Moving from Senior Product Design to Design Systems: Can I keep my seniority?
I’ve spent the last 5 years as a Senior Product Designer across the private and federal sectors, but I’ve realized my true passion lies in the systems side of the craft. I’m looking to pivot into a dedicated Design Systems role and wanted some perspective on the transition.
In my previous roles, I’ve been the one scaling UI kits in Figma, managing design tokens, and writing the documentation that keeps teams aligned. While I have a foundational understanding of HTML, CSS, and some React, I’d say my expertise is 80% design/organization and 20% technical.
Recent highlights include:
Collaborating with cross-functional teams (Dev/PM) to build sustainable, multi-product systems.
Developing custom plugins for layer management and token maintenance.
Driving system adoption across various product squads.
The big question: Given my 5 years of senior-level experience in product, do I have to start over at the Junior level for DS roles, or is a lateral move to a Senior Design Systems position realistic?