Can We Still Have Nice Things? The Cost of Prioritizing Shareholder Value Over Quality
Poor user experiences drive away customers, reduce brand loyalty, and chip away at the very value companies claim to prioritize. Yet these issues rarely make it to the top of the priority list.
Do you ever find yourself wondering why so many software products—tools you once relied on—now seem harder to use, more prone to glitches, or simply… worse? You’re not alone. Across industries, customers are noticing a decline in the quality of products and services. But this isn’t just a series of isolated missteps. It’s the predictable result of prioritizing shareholder value over product quality, innovation, and long-term customer satisfaction.
Many companies have systematically deprioritized design and research, often dismissing them as “nice-to-haves” rather than essential components of building great products. Teams are told to cut corners, skip validation, and focus on features that promise short-term returns. Meanwhile, the backlog of UX issues grows. Minor frustrations turn into glaring flaws. Customers leave.
This isn’t just about fixing bugs or tweaking interfaces—it’s about something much bigger: design debt.
Design Debt: The Ticking Time Bomb
Design debt doesn’t get the same attention as engineering debt, but it’s just as real and far more insidious. It builds slowly, accumulating with every quick fix and rushed feature release, until one day it overwhelms even the best engineering teams.
When UX and research are deprioritized, the consequences ripple outward:
Lost customers: Poor experiences erode trust and loyalty.
Higher attrition: Talented teams burn out, knowing they aren’t given the time or resources to build products they’re proud of.
Missed opportunities: Companies become reactive, spending more time putting out fires than planning for the future.
The Slide Toward Mediocrity
The results are all around us: apps that crash, websites that feel clunky, and tools that make users feel like they’re fighting against them rather than being helped by them. It begs the question: What is the endgame?
How far can companies go down this path before they realize it’s unsustainable? How many customers need to leave before leadership acknowledges that a race to the bottom doesn’t grow shareholder value—it destroys it?
A Glimmer of Hope: Startups as the Antidote
The good news is that while some corporate giants are stuck in this cycle, startups are beginning to fill the gap. Agile, customer-focused teams are stepping up to do the work that bigger companies refuse to prioritize. They’re proving that investing in design and research isn’t just the right thing to do—it’s a competitive advantage.
These startups are showing us the way forward:
Build with customers, not just for them.
Make design and research integral to every stage of development.
Prioritize quality, even when it’s hard to measure its immediate ROI.
Can We Turn This Around?
The question remains: will established companies wake up in time to reverse course, or will they continue to lose ground to competitors who are willing to invest in doing things the right way?
It’s time to decide. Customers notice when corners are cut. Teams notice when their work is undervalued. And markets notice when brands stop living up to their promises.
What do you think? Are we at a tipping point where design and research will finally get the attention and funding they deserve? Or will it take a wave of disruption from startups to force change?