Leaf — Client Presentation System
+ Creative Direction
+ Design Systems
+ Process Innovation
+ Digital Workflow
A live, collaborative presentation system built in Figma — redefining how creative work is shared and refined with clients.
Year
2023
Client
Leaf
Website
www.leafgrow.io
Overview
When I joined Leaf, the system used to present creative work to clients felt painfully outdated. Static and video creatives were produced in Adobe Creative Suite, exported, placed into Google Slides decks, and finally turned into PDFs — a slow, rigid process that made collaboration almost impossible.
I introduced Figma as both the creative and client-facing presentation tool — shifting from static decks to a live, interactive environment.
Challenge
The biggest challenge was habitual, not technical. The creative team was deeply attached to Adobe tools — Illustrator and Photoshop were their comfort zone. Transitioning to Figma meant changing not just software, but mindset: moving from fixed outputs to living, collaborative documents.
I needed to design a system that made the shift feel natural and valuable — something that would enhance workflow without interrupting creativity. The new process had to feel familiar enough to adopt, yet innovative enough to prove its worth quickly.
Approach & Process
I built a dual-system setup within Figma — one internal, one client-facing. The internal boards supported creative development, versioning, and testing, while the external boards mirrored that structure, allowing clients to review, comment, and collaborate directly in real time.
Each presentation used predefined boards and components aligned with Leaf’s brand system. This ensured visual consistency while allowing for rapid iteration and customisation for each client. To streamline delivery, the Figma environment was linked to Google Drive so that exported assets — from static visuals to motion previews — remained synchronised and instantly accessible. Even video previews from After Effects were embedded into the same boards, giving clients a unified view of static and animated content.
In parallel, I developed a modular brand system within Figma. Logos, colour palettes, and type styles were centralised as reusable components, turning Figma into a living, adaptive brand library. Updates such as logo refinements or colour adjustments cascaded automatically across all related files, reducing manual errors and setup time.
This structure balanced freedom and control. It gave designers the space to experiment within safe brand parameters while ensuring consistency across every creative touchpoint.
Outcome
Impact & Reflection
This project became far more than a workflow upgrade — it marked a behavioural shift. The creative team had to unlearn familiar habits and embrace a new way of working. I understood that resistance — I’d lived it myself.
I’ve used Adobe tools since 2003 and still remember the moment FreeHand was discontinued. It was the first vector tool I ever used — intuitive, fluid, an extension of my thinking. Moving to Illustrator felt, at first, like losing a language. But there was no going back. You adapt, you learn, and eventually find freedom in what once felt unfamiliar.
Introducing Figma at Leaf echoed that same evolution. At first, it felt strange — then it grew on everyone. As we say in Portuguese, “Primeiro estranha-se, depois entranha-se” — first it feels strange, then it grows on you. What began as hesitation turned into enthusiasm. The team started to experiment, clients became collaborators, and the process itself felt alive.
The shift unified what had once been fragmented — design, feedback, and delivery now lived within a single, evolving ecosystem. The result was a culture of collaboration and precision: faster iteration, seamless updates, and a shared sense of ownership across designers and clients alike. It proved that design systems are not only about consistency — they’re about shaping how people work, communicate, and grow together.