NovaCraft|2025

Atlas Contribution Platform

Built a self-service contribution platform for a design system at scale. Designers and engineers can propose, review, and publish new components through a governed workflow with automated accessibility and visual regression testing.

Role

Design Systems Architect

Timeline

Apr 2025 - Sep 2025

Team

1 Designer, 3 Engineers, 1 DevOps Engineer

Impact

30+ contributors / 95% adoption rate

Atlas Contribution Platform project cover

Overview

NovaCraft's design system had reached a scale where the core team couldn't keep up with component requests from 12 product teams. Atlas was a contribution platform that enabled any designer or engineer to propose, build, and publish components through an automated, quality-gated workflow.

The Problem

The design system team had a 6-week backlog of component requests. Product teams were either waiting or building their own components outside the system, leading to fragmentation. The system needed to scale beyond the core team while maintaining quality and consistency.

Process

Project Phases

01

Contribution Analysis

2 weeks

Analyzed the existing request backlog, interviewed potential contributors, and mapped the ideal contribution journey from proposal to publication.

Deliverables

Backlog analysis reportContributor persona mapsIdeal journey blueprintQuality gate criteria
02

Workflow Design

3 weeks

Designed a 5-stage contribution workflow: Propose, Design, Build, Review, and Publish. Each stage has clear entry/exit criteria, automated checks, and human review gates.

Deliverables

Workflow specificationStage gate definitionsReview checklist templatesStatus tracking system
03

Automated Testing

4 weeks

Built CI/CD pipelines that automatically run accessibility audits, visual regression tests, and API compliance checks on every component submission.

Deliverables

Accessibility CI pipelineVisual regression setupAPI linting rulesTest coverage requirements
04

Platform Build

5 weeks

Built the contribution portal with a dashboard for tracking proposals, inline Storybook previews, review and comment threads, and automated publishing to the component registry.

Deliverables

Contribution portalProposal tracking dashboardInline preview systemAutomated publishing flow
05

Enablement & Launch

2 weeks

Created onboarding materials, ran contributor workshops, and launched with 5 pilot teams. Provided hands-on support for the first wave of community contributions.

Deliverables

Contributor onboarding guideWorkshop curriculumPilot team supportLaunch metrics baseline

Results

Outcomes

30+

Active contributors across the org

95%

Adoption rate across product teams

0

Accessibility regressions post-launch

4x

Increase in component publishing velocity

Reflection

"The shift from a centralized to a federated contribution model was transformative. The key was making the contribution path feel like a first-class experience, not a bureaucratic process. When contributing feels rewarding, people contribute."
GovernanceStorybookTestingCI/CD