Understanding SaaS Product UX Roles: Product Designer, UI/UX Designer, and More

The SaaS Product Owner (PO): What Do They Do?

The Product Owner (PO) is like the conductor of the product backlog. Think of a backlog as a giant shopping list for your SaaS application. The PO is responsible for this list: they fill it, prioritize it, and make sure it's always aligned with user needs and the company's business objectives. Concretely, they must:

• Gather requirements: The PO listens to users, the market, and internal teams to identify the features that will bring the most value to the product. They use various methods such as user interviews, data analysis, and market research.
• Create and manage the backlog: They translate these needs into "user stories," concise descriptions of functionalities from the user's perspective. These user stories are then added to the backlog, a prioritized list of tasks to be carried out by the development team.
• Prioritize features: With a potentially very long list, the PO must make choices. They prioritize user stories based on their importance, urgency, and potential impact on the product and the company.
• Ensure product consistency: The PO ensures that new features integrate seamlessly with the existing product and contribute to a coherent and enjoyable user experience.
• Collaborate with the development team: The PO works closely with developers, designers, and testers to ensure everyone is on the same page and that the final product meets expectations.

Concrete example: Imagine you are developing a SaaS project management tool. Your PO might analyze user feedback and identify an important need: the ability to integrate a shared calendar. They would then create a user story, prioritize it in the backlog, and work with the development team to bring it to life.

The SaaS Product Manager (PM): What's Their Role?

The Product Manager (PM) defines the overall product vision, its long-term roadmap, and the strategy to achieve business objectives. They are responsible for the product's success in the market. Their main responsibilities include:

• Define the product vision: The PM answers the question "Where do we want to go with this product?". They set long-term goals, taking into account market needs, technological trends, and the company's overall strategy. They ensure the product team has a clear and shared direction.
• Develop the product roadmap: The roadmap is the product's development plan over time. The PM defines the major milestones, key features, and implementation deadlines. It's an essential document for communicating the product strategy to all stakeholders.
• Analyze the market and competition: The PM constantly monitors the market to identify opportunities and threats. They analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the competition to best position the product in the market and identify areas for differentiation.
• Define the Go-to-Market strategy: How are we going to conquer the market? The PM develops the product launch and promotion strategy, in collaboration with the marketing and sales teams. They define distribution channels, pricing, and key messages.
• Collaborate with the Product Owner: The PM works closely with the PO to ensure the product backlog aligns with the vision and roadmap. They provide the context and information needed to prioritize features and make the right decisions.

Concrete example: For a SaaS project management tool, the PM might identify a market opportunity for integration with video conferencing tools. They would add this feature to the product roadmap and work with the PO to schedule it in the backlog.

What is a Chief Product Officer (CPO)?

The Chief Product Officer (CPO) orchestrates product strategy at the company level, typically in a more mature growth phase. They oversee all product-related activities, from design and development to launch and marketing. They define the overall product vision and ensure its alignment with the company's business strategy. Their main responsibilities include:

• Overall product vision and strategy: The CPO defines the long-term product vision for all of the company's products. They identify market opportunities and technological trends to guide development efforts.
• Product portfolio management: They oversee the company's product portfolio and decide on investments in each product. They prioritize and allocate resources based on strategic objectives.
• Leadership and management: The CPO leads and manages product teams, including Product Managers and Product Owners. They promote collaboration and communication between teams.
• Product performance: They track the performance of different products and identify areas for improvement. They implement key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure product success and adjust strategy as needed.
• Cross-team collaboration: The CPO works closely with other company departments (marketing, sales, technology) to ensure the consistency of the overall strategy.

Concrete example: In a SaaS company offering multiple solutions, the CPO might decide to invest more in developing a promising product and reduce efforts on a less successful one. They will define growth objectives for each product and ensure that product teams have the resources they need to achieve them.

The UI Designer: What's Their Role?

The UI Designer is the artist of the user interface. They focus on the visual aspects of the product, ensuring it is aesthetic, attractive, and consistent with the brand identity. They work closely with UX Designers to bring their concepts to life and create a user-friendly and intuitive interface. Their main responsibilities include:

• Visual design: The UI Designer creates the visual appearance of the interface, choosing colors, typography, icons, images, and other graphic elements. They ensure the design is harmonious and engaging.
• Interface design: They design the layout of elements on the screen, taking into account ergonomic principles and design conventions. The goal is to create a clear, intuitive, and easy-to-use interface.
• Creating mockups and prototypes: The UI Designer creates high-fidelity mockups and interactive prototypes to visualize the final user interface and test its functionality.
• Design System: They contribute to the creation and maintenance of the Design System, a set of rules and reusable components that ensure the product's visual consistency.
• Collaboration: The UI Designer works closely with UX Designers, Product Managers, Product Owners, and developers.

Concrete example: For our SaaS project management tool, the UI Designer might create high-fidelity mockups of the new shared calendar interface. They would choose colors, typography, and icons to create a visually appealing interface consistent with the rest of the application. They would also create an interactive prototype to simulate how the interface functions.

The SaaS UX Designer: What Do They Do?

The UX Designer is the champion of the user. Their primary goal is to ensure the product is useful, usable, and enjoyable for the target users. They focus on researching, analyzing, and designing the overall user experience, working in close collaboration with other members of the product team. Their main responsibilities include:

• User research: The UX Designer conducts user studies and tests to understand user needs, behaviors, and motivations. They use various methods like interviews, surveys, usability tests, and usage data analysis.
• Information architecture: They organize the product's content and features logically and intuitively, creating sitemaps, wireframes, and prototypes. The goal is to facilitate navigation and access to information.
• Interaction design: The UX Designer designs the interactions between the user and the product, ensuring they are smooth, efficient, and enjoyable. They define the different interface states and the transitions between them.
• Usability testing: They regularly test prototypes and beta versions of the product with real users to identify usability issues and areas for improvement.
• Collaboration: The UX Designer works closely with Product Managers, Product Owners, UI Designers, developers, and other product team members. They communicate their recommendations and analyses to influence design decisions.

Concrete example: For our SaaS project management tool, the UX Designer might conduct usability tests on the new shared calendar feature. They would observe users interacting with the interface and identify any friction points or confusion. They would then suggest improvements to optimize the ergonomics and fluidity of the experience.

The SaaS Product Designer: What's Their Role?

The Product Designer is the Swiss Army knife of UX. They are a versatile professional who combines the skills of a UX Designer and a UI Designer, with a strong user and business focus. They are responsible for designing the overall user experience, from ideation to creating high-fidelity prototypes. Their main responsibilities include:

• User research: The Product Designer starts by understanding the needs, motivations, and frustrations of the target users. They use qualitative and quantitative research methods to gather data and insights.
• Ideation and design: Based on their understanding of the users, they devise creative and innovative solutions to meet their needs. They create wireframes, mockups, and prototypes to visualize and test their ideas.
• Interaction design: They design the interactions and navigation flows within the product, ensuring they are intuitive and enjoyable to use.
• Visual design (UI): The Product Designer creates the visual user interface, choosing the colors, typography, and graphic elements that align with the brand identity and user expectations.
• User testing: They test their prototypes with real users to validate their hypotheses and identify areas for improvement. They use the feedback gathered to iterate and optimize the product design.
• Collaboration: The Product Designer works closely with Product Managers, Product Owners, developers, and other members of the product team.

Concrete example: For our SaaS project management tool, the Product Designer might conduct user interviews to understand how users currently use shared calendars. They would then design a new calendar integration interface, creating mockups and interactive prototypes. Finally, they would test these prototypes with users to validate their usability and effectiveness.

Note: Depending on company naming conventions, the Product Designer may be considered a UI/UX Designer.

The Role of a Web Designer: Different from a UI/UX Designer

The Web Designer is responsible for designing and building websites and landing pages. Their role is broader than that of a UI Designer, encompassing technical aspects like front-end development, integration with a CMS (Content Management System), and search engine optimization (SEO). Their main responsibilities include:

• Visual design: Like the UI Designer, the Web Designer creates the visual appearance of the website, choosing colors, typography, images, and other graphic elements. They ensure the design is attractive and consistent with the brand identity.
• User interface design: They design the structure and navigation of the website, ensuring the interface is intuitive and easy for visitors to use.
• Front-end development: The Web Designer translates mockups into HTML, CSS, and JavaScript code. They implement website interactions and animations.
• CMS integration: They integrate the website with a content management system (CMS) like WordPress with Elementor, Jimdo, or Wix, allowing clients to easily manage their website content.
• SEO optimization: They optimize the website for search engines, using SEO techniques to improve its ranking in search results.
• Collaboration: The Web Designer collaborates with clients, graphic designers, web writers, and back-end developers.

Concrete example: A Web Designer might be tasked with creating the website for a SaaS company. They would design the graphic charter in collaboration with a graphic designer, the site structure, the main pages, and the contact forms. They would then develop the site in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript or integrate it with a CMS like WordPress, while also optimizing it for search engines.

⚠️ Important: A Web Designer can create a beautiful landing page, but they are not a UX Designer. Designing the user experience of a complex SaaS requires specific skills, including user research, interaction design (HMI), and Design Systems.

Front-End Developer and UI/UX Design

The Front-End Developer ("Front-End Dev") is the magician who brings designs to life. They translate mockups and prototypes created by designers into HTML, CSS, and JavaScript code, transforming static images into interactive and functional interfaces. They ensure the technical quality and performance of the user interface. Their main responsibilities include:

• HTML, CSS, and JavaScript development: The Front-End Dev masters these three fundamental web languages. They use them to structure content (HTML), style it (CSS), and make it interactive (JavaScript).
• Design integration: They work from mockups and prototypes created by UI/UX Designers and Product Designers. Their role is to faithfully reproduce the design while respecting technical constraints and development best practices.
• Performance optimization: The Front-End Developer optimizes the code to ensure a fast and smooth user interface. They minimize page load times and ensure the website or application performs well on different browsers and devices.
• Accessibility: They ensure the interface is accessible to all users, including people with disabilities. They adhere to WCAG accessibility standards to guarantee an inclusive experience.
• Collaboration: The Front-End Developer works closely with UI/UX Designers, Product Designers, Back-End Developers, and other product team members. They participate in technical discussions and propose solutions to optimize design implementation.

Concrete Example: For our SaaS project management tool, the Front-End Developer would be responsible for integrating the new shared calendar interface. They would use HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to create the different interface elements, implement interactions, and ensure that everything is responsive and performs well on various devices.

⚠️ Important: Confusing a Front-End Developer with a UI/UX Designer is like confusing a builder with an architect. The builder is essential for constructing the house, but it's the architect who designs the plans and ensures the structural integrity. The Front-End Developer brings the interface to life, but it's the UI/UX Designer who defines the user experience and ensures its usability. To learn more, read our article on the topic.

Other SaaS UX Roles

Depending on the size of the company, more specialized roles can be assigned to improve work processes.

Design System Manager

• Responsible for creating, maintaining, and evolving the Design System.
• Guarantees the consistency and application of the Design System across all products.
• Creates and maintains Design System documentation.
• Trains and supports teams on using the Design System.
• Liaises between designers, developers, and other stakeholders.

UX Researcher

• Specializes in user research.
• Conducts qualitative and quantitative studies to understand user needs and behaviors.
• Uses various research methods (interviews, user testing, data analysis, etc.).
• Provides insights and recommendations to the product team.

UX Writer

• Responsible for all text within the user interface (buttons, menus, error messages, notifications, etc.).
• Ensures that text is clear, concise, and consistent with the brand voice (manages UX Writing).
• Works closely with UX Designers to optimize the user experience.

UX/UI Engineer

• A hybrid profile between a front-end developer and a designer.
• Possesses design and development skills.
• Implements user interfaces using the latest web technologies.
• Optimizes interface performance and accessibility.

Accessibility Specialist

• Expert in web accessibility.
• Ensures the product complies with accessibility standards (WCAG).
• Audits interfaces and identifies accessibility issues.
• Recommends solutions to make the product accessible to all users.

DesignOps Specialist

• Improves efficiency and collaboration within design teams.
• Implements processes and tools to optimize design workflow.
• Manages design resources and documentation.

Conclusion

Web Designer, UI/UX Designer, Product Owner, Product Manager... the world of UX is rich and complex. By understanding the nuances of each role and the interactions between these different profiles, you lay the foundation for a solid UX strategy and a successful product. To create a winning team adapted to your budget, consider building a team tailored to the size and goals of your company.