Strategy NotesNº 01
Incrementalvs. Redesign
When design teams should optimize, and when they should transform.
Local→ Incremental
Isolated to a few screens, interactions or flows.
Fix it in placeSystemic→ Redesign
The same problems recur across the product.
Rethink the system01The rule
Be incremental when the problem is local.
Redesign when the problem is systemic.
02Two modes
Incremental
Think of it as optimization.
Redesign
Think of it as transformation.
Model
Incremental: The core user journey works.
Redesign: The product’s underlying model is wrong.
Clarity
Incremental: Users understand the product.
Redesign: Users consistently struggle to understand it.
Scope
Incremental: The problem is isolated to a few screens, interactions or flows.
Redesign: Teams are duplicating solutions everywhere.
Foundation
Incremental: The architecture can support future needs.
Redesign: The experience can’t realistically evolve into the future state.
Cost
Incremental: The cost of change is high relative to the benefit.Engineering, retraining users, migration
Redesign: Technical debt prevents progress.
Direction
Incremental: Metrics are healthy and improving.
Redesign: The business strategy has changed.
Incremental · e.g.
- Improving a checkout flow
- Simplifying form fields
- Updating visual hierarchy
- Adding a missing feature
Redesign · e.g.
- Desktop-firsttomobile-first
- Rebuilding a design system
- File-basedtoreal-time collaboration
- Project componentstoa platform model
03The curve
Optimization climbs the curve you’re on. Transformation jumps to a new one.
04The test
Three questions before you choose
Try it yourself
Q1
Can the current foundation get us where we need to be?
Q2
Are the problems isolated or recurring?
Q3
Would fixing every issue individually cost more than starting over?
Verdict0/3
Set the switches
Three answers, one verdict.
Try
05In short
Strategy Notes Nº 01umar.design