width="32" loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/static/img/icons/icon-social-youtube.svg" alt=""> Youtube </a> </li> <li class="label-large"> <a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/nngroup "> <img width="32" loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/static/img/icons/icon-social-podcast.svg" alt=""> Podcast </a> </li> <li class="label-large"> <a href="https://twitter.com/nngroup"> <img width="32" loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/static/img/icons/icon-social-x.svg" alt=""> X (Twitter) </a> </li> <li class="label-large"> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/nngux"> <img width="32" loading="lazy" src="https://media.nngroup.com/static/img/icons/icon-social-facebook.svg" alt=""> Facebook </a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> <section class="navigation"> <div class="wrapper"> <ul> <li><span class="title-small">Certification</span> <ul> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/ux-certification/">What is UX Certification?</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/ux-certification/specialties/">Specialties</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/ux-certification/exams/">Exams</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/ux-certification/people/">UX Certified People</a> </li> </ul> </li> <li> <span class="title-small">UX Training</span> <ul> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/courses/">All Courses</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/training/live-courses/">Live Online Courses</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/team-training/">Private Team Training</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/course-calendar/">Course Calendar</a> </li> </ul> </li> <li> <span class="title-small">Consulting</span> <ul> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/consulting/expert-review/">Expert Review</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/consulting/user-testing/">User Testing</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/consulting/user-research/">Customized Research</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/consulting/applied-workshops/">Applied Workshops</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/consulting/keynote-speaking/">Keynote Speaking</a> </li> </ul> </li> <li> <span class="title-small">Free Guidance</span> <ul> <li class="body-large"> <a href="/articles/">Articles & Videos</a> </li> <li class="body-large"> <a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/nngroup">The NN/g UX Podcast</a> </li> </ul> </li> <li> <span class="title-small">About</span> <ul> <li class="body-large" > <a href="/about/why-nng/">Why NN/g</a> </li> <li class="body-large" > <a href="/about/">About Us</a> </li> <li class="body-large" > <a href="/people/">People</a> </li> <li class="body-large" > <a href="/about/about-client-list/">Clients</a> </li> <li class="body-large" > <a href="/about/contact/">Contact</a> </li> <li class="body-large" > <a href="/return-policy/">Return Policy</a> </li> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> </section> <div class="copyright"> <div class="wrapper"> <p><a href="/copyright-and-reprint-info/">Copyright</a> © 1998-2024 Nielsen Norman Group, All Rights Reserved. </p> <ul> <li id ="cookie-preferences"><a href="javascript:Cookiebot.show();">Cookie Preferences</a></li> <li><a href="/cookie-declaration/">Cookie Declaration</a></li> <li><a href="/privacy-policy/">Privacy Policy</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </footer> <button class="back-to-top" title="Back to top"><span class="text"><span class="fas fa-caret-up arrow" aria-hidden="true"></span><br>Top</span></button> <script src="https://media.nngroup.com/static/js/output.dac7ffbca904.js" defer></script> <script src="https://media.nngroup.com/static/js/article-detail.7e820ce13132.js"></script> <script> function pushCookieConsent() { Cookiebot.consent.preferences&&window.dataLayer.push({event:"cookieconsent_preferences"}); Cookiebot.consent.statistics&&window.dataLayer.push({event:"cookieconsent_statistics"}); Cookiebot.consent.marketing&&window.dataLayer.push({event:"cookieconsent_marketing"}); }; window.addEventListener('CookiebotOnAccept', function (e) { pushCookieConsent(); if (Cookiebot.consent.statistics) { // Tell Convert A/B testing that consent has been given window._conv_q = window._conv_q || []; window._conv_q.push(['consentGiven']); } }); window.addEventListener('CookiebotOnDecline', function (e) {}); </script> </body> </html>