In 2025, design is a function of growth and risk reduction. Companies that manage design systematically grow faster and avoid costly operational and legal errors. McKinsey’s research showed that design leaders increased revenues by 32 p.p. and total shareholder return by 56 p.p. above the industry benchmark during the study period.[1]
Metrics instead of opinions: HEART + GSM
Start with HEART (Happiness, Engagement, Adoption, Retention, Task success) and the Goals-Signals-Metrics process. It gives teams a shared language that connects UX with business metrics.[6]
How to apply immediately
- Translate business goals into UX metrics, e.g., Task success for checkout → conversion and revenue per user.
- Report per-user values instead of global sums to separate user-base growth from true experience improvement.[6]
Accessibility as growth and compliance
Scale: about 1.3 billion people experience significant disability—1 in 6 globally.[2] Inaccessible products limit market reach and drive support costs up.
Market and law: The European Accessibility Act applies from 28 June 2025 and covers websites, mobile apps, consumer devices, and terminals.[4]
State of the web: In 2025, 94.8% of homepages had detectable WCAG 2.2 A/AA failures. This points to a high-ROI investment map.[3]
What to implement
- Adopt WCAG 2.2 AA as a minimum Definition of Done.
- Run accessibility audits and tests with users with disabilities in every release.
- Create an EAA compliance plan for products and service channels.[4]
Design systems and tokens as OPEX levers
A design system reduces UX/UI debt and shortens delivery time. Design tokens standardize color, typography, and spacing, and are now formalized by the Design Tokens Community Group (W3C). This secures consistency across channels and tech stacks.[9]
What to implement
- A roadmap of components critical to your top user flows.
- A token repository as the single source of truth with a pipeline into the front end.[9]
Research and experiments reduce risk
Investments in usability research and A/B testing translate into commercial results when metrics are tied to goals. NN/g materials aggregate case studies showing how to link UX metrics to business outcomes.[8a]
What to implement
- A research plan based on hypotheses with success metrics at the feature and product levels.
- A quarterly UX benchmark built on the HEART metric set.[6]
Privacy by design and governance at the project stage
GDPR Article 25 requires data protection by design and by default. EDPB guidance emphasizes effective and measurable implementation, not declarations.[5]
What to implement
- Data maps and minimization as project acceptance criteria.
- Clear effectiveness indicators for data protection (e.g., fewer complaints, shorter rights-handling time).[5]
AI in products: responsibility and competitive edge
The EU AI Act rolls out over time. From 2 February 2025 bans on unacceptable practices apply; 2 August 2025 brings requirements for GPAI; and from 2 August 2026 broader duties apply to high-risk systems. This affects UI, user disclosures, and documentation.[8]
What to implement
- Transparency patterns that show when AI is active and what risks are involved.
- Error-reporting paths and explainability elements as part of UX.[8]
Hard ROI evidence: IBM and TEI
In Forrester’s Total Economic Impact for IBM Enterprise Design Thinking, the cumulative ROI reached 301% over three years (composite model, commissioned study). Treat it as a benchmark for your own ROI modeling.[7]
How to calculate design ROI in your company
General formula
ROI = [(incremental revenue + cost savings − initiative cost) / initiative cost]
Impact sources that most often “pencil out”
- Conversion and basket size after improving key flows.
- Retention and feature adoption.
- Delivery speed via a design system and tokens.[9]
- Support cost reduction through clarity and accessibility (fewer tickets).[3]
- Legal risk reduction thanks to privacy by design and EAA compliance.[5][4]
90-day implementation plan
Days 1–30
- Audit the three most important end-to-end flows.
- Define G-S-M and the HEART metric set for the product.[6]
- Run an accessibility scan and prepare the EAA compliance plan.[4]
Days 31–60
- Privacy-by-design workshops for product teams.[5]
- Start the component backlog and the design tokens repository.[9]
- Define 2–3 A/B test hypotheses tied to commercial goals.[6]
Days 61–90
- Ship the first components and refactor critical screens.
- Baseline report: conversion, retention, task completion time, ticket volume, accessibility and privacy indicators.
- Roadmap for the next two quarters with KPIs and owners.
Frequent CFO questions
Is design a cost or an investment?
It is an investment measurable through revenue, cost, and risk. Public data show that companies with strong design practice grow faster and post higher TSR.[1]
How to avoid “innovation theatre”?
Link every experiment to a HEART metric and a business KPI. Enforce a Definition of Done that includes WCAG 2.2 AA and privacy by design.[6][3][5]
References
- McKinsey, The Business Value of Design—top quartile: +32 p.p. revenue and +56 p.p. TSR. PDF. ↩︎↩︎
- WHO, Disability and Health—Key facts: 1.3 billion people, 16% of the population. Link. ↩︎
- WebAIM, The WebAIM Million 2025: 94.8% of homepages with detectable WCAG 2.2 A/AA issues. Link. ↩︎↩︎↩︎
- AccessibleEU, The EAA comes into effect on 28 June 2025. Link. ↩︎↩︎↩︎↩︎
- EDPB, Guidelines 4/2019 on Article 25—Data Protection by Design and by Default. PDF. ↩︎↩︎↩︎↩︎↩︎
- Rodden, Hutchinson, Fu (Google), HEART + Goals-Signals-Metrics, CHI 2010. Overview | PDF. ↩︎↩︎↩︎↩︎↩︎↩︎
- Forrester TEI for IBM Enterprise Design Thinking: 301% ROI (3 years, composite model). PDF. ↩︎
- EU AI Act—milestones: 2 Feb 2025 (bans), 2 Aug 2025 (GPAI), 2 Aug 2026 (high risk). Latham & Watkins | Goodwin. ↩︎↩︎
- NN/g on metrics and ROI—materials and case studies. Podcast. ↩︎
- Design Tokens Community Group (W3C)—specification 2025.10. Announcement | Specification. ↩︎↩︎↩︎↩︎