Remember when design teams looked like a pyramid? A handful of leads at the top, a healthy layer of mid-levels in the middle, and a wide foundation of juniors on the ground floor pushing pixels and learning fast. Good times. Well, that pyramid just got flipped.

Today’s design teams look more like an inverted triangle: small, senior, and stretched. Here’s why.

1. Budget cuts didn’t ask politely

Let’s be real: the past couple of years haven’t been the kindest to design orgs. Layoffs, hiring freezes, and "do more with less" became the mantra of the modern product org. Junior roles? Paused. Internships? Ghosted. What's left are senior designers holding the fort, doing the work, setting strategy, and sometimes even proofreading copy.

2. AI changed the rules (and the pace)

Whether you’re excited or exhausted by it, AI has changed how design gets done. Tasks that once took a day now take a prompt and a few tweaks. That means companies are looking for fewer hands and more brains—people who can think strategically, leverage AI tools, and deliver work that moves the needle.

3. Designers are expected to do it all

Modern design roles aren’t just about UI anymore. Today’s designers are shipping Figma files, writing UX copy, building motion, understanding product strategy, and sometimes even dabbling in front-end. The industry now favors folks who wear five hats and juggle them like a Cirque du Soleil act.

4. Smaller teams move faster (in theory)

With leaner teams, decision-making is faster, communication is tighter, and alignment happens quicker. At least, that’s the idea. In reality, it means the same four people are in every meeting and still somehow behind on work. But hey, at least they all know what’s going on.

So what does this mean for training?

It means designers don’t need 40-hour curriculums that start with "What is a button?" They need relevant, focused learning that solves a problem they’re facing this week. They don’t want to be told what design was—they want to be coached through what design is becoming.

And that’s why our training has shifted too: leaner, faster, more relevant—just like the teams we’re building it for.