Frontend Architecture for Design Systems

Chapter 18. Conclusion

One of the greatest lessons I have learned about frontend architecture over the life of this project is that, as with any good architect, your job is never finished until the last stone has been laid. We started this project with a very simple scope, and we created an architecture that met our needs at that time. But over time, our needs changed, the project evolved, and successes in one area turned into opportunities in others.

Sometimes I look back at all of the time we spent to get to this point and wonder why we didn’t just do this in the first place. Why have we gone through so many iterations, rather than just architecting this finished product from day one? Does this mean we’ve failed, or that our work was for nothing? I am confident that this is not the case.

As we continue to learn about frontend architecture, I am certain that the time between project start and where we’ve gotten today will continue to get shorter, and that we’ll get there in fewer iterations, though iteration will always be part of the process! As frontend architects, our job is to understand our current strengths and weaknesses, and to foresee possible opportunities and threats. The way that we foresee is to have already experienced. The way that we understand is to have already underestimated. The greatest talent that we can bring to the table is an understanding of how this crazy thing called frontend development comes together over time.

So if this is your first time creating ...