// BECOME A UX STRATEGIST

// BECOME A UX STRATEGIST

Defining UX Strategy

Learn how to build a winning strategy that aligns design with business.

6 Weeks Part-Time Live Online Real Company Project

Autumn dates for the live version are coming in August!

Get a sneak preview of the course with the free short course→

A strategy course for designers

simple venn diagram

1. Decide what gets built.

Design a strategy from scratch that says what your company should do and, more usefully, what it should stop doing.

founder, ceo, ux designer, and product designer have live cursors

2. Get decision-makers on board.

Bring stakeholders into the strategy process so your strategy shapes the roadmap instead of gathering dust in Google Drive.

business alignment

3. Grow without managing.

Strategy lets you direct resources, processes, and decisions, which is how you gain influence without taking on headcount.

A virtual meeting with multiple participants discussing a presentation titled 'Defining UX Strategy,' which is visible on a screen alongside related role tags and a person holding a compass in the foreground.

Who is this course for?

UX & Product Designers

You can execute anything, and you are tired of executing whatever you are handed. This is the process for having a defensible opinion about what is worth building, backed by evidence, in a form your company can act on.

Design Agencies

An advanced and billable process that raises a client's UX maturity and turns a project engagement into a strategic one.

Design Leads

Scale your impact past your own hands. A strategy guides resources and decisions across a whole team, which is how a lead earns a seat where the roadmap actually gets set.

Titles this course can unlock:

UX Strategist ✦

Product Strategist ✦

UX Lead ✦

UX Consultant ✦

Strategic Designer ✦

Design Strategist ✦

Principal UX Designer ✦

AI Design Strategist ✦

UX Strategist ✦ Product Strategist ✦ UX Lead ✦ UX Consultant ✦ Strategic Designer ✦ Design Strategist ✦ Principal UX Designer ✦ AI Design Strategist ✦

Who this course is not for:

If you are new to UX or you want to learn tools and interfaces, this isn’t for you.

This course assumes you already know how to design and want to decide what gets designed.

Course Content Overview

You get fresh video content, a live workshop, and an assignment every week.

UX Strategy Course Details

Course Brochure

This PDF provides the class breakdown, learning outcomes, and full schedule for Regular and Pro Seats.

UX Strategy Certification by the Fountain Institute

Earn your certificate in UX Strategy.

After completing all the assignments, you will receive a course certification in UX strategy. You can post your certificate on Linkedin and start your new career in strategy!

After earning their certificate, many students feel the confidence to change their title to:

  • UX Strategist

  • Design Strategist

  • Strategic Designer

Freelance UX Strategy, User Research & Service Design

The course was a six weeks long insightful, inspiring and fun journey! The combination of valuable input, in-depth feedback and hands-on workshops gave me a lot of room to explore, think and grow. 10/10 recommend! 👏

Kira Tschierschke
Freelance UX Strategy, User Research & Service Design
Alumnus of Defining UX Strategy (Live)
View Linkedin

Learn UX Strategy in multiple ways.

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Watch the weekly videos

Learn the theory and frameworks behind UX strategy in bite-sized videos to prepare you for the workshop.

Illustration of people working on UX design with a computer, sticky notes, and a red background.

Workshop and practice

Learn in LIVE online workshops where you work through strategy activities in weekly, two-hour group sessions.

(live cohort only)

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Get personal feedback

Improve your strategy with an expert so you walk away with a vetted UX strategy for your team.

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Read the strategy guides

We summarize the course learnings in 21 articles so you can review and keep learning after the course.

(not required to graduate)

ux collection's maureen herben testimonial for UX strategy

“They managed to keep the live classes engaging and fun - even after a long day at work. I liked how practical this course was and that the theory was provided on a separate learning platform, so I could just read that whenever I had time and wanted to learn more. The templates we used were provided in Miro, which was also great because that way I could use them for work as well.”

Maureen Herben
Product Designer at Miro
Alumnus of Defining UX Strategy (Live)
View Linkedin

Pricing

Build a strategy practice that lasts a lifetime.

SELF-PACED

      Basic Seat €495      

  • 27 video lessons

  • 6 project assignments w/ templates

  • 21 articles in the Strategy Guidebook

  • Lifetime access to materials

  • Learning dashboard for web, iOS, & Android

  • Access to course instructor

  • High-level feedback from course instructor

  • Discounts on future courses 20% OFF

  • 6 LIVE online workshops

  • 14 hours of class recordings

  • 7 Miro boards packed w/ strategy activities

  • Strategy career mentorship & support

  • 3 x 60-min. coaching calls

Learn now at your own pace

Comes with a €500 discount
on a Regular or Pro Seat

LIVE COHORT

   Regular Seat €1295  

  • 27 video lessons

  • 6 project assignments w/ templates

  • 21 articles in the Strategy Guidebook

  • Lifetime access to materials

  • Learning dashboard for web, iOS, & Android

  • Access to course instructor

  • Detailed feedback from course instructor

  • Discounts on future courses 20% OFF

  • 6 LIVE online workshops

  • 14 hours of class recordings

  • 7 Miro boards packed w/ strategic activities

  • Strategy career mentorship & support

  • 3 x 60-min. coaching calls

Join the waitlist

Learn live & online in autumn 2026

LIVE COHORT + COACHING

    Pro Seat €1495    

  • 27 video lessons

  • 6 project assignments w/ templates

  • 21 articles in the Strategy Guidebook

  • Lifetime access to materials

  • Learning dashboard for web, iOS, & Android

  • Access to course instructor

  • Detailed feedback from course instructor

  • Discounts on future courses 20% OFF

  • 6 LIVE online workshops

  • 14 hours of class recordings

  • 7 Miro boards packed w/ strategic activities

  • Strategy career mentorship & support

  • 3 x 60-min. coaching calls€600 value

Join the waitlist

Learn live & online in autumn 2026

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Pay by invoice in the EU

Many students in the EU prefer to have their company pay via bank transfer. If you need a custom invoice for this purpose, Request an invoice here.

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Money-back guarantee

We align with EU standards and offer full refunds within 14 days of purchase for any reason. No questions asked. Read more in our terms & conditions.

Get your company to pay

Most of our students get reimbursed by their companies after paying for a Fountain Institute course.

Here is the process:

  1. Ask your manager for approval of the course

  2. Pay for the course after enrollment opens

  3. Request your invoice after enrolling

  4. Submit the invoice to HR & get reimbursed in a future paycheck

Read more about how to ask your manager for approval →

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“Unique, immersive, and actually applicable to my day-to-day career growth. By far the most valuable professional development I've done!”

Bridget Stuger
Sr. UX Designer
Alumnus of Defining UX Strategy (Live)
View Linkedin

Meet Jeff

Hi, I’m Jeff! I’m one of the founders of the Fountain Institute, and I’ve led UX teams in the U.S. and Germany for 15+ years.

If you feel like there should be more to design than pixels and screens, then you are in the right place. This course goes way beyond the tactical, pixel-pushing stuff and focuses exclusively on the strategic side of UX. You will learn the strategic skills of research, facilitation, and experimentation to help you master this strategy stuff.

This course has zero fluff. Every minute of the learning experience is designed to help you create a winning UX strategy for your company or client. You’ll learn in multiple ways and stretch your UX skills like never before!

I’ll share resources, methods, and processes for strategy that you won’t find anywhere else. This will help you confidently take on your new role as team strategist.

Are you ready to become a strategist?

View Jeff’s Website or View Jeff’s LinkedIn

Course Designer & Lead Instructor

Course Schedule for the Live Cohort

3-5 hours a week・6 weeks・6 workshops・24 hours total

Weekly schedule planner with activities on each day of the week, including feedback review, assignment, workshop recording, office hours, and deadlines, with color-coded events and labels.

Learn live from multiple timezones:

10:00 am San Francisco Time・1:00 pm New York Time・18:00 London Time・19:00 Berlin Time・4:00 Sydney Time・

10:00 am San Francisco Time・1:00 pm New York Time・18:00 London Time・19:00 Berlin Time・4:00 Sydney Time・

Can’t make a live class? Class recordings are available within 24 hours of every workshop.

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“Valuable, up-to-date knowledge, presented and summarized clearly, without unnecessary fluff and bullsh*t.”

Egon Becskei
UX Lead at Emarsys
Alumnus of Defining UX Strategy (Self-Paced)
View Linkedin

Preview the course content

Enter your email to get a FREE 60-minute masterclass by Jeff Humble on Designing UX Strategy + Jeff’s favorite strategy resources

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    ux aneta's testimonial for UX strategy

    “The knowledge I gained was tremendous while at the same time it wasn’t overwhelming. The live workshops weren’t tiresome and I managed to stay energized…I had the opportunity to work on real context from my environment and I got a relevant feedback. Overall, I think the course was fantastic!”

    Aneta Kmiecik
    UX Designer at EcoOnline Global
    Alumnus of Defining UX Strategy (Live)
    View Instagram (ux.aneta)

    design strategy skills and ai

    AI made strategy the job worth having

    When building something takes an afternoon, the hard part stops being the building.

    Every team can now generate more screens, more prototypes, and more copy than it can choose from, so the scarce skill becomes knowing which of those things is worth making at all. That choice is strategy, and it decides where all that cheap execution gets pointed.

    The same tools also put strategy within reach of a single designer. Company research, competitor scans, and evidence synthesis used to take a team and a quarter. With agents doing the collection and the first pass at synthesis, one designer can now run the kind of intelligence operation that used to live in a strategy department.

    Which means the designer who can point AI at the right problem is the one who gets a say in what gets built.

    A portrait of a man with a bald head and beard smiling, wearing a light yellow collared shirt, against a solid dark blue background.

    “The UX strategy and design course was exceptionally well-structured, offering a balanced mix of workshops, video sessions, and assignments. Highlights included Jeff’s invaluable feedback and the opportunity to collaborate with fellow UX designers. The provided resources were high-quality and easy to understand. Overall, this course demystified the complex topic of strategy design, making it both approachable and actionable. It’s especially beneficial for designers working in product teams, as it helps bridge the gap between design and business strategy. Highly recommended for anyone looking to elevate their strategy skills.”

    Lars Logozny
    Senior UX/UI Designer at Volkswagen Group Services
    Alumnus of Defining UX Strategy (Live)
    View Linkedin

    Frequently asked questions

    luis horcajo designer

    “The UX Strategy course with The Fountain Institute was a really practical and insightful learning experience. It gave me tools for mapping influence, aligning business strategies, and testing ideas—skills I could apply right away. Jeff Humble’s teaching style was approachable and supportive, making it easy to ask questions and dig deeper. The tools and canvases we used made complex concepts clear and actionable. If you’re looking to sharpen your UX strategy skills and align design with business goals, I highly recommend The Fountain Institute.”

    Luis Horcajo
    UX/UI Designer at ImmoScout
    Alumnus of Defining UX Strategy (Live)
    View Linkedin

    what is ux strategy

    Free email course on UX Strategy

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      Take the Free Short Course

      • Learn what it looks like to be a strategic designer

      • Receive five email lessons that take around 15 minutes each

      • Find out if leveling up in strategy is right for you

        We will never sell your data or send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time with one click. Privacy Policy

        A young woman with long, wavy dark hair wearing glasses and a sleeveless top, standing outdoors during golden hour.

        “The UX Strategy course was a great experience <3 It's a fun easy way to learn techniques and gather information. Throughout the course, I gained confidence in using research methods and tackling design challenges in a way that aligns with broader strategic goals. Jeff is an excellent facilitator who made the learning process fun and impactful!”

        Csenge Csog
        Junior UX/UI Designer at RCKT
        Alumnus of Defining UX Strategy (Live)
        View Linkedin

        Read more about #Strategy from the course instructor

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        “Creating a strategy is a highly individual and complex process, but Hannah and Jeff set us up with the knowledge and the tools to tackle such a big task…I don't know of any company that would not find the skills taught in this course valuable.”

        Jonas Safranek
        UX Designer at DocuWare
        Alumnus of Defining UX Strategy (Live)
        View Linkedin