Resourcing Design Teams

• Resourcing Models
  • Experience Team Model
  • Platform Team Model
  • Agency Model
  • UX Research Team
    • Research Focus Areas
  • Design System Team
  • Design Operations
• Implementing a Service Layer
  • Design-as-a-Service Model
    • Key Components:
  • Research-as-a-Service Model
    • Components:
• Making Resourcing Decisions
  • Key Questions to Consider
• Growing teams

At any time, if you’re given headcount, you should have a resourcing plan in place to determine how you’ll resource and staff your team. As a design leader, you’ll need to ensure your team shape matches the short and longterm goals of your organization. This starts with knowing how you’d allocate 1 or 10 new people at any time.

Resourcing Models

Experience Team Model

• Ratio: 1:1 (Designer to Product Team)
• Best for: Product development teams shipping customer-facing products
• Key benefits:
  • Deep domain expertise development
  • Strong partnership with product and engineering
  • Clear ownership and accountability
  • Faster decision-making and iteration
• Considerations:
  • May need additional support for platform/infrastructure teams
  • Requires strong design system to maintain consistency
  • Need mechanisms to share learnings across teams

Platform Team Model

• Ratio: 1:5 (Designer to Platform Teams)
• Best for: Infrastructure, API, and platform teams
• Key benefits:
  • Efficient resource utilization
  • Consistent approach across platform teams
  • Shared learning and patterns
• Considerations:
  • Need clear prioritization mechanisms
  • May require “office hours” or similar support models
  • Focus on developer experience and tooling

Agency Model

• Ratio: 1:Many
• Best for: Any team model where design workstreams are formed and handed back to development teams
• Key benefits: Focus on delivery and speed.
• Considerations: May not allow for discovery/dual-track, mercenaries instead of missionaries.

UX Research Team

• Ratio: 1:10 (Researcher to Designers)
• Structure Types:
  1. Centralized Model
     • Dedicated research team serving all product areas
     • Consistent methodology and tooling
     • Strong research practice development
  2. Embedded Model
     • Researchers assigned to specific product areas
     • Deep domain expertise
     • Closer alignment with product teams
  3. Hybrid Model
     • Core team for methodology and tooling
     • Embedded researchers for key product areas
     • Flexible resourcing for project needs

Research Focus Areas

1. Design Research (Evaluative)

   • Works closely with product teams
   • Focuses on usability and design validation
   • Provides rapid feedback loops

2. Foundational Research (Generative)

   • Explores future opportunities
   • Conducts market and user behavior studies
   • Informs product strategy and roadmap

3. Research as a Service

   • Improving research practice within product development teams or models where everyone is a researcher

Design System Team

• Ratio: 1:40 (Design System Designer to Product Designers)
• Structure: Typically includes:
  • Visual Designer(s): Own aesthetic direction
  • Interaction Designer(s): Own component behavior
  • Frontend Developer(s): Implementation and maintenance
• Key responsibilities:
  • Enable speed and consistency across multiple teams with shared assets and resources for designers and developers
  • Create, document, and evolve components and patterns
  • Support adoption across teams

Design Operations

• Ratio: 1:12 (DesignOps to Designers)
• Focus areas:
  • Process optimization
  • Tool management and governance
  • Resource planning and allocation
  • Budget management
  • Team health and engagement

Implementing a Service Layer

Design-as-a-Service Model

This approach helps teams without dedicated design resources while maintaining quality and consistency.

Key Components:

1. Clear Request Process

   • Intake form or ticket system
   • Criteria for what constitutes a design request
   • SLA expectations

2. Prioritization Framework

   • Impact assessment criteria
   • Urgency evaluation

3. Delivery Models

   • Quick consultations
   • Project-based support
   • Office hours
   • Design reviews

Research-as-a-Service Model

Similar to design services, but focused on research support for teams without dedicated researchers.

Components:

1. Research Request Framework

   • Study objectives and scope
   • Timeline and resource needs
   • Expected deliverables

2. Research Methods Library

   • Templates for common studies
   • Self-service tools and guides
   • Best practices documentation

3. Support Types

   • Research planning consultation
   • Methodology review
   • Data analysis support
   • Workshop facilitation

Making Resourcing Decisions

Key Questions to Consider

1. What is the nature of the work?

   • Customer-facing vs. internal
   • Strategic vs. tactical
   • Ongoing vs. project-based
   • Research needs and timing

2. What is the required expertise level?

   • Domain knowledge requirements
   • Technical complexity
   • Strategic importance
   • Research methodology expertise

3. What are the collaboration needs?

   • Cross-functional dependencies
   • Geographic distribution
   • Communication requirements
   • Research and design integration

4. What are the business constraints?

   • Budget limitations (fixed headcount vs contract)
   • Timeline requirements
   • Quality expectations
   • Research tool costs

Growing teams

As design teams grow, their resourcing needs evolve:

• 1-30 designers: Focus on strong core team and basic processes
• 31-50 designers: Introduce specialized roles and formal processes
• 51-200 designers: Establish centers of excellence and shared services
• 200+ designers: Complex matrix organization with multiple service layers