Entain asked Absurd to create a design system that could bring consistency, speed, and governance to a large global product estate spanning more than 30 brands.
The scale of the challenge was structural. Different markets and design teams were solving similar problems in different ways, which made experiences inconsistent and made global management harder than it should have been.
Project overview
The work was not only about UI components. It was about the service around the design system and the operational model needed to keep it useful.
Absurd was brought in to:
- understand why the existing design system was underused
- improve consistency across global brands and teams
- connect design and engineering workflows more effectively
- define governance, ownership, and ongoing maintenance responsibilities
Discovery
Absurd began with a discovery phase that treated the design system as a product and a service, not just a library. That meant mapping frictions across teams, understanding where component updates were being blocked, and identifying the reasons people were bypassing the existing system.
The discovery also examined organisational structure, process gaps, and the disconnect between design and engineering. Working in the open helped align stakeholders and frame the problem as a global operating challenge rather than a purely visual one.
What changed
Absurd designed a cloud-based design system that created a clearer path from component request through to implementation. Components were aligned with code, naming conventions were standardised, and the system was integrated into tools such as Figma and Jira to support a more connected workflow.
The work also went deeper than tooling. Roles, responsibilities, and governance were clarified so the system could be maintained and evolved rather than becoming another well-intentioned asset that drifted out of date.
Outcome
Entain’s teams now have a more consistent way to design and deliver across a global portfolio of brands. That consistency improves the end user experience, but it also improves the organisation’s ability to share learnings, reuse patterns, and move faster without recreating the same decisions in parallel.
The value of the project was not just one design system. It was a shared operating model for how product teams work together.