Empowering teams at Nordstrom to create high-quality, on-brand video at scale.
Overview
At Nordstrom, demand for video content was growing faster than our team could support. Business partners across HR, leadership, and internal communications needed timely, high-quality video, but traditional production workflows created bottlenecks and inconsistent results. I led the creation of a Video Self-Service System—an end-to-end framework that enables employees to concept, film, and produce impactful, on-brand videos using approved tools and clear guidance. This evolved beyond a simple toolkit into a scalable system grounded in UX principles and design systems thinking, ensuring consistency, quality, and accessibility across the organization.
The Problem
As video became a critical communication tool, the gap between demand and production capacity widened. Teams either waited too long for support or created content on their own that lacked polish and brand alignment. There were no shared standards for visual identity, motion, typography, or storytelling, which led to inconsistent experiences across content. More importantly, users didn’t know where to start, what tools to use, or what “good” looked like. The result was a fragmented ecosystem of video content that didn’t reflect the Nordstrom brand or meet the expectations of a premium experience.
The Goal
The goal was to create a scalable system that empowers anyone at Nordstrom to produce high-quality, on-brand video independently. This meant simplifying the process from idea to execution, providing clear guidance on tools and standards, and reducing reliance on the core creative team—without sacrificing quality. The system needed to be intuitive, accessible to non-creatives, and robust enough to maintain consistency across a wide range of use cases.
My Approach
I approached this as both a UX and systems design challenge. Rather than focusing solely on content creation, I focused on designing an experience that removes friction and builds confidence for the user. I started by identifying key user groups and understanding their pain points—primarily a lack of clarity, confidence, and consistency. From there, I developed a simplified A-to-Z workflow that mirrors a traditional production process but is adapted for accessibility and scale. This included planning templates, clear filming guidance, structured editing workflows, and defined delivery standards. Each step was intentionally designed to guide users forward without overwhelming them.
Design System Integration
To ensure the system could scale while maintaining brand integrity, I introduced a Video Design System as a foundational layer. This system defined the visual language, including typography, color usage, layout structure, and safe zones, as well as motion principles such as transitions, pacing, and animation style. It also established repeatable content patterns for common formats like leadership messages, training videos, and event recaps. Component-based templates were created to allow users to assemble videos using pre-defined structures, ensuring consistency while still allowing flexibility. This design system transformed self-service from a loose set of tools into a cohesive, brand-aligned experience.
The Toolkit
The system was delivered through a centralized Video Toolkit designed for ease of use and quick adoption. It included simple, visual filming guides, editing templates aligned to the design system, captioning standards to support accessibility, and equipment recommendations ranging from basic to advanced setups. Real examples of successful videos were also included to provide a clear reference point for quality. Every element of the toolkit was designed to reduce decision fatigue and empower users to move forward with confidence.
Impact
The Video Self-Service System significantly reduced dependency on the core creative team while increasing the speed and volume of content creation across business units. It improved the baseline quality of self-produced video and established a shared visual and motion language across the organization. Most importantly, it enabled teams to communicate more effectively and efficiently while staying aligned with the Nordstrom brand. The system shifted the role of the creative team from content producers to system designers, allowing us to scale our impact without scaling headcount.
Key Takeaways
This work reinforced that self-service only succeeds when quality is built into the system itself. Design systems are not limited to product design—they are equally powerful in scaling content creation. By simplifying the process and embedding standards into the workflow, users gain confidence and autonomy while the organization benefits from consistency and efficiency. Ultimately, the success of the system came from treating it as a user experience problem, not just a content problem.
My Role
I led the strategy, UX design, and system architecture for the Video Self-Service System. I defined the end-to-end workflow, developed the video design system, and created the supporting templates and toolkit resources. I also partnered with stakeholders across the organization to drive adoption and ensure the system met real user needs while aligning with broader business goals.