Design Review Process

The design review process evaluates proposed components and changes against design standards before implementation proceeds. A structured design review process ensures visual consistency, interaction quality, and alignment with design principles across the system.

What Is the Design Review Process

The design review process is the evaluation of design proposals by qualified reviewers who assess visual design, interaction patterns, and alignment with system principles. This review occurs before significant implementation investment, catching issues early when changes are less costly.

Design review differs from code review by focusing on what users experience rather than how code is structured. Reviewers evaluate whether proposed components look correct, behave appropriately, and fit coherently within the broader system.

How Design Review Processes Work

Proposal preparation provides reviewers with information needed for evaluation. Proposals typically include visual mockups, interaction specifications, use case descriptions, and rationale for design decisions. Complete proposals enable efficient review; incomplete proposals require clarification that delays progress.

Visual evaluation assesses proposed designs against visual standards. Reviewers check token usage, spacing consistency, typography application, and visual harmony with existing components. Visual evaluation ensures new additions maintain the cohesive appearance consumers expect.

Interaction evaluation examines proposed behaviors. Reviewers assess state handling, animation patterns, keyboard interactions, and response to user input. Interaction evaluation ensures consistent behavior patterns across the system.

Principle alignment verifies that proposals follow established design principles. Reviewers consider whether designs embody accessibility commitments, simplicity values, or other guiding principles the system embraces. Principle alignment maintains system integrity beyond surface-level consistency.

Feedback and iteration refine proposals based on review input. Designers revise their work to address concerns. Additional review validates revisions. This cycle continues until reviewers approve the design for implementation.

Key Considerations

• Design review should occur before significant implementation investment
• Clear criteria help reviewers provide consistent evaluation
• Documented feedback enables revision and creates institutional knowledge
• Timely review prevents design review from becoming a bottleneck
• Review authority must be clear to avoid confusion about approval requirements

Common Questions

Who should conduct design reviews?

Design reviews require evaluators with strong design judgment and deep knowledge of the design system. Senior designers, design system team members, or designated design leads typically fulfill this role. Reviewers should have authority to approve or reject proposals and expertise to provide constructive feedback.

How do design reviews relate to code reviews?

Design reviews typically precede code reviews in contribution workflows. Design review approves what should be built; code review ensures it was built correctly. Some changes may skip design review if they do not affect user-facing design. Organizations should clarify which changes require each review type.

What happens when design reviews reject proposals?

Rejection should include constructive feedback explaining why the proposal does not meet standards and suggesting improvements. Contributors may revise and resubmit. Persistent disagreement may escalate to governance bodies. Respectful rejection that enables learning preserves contributor engagement.

Summary

Design review processes ensure visual and interaction quality by evaluating proposals against design standards. Success requires clear criteria, qualified reviewers, and timely feedback that enables iterative improvement. Organizations should position design review early in contribution workflows to catch issues before implementation investment.