As product design systems have become essential for large companies scaling their brands, it was crucial to begin by analyzing the design systems of leading businesses for inspiration. I researched systems from Atlassian, Shopify, Ant Design, Salesforce, Uber, GOV.uk, Google Material Design, IBM, Apple, and Microsoft Fluent. This research provided valuable insights into best practices for structuring design systems, defining key components, and presenting guidelines in a way that developers can easily implement in code.

A key insight from my research was the use of Atomic Design, an industry-standard methodology for creating design systems. Atomic design breaks down the process into five stages: Atoms, Molecules, Organisms, Templates, and Pages, enabling a more deliberate and hierarchical approach. I applied this methodology to the Plan-Apps product design system for its modularity, reusability, and scalability. By decomposing designs into smaller components, atomic design ensures consistent branding, enhances collaboration efficiency, and improves team satisfaction.