Redesigning components for an existing design system
What to do when a component is no longer aligned and causes downstream usability issues
As a designer, have you ever come across an outdated component in your design system that was no longer serving the needs of your team? Dusty from the years since its conception, it fails to provide its original value as it has accumulated its fair share of pain points and usability issues?
If this sounds familiar, redesigning the component may be the best thing you can do for yourself and for your design team moving forward. This is a step-by-step guide on how to do just that based on a recent side project I worked on at MongoDB.
Step #1: Audit the component’s current usage across your product’s platform.
In order to best understand the potential value a newly designed component can provide for future projects, identify where it has been in former projects. Explore your current application or platform to best understand what specific contexts it lives in.
