58% of Employees Leave for Lack of Growth — Here’s How to Fix It With PM and UX Skill Frameworks
That’s right — 58% of professionals would leave their company if they don’t get development opportunities.
Hiring is expensive. Losing good people is even more expensive. The cheapest way to build a strong product org? Upskill the team you already have.
The problem: most “career growth” talks are vague. PMs don’t know where to focus. Designers don’t know what’s expected. Managers don’t know how to coach without reinventing the wheel.
That’s where templates come in. They give you a clear structure to set expectations, measure skills, and coach with intent.
PM Upskilling
For PMs, a skill matrix works best. Here’s one I created, using guidelines from Marty Cagan’s book, Empowered, with slight variations made for practicality. I filled out the first few rows to provide an example.
Cagan recommended adding a column for “importance,” but I don’t. Every skill listed, particularly those in the first two sections, are critically important. As PMs build in seniority, they’re expected to demonstrate greater strength across all of these skills.
How it works:
Manager Assessment (1-10): The manager rates the PM’s skill level. You can also gather feedback from peers or cross-functional partners for a broader view.
PM Assessment (1–10): The PM rates themselves, and the manager adds context or feedback.
Gap: Calculated as “manager assessment – PM assessment.” Positive = focus area.
Goal: Pick the top 3 gaps for coaching. Ignore the rest for now.
This turns vague coaching conversations into a clear, actionable plan.
UX Designer Upskilling
Two solid frameworks stand out:
Design Team Levels Framework (by Peter Merholz)
Includes both an Individual Contributor (IC) track and a management track.
Great if you’re scaling and need growth paths for designers who don’t want to manage.
Figma Product Design & Writing Levels
Lightweight and visual.
Best for smaller teams where most designers are ICs.
👉 Key difference: Merholz = dual track (IC + management). Figma = IC-focused and simple.
Closing Thought
Upskilling doesn’t happen by accident. With the right templates, you don’t waste time reinventing career paths. You set expectations, track progress, and coach where it actually matters.
Start simple:
Designers → Pick Merholz if you need dual tracks, Figma if you want lean and IC-focused.
PMs → Use the skill matrix to find the biggest gaps and coach there.
Coaching is the cheapest retention strategy you’ll ever have.
