When you look at the future geology of design leadership, there are two forces of nature hitting the industry: multi-modal and multi-generational. The first is the AI and agentic era of software we find ourselves in. The second is a generational shift in the pipeline of professional designers.

This crustal compression of the design craft is where I lose sleep. In this year alone, some of the best design leaders I know retired from the industry. At the same time, the role is also changing rapidly. I believe in the next two years, there is going to be a seismic series of events that’ll change the entire landscape of design leadership.

Three tectonic stages

I see three stages coming for design:

1. The initial uplift — Pressure builds at the edges; incumbents still in charge while the AI-native wedge forms beneath.
2. Sustained thrust — The override plate gains momentum. New exec archetypes get installed at challenger companies while legacy orgs lag.
3. The new mountain range — Multiple leadership archetypes emerge: design GM, AI-native exec, studio operator, design-founder hybrid.

What happens to design leaders

There are three likely outcomes: leaders adapt, leaders resist, or leaders become irrelevant. I’m an optimist — it’s not too late. Fall in love with the craft again, and develop the next generation of leaders with real succession, not speed-date mentoring.

To survive disruption, you must become disruption.

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Explore the interactive tectonic cross-section — hover each stage to read the friction zones at the collision front.

Originally posted on Proof of Concept