I’m a Senior UX Lead responsible for the end-to-end design strategy on a high-profile digital product. Recently, some unexpected internal decisions have left me feeling undermined, misrepresented, and excluded from key discussions — and I’m looking for perspective.
During a design leadership review on a Monday, the Director of Product (Alan) casually mentioned that another UX Designer would be joining the team “to help out.” No details were shared about why, or how that would impact my current role or responsibilities.
By Friday, Alan had set up a meeting to introduce the new hire (Mark). During the session, I was told Mark would be helping take on some of the design governance responsibilities because another team member (Lisa, a Senior Researcher) had apparently raised that she was “doing everything herself.”
That feedback was a complete surprise — I hadn’t received any prior concerns or performance-related conversations. I questioned it during the session and expressed that I felt blindsided. The session ended shortly after I voiced my concerns.
Wanting to understand what was going on, I spoke to Lisa directly on Monday. She told me she never said I wasn’t pulling my weight. She had only mentioned that parts of the workflow (like stakeholder design reviews) were outside our agreed scope, and that my stream of the product was less complex than others. Nothing to suggest I was underperforming or that extra help was needed on my part.
I raised the issue with Tom, our Head of Experience. I asked why no feedback had been shared with me before this move, and who was now responsible for what. Tom said Mark was being brought in to “handle stakeholder comms” because I apparently couldn’t manage both design delivery and stakeholder engagement — which was completely different from the justification Alan had given. I was also told that Mark is technically a Lead Product Designer but also has programme-level experience.
Tom then refused to continue the conversation until he had spoken to Alan. I followed up over Slack and got no reply. Alan later messaged to check in, and I replied candidly that I wasn’t okay with how things had been handled.
On Tuesday, I reached out to Tom again, this time regarding alignment around service design responsibilities and ownership of some third-party tools. In response, he told me to “check with your Design Lead, Mark.” This was the first time anyone stated I now report to Mark, effectively placing me under someone who is, by title and role, junior to me.
For context: my role as Senior UX Lead was clearly defined, with full ownership of the experience strategy across the product. This change was made with no formal feedback, no consultation, and no documented change in role or structure. Being told I now report to someone in a lower-grade position without process feels like a functional demotion, and potentially a breach of contract.
I’m now considering a formal grievance. I worry this could constitute constructive dismissal if not addressed especially as it fundamentally alters my responsibilities and reporting line, all without due process.
Has anyone been through something similar in a design, product, or tech team structure? Would really appreciate advice especially from anyone with HR experience or who’s escalated something like this before.