SOP-099 — Visual direction (commission → review → approve UI/visual specs)

SOP · owner: Creative — Brand & Marketing (Creative Director). Layer: SOP/Runbook (docs/canon.md). How the Creative Director commissions, reviews, and approves visual identity, design-token, and UI design specs before they reach Engineering. The visual standard is in docs/brand/visual-identity.md + design-tokens.md (linked, not restated).

Interface Contract

Inputs: visual brief / need (UI screen, identity, tokens, thumbnail) ← from <authoring agent/unit or self> · trigger: review requested
Inputs: delivered visual artifact for sign-off ← from <Visual Designer> · trigger: brand artifact delivered
Inputs: user/audience research findings (visual preference, readability) ← from <Design Research Director> · trigger: research findings issued
Outputs: scoped visual brief → to <Visual Designer> · trigger: creative brief issued
Outputs: approved UI design spec / design-token reference → to Engineering Director · trigger: ui design spec approved
Outputs: stable visual identity / tokens added/changed → to Documentarian · trigger: document changed
Outputs: approved visual artifact → to Archivist · trigger: artifact approved
Handoff trigger (in): a visual artifact is needed, or the Visual Designer delivers one for sign-off before it goes to Engineering
Handoff trigger (out): the spec is approved and handed to Engineering to implement (ui design spec approved), or routed back with rationale
Definition of Done before handoff:
- [ ] Spec is self-sufficient — Engineering can implement without asking what was intended
- [ ] Every contrast pair documented at ≥ WCAG AA (no waived failures, JD guardrail)
- [ ] Every value is a named token mapped to a Tailwind v4 custom property (no snowflakes)
- [ ] Coherent with the existing visual record in docs/brand/
- [ ] Approved spec handed to Engineering (ui design spec approved); stable docs to the Documentarian (document changed); artifact to the Archivist (artifact approved)
- [ ] Learnings captured to docs/knowledge/ if any

creative brief issued, brand artifact delivered, ui design spec approved are proposed to Operations, pending registration (Phase 0 reports). document changed, artifact approved, research findings issued, review requested are registered. The Engineering Director consumer is an authored counterparty (Wave 2) — its SOP-054 already declares a review requested input and an artifact approved output; the ui design spec approved edge is pending until registered and named back by Engineering (interface-contract-spec.md §3.1 R3).

Purpose

Ensure every visual spec that reaches Engineering is on-system, accessible, token-based, and self-sufficient — so Engineering implements design intent without guessing, and the product’s visual identity stays coherent across screens.

When to use

When a UI screen, visual identity, design-token reference, or YouTube visual asset is needed (commission a brief), or when the Visual Designer delivers one for sign-off (brand artifact delivered) before it goes to Engineering.

Flow

flowchart LR
  A["Visual need /<br/>brand artifact delivered"] --> B["Commission brief<br/>creative brief issued"]
  B --> C["Review delivered spec<br/>contrast · tokens · coherence"]
  C --> D{"On-system &<br/>implementable?"}
  D -->|no| E["Return with<br/>rationale"]
  D -->|yes| F["ui design spec approved<br/>→ Engineering"]
  E --> B
  classDef s fill:#1d4ed8,color:#fff,stroke:#1e3a8a
  classDef d fill:#0f766e,color:#fff,stroke:#134e4a
  class A,B,C,E,F s
  class D d

Text fallback: a visual need arises or the Visual Designer delivers a spec → the Director commissions/refines the brief (creative brief issued) → reviews the delivered spec for verified contrast, named tokens, and coherence with the visual record → if on-system and implementable, emits ui design spec approved and hands it to Engineering; otherwise returns it with specific rationale.

Steps

Scope the brief. Artifact type, context, constraints (platform = Astro 6 / Tailwind v4, accessibility tier, brand direction already committed). Commission it (creative brief issued).
Review the delivered spec. Verify it is self-sufficient — Engineering can implement without asking intent.
Verify accessibility. Every contrast pair documented at ≥ WCAG AA. A failing pair is a defect — return it; do not waive as a first move.
Verify the token discipline. Every value is a named token with a Tailwind v4 custom property; no visual snowflakes.
Verify coherence. Reads as the same visual system as every other artifact in docs/brand/.
Approve and route. Emit ui design spec approved to Engineering; hand stable identity/token docs to the Documentarian (document changed) and the artifact to the Archivist (artifact approved).

Roles / approvers

Run by the Creative Director (visual sign-off authority). The Visual Designer authors the spec; the Director approves before it reaches Engineering. Director approval is first-line, not independent (README.md R11). Engineering implements from the approved spec; Engineering does not make visual decisions without the Director’s sign-off (JD seam).

Guardrails

No code. Approve and hand specs; never edit intranet/. The seam is one-way: Creative specs, Engineering implements.
Accessibility is the floor, not the aspiration — WCAG AA minimum, no first-move waivers.
No snowflakes — every value resolves to a named, reusable token.
Don’t restate the visual record — link to docs/brand/visual-identity.md / design-tokens.md.
No distribution calls (Growth) and no research (Design Research).
Personal information is PA-only.

Job aid: (the member-facing readiness checklist is JA-101, owned by the Visual Designer; no separate Director cheat-sheet adds value at this altitude, GR-4.) See also: docs/units/creative/manuals/creative-director.md · SOP-101 (the Visual Designer’s production SOP) · SOP-098 · docs/units/engineering/manuals/engineering-director.md · docs/brand/ · docs/handoff-triggers.md.