#830: Design Systems + Systems Thinking: How to Build a Design Language Your Whole Organization Can Actually Use

The Agile Brand with Greg Kihlström®: Expert Mode Marketing Technology, AI, & CX

The Agile Brand

Business, Marketing

4.9 • 113 Ratings

🗓️ 19 March 2026

⏱️ 34 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

If your brand guide is a book of laws that everyone ignores, how do you create a shared belief that people both follow and actually want to embrace? Agility requires a shared understanding that’s more than a set of rules; it's a way of thinking that allows teams to make consistent decisions, even when they’re not in the same room. Today, we're going to talk about Design Systems and Systems Thinking, and specifically, how to build a design language your whole organization can actually use. We'll explore why so many design systems fail by focusing on components instead of conviction, and how rooting a brand in a core, shared belief allows it to scale without breaking. To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome Jenna Kennedy, Client Strategy at The Office of Experience, and Chris Taylor, Head of Brand Experience at DDN. About Jenna Kennedy and Chris Taylor Jenna Kennedy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennabkennedy/ Chris Taylor: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-taylor-3961b277/ Resources The Office of Experience and DDN: https://www.officeofexperience.com This episode is brought to you by The Office of Experience, a design-driven, digital-first, vertically integrated and collaborative agency that believes in the power of ideas and the strength of people.Learn more at https://www.officeofexperience.com Drive your customers to new horizons at the premier retail event of the year for Retail and Brand marketers. Learn more at CRMC 2026, June 1-3. https://aglbrnd.co/r/d15ec37a537c0d74 Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show at: https://aglbrnd.co/r/faaed112fc9887f3 Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstrom Don't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://aglbrnd.co/r/35ded3ccfb6716ba Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company

Transcript

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0:00.0	The Agile Brand
0:02.0	Welcome to Season 8 of the Agile Brand podcast.
0:09.0	This season we're going all in on expert mode MARTEC, AI, and customer experience,
0:15.0	talking with the people and platforms behind the brands you know and love.
0:19.0	I'm Greg Kilstrom, your host,
0:21.3	and I help Fortune 1000 companies make sense of
0:23.8	Martec, AI, and marketing ops.
0:26.7	Hit subscribe or follow to make sure you always get
0:28.9	the latest episodes and leave us a rating
0:30.9	so others can find us as well.
0:33.7	This episode is brought to you by the Office of Experience,
0:36.4	a design-driven, digital-first,
0:38.2	vertically integrated, and collaborative agency that believes in the power of ideas and the
0:42.5	strength of people.
0:44.9	If your brand guide is a book of laws that everyone ignores, how do you create a shared belief
0:49.4	that people both follow and actually want to embrace?
0:53.0	Agility requires a shared understanding that's more than a set of rules.
0:56.8	It's a way of thinking that allows teams to make consistent decisions even when they're not in the same room.
1:02.4	Today we're going to talk about design systems and systems thinking, and specifically how to
1:07.4	build a design language your whole organization can actually use.
1:11.1	We're going to explore why so many design systems fail by focusing on components instead of conviction
1:15.9	and how rooting a brand and a core shared belief allows it to scale without breaking.
	...

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