An Insider’s Guide to a Seamless Figma Migration | Figma Blog (opens in new tab)

Migrating to Figma is presented as an organizational change—not merely a software switch. Success depends on careful planning, cross-functional communication, advocacy, training, and adaptation of existing workflows and cultural norms. The article argues that treating migration as a strategic investment can produce long-term gains in collaboration, transparency, and productivity.

Planning the Migration

• Begin by identifying the reasons for adopting Figma, such as:
  • Better collaboration
  • Greater transparency
  • Streamlined processes
• Treat migration as a change-management initiative involving the entire organization.
• Plan around team commitments and existing tool-expiration dates.
• Use resources such as Figma’s Migration Toolkit for guidance when moving from other design platforms.

Building a Cross-Functional Advocacy Team

• Create a core team with representatives from design, development, product management, and stakeholder groups.
• Give the team responsibility for:
  • Gathering balanced feedback
  • Configuring the Figma workspace
  • Managing communications
  • Coordinating library transfers
• Successful examples include:
  • Wells Fargo’s “Figma Jedis,” combining experts and enthusiastic users
  • Uber’s integration of Figma training with an existing design-system workshop
  • JPMorgan Chase’s advocates, nominated by leadership and cross-functional groups
• The strongest advocates are engaged, representative of different departments, and connected to existing initiatives.

Securing Organization-Wide Support

• Obtain buy-in from developers, product managers, leadership, and other stakeholders—not only designers.
• Present a clear proposal outlining the benefits and drawbacks of migration.
• Build support through:
  • Workshops and demonstrations
  • Best-practice sharing
  • Early access to libraries and components
  • Training and practical guidance
• Dropbox’s migration shows the value of sustained outreach and creative engagement, including extensive internal promotion and Figma-themed incentives.

Learning from Other Organizations

• Contact teams that have already completed large-scale migrations.
• Their experience can provide:
  • Training plans
  • Deployment playbooks
  • Cover pages and workspace conventions
  • Warnings about common mistakes
• Examples from Wells Fargo, Uber, and Dropbox demonstrate how peer advice can improve rollout planning and reduce avoidable problems.
• Large migrations benefit from studying proven approaches rather than designing every process from scratch.

Establishing a Migration Timeline

• Build a schedule that accounts for:
  • Team availability
  • Existing project commitments
  • Expiration dates for current tools
• A defined timeline helps coordinate the transition and gives teams a clear path from planning to adoption.

The practical recommendation is to manage a Figma migration as a coordinated organizational program: assemble advocates, involve every relevant function, learn from experienced teams, and create a realistic timeline before moving work and libraries.