UI Breakfast: UI/UX Design and Product Strategy Episode 292: Using Tokens in Design Systems with Jan Six
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Mar 28, 2025 Jan Six, a staff product designer at GitHub and co-creator of Tokens Studio, sheds light on the power of design tokens in enhancing team efficiency. He shares insights on the technical correlations between design components and tokens, addressing why adoption is often the biggest hurdle in design systems. Jan discusses the creation of an open-source design tokens plugin and the importance of robust documentation for scalability. He emphasizes starting simple in building effective design systems to ensure consistency and foster collaboration across teams.
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Jan Six's Career Path
- Jan Six transitioned from agency work to a startup where he learned both design and coding.
- This blended skillset helped him better understand design feasibility and build impactful products.
Token Studio's Founding Story
- Jan created Token Studio after struggling to use design tokens directly in Figma.
- Collaborating with Mike grew the project into an open-source platform maintained by a community.
Token Studio's Evolution and Mission
- Figma's introduction of variables covered simpler theming needs, shifting Token Studio toward complex design system management.
- Token Studio aims to bridge multiple design tools with a unified token platform for greater efficiency.