About
Contributing to the design system
Overview
Veteran-facing teams are expected to use design system patterns and components when possible. If existing components or patterns will not work to address needed designs, VFS teams can suggest new components or patterns by going through our Experimental Design process outlined below.
All new components or patterns should go through this process. We recommend starting this process before sharing new designs widely with stakeholders.
This process works best if started before development begins, during the design phase.
Experimental design decision tree
When considering if a component or pattern should be added to the design system there are a few criteria that define a “good” candidate:
- The component or pattern will be useful in multiple products on VA.gov. It may be new or it may already be used somewhere on VA.gov, but the designer should be prepared to give examples of possible use cases beyond just their product.
- The component or pattern is different in more than one major way than existing components in the design system. a. If the component is only different in color or format, for instance, then it may be a good candidate as a variant of the existing component. Variants of existing components should also go through this experimental process.
- Our existing components and patterns will not solve the user problems sufficiently.
Experimental design decision tree and process
If you believe your component or pattern will be a good candidate for inclusion in the design system, then you may suggest an addition or update to begin the experimental design process. This process may begin with feedback received at a Collaboration Cycle touchpoint, and will include:
- Conducting research to validate your design
- Presenting your design work and your research to the Design System Council
- Receiving approval from the Design System Council to be added to the design system
If your component or pattern are approved by the Design System Council, you may then add a component or pattern to the design system.
