Content design isn’t going away. It’s moving upstream.
You can see how the work is changing inside your own organization. Upstream is where you find out what’s happening everywhere else.
One hour a month with experienced peers on what’s happening in the field: AI, the shifting shape of content design work, new tools, new job titles, and what the thing everyone is suddenly talking about actually means — and whether it matters.
Join Upstream$360 for 2027 (one-time, doesn’t auto-renew) or $40 a month · Monthly sessions start January 2027 · Annual enrollment closes January 31, 2027
The work is changing. Not the same way everywhere.
In some organizations, content designers are moving into model behavior, content systems, governance, evals, semantic and context layers, and new role definitions.
In others, the change is slower, or it hasn’t arrived yet.
No one organization shows you the whole picture. Some of us can get to engineering. Some of us can get to the right designers. Almost none of us can get to all of it.
Upstream is where members compare what they’re seeing and work out what may matter. Nobody’s handing out the answer. It’s taking shape between us.
Join Upstream.
Two ways to pay for the same Upstream. The 2027 plan is a single payment that covers the whole year and never auto-renews. Monthly sessions start in January.
Join content leaders actively figuring out what the work is becoming.
How it works
- ✔︎A live hour every month, starting January 2027
- ✔︎Content leaders and practitioners comparing what they’re seeing across organizations
- ✔︎Topics shaped by members, not a fixed curriculum
- ✔︎The same room across the year, so the conversation builds
- ✔︎Recordings and FigJam boards from every session
What you’ll get out of it
- ✔︎Compare notes with peers facing the same shifts and pressures
- ✔︎Get outside your own organization and see what others are experiencing
- ✔︎Build a trusted network you can turn to throughout the year
Works out to $30 a month, $120 less than paying monthly. Access from the day you buy through December 31, 2027. Doesn’t auto-renew.
Annual enrollment closes January 31, 2027
Pay once for 2027Upstream was invite-only. It isn’t any more.
Upstream started in the summer of 2026 as a small working group that people applied to join. Far more people applied than there were seats.
The field conversation needs more people in it, not fewer. So from January 2027, Upstream opens up: it’s now a membership level of Content Design Leaders, and there’s no application. If you want to be part of the conversation about what the work is becoming, you’re in.
Content leadership can be isolating — especially when the work itself is changing so quickly.
Upstream brings content leaders together to compare notes, share what they’re seeing, and work through the questions that don’t have obvious answers yet. It’s a place to learn from peers across organizations, build trusted relationships, and help shape what the work becomes — together.
This is:
A monthly room looking outward at the field — comparing notes with peers, hearing what other organizations are running into, and building a network you can turn to through the year.
This isn’t:
A webinar series, a course, or a set of best practices. It also isn’t where you work on your own direction week to week. That’s Leaders’ Studio, which includes everything in Upstream.
How it works
What’s on the table.
The agenda comes from what’s happening in the field and from what members bring. Expect conversations like these:
- ✔︎AI — what it’s actually changing in content design work, and what it isn’t
- ✔︎The shape of the work — roles, teams, and where content sits now
- ✔︎New tools — which ones are worth your time
- ✔︎New job titles — what they’re actually asking for
- ✔︎Whatever everyone is suddenly talking about — what it means, and whether it matters
Who is Upstream for?
Titles don’t gate this. You might lead an org, or you might be a senior content designer in the middle of these changes.
Upstream is for you if:
- ✔︎You’re figuring out what content work is becoming, inside your own organization
- ✔︎You want to compare notes with peers outside your own walls
- ✔︎You can give it an hour a month, live or on the recording
- ✔︎You want a trusted network you can turn to through the year
Upstream is NOT for you if:
- ✘︎You’re looking for a course or a set of best practices
- ✘︎You want weekly support on your own direction and visibility. That’s Leaders’ Studio.
- ✘︎You work in marketing, not UX content design
Compare notes with peers from…
Want support on your own direction too?
Shape your direction, grow your influence, and keep moving forward without burning out.
Leaders’ Studio includes everything in Upstream and adds weekly peer support, a private feed, and structured planning around your own direction, influence, and sustainable progress.
Everything in Upstream, plus
- ✔︎Weekly meetings: an off-the-record check-in, then a facilitated session
- ✔︎A private feed for members only
- ✔︎Structured planning around your own direction, with the electronic planner
- ✔︎More sustained support from a steady group of peers
$1,200 for 2027, or $124 a month
The 2027 plan works out to $100 a month.
Explore Leaders’ StudioNot ready for Upstream? Join the community free.
Join an open conversation about where content work is going — with people at every career stage.
- ✔︎Follow and join the ongoing conversation about what’s changing in the field
- ✔︎Connect with people across organizations and career stages
- ✔︎Take part in occasional free community opportunities when they happen
Joining free also subscribes you to The Strategic Habit, our monthly newsletter. You can unsubscribe any time.
Questions? Answers.
Do I need to apply?
No. The application is retired. Pick the 2027 plan or the monthly plan and you’re in.
What happens if I join an annual plan before January?
Your 2027 membership begins in January. In the meantime, you’re invited to the free Content Design Leaders gatherings in October, November, and December, so you can start meeting the community and get into the once-a-month rhythm before Upstream officially begins.
Is every session recorded?
Yes. Starting with the first session in January, every Upstream session is recorded and posted in the app with its FigJam board.
How much time does it take?
One hour a month. Everything else is optional.
Does the 2027 plan auto-renew?
No. Upstream 2027 is a one-time payment. Your access runs through December 31, 2027, and nothing charges your card again. Annual enrollment closes January 31, 2027. After that, Upstream Monthly is the way in.
What’s the difference between Upstream and Leaders’ Studio?
Upstream looks outward at what’s happening in the field. The Leaders’ Studio is where you work on your own thing, with other people.
Leaders’ Studio includes everything in Upstream, plus the weekly sessions. More about Leaders’ Studio.
If I have other questions, how can I ask?
Just reach out to us at support@contentdesignleaders.com.
Who’s your host?
Hi, I’m Kate Agena.
I’ve led content design teams at IBM, McAfee, and SAP, and since 2024 I’ve been bringing content leaders together through Content Design Leaders. My job is to make a room worth being in: the right people, the right questions, and enough structure that the conversation goes somewhere.
I lead content design at SAP, where I spend my days on exactly these questions. Upstream is where we look outward together, at what’s happening to the work itself.
I don’t have the whole picture. Nobody does. That’s the point of Upstream.