Design System Governance Framework
Contribution model • Workflow alignment • Long-term sustainability
Established a formal contribution and governance framework to support long-term sustainability of a large-scale design system.
The work aligned ownership models, review workflows, documentation standards, and release processes to reduce friction across distributed teams.
This structure enabled controlled growth while maintaining system integrity.
Context
As the design system expanded across schools and departments, contributions became decentralized.
Without defined governance pathways, inconsistencies emerged and system evolution slowed.
Sustainability required structure beyond components..
The structural challenge
Design systems fail when ownership is unclear.
The challenge was to define: Contribution standards Review checkpoints Decision authority Documentation expectations Release process
Governance had to enable adoption without creating bureaucracy.
Strategic approach
- Defined a structured contribution model aligned with cross-functional teams.
- Clarified review and approval workflows for system updates.
- Established documentation standards to reduce ambiguity.
- Aligned release processes with implementation teams.
- Embedded accessibility checkpoints within governance.
Outcomes
Reduced friction across design and engineering teams. Improved clarity around system ownership. Enabled controlled evolution without fragmentation. Strengthened long-term sustainability of the platform.
Related case studies
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Discuss system governance
If your organization is scaling a design system and needs structure for long-term sustainability, I can help define contribution and review models that align teams and reduce risk.