Design Systems
Citadel Design System
The foundations, walls and gates of one shared design language for twelve product teams.
- Ironclad Analytics
- Allied House
- Design Systems Lead
- Role
- 2024
- Year
- 10 months
- Campaign
Chapter I · Context
The Realm
Ironclad Analytics grew from one product to five in three years. Along the way every team built its own buttons, its own tables and its own idea of what a chart should look like.
Chapter II · Challenge
The Threat
Twelve teams, four colour palettes and more than thirty different date pickers. New features took weeks longer than they should, and customers who used two Ironclad products felt like they were dealing with two different companies.
Chapter III · Approach
The Strategy
Rather than impose a system from above, I formed a council of designers and engineers from every team. Together we audited every component, agreed on the foundations, and built Citadel: design tokens, 180 accessible React components, and documentation full of real product examples instead of abstract rules.
Chapter IV · Outcome
The Victory
Citadel now powers every Ironclad product. Teams ship new screens three times faster, and accessibility issues reported by customers have almost disappeared.