The 80% job: how design leads are using AI-and it's not about mockups

"Here's what my job description says I do: set design vision, mentor designers, elevate craft quality, drive innovation. Here's what I actually do: run 1:1s, mediate conflicts, write justifications for decisions, align with stakeholders, update Jira, answer Slack, prepare for meetings, sit in meetings, follow up on meetings. I lead a team of 7 designers at a European bank. I can't remember the last time I opened Figma for actual design work."

"When I was an individual contributor, I assumed design leads spent their days reviewing designs, setting creative direction, and occasionally stepping in to solve tough UX problems. Then I became one. Experience Design Manager at Google, put it perfectly in an interview with Abstract: "I would be inclined to propose that we, as designers, actually spend a significant amount of time, not designing, but in fact communicating, reviewing, justifying and defending.""

"What job descriptions say: - 30% Design strategy & vision- 25% Mentoring & craft elevation- 20% Stakeholder collaboration- 15% Process improvement- 10% Hands-on design work What the calendar says: - 30% Meetings (syncs, reviews, alignments, 1:1s)- 25% Communication (Slack, email, status updates)- 20% People management (coaching, conflict resolution, career conversations)- 20% Justification (proposals, business cases, defending decisions)- 5% Operations (Jira, planning, HR, tool"

Design leadership roles are dominated by communication, alignment, and justification tasks rather than hands‑on design. Job descriptions emphasize strategy, mentoring, and craft elevation, but actual calendars show meetings, Slack and email, people management, proposal writing, and operations consuming most time. Many design leads stop doing practical design work after moving into leadership. A manager leading seven designers reports rarely opening Figma. Industry commentary notes designers often spend significant time communicating, reviewing, justifying, and defending. AI can help by automating repetitive communication, drafting justifications, aligning stakeholders, and reducing operational overhead so leads can focus more on strategy and mentorship.

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