Patterns Podcast

106. Brad Frost on Adaptable Design Systems

Patterns Podcast

Show Notes

Send us feedback or episode suggestions. We sit down with Brad Frost, a leading voice in design systems. Together, we explore the critical intersection between adaptable design systems and brand identities, unveiling the secrets to creating components that not only function seamlessly across platforms but also resonate with diverse brand aesthetics. Listen in as we discuss the layers of a successful design system, from global frameworks to the 'recipes' that define specific use cases, and hig...

More from Patterns Podcast

Oct 23, 2026

Send us feedback or episode suggestions. AI makes it easier than ever to build the wrong thing quickly. Zooming out to see the whole system is one way teams notice. In this episode of Patterns, Chris Strahl talks with James McElroy, a designer and design leader who started in mechanical engineering, about keeping the big picture in view while the tools get faster. James traces a systems mindset from childhood terminals at home to a first design job at Bose, where a handheld home theater remo...

Oct 23, 2026

Send us feedback or episode suggestions. AI can generate a screen in seconds. Deciding whether that screen is right still takes someone who has seen enough of them. In this episode of Patterns, Chris Strahl talks with design leader Alexis Puchek about what design judgment means when agents do more of the building. Drawing on about 20 years at frog, Hudl, and Procore, in fields where the screen often isn't the point, Alexis explains why judgment gets more valuable as systems get better. The c...

May 13, 2026

Send us feedback or episode suggestions. Software teams are operating in an environment where the job description changes every two months. As agentic AI moves from novelty to real engineering capability, the assumptions that have held enterprise software together — long SaaS contracts, stable teams, predictable agile rhythms — are starting to bend. In this episode of Patterns, Chris Strahl talks with engineering leader Alex Wilson about what it actually takes to bring AI into a large, regula...

Mar 10, 2026

Send us feedback or episode suggestions. Digital products no longer exist as standalone apps. They live inside complex ecosystems of interfaces, AI systems, legacy infrastructure, and workflows that all have to work together. In this episode of Patterns, Chris Strahl talks with product design leader Andi Rusu about what it takes to design reliable digital experiences in environments where multiple systems—and increasingly AI—are shaping how products behave. Drawing on experience at Disney, So...

Feb 10, 2026

Send us feedback or episode suggestions. The Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines merger came with physical and regulatory deadlines that dictated an inflexible 10-month delivery window for digital and design work. With the timeline tied to real-world change, combined design, product, and engineering teams had to build and ship alongside a transformation that was already in motion. Chris Strahl talks with Noelle Lansford and Forrest Akemann about what it took to deliver a multi-brand experie...

See all episodes →