Ridgeline Design System 2.0
Rebuilt a drifting component library into a documented, accessible system now used by nine product teams.
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A closer look at the work
The problem
The first version of the library was built by one team for one product. Other teams copied components and changed them, so the same dropdown existed in fourteen versions and accessibility fixes in one place never reached the others.
What needed to be done
Turn the library into a shared product with clear ownership, accessible components and a contribution process, without stopping teams from shipping.
How the right problem was found
I audited nine products and logged every component variant. I interviewed designers and developers to learn why they forked components, and the reasons were mostly missing options, not taste. I rebuilt the core thirty components with those options built in, wrote usage and "do not use when" notes, and ran a monthly open review so teams could propose changes instead of forking.
The outcome, measured
Teams adopted the system because it solved their problems, and accessibility defects dropped as shared fixes reached every product.
- 9
- Product teams using the system
- 14 → 2
- Dropdown variants
- -30%
- Front-end time on new screens
- 100%
- Components passing WCAG 2.1 AA