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Should PMs create wireframes, or does it constrain the UX designer?
As product managers we are responsible for the overall solution and it is natural to feel the urge to control every aspect of it. Understanding the problem space is crucial and wireframes/prototypes can help immensely.
But there is a tension: can a product manager creating wireframes that are handed to a UX person sway their judgment? Does handing over wireframes create an invisible boundary that both the PM and designer hesitate to cross?
Does the answer change based on the maturity of the UX person? Are there other alternatives for a product manager to explain the possible solution beyond wireframes? Or should we just focus on the problem space and leave UX to the experts?
1 take
I think wireframes do sway judgment in subtle ways. If a product manager creates a wireframe and hands it to a UX person, it creates an invisible boundary which both hesitate to cross. The PM thinks "I already solved this" and the designer thinks "they must want something like this." I have seen this play out at two companies. The better approach: PM and UX designer go through a rigorous ideation session together, and then the UX designer builds on the outcome. The PM brings the problem depth, the designer brings the solution craft. Separating these phases — PM defines alone, then hands off — is where the constraint happens. The maturity of the UX person changes the dynamic. A senior designer will push back on wireframes. A junior one will treat them as the spec.