Design Manage

Product & Platform
Investment web app design system

Timeline
2020

Impact

Increased design team efficiency by 5× and delivered the next-generation design system MVP in 4 months

In late 2019, the UX team at SS&C Eze began building a new design system to support next-generation investment products. Despite strong intent, progress stalled for several months due to unclear ownership, fragmented workflows, and misaligned stakeholder expectations. This created uncertainty around scope, timelines, and long-term direction.

Recognizing these challenges, I assessed the situation, identified root causes, and proposed a structured, phased approach. Based on this plan, I got the opportunity to lead the design system initiative, aligning design, engineering, and leadership around a shared vision and clear execution model.

My Role

As the design lead, I was responsible for strategy, project management, and cross-functional alignment:

Defined the design system vision, roadmap, and delivery strategy
Established governance, ownership, and decision-making frameworks
Implemented Agile design workflows, including sprint planning, reviews, and retrospectives
Translated ambiguous requirements into clear design stories and prioritized backlogs
Aligned and staffed work across design, engineering, technical writers, and leadership, while communicating progress and risks transparently

Challenges

High complexity & scale

The design system included style guides, pattern libraries, design assets, code components, and usage documentation.

Cross-functional dependencies

Designers, UI engineers, and technical writers worked in parallel with tightly coupled dependencies, where misalignment in one area could block progress.

Misaligned expectations

Stakeholders had differing views on scope, level of polish, and timelines, making prioritization and decision-making difficult.

Solutions

1. Align Vision and Set Goals

I clarified the vision and goals and aligned stakeholders on a phased approach to manage size and complexity.

2. Roadmap and Milestones

I created a clear roadmap with defined milestones, timelines, and scope for each phase to guide execution and set expectations.

3. Focus on MVP

The first phase prioritized an MVP, focusing on the most critical, high-impact foundations with clear hierarchy and dependencies.

4. Define the Workflow

I introduced an Agile sprint-based workflow with regular sprint planning, design reviews, and scrum check-ins.

5. Task Management

I ensured every task had clear goals, acceptance criteria, and a single owner, breaking large efforts into manageable units with supporting contributors.

6. Ownership and Responsibility

Each task was assigned a designated owner responsible for driving it to completion, with 1–2 contributors providing support as needed.

Outcomes

5–10 tasks per sprint

Previously, only 4 tasks were completed over several months. With the new workflow, the team consistently delivered 5–10 meaningful tasks every two weeks.