Merck design system
Design system strategy, governance, and tooling transformation for a global pharmaceutical organization.
My Role
Senior Experience Designer
Scope
Wireframes
Design system development, governance, and maintenance
Prototypes
Design documentation
Design QA
The Challenge
Merck required a scalable, multi-brand design system (VIVID360) capable of supporting numerous digital properties while meeting strict legal and regulatory requirements. VIVID360 needed to function like a token-based, headless system, bridging shared components and being usable by a large, distributed team of designers. As the organization prepared to transition from Sketch to Figma, the system also needed clearer processes, stronger designer enablement, and improved collaboration across design, development, and brand teams.
The Approach
Build and maintain a custom, multi-brand design system in Sketch that mirrored token-based logic and aligned with shared WordPressVIP components, ensuring consistency across platforms and brands.
Manage the transition from Sketch to Figma using a small, focused team, leveraging Airtable to plan, track, and sequence migration efforts while developing learning materials to onboard 30+ designers.
Refine and mature design system operations by improving theming through semantic versioning, strengthening collaboration through office hours and hands-on support, and updating documentation, onboarding, and component testing workflows.
The Results
A more resilient, scalable design system that supported 30+ designers across Merck while improving consistency, efficiency, and confidence in highly regulated environments. The transition to Figma, paired with clearer processes, governance, and documentation, strengthened collaboration across design, development, and brand teams, positioning VIVID360 as a sustainable foundation for future growth and evolution.
