Convince your boss
Draft kit for review
Private review draft - not linked from the site. The public page is still the shorter version at /convince-your-boss.
UX Brighton 2026 is a one-day conference on Friday 6 November at the Brighton Dome. The theme is Emerging Methods.
Teams are drowning in new approaches: AI tooling, borrowed research techniques, fresh ways of designing and testing. This day helps you decide which are worth trying on a live project, and which to skip. One Friday away. Practical methods you can use the next week.
Check current ticket prices / Pay by invoice
Match your team’s problem to the talks
Pick the problems you already own. Name two or three talks in your ask.
Method noise / AI tooling
- Max Borodin - How to Become Annoyingly Effective with AI
Design an AI-powered way of working you can trust, not brittle hacks. - Florian Herrengt - What happens when AI can do your job?
Decide what changes when AI can do parts of the craft - and what still needs a human. - Phil Morton - Escape From Figma Island
Why and how to start designing in code again when the tool stack is shifting.
Research that does not stick
- Vivek Gopinath (IBM) - UX research’s quiet inheritance problem
Move from “users were confused” to diagnosis you can act on. - Chiara Scarabotti (Springer Nature) - Experience Debt
Build a shared memory of user problems so insights survive the next priority shuffle. - Leon Hubert - Research is supposed to change you
Research that changes how the organisation thinks, not only a slide deck.
Evidence quality / integrity
- Kathy Neuss (Mercator Digital) - Bridging the integrity gap
A five-part check stakeholders can trust when a new method lands on the desk.
Behaviour over UI polish
- Pat Jordan - Beyond the Interface
Reframe the work toward the behaviour change the product actually needs.
Full speaker list and summaries: UX Brighton 2026
What it costs
Fill this in before you send the ask. Link live prices - do not guess from memory.
| Item | Your figure |
|---|---|
| Ticket | See current prices on Tito (prices rise toward the door; on-the-door is the highest tier) |
| Group saving | 20% for 5+, 25% for 10+, 30% for 21+ tickets |
| Travel | e.g. London day return, or local if you are already in Brighton |
| Overnight (optional) | Only if travel the same day is not realistic |
| Time away | One Friday (plus optional Thursday evening meetup at The Fountainhead) |
| Payment | Card on Tito, or invoice to [email protected] |
Compared with multi-day overseas conferences, this is one UK day, one venue, and a clear group discount if more than one person goes.
What you will bring back
Promise something dated. Copy one or more of these into your email:
- 30-minute team debrief within five working days - what to trial, what to ignore, and why.
- One method trial on a live project within four weeks, with a short note on whether it helped.
- A keep / skip shortlist of emerging methods relevant to the team’s current work (one page).
Ready-to-send ask
Replace the bits in [square brackets].
Subject: Request: UX Brighton 2026 (Friday 6 November) Hi [Name], I'd like to attend UX Brighton 2026 on Friday 6 November at the Brighton Dome. Why it matters for us: we're dealing with [method noise / research that doesn't stick / AI tooling decisions / evidence quality]. The theme is Emerging Methods - which new approaches are worth trying, and which to skip. I'd focus on: - [Talk 1] - [one-line benefit for our work] - [Talk 2] - [one-line benefit] - [Talk 3] - [one-line benefit] Cost: ticket from https://ti.to/ux-brighton/ux-brighton-2026, plus [travel]. One day away. [Invoice available if needed.] What I'll bring back by [date]: - a 30-minute debrief for the team - one method trial on [project] - a short keep/skip list for our current stack Happy to share the page: https://uxbri.org/convince-your-boss Thanks, [Your name]
Slack or Teams (under 150 words)
Can I get approval for UX Brighton on Fri 6 Nov (Brighton Dome, one day)? Theme is Emerging Methods - deciding which new UX approaches are worth trying. I'd cover [talk 1], [talk 2], and bring back a 30-min debrief + one method trial on [project] by [date]. Tickets: https://ti.to/ux-brighton/ux-brighton-2026 - details: https://uxbri.org/convince-your-boss
Optional: AI draft prompt
Paste this into a chat tool. It should only use facts you give it.
Draft a short manager email asking approval for UX Brighton 2026.
Only use facts from https://uxbri.org/convince-your-boss and https://uxbri.org/2026/
Do not invent ticket prices, talk titles, speakers, or outcomes.
Event: Friday 6 November 2026, Brighton Dome, theme Emerging Methods.
My role: [role]. Team problem: [problem]. Talks I'll name: [list].
Bring-back promise: [debrief / trial / shortlist] by [date].
Tone: calm, specific, no hype. Under 200 words.
If they push back
“We don’t have budget.”
One UK day, not a multi-day overseas trip. Group discounts start at 5 tickets. Invoice payment is available. Price rises toward the door, so earlier is cheaper.
“We can’t spare you.”
It is a single Friday. Coverage is one day, not a week. You can promise the debrief so the team still gets the learning.
“Can’t you just watch recordings later?”
Videos help afterward; the day is for deciding what to try next with peers and speakers in the room. The value is the keep/skip judgement while the work is still fresh - plus the evening before and drinks after for contacts you will not get from a recording alone.
“Why you, and not someone else / everyone?”
Tie the talks to your current projects. If the team should go together, use the group rates and split the bring-back (one person owns the debrief, another the trial).
Proof from people who went
“A brilliant day at UX Brighton with a strong MOJ contingency. Justice Digital offers a learning and development fund for every staff member. It makes a huge difference!”
Helen Nickols, on Justice Digital attending with L&D support
“Some of the smartest, most insightful and entertaining people I’ve met. And that was just the audience. The speakers were great, too.”
Mike Kuniavsky, Xerox PARC
Speakers in 2026 include practitioners from IBM, Springer Nature, Mercator Digital, and others. Capgemini is a premium sponsor. More attendee voices: testimonials.
Sending more than one person
Group discounts: 20% for 5 or more, 25% for 10 or more, 30% for 21 or more. A small multidisciplinary group can treat the day as shared training: same talks, same debrief, clearer decisions on what the team adopts.
Book tickets for UX Brighton 2026 / Attendee info / Pay by invoice