Overview
YouTube had wanted to consolidate its mobile design resources for years but hadn’t had the bandwidth to make it happen internally. Advanced Systems Group (ASG) was brought in to help turn that idea into a complete, standardized design library.
As a UX Designer, I joined a small team of four to build YouTube’s internal mobile design system - a unified Figma library that established consistent standards, accessibility guidance, and design best practices for internal teams across the company.
Timeline & Status
June – October 2025 (5 months), Launched Q4, 2025
My role
UX Designer - System Builder, Documentation Lead, Mobile Design Creator, Team Facilitator
Team
1 Program Manager
1 Internal YouTube UX Designer
1 ASG UX Designer- Me!
1 ASG Junior UX Designer
Tools
Figma, Carbon, Google Workspace
Obstacles & Opportunities – Turning process misalignment into a more agile workflow.
The Challenge
Shortly after I joined, our manager left the project, and I had just completed onboarding. The team was still operating through a waterfall process, which often left us working in silos and unsure about stakeholder needs.
Without a clear feedback loop, progress slowed and alignment was difficult to maintain. To move forward, I helped shift our workflow toward Agile collaboration, creating faster and clearer channels of communication between ASG and YouTube’s design team.
The Process - From process overhaul to system delivery — how the library took shape.
Establishing New Ways of Working
I worked closely with one of YouTube’s internal designers, who became our main point of contact and daily design partner. Together, we introduced:
Daily stand-ups to review priorities and blockers
Regular feedback sessions to validate visual and written content
Incremental approval loops that allowed us to ship faster and with more confidence
This agile rhythm replaced long, delayed reviews with a continuous flow of collaboration that helped us stay ahead of schedule.
Building the Mobile Design Library
Our goal was to unify mobile design standards into a single, reliable resource. Over the course of the project, our team:
Created documentation for 31 core components, resulting in 62 total pages — each with dedicated usage guidelines and accessibility documentation
Produced over 400 mobile assets, each validated through iteration
Developed Do’s and Don’ts, accessibility guidelines, and usage examples for each component
I led the creation of the usage and accessibility sections, ensuring that each component had clear documentation, rationale, and examples for internal designers to reference.
Leading Through Change
As the project evolved, our small team faced multiple transitions. After our manager left and later our project manager departed, I stepped into a leadership role to help maintain structure and momentum.
I also mentored our junior designer, guiding her through UX best practices while she helped me understand YouTube’s internal systems - a collaboration that strengthened our team’s ability to deliver consistent, high-quality work under shifting conditions.
Results & Impact - Empowering YouTube’s internal designers with a scalable system that streamlined mobile design workflows.
Despite multiple changes in leadership and direction, we delivered the entire project ahead of schedule, completing all 400+ assets and documentation ahead of the original deadline.
The finalized mobile design library became a foundational resource for YouTube’s internal designers, providing:
A single source of truth for mobile design components
Standardized accessibility guidance
Faster, more consistent design production across teams
Our success in finishing early reflected not only the efficiency of our new agile process but also the strength of our cross-functional collaboration with YouTube’s internal team.
Lessons Learned - How can we improve? What can we learn for next time?
Reflection
This project demonstrated the value of adaptability and structure within fast-paced design work. Navigating team changes while leading design documentation required both organization and empathy.
By the end, our small team delivered more than a design library; we delivered a framework that improved how YouTube’s internal designers collaborate, document, and create consistent mobile experiences.