Why UX and UI should remain separate

A lot of us would have heard of the term User Experience. We’ve also heard the term User Interface. Did you know that User Experience is not the same as User Interface? So why is it that I consistently see a UX/UI Designer roles advertised? As if they are part of the same job. They aren’t. Here is why.

First and foremost, a User Experience Designer is primarily focused on the users of your product/service. These users being both the consumers, as well as the people within your business. From a high level, their ultimate goal is to establish what your product/service is required to do, in order to provide the best value to your target audience. With this in mind, some of the tasks they work on (not a complete list) are:-

1. Strategising — Performing research, interviewing potential users, establishing business goals, establishing customer needs, building a road map etc.
2. Scoping — Establishing a list of requirements that meet the goals of your target audience and your business. The requirements have a high level of feasibility.
3. Structure — Establishing simple but powerful information architecture, establishing the interaction and/or flow between particular steps in your product/service etc.
4. Skeleton — High level interface design (mocks etc). Navigation design etc.