I’ve been reading a lot about UX design and user research lately (trying to hold up my personal end of the bargain I’m about to propose). Reading what some (emphasis on some) designers write about agile, it strikes me that they seem to see agile as this weird way developers insist on working that designers must accommodate so they aren’t ignored.

First, I feel sad that designers fear being ignored, feeling that their work or expertise is not appreciated. Second, I think designers need to do the work and research to understand agile better, so that they better understand its perspective and the benefits it can provide. Conversely, I think developers need to learn about UX design and user research, for the same reason. Otherwise it seems to me that even if you get both groups into the same room (or on the same team) to learn how to work together and to love each other better, they won’t have enough shared understanding to make real progress.