Creating patterns
Patterns turn ideas into real workflows. They include components, templates, and design solutions that make the system usable day to day. Weak or inconsistent patterns cause duplication, frustration, and gaps in usability. This strategy guides you on how to explore ideas, define behaviours, and validate quality in a way that is scalable and accessible. Use it when you want to give teams dependable solutions they can apply again and again.
Exploration tools can generate more variations to review, but you'll still need to make the design decisions and set quality standards.
Identify the challenge
Start with an existing challenge from your roadmap, or use journey mapping to identify what to work on next.
Define requirements
Map what exists today, capture pain points, user needs, and external references, then turn these into clear requirements that guide exploration.
Explore and define behaviours
Generate solutions, define interaction states, and stress test ideas through design crits.
Create and share specs
Turn ideas into rules, then validate the details in a spec walkthrough.
Validate and test quality
Check fidelity, performance, and inclusivity before patterns are released.
Manage and release patterns
Handle updates and migration, then communicate changes clearly and support adoption.
Retire and replace
Phase out outdated or duplicative patterns and direct teams toward better solutions.