Problem
Without a unified design system, the client portal risked evolving into a fragmented, inconsistent experience. This lack of structure led to usability challenges, slowed development, and required designers and engineers to recreate components manually. I recognized the opportunity to introduce a scalable design system that streamlined workflows, ensured product consistency, and future-proofed the platform for ongoing enhancements.
Goals & Objectives
Ensure Consistency Across the Portal
Goal: Establish a unified visual and functional language for the client portal to create a seamless user experience.
Objective: Document UI components and specifications, ensuring consistent implementation across all touchpoints and reducing inconsistencies in design decisions.
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How it was maintained:
Regularly updated the design system to stay in sync with evolving UI patterns, enhance accessibility, and adhere to best practices. Established a governance process that allowed design and engineering teams to work together through documentation reviews and feedback loops.
Streamline Design-to-Development Handoff
Goal: Reduce rework and accelerate feature delivery by improving collaboration between design and development teams.
Objective: Created comprehensive, developer-friendly documentation, including component specifications, interaction guidelines, and code references for seamless implementation.
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How it was maintained:
Conducted reviews across functions to ensure design intent aligns with engineering constraints, facilitating scalability and simplifying development.
Support Future Scalability
Goal: Build a flexible framework that evolves with the portal and supports future enhancements.
Objective: Developed a living design system that adapts to new components and features, ensuring long-term consistency, maintainability, and scalability.
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How it was maintained:
Designed components for modularity and reusability, which reduces design and development time for future iterations.
Process
Discovery & Audit
• Reviewed the evolving designs of the client portal to identify all UI elements and spot inconsistencies.
• Collected feedback from stakeholders and developers regarding the challenges of implementing varied design elements.
Definition & Documentation
• Defined core design principles and documented detailed specifications for typography, color palettes, spacing, and component behavior.
• Compiled this information into a comprehensive documentation repository that serves as the definitive reference for the portal’s UI.
System Development
• Built a robust UI library in Adobe XD, incorporating reusable components with in-depth documentation on dimensions, states, and usage. This system accelerated development while maintaining design consistency.
Integration with the Client Portal
• Ensured seamless integration by developing the design system in parallel with the client portal, allowing each new feature to adhere to standardized guidelines.
• Worked closely with developers to validate that the documentation accurately reflected the intended design behavior.
Testing & Refinement
Conducted internal reviews and usability testing to validate the accuracy and effectiveness of the design system across various touchpoints. Through collaboration with developers and stakeholders, refinements were made to improve UI consistency, user experience, and documentation clarity.
Key Iterations Based on Feedback:
✅ Calendar Adjustments
Updated the calendar to a scrollable format instead of fixed date cells to improve usability.
✅ Facility/Location UI Fix
Identified and removed unintentional "X" icons in facility/location pills to maintain consistency across tables.
✅ Documentation Clarity
Refined client portal email templates to improve clarity, correct grammar, and ensure consistent messaging.
✅ Developer Collaboration
Worked closely with engineers to ensure the design system was accurately implemented, addressing inconsistencies between the client portal and staffing portal.
Solution
Comprehensive UI Library & Documentation
Built a scalable UI library with reusable components, each paired with in-depth documentation outlining specifications, states, and usage patterns. This streamlined development ensures consistency across the portal.
Detailed Style & Specification Guide
Defined typography, color schemes, spacing, and layout rules in a central style guide, eliminating inconsistencies and reducing decision fatigue for designers and developers.
Interactive Documentation
Implemented interactive documentation with real-time component previews, ensuring developers could quickly reference intended behaviors and reduce misinterpretation.
Impact
✅ Enhanced Product Consistency
The comprehensive documentation has established a cohesive look and feel across the client portal, minimizing design inconsistencies and strengthening brand identity.
✅ Improved Efficiency
With detailed specifications readily available, developers and designers spend less time clarifying UI details. This reduces rework, accelerates feature delivery, and enhances collaboration across teams.
✅ Foundation for Future Growth
The living documentation system ensures the seamless integration of new components, enabling rapid iteration and future-proofing the platform as it evolves.
Reflection
Developing this design system alongside the client portal underscored the essential role of documentation in maintaining consistency across a rapidly evolving product. As the sole designer, I witnessed how investing in detailed, actionable documentation streamlined implementation and established a robust foundation for long-term scalability. I intend to integrate design tokens and automated updates to keep the system agile and adaptable, ensuring seamless expansion as the product evolves.
Thank you for reviewing this case study! I’m passionate about using design and documentation to build cohesive, scalable solutions that elevate user experiences.
Explore more of my work:
➡️ From Friction to Flow: Redesigning the Caregiver App➡️ Client Portal: Simplifying Client Workflows