Design engineer. UX engineer. Front-end dev with opinions. What does it all mean?! In this episode, we sit down with Dave Darnes to untangle the ever-evolving world of design and development (And Dave is our first non-Font Awesomer on the pod!). We talk about why job titles keep getting weirder, whether "engineer" is a fair title for folks who work on the web, and how design systems can bridge the gap between teams. Plus, we explore the future of the role — will tools like Figma and AI replace design engineers, or will the internet always need humans who can actually build things?
🚀 Tune in for a fun, insightful, and slightly existential conversation about the intersection of design, dev, and the titles we give ourselves.
🏆 Key Takeaways
- Design Engineer: Job Title or Existential Crisis? Dave breaks down the blurry line between design and development and why this role exists.
- Gatekeeping vs. Open Web: How the internet has democratized career paths—and why some job titles might be a shield against skepticism.
- The Future of Design & Dev: Will tools like Figma and AI squeeze out design engineers, or is there always a place for people who build with craft?
- Design Systems & Developer Relations: Why advocacy (not nagging) makes or breaks adoption.
- Rockstar/Ninja/Unicorn Titles: Just ... don’t.
⏱️ Episode Breakdown
🕛 00:00 - Meet Dave Darnes – 🇬🇧 UK-based designer/developer, father of sick children (but still here for the podcast).
🎤 02:30 - The Legendary "David Darnes" Callout – A completely necessary and extremely fun moment of podcast magic.
🛠️ 06:45 - What is a Design Engineer Anyway? – The Venn diagram of design and development overlaps in weird ways.
📛 12:15 - Why Job Titles Get Messy – Specialization vs. generalization and the need to impress hiring managers.
🏗️ 18:30 - Engineer as a Title — Does It Matter? – Structural engineers hold up buildings; do web engineers hold up the internet? (Kinda, yeah.)
🔄 24:00 - The Evolution of Design & Dev Roles – How web components, CSS variables, and other tech are shifting expectations.
🥕 30:45 - How to Get People to Actually Use a Design System – Hint: Be more carrot, less stick.
🤖 35:00 - The Battle Between Figma & AI – Will design engineers survive the encroaching automation?
🔄 40:30 - If You Had to Rename 'Design Engineer'... – Dave's answer is almost annoyingly simple.
🔗 Resources & Links
- Check out Dave’s work: https://darn.es/
- His blog on design systems: designsystems.wtf
- Is 2025 the Year of the "Design Engineer"?
- Submit your own “David Darnes” callout on his website (seriously, do it).
- 🎶 The Podcast Awesome theme song was composed by Ronnie Martin: https://ronniemartin.org/
- 🎵 Music interstitials by Zach Malm: https://muzach.bandcamp.com/
- 🎛️ Audio mastering by Chris Enns at Lemon Productions: https://www.lemonproductions.ca/
- "After School Keyboard Club" https://pixabay.com/music/video-games-after-school-keyboard-club-casio-vl-tone-80s-chiptune-retro-151684/
- Font Awesome on the Socials
- 🌤️ Bluesky: @fontawesome.com
- 🐦 Twitter/X: @fontawesome
- 📸 Instagram: @font.awesome
Stay up to date on all the Font Awesomeness!
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
Ridiculous History
History is beautiful, brutal and, often, ridiculous. Join Ben Bowlin and Noel Brown as they dive into some of the weirdest stories from across the span of human civilization in Ridiculous History, a podcast by iHeartRadio.