Josh Payton
Josh Payton — VP of Design at Wise. Talks and sessions delivered at UXDX.
VP of Design
Josh Payton is Vice President of Design at Wise, where he leads the vision and execution of global design strategy for one of the world’s most trusted fintech platforms. With more than two decades of experience shaping large-scale digital products and services, Josh has held leadership roles at Airbnb, Apple, Skyscanner, and Huge, driving design excellence across global markets.
His work bridges brand, product, and user experience to deliver cohesive, high-performing systems that scale. Known for his creative leadership and deep product insight, Josh brings a unique perspective on how design can drive business impact, unify teams, and build trust at every touchpoint.
Past talks
2 talks · 1 eventWho Owns Product Quality in the Age of AI
AI is compressing the distance between idea and execution. Engineers design. Designers generate code. Product managers prototype. The traditional boundaries of product development are shifting and so is accountability. When the cost of delivery tends towards zero and iteration is instant, the bottleneck moves from code delivery to product judgment. How do we make sure our features are adding value and not just complexity and bloat? Who defines quality? Who is accountable for coherence across teams and products? How do leaders maintain standards as workflows become fluid? What does a high-performing product organization look like when the linear team model no longer applies? This executive session brings together product, design, and technology leaders to examine how AI is reshaping ownership, governance, and competitive advantage.
When 45% of Your Team Walks Out: Inside Wise’s Design Culture Reboot
Losing nearly half your team forces a reckoning. Josh Payton shares how Wise turned crisis into renewal, rebuilding its design organisation from burnout and late-night firefighting to a culture of autonomy, balance, and impact. Discover how mindset, maturity, and metrics turned attrition into advocacy. Key Outcomes: - Identifying the cultural and operational triggers that drive attrition. - Learning actionable tactics for rebuilding trust and redesigning team workflows. - Exploring frameworks that balance delivery pressure with long-term maturity. - Seeing how transparency and empowerment rebuild both people and performance.