Case Study: University of the Arts London achieves design system adoption with Clearleft

University of the Arts London builds an adopted design system in 9 weeks with Clearleft

University of the Arts London faced a gap between its world-class physical design presence and its inconsistent online experience. Past attempts to create a unifying design system had failed due to resistance and poor adoption from designers who found it inadequate. They engaged the vendor Clearleft as a strategic design partner to help them successfully build and adopt their own system, focusing on design systems, product design, and design ops.

Clearleft's pragmatic solution involved a collaborative, sprint-based approach to build real, shipped components and centralized documentation with the UAL team. This process broke down internal silos and gave UAL ownership. The results included empowered teams, alignment on a shared process, and up-to-date documentation, putting UAL on a realistic path to extend the system and match its digital design to its renowned reputation.

University of the Arts London