Rathbones were working with mulltiple vendors, who were adopting a limited Pattern Library to design and build screens.

Unfortunately, the vendors were not applying ux best practices and principles to their designs. The result was a vast amount of screens designed by separate teams with no consistency across the platform.

My ask was to take the existing Pattern Library as a guide and to build out and a Design System. Using the Design System Methodology and Figma, I was quickly able to build out the key Design System components.

My process for building out the Design System involved adopting and adapting the work already completed in the Pattern Library. Then, I followed the Atomic Design Methodology and focused on the Atoms. The Atoms are the building blocks of every Design System.

With the Typography, Iconography, Colour Palette and Spacing/Grids all built out based on the companys Brand Guidelines, I could then focus on the remaining key Atom components that were relevant to the clients portal.

The Atoms can then be combined to build Molecules like dropdowns, tables, cards or accordians. These Molecules would be designed with the overall design of the platform in mind. Design iterations would be done at this point to ensure these key components are not designed in isolation.

Building a design system is critical, but adoption is more crucial. A design system sets a new direction for an organization, and whether the organization accepts this direction largely depends on how people react to the changes.

Working with the CX team to ensure design direction of all the components was agreed up front. As each component was designed, the team had a review session to approval the designs.

I found that once we had agreed the list of essential components and prioritised the client specific components, I was able to pull together a process plan. Focusing solely on the Design System for awhile I was able to get the backbone of the Design system completed. This was only possible thanks to the client allowing me to dedicate weeks of my time just to build components.

I had other deliverables on the project, like the Information Architecture and Quality Assurance to managed. However, the Design System was a deliverable that will have the greatest impact on the company in the coming months and years.

The ask of building a Design System on top an existing Pattern Library did help, as it presented a suite of components that simply required refining and updating to align with the new brand guidelines.

After identifying and agreeing a list of required components, I was able to create a process plan of what could be delivered. This enabled the team to prioritise components that were at the core of the portals design.

The CX team and senior stakeholders understood the importance of the Design System to the company. Once up and running, they know that the Design System will enable the company to take ownership of the portals design.

The Design System will guarantee a level of consistency in the screen designs. It will increase productivity from the developers as they build screens from clearly defined components extracted from the Design System.