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www.figma.com/blog/engineering

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figma3 min readCurated summary

How to pair design (and convince your boss to invest in it) | Figma Blog

Design pairing is a collaborative practice in which two designers synchronously solve the same problem, rather than splitting a project into separate tasks. One designer drives the design while thinking aloud, and the other navigates by observing, asking questions, and identifying edge cases. The approach can improve design quality, accelerate feedback and knowledge sharing, reduce meetings and documentation, and strengthen team morale. ## What Design Pairing Means - Two people work on the same design problem at the same time. - It differs from “divide and conquer,” where designers independently handle separate parts of a project. - Pairing can be applied to tasks such as designing a signup flow, exploring ideas, or refining a user experience. ## Common Pairing Styles - **Generator and synthesizer:** One designer produces many ideas while the other organizes them into a coherent UX flow. - **Lead and support:** A more experienced designer leads while another develops skills through participation. - **Screenshare pairing:** Adapted from pair programming, with designers collaborating directly in the same file. ## Structuring a Pairing Session - Set up shared access to the same design file; tools like Figma enable real-time multiplayer collaboration. - Assign two roles: - **Driver:** Controls the file and performs the design work while explaining decisions aloud. - **Navigator:** Observes without editing and asks constructive questions about patterns, user confusion, and potential edge cases. - The navigator should raise questions rather than criticize, bringing critique and future user feedback into the design process immediately. ## Practical Tips - Agree on the problem before starting, using sketching or inspiration gathering to establish shared context. - Decide who will drive and navigate. - Set a session length, whether it is 10 minutes, a day, or a week. - Take breaks because sustained collaboration can be tiring. - Switch roles so both designers practice driving and navigating. - Use supportive improv principles: build on ideas first and defer rejection when possible. - Normalize the vulnerability of having someone watch you work. - End with a brief retrospective about what worked and what felt uncomfortable. ## Making the Business Case Although pairing appears to use two designers on one task, it can make the overall process more efficient by: - Providing immediate, contextual feedback. - Reducing distractions and later critique cycles. - Sharing knowledge faster and reducing documentation and meetings. - Producing more ideas and uncovering more errors, bugs, and edge cases. - Keeping design files more organized. - Increasing confidence in design decisions. - Improving team morale, which can further improve the quality of the work. Teams should experiment with short pairing sessions, evaluate the results, and expand the practice where it improves speed, quality, and collaboration.

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FigmaUser ExperienceSketchDesign Critique+2
figma2 min readCurated summary

Inside Figma: the product design team’s process | Figma Blog

Figma’s product design team uses deliberate rituals and meeting cadences to maintain connection, consistency, and a high quality bar across designers embedded in different product areas. The article distinguishes the horizontal design-team culture from the vertical product-team culture, arguing that both require investment. Its processes are intended as adaptable examples rather than prescriptions, especially during the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic. ## Two overlapping team cultures - Designers belong to both: - A **horizontal design team**, which supports consistency, craft, and shared quality standards. - A **vertical product team**, which focuses on shipping improvements and building expertise in a product area. - As companies grow, designers tend to move from close collaboration across the whole design team into specialized product-area groups. - Figma, with around 10 product designers, was encouraging designers to prioritize relationships with product teams while relying on design-team processes for alignment and community. ## Process during the pandemic - The article was written during COVID-19, when remote work and personal disruption affected productivity and morale. - Design leadership encouraged people to make space for mental health and acknowledged that output might fall significantly. - Regular collaboration became especially valuable because it helped replace some of the social connection normally created in an office. - The author cautions teams not to adopt new rituals automatically; each organization should decide whether it has the capacity for process changes. ## Weekly processes ### Monday warm-up - **Participants:** Product designers, with optional participation from research and brand team members. - **Schedule:** Mondays, 9:30–10:00 a.m. Pacific Time. - **Purpose:** Start the week with a light, social activity rather than immediately focusing on work. - The 30-minute meeting includes a “weekend update” segment lasting roughly five to ten minutes, along with additional activities designed to help the team reconnect. ## Scope of the article - The post focuses on **design-team processes**, not the broader product-development process. - It covers recurring weekly activities, monthly and quarterly rituals, and practical advice for designing team activities. - Product roadmapping, product-team collaboration, hiring, and design critiques are treated in other Figma resources. Figma’s approach emphasizes creating intentional, repeatable moments for connection while keeping the process flexible. Teams should adapt these rituals to their size, structure, working environment, and the personal needs of their members.

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FigmaProduct DesignUser ResearchRemote Collaboration+1
figma2 min readCurated summary

Figma’s Series D round | Figma Blog

Figma announced a $50 million Series D funding round on April 30, 2020, led by Peter Levine and Marc Andreessen of Andreessen Horowitz. The company planned to use the funding to strengthen its collaborative design and prototyping platform while expanding into broader visual communication and creativity tools. The announcement also highlighted Figma’s growing relevance as remote work accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. ## Funding and Investors - The Series D round raised **$50 million**. - It was led by **Peter Levine and Marc Andreessen at a16z**. - Existing investors—including **Index, Greylock, KPCB, Sequoia, and Founders Fund**—also participated. - New participants included **Henry Ellenbogen of Durable Capital** and several angel investors. ## Expanding Uses for Figma - Figma reported increased engagement as work and home life became more digitally connected. - Customers were using the platform beyond interface design for: - Visual whiteboarding - Diagramming - Slide creation - Virtual design sprints - City-building projects - Minecraft skin creation - These examples supported Figma’s broader vision of making design accessible to everyone, including non-designers. ## Planned Use of the Capital - Figma intended to invest further in its core design and prototyping platform. - Priorities included making the product more: - Powerful - Reliable - Collaborative - The company also planned to explore dedicated products for new visual communication and creativity use cases. - Figma viewed the shift toward remote collaboration as an opportunity to accelerate this work. ## Hiring and Company Mission - Figma continued hiring to support its expansion. - Its long-term mission remained making design accessible to a wider audience through web-based collaborative tools. Figma’s Series D funding was positioned as both an investment in its core collaborative design product and a step toward becoming a broader platform for visual communication.

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FigmaPrototypingCollaborative DesignWeb Design+2
figma2 min readCurated summary

Bridge design and development with the new Zeplin integration | Figma Blog

Figma and Zeplin introduced a redesigned native plugin to improve design-to-development handoff. The integration lets teams export Figma frames, components, colors, and text styles directly to Zeplin, where developers can generate specs, assets, and code snippets. Rebuilt for better performance and maintainability, it addresses issues with large files and high-resolution exports while opening the door to automatic component updates. ## A Growing Design-to-Development Workflow - Zeplin provides advanced handoff features and acts as a bridge between designers and developers. - The original Figma integration launched before Figma officially launched. - More than 300,000 Figma files were exported to Zeplin each month, with usage increasing by 30–40% during the shift to remote work. ## Rebuilt as a Native Plugin - The second-generation integration was rebuilt from the ground up as a native Figma plugin. - This creates a more seamless export experience for users. - It also makes the integration easier for Zeplin to maintain and extend with new features. - Performance problems affecting large Figma files, frames, and export resolutions were addressed. ## Exporting Designs and Generating Handoff Materials - Users can export: - Frames - Components - Color styles - Text styles - In Zeplin, product teams can automatically generate: - Accurate design specifications - Assets - Code snippets - Exported assets can also appear directly in Zeplin style guides. ## Future Possibilities - Figma’s web-based architecture offers advantages over integrations with other design tools. - Zeplin was exploring automatic synchronization, allowing changes to Figma components to be pushed to Zeplin without manual exports. - Users could install the plugin through the Figma Community, and Figma customers were offered three free months of Zeplin’s Organization plan. The new plugin is recommended for teams seeking a faster, more reliable handoff between Figma and development, especially when working with large files or shared design systems.

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FigmaDeveloper ToolsZeplinDesign Handoff+2
figma2 min readCurated summary

Bringing Figma to even more classrooms | Figma Blog

Figma expanded its Figma for Education program in response to the growing need for remote teaching during COVID-19. The program now supports online courses, bootcamps, school-sponsored hackathons, and other virtual or informal classrooms—not just accredited degree programs. Its goal is to make collaborative design education accessible to more learners. ## Expanding Eligibility Beyond Traditional Institutions - Figma had previously offered free access and discounts to students and educators at accredited institutions. - More than 100,000 people worldwide were already using Figma in classrooms. - The expanded program now includes: - Online courses - Bootcamps - School-sponsored hackathons - Other in-person and virtual learning environments - This broader eligibility supports students pursuing degrees, changing careers, improving their skills, or simply learning about design. ## Supporting Remote Classrooms - The shift to remote education created significant challenges for educators and students. - Figma worked with educators such as Miguel Cardona of RIT and Students Who Design to publish teaching materials and guidance for organizing online classes. - These resources cover onboarding students, structuring files, teaching remotely, and providing project feedback. ## Benefits of the Education Plan Applicants accepted into the program receive: - A free Education plan with Professional-level features. - Unlimited editors, files, and projects. - Classroom-focused templates and other teaching resources. - Access to a community of educators and students. - Invitations to virtual events and meetups. ## Collaborative Design Learning - Figma emphasizes that its browser-based, collaborative workflow fits naturally with how students already work together online. - UC Berkeley professor Eric Paulos highlighted the platform’s ability to bring rich online collaboration into visual design education. - The program reflects Figma’s broader mission of making design more accessible. Educators and students can apply for an Education plan through Figma’s education program, while feedback and ideas are welcomed through the dedicated education team.

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FigmaUser ExperienceRemote CollaborationHuman Computer Interaction+2
figma2 min readCurated summary

The case for lightweight prototyping | Figma Blog

Lightweight prototypes do not need to be polished to be valuable. Figma argues that early, informal prototypes accelerate feedback, clarify communication, expose technical constraints, and reduce wasted effort. The best prototype is often the one shared early enough to influence the final product. ## Why Lightweight Prototypes Matter - Prototypes support more than formal usability testing: - They communicate a product vision. - They help collaborators and stakeholders respond to work in progress. - They encourage early course correction before changes become expensive. - High fidelity is not always necessary; an informal prototype can be more useful than a polished one if it prompts meaningful feedback. ## Testing Copy and Content - A prototype reveals whether headers, body text, and buttons work together coherently. - It helps identify: - Unclear calls to action - Inconsistent terminology - Mismatched writing styles or tone - Reviewing copy in context is especially useful when multiple people contribute UX writing or microcopy, even before a formal style guide exists. ## Adding Context for Developers - Sharing early prototypes with developers can expose: - Feasibility problems - Technical roadblocks - Areas requiring further exploration - Prototypes are blueprints rather than finished implementations, so additional context helps developers understand the intended experience and bring the design to life accurately. ## Communicating Interactions - Even simple prototypes should clearly map user paths and interactions. - Specifying behaviors such as **On Click**, **On Drag**, and **While Hovering** makes the intended experience easier to understand. - Explicit interactions lead to more accurate feedback and more effective testing. ## Using Figma for Internal Communication Figma also uses prototypes as a communication medium, particularly for remote collaboration. - **All-hands meetings:** Team members add presentation slides directly to a shared master Figma file. - **Information sharing:** Teams use Presentation View for quarterly plans, research findings, and remote-collaboration ideas. - **Customer conversations:** Sales teams send prototype URLs instead of static PDFs, enabling customers to click through presentations and view animated elements such as GIFs. - **Events:** Figma speakers use Figma files and Presentation View to build and deliver conference presentations. Lightweight prototyping is most effective when it is shared early, includes enough interaction detail to convey intent, and provides the surrounding context that collaborators need. Teams should treat prototypes as flexible communication tools—not merely as final-stage testing artifacts.

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FigmaDesign SystemsUser ExperiencePrototyping+2
figma2 min readCurated summary

How Inneract Project empowers brown and black designers | Figma Blog

Inneract Project, founded in 2004 by Maurice Woods, introduces Black and brown students to design as a path for creative expression, community impact, and future careers. Its curriculum evolved from hands-on paper exercises to professional digital design training as students’ interests shifted toward UX/UI. Figma became especially valuable because its browser-based, free-to-start platform removed cost and access barriers while enabling collaboration and continued practice outside the classroom. ## Building a Foundation Through Hands-On Design - Early courses avoided software and hardware, emphasizing critical and creative thinking through paper-based activities. - As students requested more formal training, Inneract developed **Pathway to Design**, a curriculum for students as young as middle school. - The program initially focused on graphic design, then introduced professional software and hardware. - Expensive licenses and limited equipment often meant students had to share computers. ## Finding Figma - As the industry moved toward mobile apps and interfaces, Inneract updated its curriculum to teach UX/UI design. - Figma was free to get started, reducing financial barriers for students and the program. - Its beginner-friendly tools were also relevant to professional design workplaces. - Because Figma runs in a browser, students could access their files from libraries, schools, and other public computers. - Students practiced outside class more easily, accelerating their skills. - Collaborative Figma projects expanded opportunities to work with classmates, volunteers, and community partners. ## Student Growth and Real-World Projects - Inneract offers workshops, multi-day courses, hackathons, company partnerships, and an expanding student community. - Students have pursued design education and careers, including graphic design and design research. - Student projects address practical community needs: - Sierra designed a more usable walker concept for elderly people and created a music-focused mobile app. - Noah developed an ad campaign supporting homeless youth and created a zine about Oakland graffiti and street art. - Leigh created posters and graphics for her high school before studying graphic design. - The projects demonstrate how early design education can build confidence, creativity, and an interest in solving real-world problems. Inneract’s experience shows that accessible tools, combined with early mentorship and community-focused projects, can help underrepresented students envision and pursue careers in design.

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FigmaGraphic DesignMobile AppsWireframing+2
figma2 min readCurated summary

11 activities in Figma for your classroom | Figma Blog

Figma’s collaborative, browser-based workflow makes it well suited to hands-on design education. This post presents classroom activities that help students learn Figma while practicing visual design, research, geometry, prototyping, and collaboration. The exercises range from beginner icebreakers to intermediate component and illustration projects, with duplicateable files for educators. ## Getting Started with Figma - **Student trading cards** - An introductory activity combining class introductions with basic Figma practice. - Students create social-media-style profiles using Auto Layout and components. - Working in one shared file exposes students to classmates’ processes and styles. - A gallery page can showcase the finished cards. - **Level:** Beginner - **Features:** Auto Layout, Multiplayer Editing - **Make a heart** - Students create and customize a heart using the Pen Tool, Layout Grid, and the Properties panel. - The exercise builds familiarity with foundational drawing and layout tools. - An optional challenge uses Smart Animate to make the heart pulse. - **Level:** Beginner - **Features:** Pen Tool, Properties Panel, Layout Grid ## Exploring Form, Geometry, and Research - **Figma tangrams** - Students use the seven-piece tangram puzzle to explore geometry and form. - Prompts include creating recognizable animals and experimenting with abstract shapes. - A more advanced version asks students to research and build their own reusable puzzle sets. - **Level:** Beginner - **Features:** Components, rotation, alignment - **Design research paper** - Students visualize research findings in a compelling, readable format. - The class builds a collaborative library of articles that peers can read and comment on. - Reviewing the collection encourages discussion about visual hierarchy and communication design. - **Level:** Beginner - **Features:** Layout Grids, Keyboard Shortcuts ## Practicing Components and Collaboration - **Chat windows** - Students design reusable chat components for conversations and visual feedback. - The activity emphasizes customization and creating components useful in future collaborative work. - **Level:** Intermediate - **Feature:** Auto Layout - **Collaborative illustrations with constraints** - Students work together to create a consistent system of illustrations or icons. - Shared constraints—such as a bespoke geometric grid and limited color palette—encourage cohesion and creative problem-solving. - Peer support and critique are central to the exercise. - **Level:** Intermediate Educators can adapt these activities to their students’ experience levels and duplicate the accompanying Figma community files. Together, they provide a practical progression from basic tool literacy to structured collaboration and reusable design systems.

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FigmaUser InterfaceCollaborative DesignAuto Layout+2
figma2 min readCurated summary

Figma + Lambda School: Where the remote classroom comes together to learn | Figma Blog

Figma’s collaboration features help Lambda School recreate the engagement and hands-on interaction of an in-person design classroom online. Students learn through shared presentations, live design work, peer feedback, and visible iteration rather than passively watching lectures. Because their work remains organized in Figma, the same files also support portfolio creation and continued peer learning. ## Interactive, Collaborative Lessons - Lambda School is a nine-month, live online program offering training in web development, mobile development, data science, and UX design. - Instructors present lessons in Figma during video conferences, allowing students to: - Zoom into designs and examine details. - Scroll through examples independently. - Use visible cursors to follow specific points in a presentation. - Students create and refine designs directly in shared Figma files. - Everyone can observe work in progress, learn from classmates, provide feedback, and remix existing designs. - This mirrors the collaborative workflows students will encounter on professional design teams. ## Real-Time and Asynchronous Feedback - Students and instructors can comment, tap each other for input, and work together in the same file. - Open audio, browser-based editing, and comments let students collaborate without constantly interrupting one another. - Students can work independently while classmates observe, take notes, or leave comments for later review. - When needed, an instructor or peer can join in and directly adjust pixels alongside the student. - Voting tools, such as stars, also encourage students to recognize and respond to one another’s work. ## A Lasting Record for Portfolios - Figma automatically preserves students’ designs, revisions, and project history. - This makes it easier to assemble a professional portfolio without searching through scattered files. - Students can focus more on interviews and career preparation while still presenting their development process. - Classmates’ work remains accessible after lessons, creating an ongoing resource for inspiration and learning. - The approach supports Lambda School’s broader career mission, which includes coaching, mentors, and connections to hiring partners. Figma’s use at Lambda School demonstrates how collaborative design tools can make remote education interactive, social, and career-oriented. Programs teaching practical creative skills can benefit from combining live instruction with shared workspaces that preserve feedback, iteration, and student progress.

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FigmaUser ExperienceCollaborative DesignWeb Development+3
figma2 min readCurated summary

Look no further: New ways to search and provide context in Figma | Figma Blog

Figma’s 2020 updates aimed to make collaborative design work easier to discover and understand. Universal Search lets users find projects, teams, people, plugins, and files without relying only on file names. Links in the editor let designers connect pages, frames, and external documents, making files easier to navigate and providing more project context. ## Universal Search - Figma introduced workspace-wide search to address the difficulty of finding work as teams and content grow. - Users can search for: - Files - Projects - Teams - People - Private plugins - Results appear across categories as users type and can be filtered by category. - For users in the Figma Community beta, results also include community files, publishers, and plugins. - The feature builds on Figma’s shift toward organizing work around people, teams, and projects rather than only folders and file names. ## Links for Navigation and Context - Designers can add links to any page or frame within a Figma file. - Internal links can support navigation aids such as: - Clickable tables of contents - Indexes of design explorations - Pointers to the latest designs or early concepts - External links can connect designs to product requirement documents, specifications, user research, personas, and other project resources. - This allows a Figma file to serve as a central source of truth rather than an isolated design artifact. Together, Universal Search and Links make Figma workspaces easier to search and design files easier to navigate. Teams can spend less time locating assets and more time collaborating with the context needed to make informed decisions.

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FigmaDesign CollaborationPluginsWeb Applications+1
figma2 min readCurated summary

Research, remotely | Figma Blog

Remote research requires more than transferring in-person methods to video calls; it demands empathy, clear guidance, and intentional collaboration. Figma’s research team recommends adapting participant communication, limiting observers, documenting sessions, and using shared virtual boards to synthesize findings. Remote work also creates opportunities to reach people who would otherwise be difficult to interview in person. ## Lead with User Empathy - Recognize that participants may be facing personal or professional difficulties and may not be ready to participate. - Be willing to pause or slow research when the situation calls for it. - Avoid assuming participants are comfortable with video-conferencing tools. - Send preparation materials and detailed instructions explaining how to join the call and what the session will involve. ## Keep the Research Team Involved - Limit live participants to essential roles, such as a facilitator and note-taker, since too many observers can make participants uncomfortable. - Record interviews only after obtaining permission; recordings preserve tone and context that written notes may miss. - Hold post-session debriefs with the full research team, including people who did not attend the interview. - Share recorded status updates in Slack to communicate interview progress, emerging findings, project materials, and outstanding sessions. ## Use a Virtual Research Board Figma’s team uses shared boards to collect and synthesize research remotely. A useful board can include: - **Research questions:** The study’s goals and questions to answer. - **Participants:** Participant profiles, roles, images, and notable quotes. - **Theme board:** Grouped notes showing patterns across interviews. - **Open questions:** Issues requiring further investigation. - **Next steps:** Specific follow-up sessions, analysis, or team discussions. ## Take Advantage of Remote Research - Remote sessions can reach participants who live far from a company’s headquarters or outside typical in-person recruiting areas. - Although remote research introduces technical and interpersonal challenges, it can broaden access to geographically diverse audiences. Remote research works best when teams prioritize participant comfort, provide unusually clear instructions, and maintain shared documentation. Use remote tools not merely as substitutes for in-person work, but as a way to expand who can participate and how findings are shared.

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FigmaSlackUser ResearchUsability Testing+2
figma2 min readCurated summary

Building on our open platform: Design in Figma, prototype with Framer | Figma Blog

Figma argues that design tools should remain open, allowing users to move their data across products rather than becoming locked into one platform. Its new Framer Web integration lets teams design collaboratively in Figma and import files into Framer for more advanced, expressive prototypes. The announcement reinforces Figma’s broader strategy of building an ecosystem around APIs, plugins, and integrations. ## An Open Platform for Flexible Workflows - Figma has prioritized data portability since its founding. - Its web-based platform and APIs allow developers to access and use Figma data in external tools. - Customers have used the API to build internal tooling, create plugins, and even use Figma as a content management system. - Figma also launched an API challenge to encourage a Sketch exporter, but withdrew it after community feedback that it resembled unpaid “spec work.” ## Supporting Specialized Design Tools - Figma recognizes that although some teams use it for the entire design process, others prefer specialized tools. - Partners such as Zeplin provide alternative approaches to developer handoff. - Figma’s position is that no single product should try to serve every workflow; an ecosystem of complementary tools can fill specialized needs. ## Importing Figma Designs into Framer - The new Framer Web integration allows users to import Figma files directly into Framer Web. - Teams can collaborate on design in Figma, then use Framer to build richer and more expressive prototypes. - Framer Web was in beta at the time, with access available through a waitlist and setup instructions provided in Figma’s documentation. ## Broader Integrations - Figma planned to launch additional integrations throughout the year. - Prototyping and user testing: Flinto, Principle, ProtoPie, and Maze. - Developer handoff: Avocode, Storybook, ZeroHeight, and Zeplin. - Collaboration and project workflows: Coda, Dribbble, Dropbox, Jira, Notion, Slack, and Trello. Figma’s recommendation is implicit: use Figma as a collaborative design foundation while choosing the best external tools for prototyping, testing, handoff, and project management.

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FigmaPrototypingDesign CollaborationFigma Plugins+3
figma2 min readCurated summary

Keeping that tight-knit feeling, at a distance | Figma Blog

Figma argues that remote work requires more than moving meetings online: teams must intentionally recreate the informal interactions that build trust and community. Its approach combines aligned leadership, recurring social rituals, playful meeting practices, and collaborative activities in Figma. The goal is to preserve connection and morale even when colleagues cannot share an office. ## Keeping the Team Close - Remote work removes spontaneous interactions such as coffee breaks, shared meals, and hallway conversations. - Teams should preserve these moments deliberately rather than treating them as unnecessary. - Meetings that could be replaced by email or Slack can still provide valuable opportunities to check in socially. ## Coordinating Leaders - Figma’s CEO brought managers together to brainstorm ways to maintain team cohesion. - Leaders shared practices such as daily morning check-ins and virtual coffees. - A dedicated Slack channel lets managers exchange ideas, articles, and resources. - Individual teams can choose different approaches while maintaining a shared sense of collective responsibility. ## Creating Moments of Joy - Figma organizes optional workouts, pet-owner meetups, and other informal gatherings. - Zoom chat is used to applaud presenters, add comments, and ask questions. - All Hands meetings end with everyone briefly turning on video to see one another. - Biweekly “Show and Tell” sessions let employees share work, stories, or personal interests. - The company introduced playful elements such as sharing favorite Zoom backgrounds. - Daily Slack prompts encourage upbeat conversation, including recommendations for weekend television. - Donut pairs employees with one or two random colleagues for informal conversations. - Coworkers have adapted walking one-on-ones into Zoom or FaceTime walks. ## Collaborative Activities in Figma - **Figma Tennis:** Participants volley images back and forth, building on each other’s designs. - **Trash Dinosaur:** Teams collaboratively assemble a dinosaur from five virtual pieces of trash. - **Virtual bookshelf:** Colleagues display favorite or currently read books. - **Word-guessing game:** A Pictionary-style activity tests drawing and guessing skills. - These activities can stand alone or be used as short, energizing additions to regular meetings. Teams working remotely should intentionally schedule informal connection, support leaders in sharing successful practices, and make room for playful collaborative experiences—not just task-focused calls.

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FigmaSlackRemote CollaborationZoom+2
figma2 min readCurated summary

How Students Who Design set up Figma in their online classroom | Figma Blog

Students Who Design uses Figma as the central workspace for running an online product-design course. Its system combines personal onboarding, shared file organization, reusable UI templates, recorded lectures, hands-on assignments, and asynchronous instructor feedback. The approach helps students work independently while allowing instructors to monitor progress and provide guidance in a shared environment. ## Pre-Class Setup - Students create free personal Figma accounts and familiarize themselves with the editor before class begins. - Instructors invite students to the Students Who Design team as editors. - Lectures are stored in the shared workspace, with Loom recordings providing audio narration for self-paced learning. - Projects and naming conventions organize instructor materials, sponsorship work, brand assets, and student files. - Each student creates a Master Figma file using the naming format `Intro DPD: Name`, making work easy to locate and manage. ## Teaching Through Hands-On Projects - The three-week course centers on improving Messenger: - Research and design principles - A class-wide brainstorm to prioritize feature improvements - An individual high-fidelity user flow - Students watch recorded lectures and complete assignments on weekly deadlines. - Each student duplicates a master file containing a UI kit and Messenger building blocks, reducing setup time and keeping work consistent. - Students use Pages to document their process, with recommended organization including: - Numbered pages for easy scanning - Titles describing the design stage or page contents - Dedicated areas for exploration, inspiration, and revisions - Because students work in one file throughout the course, they can create and share Figma prototypes directly with instructors. ## Monitoring Progress and Providing Feedback - Figma lets instructors enter student files remotely and review progress without being physically present. - Viewing individual pages makes it easy to identify completed assignments and ongoing explorations. - Critique and feedback are treated as essential parts of the course, particularly for beginners. - The shared workspace supports asynchronous review while keeping student work, prototypes, and course materials connected. The recommended model is to establish a clear workspace structure before class, give students reusable templates, and keep all project development in one organized Figma file. This creates a flexible online classroom where students can learn at their own pace while instructors maintain visibility and provide timely design feedback.

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FigmaPrototypingUser InterfaceOnline Learning+2
figma3 min readCurated summary

How to run a remote brainstorm | Figma Blog

Figma argues that remote brainstorming requires more deliberate structure than in-person sessions, especially when teams can no longer rely on spontaneous huddles or whiteboards. Clear goals, shared tools, advance preparation, and smaller breakout groups help remote participants contribute more comfortably and creatively. The central recommendation is to preserve space for ideas while adding enough organization to keep the session focused. ## Why Remote Brainstorms Are Different - Fully distributed teams lose many informal collaboration habits, such as quick conference-room discussions. - Brainstorms require more creative energy than routine status meetings. - Uncertainty and remote-work challenges can make it harder for people to generate and share ideas. - Remote sessions therefore need both structure and room for exploration. ## Preparing the Session ### Define the Goal - Decide whether the session should produce many new ideas or refine a few existing options. - Tailor the level and type of input requested to the project’s current phase. - Communicate the goal clearly so participants understand how they can contribute. ### Set Up the Tools - **Video conferencing:** Put the call link in the calendar invite and encourage cameras where possible to create stronger personal connection. - **Shared Figma file:** Create one central workspace with edit access for all participants. - Use separate pages or frames for different themes. - Share a dedicated brainstorming file rather than relying on scattered documents. - **Chat channel:** For ongoing work, create a Slack channel for updates, notes, and follow-up feedback. - Add the working-document link to the channel topic for easy access. ### Share Materials in Advance - Send the brainstorming file the night before or the morning of the session. - Explain what the group should accomplish. - Add initial ideas or questions for participants to review and develop. - Allow people to ask questions privately or leave comments in the file before the meeting. ## Running the Brainstorm ### Start with Context and Guardrails - Restate the goal and explain what kind of help is needed. - Expect the conversation to go off track; enthusiasm can be a positive sign. - Create a “Parking lot” in the shared document for relevant but out-of-scope ideas to revisit later. ### Use Structured Exercises and Small Groups - Structured activities are generally more effective than completely freeform discussion when everyone is remote. - Divide participants into groups of two or three during video calls. - Smaller groups make it easier for quieter people to participate. - They also reduce technical and communication problems. - In each group, appoint a lead to report key takeaways to the wider team. - Share the Figma file on screen or have participants follow along using Observation mode. - Use video-conferencing breakout rooms when available. A successful remote brainstorm combines thoughtful preparation with a collaborative shared workspace. Teams should define the desired outcome, distribute materials early, use small-group exercises, and capture tangential ideas without letting them derail the main discussion.

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FigmaSlackRemote CollaborationBrainstorming+2