Case Studies

Here are a few times when having a smart, seasoned UX leader made a significant difference.

THE PROBLEM

CORTEVA // GLOBAL DESIGN SYSTEM

Unifying 50 websites in 35 languages under one WCAG-compliant global design system

Achieve global design consistency while minimizing implementation costs.

Some 50 corporate websites in 35 different languages were all, to varying degrees, following disparate historic versions of the enterprise’s scattered global design system.

As such, a Corteva website in Latin America might be using many different styles from a website in North America, or Asia Pacific. From one website to the next you would likely have seen different:

  • Colors,

  • Typography,

  • Components,

  • Design patterns, and

  • Layouts.

Forcing 100% consistency among all 50 global websites would have cost millions of dollars.

The challenge was to find creative ways of bringing global unity to the brand experience, achieve a minimum of AA WCAG compliance, while also balancing implementation costs.

THE SOLUTION

Research —> Analysis —> Strategy —> Design —> Implementation

Prioritize Requirements

  1. Minimum of WCAG AA compliance across all websites.

  2. Create a unifying design system that weighs the benefits of aesthetics and usability against global implementation costs.

  3. Solve for desktop and mobile.

Define the Approach

  • Systematically audit every Corteva website across the globe (Americas, Europe, Australasia, Africa, and Asia Pacific) using Chrome Developer Tools to inspect the CSS code.

  • Catalog deviations and variations in spreadsheets.

  • Evaluate estimated costs for implementing mandated style updates globally.

  • Present recommended “Must-haves” and “Nice-to-haves” for bringing all sites into alignment.

  • Research other global design systems such as Carbon (IBM), SLDS (SalesForce), Material Design, Atlassian, and Primer (GitHub).

Comments

Sometimes the costs to implement an input style, font stack, component, or design pattern that was the preferred choice of global HQ were found to be financially prohibitive.

I suggested compromises that would require adjustment to the source standards and enable the right amount of flexibility in the degree of adoption.

This approach saved the client millions of dollars.

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