As product designers, our work goes far beyond just creating visually appealing interfaces. In my experience working as the first designer at Osfin.ai, I've found that soft skills are essential to designing great products and thriving in the role. Here are the key soft skills every product designer should develop (in my opinion):

Empathy

User-Centered Design

Empathy allows us to understand user needs and frustrations. It’s the foundation of creating user-centered designs that solve real problems. When I was working on a data table at Osfin.ai, listening to the team who used it daily made all the difference in creating a solution that worked for them.

Building Better Experiences

Empathy helps you go beyond technical requirements and focus on making the experience intuitive and valuable for the end-user.

Communication

Articulating Design Decisions

Designers work with various teams—developers, stakeholders, and clients. Being able to clearly communicate why certain design decisions were made helps everyone align on the project’s goals. This was especially important in my rebranding projects, where I had to explain design changes in a way that made sense to non-designers.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

Design doesn't happen in isolation. Collaborating with developers, product managers, and marketers is essential to delivering a successful product. Working on a fintech product at Osfin.ai, close collaboration with developers helped ensure that our designs were both user-friendly and technically feasible.

Adaptability

Handling Scope Changes

In product design, change is inevitable. Whether it’s shifting deadlines or evolving client expectations, adaptability helps you stay focused when things don’t go as planned. For example, when the project scope for a corporate food kiosk changed, we quickly adjusted our approach and timeline.

Embracing Feedback

Adaptability is key when iterating on feedback, whether it's from user testing or stakeholders.

Attention to Detail

Creating Intuitive Interactions

Great design is in the details—micro-interactions, spacing, and visual hierarchy all contribute to a smoother user experience. Even small adjustments, like button placement or color contrast in data tables, can drastically improve usability.

Enhancing User Experience

Focusing on the fine details ensures that the user experience is seamless and enjoyable.

Patience

Managing Long Projects

Fintech design projects can be long and demanding. Patience and resilience help you stay focused, even when the project hits roadblocks. At Osfin.ai, I had to remain resilient when implementing user feedback within tight project scope constraints.

Handling Feedback Loops

Resilience also comes in handy during multiple iterations and feedback cycles, ensuring that you stay committed to delivering the best possible product.

Curiosity

Staying Ahead of Trends

Curiosity drives continuous learning and improvement. As designers, it’s important to stay updated on new tools, trends, and techniques. My curiosity led me to explore data visualization techniques, which improved my designs in the fintech space.

Learning from Developers

Understanding how developers work also enhances collaboration and helps you create designs that are technically sound and user-friendly.

Conclusion

Technical skills are important, but soft skills are what elevate a product designer to the next level. Empathy, communication, adaptability, and collaboration have been crucial in my journey. Whether you're designing for fintech, SaaS, or any other industry, these soft skills will help you create products that are not only functional but truly impactful.