Digital innovation has heightened consumers’ expectations. Companies must create seamless experiences across all of their applications and touchpoints to compete in today’s digital landscape. This expectation has evolved the design practice from a “nice-to-have” to a critical business priority. Companies are investing in design at the highest level of the business. But even with the increased prioritization of design, design teams are struggling to keep up, reporting that they lack the talent and tools needed to compete in the current market.

While “leaders” take the risk of investing in design and design systems, their big bet pays off with greater business benefits including: 

• Higher customer satisfaction
• A more consistent customer experience
• The ability to get products to market faster

Adobe commissioned Forrester Consulting to evaluate design systems — the principles, templates, components, processes, tools, and people that guide an organization’s design efforts. Forrester surveyed 385 design professionals at the manager level or above and conducted a maturity assessment, ranking respondents as “leading,” “scaling,” or “emerging.” We found that organizations that take on the risk of investing in design have reaped the benefits. These organizations are not only more advanced, but they also get products to market faster and create more consistent customer experiences.