On this episode of the Design Systems Podcast, we're thrilled to have Beau Ulrey, the Design System Manager at U.S. Bank, join host Chris Strahl live at the Kiln space in Portland. Today’s episode deep dives into the intricate world where design meets development. Beau will share his fascinating journey from a design and photography background to becoming a pioneer in interaction design at IBM, and his current influential role at U.S. Bank. Beau and Chris discuss the vital role design systems play in building customer trust through consistency, and how U.S. Bank’s design system is tailored to meet diverse customer needs across various platforms. We’ll also unpack the complexities of design codes and the transformative impact of well-integrated design systems in the banking industry.

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Guest
Beau Ulrey leads and manages the Shield Design System team at U.S. Bank. He's passionate about using empathy and good design to help people reach their goals. Whether working as a designer, coach or manager, his goal is to uncover what people need to create better experiences and tools. He writes about design systems and product design practices on Medium (@beauulrey) and talks them as well from time to time.When away from the screen, Beau can be found hiking in the PNW, splashing in the Pacific with his kiddos and toting his camera along the way.

Host
Chris Strahl is co-founder and CEO of Knapsack, host of @TheDSPod, DnD DM, and occasional river guide. You can find Chris on Twitter as @chrisstrahl and on LinkedIn.

Sponsor
Sponsored by Knapsack, the design system platform that brings teams together. Learn more at knapsack.cloud.

Join host Chris Strahl as he welcomes our guest Scott Strubberg to the Design Systems Podcast. Scott is a product manager and a key figure behind IBM's Carbon Design System. Today’s conversation unravels the complexities and innovations of integrating brand consistency across digital and physical realms. Chris and Scott explore how feedback and community contributions shape the system's evolution, and delve into IBM's unique "brand first" approach. Tune in to discover the strenuous yet rewarding process of managing design systems at scale and the significant role of community and partnerships in driving a design system forward.

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Guest

Scott Strubberg is a Product Manager, Front-end developer, Designer, and Educator. Though his career has taken many forms over the years, a common thread of connecting technology to the people who need it has always been present. He spends most of his day rallying designers and developers around a common cause. When he’s not doing that, he’s a full-time parent along with his wife and their three boys.

Host
Chris Strahl is co-founder and CEO of Knapsack, host of @TheDSPod, DnD DM, and occasional river guide. You can find Chris on Twitter as @chrisstrahl and on LinkedIn.

Sponsor
Sponsored by Knapsack, the design system platform that brings teams together. Learn more at knapsack.cloud.

We sit down with Brad Frost, a leading voice in design systems. Together, we explore the critical intersection between adaptable design systems and brand identities, unveiling the secrets to creating components that not only function seamlessly across platforms but also resonate with diverse brand aesthetics. Listen in as we discuss the layers of a successful design system, from global frameworks to the 'recipes' that define specific use cases, and highlight the importance of industry-wide component standardization. This thought-provoking conversation with Brad Frost promises to elevate your approach to design systems.

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Guest
Brad Frost is a design system consultant, front-end developer, speaker, writer, musician, and artist located in beautiful Pittsburgh, PA. As a principal and design system consultant at Big Medium, he helps teams establish and evolve design systems, establish more collaborative workflows, and create better software together.. He is the author of the book Atomic Design, which introduces a methodology to create and maintain effective design systems. He co-hosted the Style Guides Podcast and has helped create several tools and resources for web designers, including Pattern Lab, Styleguides.io, Style Guide Guide, This Is Responsive, Death to Bullshit, and more.

Host
Chris Strahl is co-founder and CEO of Knapsack, host of @TheDSPod, DnD DM, and occasional river guide. You can find Chris on Twitter as @chrisstrahl and on LinkedIn.

Sponsor
Sponsored by Knapsack, the design system platform that brings teams together. Learn more at knapsack.cloud.

Informatica's design and AI director, Ranjeet Tayi doing us on the Design Systems Podcast to discuss AI's transformative impact on design systems, elucidating the shift from static products to dynamic, personalized AI-driven experiences. Chris and Ranjeet navigate through the intricacies of AI's influence on crafting hyper-personalized interfaces, the burgeoning role of predictive analytics in UIs, and the ascendance of voice and text as forefronts of design. The discussion extends to the integration of AI in chatbots, the pivotal role of open-source tools, and the breakthroughs in creativity AI has facilitated in areas like movie and music production. Furthermore, we probe into the indispensable role of design systems in fostering cohesive components, enhancing personalized branding, and amplifying user engagement through continuous learning. Our conversation culminates by highlighting the convergence of AI and design, underlining the significance of structured data, ethical considerations, and AI's capability to redefine the software development lifecycle.

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Guest
Ranjeet Tayi, Director of AI Experience at Informatica, brings 18+ years of UX and AI leadership, advocating GOOD DATA & GOOD DESIGN. Worked at SumTotal, PURE IT Usability Research, and co-founding Mind Visions, he holds 5 patents and is an extraordinary recipient, with a background in Philosophy in Mass Communication & Design Management. Recognized as a speaker, author, and design awards judge, Ranjeet actively serves on non-profit boards & design councils.

Host
Chris Strahl is co-founder and CEO of Knapsack, host of @TheDSPod, DnD DM, and occasional river guide. You can find Chris on Twitter as @chrisstrahl and on LinkedIn.

Sponsor
Sponsored by Knapsack, the design system platform that brings teams together. Learn more at knapsack.cloud.

Chris and Shawn explore how design tools shape final products, emphasizing the crucial role of managing elements like forms and tables. Shawn shares insights on uniting Adobe departments for greater cohesion and how Spectrum 2 reflects organizational change. They discuss AI integration in design interfaces, drawing parallels with Apple's iPhone design evolution, highlighting AI's potential to revolutionize user experiences. Hear about intricacies of translating visual designs into functional code and maintaining brand consistency across product suites. They reflect on the challenges and excitement of problem-solving iterations, the evolution of design systems, and aligning brand with user experience.

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Guest
As a Senior Director of Experience Design at Adobe, Shawn Cheris runs Spectrum—an organization responsible for the overall brand and experience of all Adobe products—with teams focused on design systems, brand, iconography, content strategy, engineering, prototyping, and more. Outside of work, Shawn is also a father and husband and enjoys building (physical) things, photography, making music, cooking, baking, and a million other hobbies he wishes he had more time for.

Host
Chris Strahl is co-founder and CEO of Knapsack, host of @TheDSPod, DnD DM, and occasional river guide. You can find Chris on Twitter as @chrisstrahl and on LinkedIn.

Sponsor
Sponsored by Knapsack, the design system platform that brings teams together. Learn more at knapsack.cloud.

In this episode of the Design Systems Podcast, we explore the intricate world of theme management in complex design systems at Intuit. Nate Baldwin, Principal Designer at Intuit, shares a revolutionary framework for design tokens, enhancing governance and accessibility. We learn about Figma's role in color swapping and Intuit's theming engine for granular adjustments. Discover the balance between brand integrity and user personalization, and how tools like Leonardo and Proportion support adaptive theming. Join us for insights into personalized internet design and the challenges of thematic flexibility with Intuit's Nate Baldwin.

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Guest
Nate Baldwin is a Principal Product Designer on the Intuit Design System team. Nate is experienced with multi-brand theming, adaptive color systems, and design tokens. He is the creator of Leonardocolor.io, Proportio.app, and the interactive color guide ColorAndContrast.com. Connect with Nate at https://natebaldw.in.

Host
Chris Strahl is co-founder and CEO of Knapsack, host of @TheDSPod, DnD DM, and occasional river guide. You can find Chris on Twitter as @chrisstrahl and on LinkedIn.


Sponsor
Sponsored by Knapsack, the design system platform that brings teams together. Learn more at knapsack.cloud.

In this episode of the Design Systems Podcast, we invite you to join us as we engage in a conversation with David Müller, a product designer and design systems lead at one of the world’s top financial institutions. Together, we dive deep into the intricate landscape of banking systems, exploring the complexities of equipping problem solvers with the necessary tools. Gain insights into the importance of flexibility over a rigid "super component" and the significance of considering diverse user contexts. Join Chris and David as they discuss how AI is reshaping empathetic design systems, deliberate breakpoints for personalization, David's innovative design system, and the concept of an anti-fragile system. They emphasize cultivating patterns for innovation and balancing creativity with structure. Explore the future of UX/UI in an AI-driven world as they challenge conventional design practices in this thought-provoking episode.

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Guest
David Müller is a product and systems design lead who believes that HOW we do things is as important as WHAT we do. He spends a big part of his day bringing architecture, development, and product teams closer together to build products that make a real difference in the lives of their users, and do so more predictably.

Host
Chris Strahl is co-founder and CEO of Knapsack, host of @TheDSPod, DnD DM, and occasional river guide. You can find Chris on Twitter as @chrisstrahl and on LinkedIn.

Sponsor
Sponsored by Knapsack, the design system platform that brings teams together. Learn more at knapsack.cloud.

PJ Onori, a design systems veteran since 2011 and a driving force behind Pinterest's Gestalt system, talks about the transformative impact of design systems on product development, potentially reshaping the job landscape in design and engineering. In this episode, PJ recounts a pivotal experience at Disney, highlighting the delicate balance between productivity gains and workforce dynamics.We explore the benefits and hurdles of design systems, emphasizing the need for systems thinking, criticality, and adaptability in today's job market. Discover how new hires are shaping future cultures by embracing these systems, and how design systems foster collaboration between design and engineering teams, beyond efficiency and ROI. PJ shares insights into overcoming resistance to design constraints and empowering designers within boundaries to unleash creativity. This episode is essential for understanding the interplay between creativity, structure, and the evolving landscape of product design and development.

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Guest
PJ has been working on design systems off and on since 2011 for companies such as General Electric, Disney and Pinterest. PJ is keynote speaker at the Design Systems Leadership Summit in San Francisco on April 18, 2024. If you're looking to connect with PJ and other leaders transforming the world of digital product development, submit your application to attend.

Host
Chris Strahl is co-founder and CEO of Knapsack, host of @TheDSPod, DnD DM, and occasional river guide. You can find Chris on Twitter as @chrisstrahl and on LinkedIn.

Sponsor
Sponsored by Knapsack, the design system platform that brings teams together. Learn more at knapsack.cloud.