Design systems get a bad rap because most teams treat them as a six-month project. Here is how to bolt one on in two sprints and start shipping faster on day three.
The 80/20 of a design system
You only need three things to start: a colour token file, a typography ramp, and four atomic components. Everything else is gravy.
Working with a legacy app
Wrap, do not replace. Build new components alongside old ones, route new features through the system, and let attrition do the cleanup.
Measuring impact
Track three numbers: lines of CSS authored per week (should fall), components reused (should rise), time-to-prototype (should halve).
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