PRODUCT TRIOS ARE COLLAPSING. HERE'S HOW DESIGNERS CAN SMOOTH THEM OVER

Summary from the TLDR Design newsletter

Product trios are increasingly dysfunctional, with designers often supporting multiple PMs or engineers due to resource constraints and unclear design value. Designers can repair these imbalanced teams by becoming strategic translators who bridge gaps between metrics-focused PMs and feasibility-focused engineers, framing design requests through business impact using techniques like "so I can" statements. They should also position themselves as risk reducers by validating user desirability before costly development begins, and understand teammates' individual motivators to craft more compelling arguments for design's strategic value.