Effort Over Time: Why Story Points Are a Better Way To Plan UX Work Naresh Shan

Estimating design work in hours sets teams up to fail. But story points help designers earn trust, align with product managers, and keep creative space intact. This week, we unpack how adopting story points can shift the way your team plans and communicates.

What if the secret to better collaboration wasn’t a new tool or process, but a number?

For years, UX teams have struggled with estimation. Say something will take ten hours, and suddenly you’re locked into a number that doesn’t account for iteration, alignment, or even creativity. The result? Broken trust and unrealistic expectations.

This week, I chat with Naresh Shan, a design leader who’s built global UX teams and proven that story points, not hours, are the secret to bridging the gap between design, engineering, and product management. By shifting estimation from time to effort, Naresh shows how design teams can protect creativity while building credibility with stakeholders.

We explore what story points are, what it looks like when designers adopt them, why this shared language breaks down silos, and how it transforms team dynamics.

If you’ve ever felt sidelined in sprint planning or struggled to explain your workload, this episode will give you practical ways to earn trust and plan smarter.

Topics:
• 03:02 Understanding Story Points in Agile Teams
• 03:33 Interview with Nhan: The Power of Story Points
• 08:24 The Fibonacci Sequence and Story Points
• 13:20 Challenges and Solutions in Estimating Design Work
• 22:24 Decentralized vs. Centralized Teams
• 32:04 Maintaining Momentum and Team Cohesion
• 35:27 Building Team Unity Through Gratitude
• 35:58 Embracing Change and Leadership
• 36:36 Benefits of Story Points in Design
• 41:22 Implementing Story Points: A Practical Guide
• 46:32 Balancing Design and Management Roles

Helpful Links:
• Connect with Naresh on LinkedIn
• Value UX Conference
• Aligned Podcast
• Aligned Consulting

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