Design Systems Aren’t Hard

Design systems aren’t hard.
But they are complex.
And they’re also hard.

Design systems are often thought of in terms of the visible parts - a Sketch file, a repository of React code, a documentation website. But these are only the artifacts of the system. A design system is actually the thinking and the decision making and the principles of your organization. Producing the artifacts is the easy part - maintaining the institutional value of the design system is the hard part.

In this talk we’ll dive into the lessons I’ve learned during my time working on a large design system for a fast growing company. Hopefully we can help you avoid some of the common pitfalls and enjoy the quiet satisfaction of working on a design system so successful no one ever thinks twice about it.

Presented at:
OpenJS 2020
Full Slidedeck with Speaker Notes:
https://github.com/milsyobtaf/prez/blob/primary/2020/OpenJS/design-systems-arent-hard-openjs_notes.pdf

Transcript

1. DUSTIN YOUNSE
   But they are complex.
   And also hard.
   DESIGN SYSTEMS AREN’T HARD
   OPENJS 2020
   

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2. WHO’S THIS GUY?
   @milsyobtaf from the internet
   I’ve worked on large websites
   since 2008
   I’ve worked with “design systems”
   since we called them “swatches”
   and “style tiles”
   Currently in Design Engineering at
   Indeed, a job that comes with the
   greatest laptop sticker
   

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3. WHAT IS A DESIGN SYSTEM?
   

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5. Organizations which design systems …
   are constrained to produce designs
   which are copies of the
   communication structures of
   these organizations."
   CONWAY’S LAW
   

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6. Your website is a manifestation
   of your organization’s problems
   “UNCLE” DAVE RUPERT’S LAW
   

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8. WHAT ISN’T A DESIGN SYSTEM?
   

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9. A FIGMA LIBRARY
   

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10. WHAT ISN’T A DESIGN SYSTEM?
    

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11. A REACT COMPONENT LIBRARY
    

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12. WHAT ISN’T A DESIGN SYSTEM?
    

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13. AN EXTERNAL WEBSITE
    PROMOTING YOUR DESIGN SYSTEM
    

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14. THESE ARE ARTIFACTS - NOT THE SYSTEM
    

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15. SO… WHAT IS A DESIGN SYSTEM?
    

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16. AN AGREEMENT ON HOW
    DIGITAL PRODUCTS ARE MADE
    

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17. DESIGN SYSTEM AGREEMENTS
    User Interface Design: how a digital experience looks
    Interaction Design: how a digital experience feels
    Content Strategy: how a digital experience sounds
    Documentation: how a digital experience is crafted
    

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18. ⌛
    DESIGN SYSTEMS TAKE TIME
    

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20. ⌛
    DESIGN SYSTEMS TAKE TIME AND THEY TAKE MONEY
    

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21. WHY BOTHER WITH A DESIGN SYSTEM?
    

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22. DESIGN SYSTEMS ARE ALL ABOUT SCALE
    Interface Design at scale
    Interaction Building at scale
    Content Creation at scale
    

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23. DESIGN SYSTEMS ARE ALL ABOUT SCALE
    When everyone on your team knows how a thing should be built, they
    can just build it.
    

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24. DESIGN SYSTEMS ARE ALL ABOUT SCALE
    When everyone on your team knows how a thing should be built, they
    can just build it.
    #1 Support Request: How do I do X?
    

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25. DESIGN SYSTEMS ARE ALL ABOUT SCALE
    When everyone on your team knows how a thing should be built, they
    can just build it.
    #1 Support Request: How do I do X?
    #2 Support Request: Why do I do X?
    

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26. A DESIGN SYSTEM IS A SERVICE
    NOT A PRODUCT
    

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27. YOU NEED TO ANSWER QUESTIONS,
    NOT WRITE CODE
    

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29. IF YOU ONLY HAVE THE TIME
    OR THE MONEY FOR ONE ARTIFACT,
    WRITE DOCUMENTATION
    

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30. DESIGN SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION
    If a Design System is made up of agreements, you need to write those
    agreements down.
    

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31. DESIGN SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION
    If a Design System is made up of agreements, you need to write those
    agreements down.
    If you have the budget, hire a Service Designer.
    

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32. DESIGN SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION
    If a Design System is made up of agreements, you need to write those
    agreements down.
    If you have the budget, hire a Service Designer.
    Should change as often as necessary.
    

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33. DESIGN SYSTEM HELPS EVERYONE
    

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34. ACCESSIBILITY AT SCALE
    Buttons that work as buttons
    

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35. ACCESSIBILITY AT SCALE
    Buttons that work as buttons
    Links that work as links
    

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36. ACCESSIBILITY AT SCALE
    Buttons that work as buttons
    Links that work as links
    Animations that respect prefers-reduced-motion
    

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37. ACCESSIBILITY AT SCALE
    Buttons that work as buttons
    Links that work as links
    Animations that respect prefers-reduced-motion
    INCLUSION AT SCALE
    

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38. ACCESSIBILITY AT SCALE
    Buttons that work as buttons
    Links that work as links
    Animations that respect prefers-reduced-motion
    INCLUSION AT SCALE
    Form fields that accept accented characters
    

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39. ACCESSIBILITY AT SCALE
    Buttons that work as buttons
    Links that work as links
    Animations that respect prefers-reduced-motion
    INCLUSION AT SCALE
    Form fields that accept accented characters
    Right-to-left text presentation that just works
    

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40. IF YOU DO NOTHING ELSE
    

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41. WRITE DOCUMENTATION
    

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42. HIRE A SERVICE DESIGNER
    WRITE DOCUMENTATION
    

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43. DESIGN SYSTEMS ARE HARD
    

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44. DESIGN SYSTEMS ARE HARD
    AND THAT’S THE WORK
    

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45. - Why Every Design System Needs a
    Service Designer
    - Conway’s Law / Uncle Dave's Law
    - Anatomy of a Design System
    - Design System Checklist
    - How the Right Design System
    Streamlines a Large Organization’s
    Digital Development
    RESOURCES
    

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