About
I'm Joe, a design systems leader based in London.
Ten years into my design career, I've specialised in the work most organisations find genuinely hard: founding design systems from scratch, scaling them across multiple brands and platforms, and embedding the practices that drive long-term adoption and continued investment.
My work spans consumer, automotive, telecoms, travel, and loyalty, taking in IAG Loyalty, BT Group, Toyota Connected, and Dyson. I've led systems used by hundreds of designers and developers, presented ROI cases to the C-suite, and built communities that actually want to contribute. The products built on those systems have reached tens of millions of people worldwide.
I care deeply about doing this work properly. Not just shipping components, but creating the infrastructure, culture, and momentum that makes a design system a genuine business asset.
Testimonials
Joe was instrumental in getting our design system off the ground at Toyota for our global apps.
He provided the strategy and approach as we were growing the team and stepped into the lead role temporarily whilst recruitment was happening.
Joe is one of those unique people who can easily switch between strategic and tactical and is equally competent at leading and being hands on.
Needless to say, it would be a pleasure to work with Joe again. Thanks Joe!
Aimée Le Couteur
Absolutely thrilled to recommend Joe as a Senior Design Systems Designer! 🚀
I had the pleasure of collaborating with Joe on a recent system at Toyota, and his design prowess is nothing short of impressive. He's got an incredible knack for turning complex design challenges into sleek, user-friendly solutions.
Joe's attention to detail is second to none. Our design systems have never been more cohesive and visually stunning. It's clear he's passionate about creating not just designs, but experiences that truly resonate with users.
Beyond the skills, Joe is just a fantastic person to work with. His positive attitude and problem-solving mindset make every task enjoyable. If you're looking for a Senior Design Systems Designer who brings both talent and a great vibe to the table, Joe is your guy.
Trust me, your design team will thank you for bringing him on board!
Ed Hockings
I'm grateful to have worked alongside Joe on a highly demanding project. He brings clarity and hit the ground running with a great plan.
Highly knowledgeable and efficient, he created solid foundations for our brand-new design system and collaborated with the designers to improve them.
He's easy to work with and will be an asset to any team. I only hope that we can work together again in the future.
Moses Gunarman
Joe was instrumental in helping to grow and scale the BT Design System.
Joe joined the Design System team and immediately established himself as a valued member of the team by being a team player and a highly skilled design practitioner.
Joe is fantastic at building relationships with those around him, and working collaboratively with teams to achieve the goals of the Design System.
It was an absolute pleasure working with Joe. His Design System knowledge, experience and skills make him someone that would enhance and benefit any team.
Matt Gottschalk
Joe is a true collaborative partner. He makes sure that every aspect of Accessibility is considered when working on components.
He welcomes the collaboration from the Accessibility Team, listen to our inputs and is focused on finding the best solutions.
Joe truly knows his craft. We are lucky to have him as a colleague.
Ronise Nepomuceno
I worked side by side with Joe while at BT Group and I couldn't have hoped for a better team mate.
Joe's attention to detail, willingness to get involved, drive to make the right things, truly user centred and inclusive approach, and not to mention technical ability is a rare combination to find in one person.
I learned things from Joe that I will take with me into the rest of my design career. I hope we get to work together again one day!
Dave House
I had the pleasure of working with Joe Mallory Skinner on our high profile B2B app project. Joe was hired as a User Experience Designer and was briefed to design an intuitive app that would transform the way our field sales teams operate and consequentially lead to increased cost savings for the business.
Joe’s user centred approach and attention to detail was immediately noticed and admired. Working closely with users, Joe produced excellent and detailed designs that delighted users and stakeholders; ultimately providing a faultless model for the development team to work from.
Joe’s commitment to the project has continued throughout the app’s development, ensuring it adhered to our strong brand guidelines, whilst supporting our technical team with problem solving.
His dedication and talent has won him respect throughout the business here at Dyson and I would have no hesitation in recommending him for future projects.
Shaun McManus
I had the pleasure of working with Joe at Three as the UX/UI Designer in our scrum team.In short, Joe is a fantastic person to have in any team.
He is adept at listening and understanding any given customer problem, focusing on their need and not their want.
Joe has the ability to collaborate well across teams, running both remote research and also in person workshops with large groups. I would not hesitate to recommend Joe for any UX or Product role.
Dan Reed
Skills
Design Systems
- Multi-brand systems architecture
- Design tokens
- Component design & documentation
- Contribution models
- Analytics and reporting
- DesignOps
Leadership
- Team building & hiring
- Community building
- Stakeholder management
- Budget management & ROI reporting
- Workshop facilitation
- Public speaking
- Mentoring & coaching
- Agile / Scrum
Design Practice
- Product design
- User research
- Information architecture
- Inclusive design & WCAG
- Service design
Platforms and Tools
- React, React Native, Flutter, iOS, Android, Responsive web
- Figma, Tokens Studio, Storybook, Zeroheight, Omlet Analytics, Framer, Adobe Creative Suite, GitHub, VS Code, Jira/Confluence
Experience
Download resume
IAG Loyalty (Avios)
Founded and led the design function for Alto, IAG Loyalty’s multi-brand design system, serving Avios, British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia, Vueling, and IAG Loyalty across React Web and React Native platforms. Joined as the first design hire, shaping strategy, team structure, and direction from day one.
- Achieved 44% code adoption in the system’s first year, generating 1.4M design token inserts and 409K component inserts in Figma, against a north star target of 80%.
- Delivered an estimated £9.4M in time savings in the system’s first year, based on team usage analytics and 2025 CAPEX data.
- Grew the team from sole designer to a cross-functional unit including a Lead Developer, two engineers, and a QA, with additional designers being recruited.
- Drove adoption by British Airways, a major milestone for cross-brand alignment across the IAG group.
- Established experience principles and a design framework now used by all product teams across the organisation.
- Produced the Design System Strategy and ROI Report to secure executive buy-in and ongoing investment.
Toyota Connected
Launched the beta global multi-brand design system in 90 days for next-generation Toyota and Lexus connected vehicle apps.
- Created foundational design tokens for colour, theming, typography, and layout across the Toyota and Lexus brands.
- Designed and documented components and patterns in Figma and on a dedicated documentation website.
- Acted as interim design lead, supporting initial strategy and the hiring of a permanent lead.
- Drove adoption across the business and provided ongoing support to designers.
BT Group
Led design for the EE design system, saving an estimated £15M yearly for the organisation.
- Contributed to growing the team from three to twenty; helped set vision, strategy, principles, and processes.
- Supported a community of 800+ users across BT Group, regularly reviewing product team work and presenting at internal events to drive adoption.
- Created foundational design tokens for colour, theming, typography, and layout.
- Designed and documented components and patterns.
- Collaborated with internal brand teams and agency partners.
- Awarded first prize at the BT GAAD Awards for contributions to accessible design.
- Designed and documented core components, patterns, and design tokens for the EE design system.
- Contributed to foundational token architecture for colour, typography, and layout across the EE brand.
Three
- Ran user research and created a web prototype to help call centre staff sell accessories over the phone; the prototype generated £50,000 in its first month and was progressed to full development.
- Researched and designed an in-retail solution to improve staff and customer experience when choosing tariffs and products.
- Contributed to the design system that was in development.
Dyson
Line managed three UX designers, oversaw two Deloitte-embedded designers, and mentored ten UI designers.
- Led UX research and design across high-profile campaigns and website optimisations, in collaboration with analytics teams.
- Organised, conducted, and presented user research including interviews, moderated testing, and card sorting.
- Won budget and introduced tools to enable teams to self-serve unmoderated research; ran workshops and advocated for UX research across the organisation.
Dyson
- Six-month end-to-end project attributed £150,000+ revenue at launch and continually enhanced until discontinued in 2022.
- Researched and designed an iOS app for global business development managers, featuring interactive 3D demos, product breakdowns, videos, and case studies.
- Conducted user interviews, observational studies, card sorting, and tree testing; produced journey maps and wireframes before full UI and prototypes.
- Contributed to hiring an in-house iOS engineer, enabling faster delivery at half the cost of an external provider.
Freelance
Worked on various small web and app projects while studying with the Interaction Design Foundation, mentored by and shadowing a senior user researcher in Bristol.