How do you actually start building a UX strategy from scratch?

Question

I'm the first designer at a startup that's grown reactively. We have a product, but our decisions are based on hunches or the loudest voice in the room. I need to build a foundational UX strategy to create alignment and give our work direction. For those who've done this, how do you begin? Do you start with user research, business goals, or a vision workshop? I'm looking for the first practical steps to go from zero to a draft framework the team can actually use.

Answer 1

This is a crucial but challenging position to be in. You start by creating a shared understanding; a UX strategy is essentially a bridge between user needs and business objectives. The first practical step isn't a workshop or research in isolation—it's structured conversations. You need to facilitate discussions with leadership to explicitly document business goals (e.g., "increase user activation by X%") and with support/sales to document the biggest known user pain points. This initial alignment is your bedrock. Then, you synthesize these into a core strategy statement: "We will achieve [business goal] by addressing [user need] through [product approach]." This becomes your north star. From there, your user research and vision work are guided by validating and refining this connection. For a comprehensive, step-by-step guide on developing each component—from vision to measurable outcomes—this resource on UX strategy is one of the clearest blueprints I've seen. It will give you the concrete structure you're looking for.