UX Perspectives: Navigating resistance to change in innovative design
Introducing change is a persistent challenge in UX. Even strong, user-centred ideas can meet with resistance from stakeholders and users who are attached to familiar ways of working.
We asked UX professionals how they navigate that resistance—from research and storytelling to building trust and involving users early in the process. Their responses demonstrate that meaningful innovation is ultimately shaped by collaboration and shared understanding.
Crispin Bailey RGD, Director of Design & UX at Kalamuna
Handling resistance starts with enthusiasm. Without visible passion for your vision, stakeholders won't champion it and your role devolves into order-taking.
The key is making your design solution so compelling that even your most challenging stakeholders want to bring it to life. This means moving beyond design specs and requirements box-checking to connecting the dots between better user experiences and your stakeholders' top priorities. What business goals keep them up at night? How does your innovative solution help them get there?
Use storytelling to express your vision in a way that fires up their imagination. Show them the path from today's friction points to tomorrow's improved experiences: for users, customers and the business itself. When stakeholders see themselves as co-creators of something meaningful rather than approvers to be convinced, resistance transforms into enthusiastic support. The design sells itself when the story resonates.
Daniela Manov RGD, Product Designer at Microsoft
I try to involve users early by interviewing them to understand problems, then coming back with prototypes for feedback. That second conversation is the sweet spot: user voices paired with something visual gives stakeholders both emotional and rational hooks to grab onto.
The practical bits that have helped me: find a champion within the stakeholder group who's invested in the process. When presenting, know your audience and condense findings ruthlessly: you usually have less time than you anticipate. Propose small pilots when possible; modest proof of improved metrics or satisfaction can shift perspectives.
That said, I'll be real: sometimes you do everything right and it still doesn't land. Budget constraints, competing priorities or minds already made up are forces beyond good process. But starting with user research, showing the work and proving value incrementally. These have given me the best shot at getting innovative ideas across the finish line.
Allison Charles Associate RGD, Design Lead at Navacord
Resistance to change typically stems from ambiguity, a preference for familiarity or both. Introducing innovative design solutions starts with discovering what currently works, what challenges or pain points your design is addressing and what success looks like for both your stakeholders and users so you can demonstrate the value of your solution. Leverage proven frameworks like Design Thinking and ADKAR to structure your planning and execution, ensuring your design solutions are aligned with driving success and balancing business objectives with user expectations.
Don't be afraid to pivot if something isn’t working out as intended; you’ll gain more trust and respect from users and stakeholders alike if you approach implementing change with authentic care and empathy. Actively listening to feedback, testing and iterating throughout the process can lead to better insights that ultimately yield higher impact and results.
Evelyn Csiszar RGD, Director of UX Design & Strategy, Owner at Collective Experience Inc.
When I run into resistance to change, I start by listening and understanding where the concerns are coming from. Resistance is often rooted in risk, timelines or fear of disrupting something that already works. From there, wherever possible, I ground the conversation in data gathered in user research, performance metrics or relevant benchmarks to move discussions away from personal preference and toward evidence-based decision making.
When strong data isn’t available, I focus on quick validation. I’ll run guerrilla testing using lightweight prototypes or informal usability sessions to quickly gather feedback. To make the findings tangible, I like to show user feedback firsthand, whether that’s quoting user feedback directly or compiling a short video of users interacting with a prototype. Seeing and hearing real users struggle or succeed builds empathy and helps the insight land far more clearly than a summary slide.
Finally, I tie everything back to what stakeholders care about most, whether that’s increasing revenue, reducing support issues or moving faster. When stakeholders can clearly see how a design decision connects to real user needs and meaningful business outcomes, resistance tends to turn into alignment and support.
Jennifer Eustace RGD, Senior Visual/Experience Designer at electrikmode
Mental models refer to users’ existing ideas about a how a digital product or system works and how they should interact with it. Introducing innovative design solutions can sometimes be perceived as a threat to the familiarity of these existing mental models, potentially leading to resistance.
Professional UX designers are tasked with applying their expertise by solving problems both creatively and logically. In my opinion, when faced with resistance, it is important for designers to build a positive rapport with stakeholders and users by:
- Reassuring them that their goals form the requirements of the design process.
- Communicating that design decisions are being made to help them achieve their present goals while anticipating future needs.
- Presenting design solutions in a manner that promotes two-way communication.
- Articulating the rationale and thought process behind design decisions while dispelling any myths about UX design that may pop up.
- Linking design decisions to qualitative insights or quantitative data, to help gain long-term buy-in.
Over time, building a rapport with stakeholders and clients can lead to an increased understanding of the design process and foster a sense of trust, leading to more openness to innovative UX design solutions and less resistance to change.
Daniel Lamb RGD, Senior Designer & Developer at Mangrove Web
Resistance to innovation often comes from insecurity caused by a lack of understanding and a fear of the unknown. By rationalizing the thinking behind our solutions in a clear and jargon-free way, by backing them up with proof of past success of similar innovations and industry research where possible and by doing so in a confident and compassionate manner, you should be well on your way to getting stakeholder buy-in.
If resistance continues, you should remain humble and open to the possibility that your solution and assumptions are wrong. Re-evaluate your design. If, after a review, confidence in your solution has been bolstered, then present your work a second time including any new findings or insights. If you continue to receive resistance, it may stem from factors outside of the work itself, such as personal bias. Occasionally such biases will be insurmountable, but in these cases we have to accept that we did our very best.
Maria Munir Associate RGD, UX Design & Communication Associate at TRIUMF
Change can be challenging for both users and stakeholders. The most effective strategy I’ve found is to lead with empathy and start by understanding why people are struggling with a new solution. For users adapting to a new system, this might mean offering clearer guidance, better onboarding or additional support to ease the transition. If resistance is widespread, it can also signal that the solution needs deeper research or refinement.
When stakeholders push back, it’s important to uncover their specific concerns. Building strong relationships helps here: speak in their language, present evidence‑based reasoning and keep jargon to a minimum.
If stakeholders articulate concrete reasons for their hesitation, you can address those directly, for example by clarifying the long‑term value of an investment of time or money. If their resistance is less defined, then it helps to reframe the conversation around user needs, product vision, risks and opportunities. This shifts the focus away from personal preferences and toward shared goals, making alignment easier to achieve.
Daniele Rossi, UX and Interaction Design Consultant at Daniele Rossi Consulting
UX design is all about empathy, so I take time to listen and learn why people are worried about change. Sometimes it’s fear of the unknown or not seeing the benefits, so it’s important to be patient and open since the user I’m designing for isn’t me. I am aiming to solve their problems, so I look for common ground and focus on working with them rather than trying to “win the argument". Everyone’s input can help in the development of the best solution. I also like to share data and case studies to help stakeholders understand how the change I’m proposing can help them. This also builds trust. I’ve found that case studies from the same industry or competitors work really well!
This approach has worked for me handling resistance for (seemingly) small changes such as rewording links from “click here” to reducing incoming phone calls to internal teams to handling ineffective design change requests by the well-meaning higher-ups. Resistance can also be reduced by involving users and stakeholders early in the process. They will feel a part of the design process and provide valuable information about their needs and pain points.
Thiago Santarém, Principal Designer at Nortenho Design
With users, the best way is to conduct research and validate the ideas internally. Whether you are a part of a full team or a one-person-UX-team, you can quickly iterate on prototypes and ideas by testing your product with 10 users who are not designers and gathering their feedback. With stakeholders, the resistance usually comes from spending money and driving away users.
Examples of successful design innovations in other digital products are your best bet. These will help you articulate why a specific solution is right for the product, while building trust with your stakeholders. Bonus points if you can tie their KPIs and business objectives to the design. In UX, no user should have a better or worse experience than another. You will never be able to accommodate every single scenario, so plan for the average use cases rather than the edge cases.
Josh Skinner RGD, Senior Staff Product Designer at Apartment List
If users are resistant to your solution, buy-in from stakeholders shouldn’t be your concern yet. Part of a designer’s role is to advocate for the user, and that advocacy is only possible through an understanding of the user. If people are resistant to a particular change or design solution, you need to ask why that resistance exists in the first place. From there, you can make an evidence-based argument for the proposed solution and discuss its merits.
It’s also important to remember that a solution isn’t innovative because we say it is. Rather, an innovative solution comes from deeply understanding our users and their problems and then solving them creatively. Innovation is a byproduct of a good, creative solution, not the solution itself. And if we don’t have user buy-in for a solution, it will be challenging to advocate for it to stakeholders.
Susan Yang RGD, Creative Director at Padometric Studio
When introducing innovative design solutions, it will challenge users’ existing mental models of their current product, service or process. To help ease the transition, balance innovation with familiarity through an iterative approach that involves users’ active participation and feedback early on.
Through developing an understanding of their primary use cases and pain points, demonstrate an efficient workflow in phases with clear explanations, visual walkthroughs, responsive support and effective short tutorials. Making the users feel they are an active part of the change will instil confidence, comfort level, managed expectations and positive adaptation for the new mental model.
