Log in or create a free Rosenverse account to watch this video.
Log in Create free account100s of community videos are available to free members. Conference talks are generally available to Gold members.
Summary
As large organizations embed design systems, they'll often find they have multiple systems. A search for the "one source of truth" collides with another truth: change and coordination across business units is hard, alignment is costly and effortful, and sometimes there's good reasons for having many systems loosely coupled. In this conversation, we explored the nature of systems of systems, tiered for participation at many levels across an organization.
Key Insights
-
•
Design systems should be viewed as multi-tiered ecosystems rather than monolithic entities.
-
•
Adoption varies across products; some embed system designs without using code, weakening consistent implementation.
-
•
Separating design assets from code tools can be justified in complex environments with diverse frameworks.
-
•
Mergers and acquisitions challenge system adoption and require early collaboration with brand teams.
-
•
Multiple generations of a design system can coexist, creating upgrade and adoption challenges.
-
•
Subsystems or descendant systems enable product teams to extend core components for their unique needs.
-
•
Tribalism and business-unit silos impede unified system governance and consistency.
-
•
Successful design systems treat their teams as product teams with roadmaps and clear customer relationships.
-
•
Effective onboarding and vendor collaboration are critical for maintaining system quality and consistency.
-
•
Building consensus on incremental shared elements, like colors or iconography, helps unite fragmented design efforts.
Notable Quotes
"Design systems are not just products; in many respects, they're information products."
"One source of truth is the goal, but in reality, even at scale, adoption and consistency vary widely."
"Embedding design from the system into product code without using system code leads to irregular quality and durability issues."
"Should you separate design from code? In some multi-framework environments, yes, it makes sense."
"Acquisition integration shouldn’t start with migration analysis but with engaging brand teams first."
"Allowing teams to override small things like button color may be justified if it delivers business value."
"Banks are among the hardest organizations to unify around a design system due to slow, deliberate change."
"Building a design system is really about breaking big problems into smaller parts that have real value."
"Onboarding is critical; the first five minutes an engineer spends working with a system defines their experience."
"Creating one adopted component can be harder than creating a hundred that never get used."
Dig deeper—ask the Rosenbot:
More Videos
"Laura let out a sigh of relief and said, I don’t think I could ever recover the way that you did."
Randolph Duke IIWar Stories LIVE! Randy Duke II
March 30, 2020
"If you were blindsided recently, I’ve been there. I just really appreciated a kind voice because I didn’t hear a single word they said."
Corey Nelson Amy SanteeLayoffs
November 15, 2022
"Meaningfulness is linked directly to what your organization cares about in terms of goals and priorities."
Landon BarnesAre My Research Findings Actually Meaningful?
March 10, 2022
"There was a founder who said our job was to coach people to not need us anymore, which is the kind of mindset I wish was more common."
Amy BucherHarnessing behavioral science to uncover deeper truths
March 12, 2025
"With QFI, we go upstream: simulate, model, predict user behavior before shipping, not just react after."
David SternbergUncovering the hidden forces shaping user behavior
July 17, 2025
"We forget a lot of details over time; documentation saves us from repeating mistakes."
Deanna SmithLeading Change with Confidence: Strategies for Optimizing Your Process
September 23, 2024
"Provocative prototypes provoke conversation and surface unspoken values."
Jennifer StricklandAdopting a "Design By" Method
December 9, 2021
"Design Ops might not just support design anymore—our work is requested by non-designers and solving broader business problems."
Rachel Posman John CalhounA Closer Look at Team Ops and Product Ops (Two Sides of the DesignOps Coin)
November 19, 2020
"Provoking and reframing perspective helps teams get unstuck by thinking in new and surprising ways."
Gina MendoliaTherapists, Coaches, and Grandmas: Techniques for Service Design in Complex Systems
December 3, 2024
