Design Overtime: The Design Process Is Not Dead — It Just Feels That Way (with Pavel Samsonov)

In this conversation, host Guy Segal and returning guest Pavel Samsonov challenge the recurring claim that the design process is dead — arguing that for many, it was never really alive in the first place. Pavel makes the case that process isn't a rigid framework imposed from above, but a set of self-imposed, iterative constraints that help designers make better decisions. The conversation explores how factory-era management thinking and agency-world deliverable culture have distorted our understanding of what process actually means, and why most "process transformations" fail because they serve managerial control rather than the people doing the work. Pavel and Guy also dig into the social dimension of design — how effective process is as much about managing stakeholder relationships and intake as it is about creating a decision-making framework that allows you to say "no".

Guest Bio

Pavel Samsonov (he/him) is a Principal Experience Designer at Justworks in New York. His approach to product & UX draws from his research at Nielsen Norman Group, experience building design practice at AWS, and managing product teams at Bloomberg.

Pavel often describes himself as a Problem Designer, because the biggest influence on the solution is always the framing of the problem.

Links

Pavel's weekly newsletter, Product Picnic: https://productpicnic.beehiiv.com/

Influence by Design, Pavel's full-day workshop with Active Voice HQ: https://www.throughlineconf.com/events/philadelphia-2026

Credits

Cover design by Kristine Planche (inspired by Raquel Breternitz).