Scaling Design System Contributions at Amazon Ads

I created a community contribution system for Amazon Ads' Storm design system, enabling designers across dozens of teams to share complex components and patterns that couldn't exist in Storm's core library. This system provided a structured pathway for experimental and backend dependent components. Increased component adoption by 328% — from a baseline of 704 weekly inserts to 2,314 by January 2026.

My Role & Approach

Key contributions

  • Created contribution framework with another designer, establishing clear pathways for community components

  • Designed contribution workflow from submission through potential graduation to Storm core

  • Built tracking system using Asana connected to submission forms

  • Developed communications strategy for launch and ongoing education

  • Established support infrastructure with office hours, crit sessions, and dedicated Slack channel

The Challenge

Amazon Ads' Storm design system served as the foundation for a $56 billion platform, but teams frequently needed complex components that required backend integration or user-specific data, which couldn't exist in Storm's core library. Without a structured way to share these patterns, teams were reinventing solutions that had already been built elsewhere.

Storm Core maintained high standards—production-ready components with no backend dependencies. But teams needed:

  • Complex patterns requiring backend integration or user data

  • Experimental components like AI interfaces that weren’t as yet represented in code

  • Shared solutions to avoid duplicate work across teams

  • Clear distinction between core Storm and community contributions

My Approach

Working with another designer, I:

  • Co-created the framework distinguishing Storm Core from Community Library

  • Designed the contribution workflow from submission to publication

  • Built tracking infrastructure connecting forms to project management

  • Developed communications for launch and ongoing engagement

  • Established support systems to enable contributor success

Community Library System

Positioning the Community Library

I worked with stakeholders to define the role of the community library within the broader Storm ecosystem:

Community Library documentation in Figma explaining positioning is distinct from Storm Core

Storm Core

  • Production-ready components

  • No backend dependencies

  • Fully documented and maintained by Storm team

  • Available in Storm UI repository

Contribution Workflow Design

I created a flowchart articulating the end-to-end contribution process, making it clear and accessible for designers across dozens of teams. The workflow established:

Submission Phase

  • Clear criteria for what qualifies as a community library component

  • Guidance distinguishing between components suited for Storm core vs. community library

  • Standardized submission form (connected to Asana) capturing component details, complexity, and dependencies

  • Required documentation standards

Review Phase

  • Governance structure for evaluating submissions

  • Quality standards balancing accessibility with consistency

  • Assessment of backend/data dependencies

  • Feedback mechanism for contributors

Publication Phase

  • Process for adding approved components to the community library

  • Documentation requirements for published components, including dependency notes

  • Version control and maintenance expectations

Community Library

  • Complex patterns requiring backend/user data

  • Experimental components (e.g., AI interfaces)

  • Incubator for potential Storm Core candidates

  • Maintained by contributing teams with Storm guidance

This distinction set clear expectations and helped teams understand when to contribute to the community library.

Communications & Change Management

To drive awareness and adoption of the new community library system, I developed communications materials, including:

  • Announcement strategy introducing the system to designers across Amazon Ads

  • Educational content explaining when and how to use the community library vs. Storm core

  • Usage guidance clarifying the distinction between simple components (Storm) and complex patterns (community library)

These communications were designed to shift designer behavior from building in isolation to contributing to and leveraging shared resources, particularly for complex patterns.

Supporting Contributors

To enable designer success and foster a contributing culture, I established comprehensive support infrastructure:

Office Hours:

  • Twice-weekly sessions where designers could get guidance

  • Support for technical questions, contribution process, design review

  • Lowered barrier to entry for first-time contributors

Weekly Design System Crit:

  • Open sign-up session for any designer working on Storm-related components

  • Provided feedback before formal submission

  • Helped refine components and catch issues early

  • Built community and shared learning across teams

Dedicated Design System Slack Channel:

  • Real-time support for design system queries

  • The community could help each other

  • Shared examples and best practices

  • Announced new community library additions

These support mechanisms directly contributed to the system's adoption by making contributions feel accessible rather than daunting.

Tracking Infrastructure

To enable data-driven decisions about component promotion and measure success against our goals, I created:

Asana Board:

  • Tracking system for all component submissions

  • Workflow stages from submission through publication

  • Assignment and ownership clarity

  • Historical record of contributions

  • Tagging for component types (complex/data-dependent, experimental, potential Storm candidates)

Connected Form:

  • Standardized intake reducing friction for contributors

  • Automatic Asana task creation

  • Captured essential information: component description, use case, team/product, backend/data dependencies, documentation

This infrastructure was designed to provide visibility into contribution patterns and usage data, enabling evidence-based decisions about which components merited Storm integration or continued investment.

Impact

The goal was to create a structured contribution system that would reduce duplication, improve discoverability of complex patterns, and drive measurable adoption across Amazon Ads teams.

Targets set at launch (first 90 days)

  • Library growth: 6 to 12 components

  • Component usage: 704 to 808 average weekly insertions (15% increase)

  • Storm satisfaction survey score: 79% to 82%

Actual results (4 months post-launch)

  • Library growth: 6 to 22 components — 267% of goal

  • Component usage: 704 to 2,314 average weekly insertions — 328% increase, 21x target

  • 27 Figma teams actively using the library

  • Engagement sustained through Q4 holidays, indicating genuine utility rather than novelty adoption

Strategic outcomes

  • Scaled design system governance beyond the central team to a distributed contribution model

  • Created a structured solution for complex patterns that Storm core couldn't address

  • Established a clear pipeline for promoting successful community patterns to Storm core

  • Provided an interim home for experimental components like AI patterns during development

  • Balanced quality control with broad participation, maintaining Storm's standards while lowering the barrier to contribution

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