User experience professionals are evolving into User Experience Product Managers (UXPMs) as the focus shifts to not just how things look and feel, but also to what gets built and why.
UXPMs are part strategist, storyteller, researcher, and builder, focusing on product strategy, OKRs, prioritization frameworks, business models, and roadmaps.
Design thinking is being integrated upstream in organizations, with UXPMs involved in key decisions from the beginning to help set product vision and define value.
This shift to UXPMs does not water down the craft of design but contextualizes it, allowing for smarter design choices based on constraints, roadmap, budget, and customer lifecycle.