5 Career Progression Tips for Product Designers
Progressing your career can be challenging, as my career progressed in the industry I have picked up a few tips and tricks that have helped me over the last 14 years. Below are my top tips for progressing your career.
Keep an eye on the market
Over the last decade design has evolved, trends come and go, and with that so does roles within the industry. New roles are birthed out of these changes and job titles have changed. There are many different terms used to describe designers who design interfaces from Product Designer to Interaction Design and Experience Architect.
Product designer is the most popular term at the moment but it is good to be aware of what the trend is job role wise and adapt your title to one that mostly reflects your skills and the market. Make sure that you update your online portfolio and LinkedIn profile. This is key as recruiters often use key words to try and find matching candidates and you want to make sure that your profile comes up in the search results otherwise you could be missing out on roles.
Ensure you have relevant skills
Closely related to the first tip, understanding what skills the market is looking for, especially when it comes to application and tools means that you can start developing the skills that are needed before you start looking for a new role so that you stand out in the market.
Interview often
Typically you will stay at a role for 2-3 years, which is 2-3 years of not interviewing and talking to others about you and your projects. Even if you have no intention of leaving its good practice to interview every few months to refine your interview technique and also gain an understanding of what kind of company you want to work in. It can take a while to perfect how to describe what your role and responsibilities are and interviewing often gives you an opportunity to practice. Interviewing often has helped me to build a picture in my mind of the kind of company I want to work in and how I would want to work.
Know your worth
Often when I’m hiring and I ask the candidate salary expectations, you see how designers undervalue themselves. You should have an understanding of what the average salary is for the role you want for and aim for that, depending on the company and how they align to your expectations you should be open to flex 10% below or above that figure (For example the role gives you more share options or better benefits), you should have in your mind the lowest amount you will accept.
Moving onto a new role is your best chance of getting a pay rise and jumping the ladder, make sure you don’t tell the hiring manager what salary you are on as that opens the door for them to try an offer you a little bit more than your current salary rather than for what the market rate is and you miss out on being able to get a bigger jump in your pay.
Market yourself for who you want to be not who you are
Now you’re ready to go for a bigger role, something with more responsibility and a more senior job title, but the problem is even though you know you have the skills, your current job title is different. This is where marketing yourself for who you want to becomes in. You’re LinkedIn, CV and portfolio should reflect where you want to be, making sure you highlight and showcase those key skills needed.
I hope that these tips help you in progressing your career. You are the one who is in control of your career and by keeping these tips in mind it will not only help you to get the jobs you want but to also move up the ladder.
Resources
How to navigate transitions in your design career
