Training is one of those things that everyone agrees is important but still routinely gets pushed down the priority list. There’s always a sprint deadline, a product launch, or some “critical” initiative that gets in the way. And when companies do finally invest in training, it’s often done half-heartedly—through passive video courses, one-off lunch-and-learns, or, worse, not at all.
That said, in an industry evolving as fast as design, standing still is the same as falling behind. The teams that invest in learning don’t just become better designers—they work faster, collaborate more effectively, and create better products.
So let’s talk about the most common mistakes design teams make when it comes to training—and, more importantly, how to do it right.
1. Not Investing in Training (Because You Think You Can't Afford It)
This one’s easy to spot: the company sees training as a “nice-to-have” rather than a necessity. Maybe leadership assumes designers will just “learn on the job.” Maybe they’re worried about the cost. Either way, the result is usually the same—stagnation.
The irony here is that not investing in training is almost always more expensive in the long run. A lack of skill development leads to slower workflows, more design debt, and a reliance on outdated practices. Also, according to LinkedIn’s Workplace Learning Report, 94% of employees say they’d stay at a company longer if it invested in their growth. Translation? If you’re not training your team, you’re probably losing them.
2. Trying to DIY Training With Lunch-and-Learns
Many organizations take a "let’s just do this in-house" approach to training. It sounds great on paper—your senior designers share their expertise over pizza, knowledge gets passed down without using budget, and everyone wins. Right?
Wrong.
The reality is that lunch-and-learns and ad-hoc internal training sessions usually end up being surface-level at best, a scheduling nightmare at worst. Why? Because great training requires real time and expertise. When you put this on the shoulders of your existing team, you’re asking them to juggle their actual job with becoming an educator. And even if they pull it off, knowledge transfer alone isn’t enough—people need structured, hands-on practice to truly level up.
Investing in external training means your team gets focused, high-quality learning without burning out your existing team in the process.
3. Only Offering Individual Training (Instead of Learning Together)
Individualized, self-paced learning is awesome (we should know, it’s a major part of our business). A designer wants to dive into an advanced Figma course? Fantastic. Someone else wants to brush up on usability and accessibility in UX? Love it. But if training only happens at the individual level, teams are missing out on a major opportunity.
When teams train together, something powerful happens: shared vocabulary, shared best practices, and—most importantly—shared ways of applying what they’ve learned. Instead of just a few individuals improving, the entire team levels up together.
Think of it like this: sending one designer to a data-driven design course is helpful. But sending the whole team? That’s how you get real improvements—a new way of working, more alignment, and fewer people acting in silos.
Read more: How The Home Depot Upskilled Accessibility on Their UX Team
4. Investing in Passive Video Courses That No One Actually Finishes
Let’s be honest: most people don’t finish online courses.
Completion rates for many online courses are as low as 5%. Why? Because watching a video isn’t the same as learning.
Passive courses are easy to ignore, especially when deadlines pile up. Without accountability, discussion, or hands-on practice, people either don’t finish or, if they do, they retain very little. Learning requires doing. Design teams need interactive, applied training—not just a Netflix queue of “someday I’ll watch this” courses.
5. Treating Training as Separate From Business Goals
Here’s where a lot of companies go wrong: they set up training without any connection to what the business actually needs. The result? Generic learning that doesn’t move the needle.
Effective training is laser-focused on solving real problems. Are your designers struggling to collaborate with engineers? Invest in training on design handoff best practices. Is your team buried under endless stakeholder revisions? Teach them how to better communicate design decisions.
Make training purposeful—align it with the team’s biggest challenges, and you’ll see an immediate impact.
6. Forgetting That Learning Doesn’t Stick Without Reinforcement
Ever attended a conference, left feeling inspired, and then... did absolutely nothing with what you learned? That’s what happens when training doesn’t have built-in follow-up.
Research shows that without reinforcement, people forget 70% of new knowledge within 24 hours. That’s why one-time workshops—no matter how good—often fail to create lasting change.
The solution? Make learning stick by pairing training with coaching, real-world application, and/ or ongoing discussion. If your team learns a new workflow, bake it into their process immediately. If they take a course on stakeholder management, schedule follow-ups where they practice those skills in real meetings. Learning isn’t a one-and-done event—it’s an ongoing process.
7. Thinking of Training as a One-Time Event Instead of a Habit
Some teams treat training like spring cleaning—something you do once a year, check off the list, and then forget about. That’s a mistake.
The best teams create a culture of continuous learning. They don’t just do a single training session; they integrate skill-building into their ongoing work and schedule. They encourage experimentation, provide access to educational programs and resources, and make learning a team-wide priority.
Final Thoughts
Training isn’t just about “upskilling”—it’s about making your design team more effective, more efficient, and more competitive. Avoiding these seven common mistakes can mean the difference between a team that’s constantly playing catch-up and one that’s driving real impact.
At Designlab, we help design teams level up with training that’s built for real-world application. We offer a range of solutions to fit your needs, including:
- Multi-seat enrollments in our cohorted courses for experienced designers. These combine flexible, asynchronous learning with live sessions and expert mentorship—so your team gets both flexibility and accountability.
- Live trainings and workshops that bring hands-on learning directly to your team. We can tailor any of our existing courses into live sessions or build custom training on a wide range of topics.
- Private coaching sessions to help your team put new skills into action, align on learnings, and develop a clear path forward.
Let’s make your training strategy actually work. Set up a time to talk with our team and explore the best options for your designers.
