Design systems are the foundation of nearly every piece of software we use. No one has had a greater influence on the philosophy and tactics of building design systems than Brad Frost, author of Atomic Design. After helping countless companies craft design systems, Brad has come to realize that this topic is a nexus of collaboration and conflict.
In our conversation, Brad shared why he thinks design systems are an enduring topic in design teams, the power of design tokens, and how AI is reshaping this space. Plus, Brad filled us in on his new online course on design tokens.
As a special opportunity for Design Better listeners, use code “DESIGNBETTERISAWESOME” at checkout for 20% off Brad’s upcoming design tokens course:
Bio
Brad Frost is a design system consultant, front-end developer, speaker, writer, musician, and artist located in beautiful Pittsburgh, PA. 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. In addition to co-hosting the Style Guides Podcast, he has also 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.
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Insights from the episode
1. 🛠️ Design Systems as Storytelling Tools
Brad defines design systems in a unique way:
"A design system is the official story of how an organization designs and builds user interfaces."
He explains that this story has several components:
Assets (Figma libraries, code components, documentation)
People (teams, roles, relationships)
Process (workflows, governance, decision-making)
Rather than just being a collection of UI components, design systems are about orchestration of these elements to create coherent user experiences.
2. 🤝 The Fundamental Tension in Design Systems
Brad identifies a core tension that makes design systems an enduring challenge:
"It's really that balancing act of shared versus bespoke, and there's an innate tension there that will always be there."
This tension between standardization and customization, between efficiency and creativity, is why design systems remain a continuous journey rather than a solved problem.
3. 👥 Human Relationships at the Core
One of Brad's most powerful insights is that the real work of design systems is human-centered:
"It's ultimately the human relationships part of it that a lot of people don't care to admit is the real work of it... And it's like, y'all aren't talking to each other at all. That's your actual problem. You all need to talk to each other."
While teams often fixate on implementation details in Figma or code, the real challenges are often communication breakdowns between different disciplines.
