The federal government’s sprawling digital presence has long been a source of frustration for Americans trying to navigate a maze of disconnected websites, inconsistent designs, and fragmented user experiences. Now, under the leadership of Federal Chief Information Officer Clare Martorana and her team, including Technology Transformation Services Commissioner Greg Barbaccia, the government is embarking on an ambitious initiative to fundamentally reshape how citizens interact with federal services online.

At the heart of this transformation is the National Design Studio, a relatively new entity within the General Services Administration that Barbaccia describes as instrumental in helping to “coalesce” a governmentwide voice for the public online. According to FedScoop, this effort represents more than just aesthetic improvements—it’s about creating a unified “one government” approach that treats digital services as a cohesive ecosystem rather than isolated departmental silos.

The initiative comes at a critical juncture when public trust in government institutions faces significant challenges, and citizens increasingly expect the same seamless digital experiences from government services that they receive from private sector companies. The stakes are enormous: with millions of Americans interacting with federal websites daily to access everything from Social Security benefits to tax information, the quality of these digital touchpoints directly impacts public perception of government effectiveness.

Building a Unified Digital Architecture Across Agencies

The National Design Studio operates under the Technology Transformation Services division of GSA, working alongside established programs like 18F and the U.S. Digital Service. Unlike traditional government IT initiatives that often focus on individual agency needs, this studio takes a horizontal approach, developing design standards and components that can be implemented across the entire federal enterprise. Barbaccia emphasizes that the goal is not to create identical websites, but rather to establish consistent patterns that make government services more intuitive and accessible regardless of which agency provides them.

This standardization effort builds upon the foundation laid by the U.S. Web Design System, a library of design guidelines and code that has been adopted by hundreds of federal websites since its launch in 2015. The Design Studio extends this work by providing hands-on support to agencies, conducting user research, and developing new components based on real-world needs. The approach recognizes that many agencies lack the specialized design expertise or resources to create world-class digital experiences on their own.

Overcoming Decades of Fragmented Digital Development

The challenge facing federal digital transformation is unprecedented in scale and complexity. The federal government operates thousands of websites across dozens of agencies, each with its own technical infrastructure, content management systems, and design philosophies. This fragmentation developed over decades as agencies independently built their online presence, often with limited coordination or shared standards. The result is a confusing patchwork that forces citizens to learn different navigation systems, search functions, and interaction patterns depending on which agency they’re dealing with.

Barbaccia and his team are working to reverse this trend through a combination of carrots and sticks. The National Design Studio offers agencies valuable resources and expertise they might not otherwise access, creating natural incentives for adoption. Meanwhile, federal mandates around accessibility, security, and user experience create requirements that the standardized design system helps agencies meet more efficiently. This dual approach has proven effective in driving adoption without requiring heavy-handed top-down enforcement.

The Technology Behind the Transformation

The technical infrastructure supporting this vision relies heavily on open-source tools and cloud-based platforms. The U.S. Web Design System itself is built on modern web technologies and maintained as an open-source project on GitHub, allowing both government employees and outside contributors to suggest improvements and report issues. This transparency and collaborative approach marks a significant departure from traditional government IT procurement, where proprietary systems and vendor lock-in often created barriers to innovation.

Cloud.gov, another GSA platform, provides agencies with a secure, compliant hosting environment that reduces the technical barriers to launching and maintaining modern websites. By handling much of the underlying infrastructure complexity, these platforms allow agencies to focus on content and user experience rather than server management and security patching. This infrastructure-as-a-service model has become increasingly important as agencies face cybersecurity threats and must maintain compliance with evolving federal standards.

Measuring Success Through User-Centered Metrics

The success of the “one government” digital approach ultimately depends on measurable improvements in how citizens interact with federal services. The National Design Studio and its partner organizations have implemented sophisticated analytics and user research programs to track key metrics including task completion rates, time-to-service, and user satisfaction scores. These metrics provide concrete evidence of whether design changes actually improve outcomes rather than simply making websites look more modern.

Early results from agencies that have adopted the standardized design system show promising improvements. Websites built with these components typically score higher on accessibility audits, load faster on mobile devices, and generate fewer user support requests. Perhaps more importantly, user testing reveals that citizens can more easily find information and complete tasks when websites follow consistent patterns. This data-driven approach helps build the case for continued investment in design standardization across government.

Addressing Accessibility and Inclusion Imperatives

A critical component of the federal digital transformation focuses on ensuring that government services are accessible to all Americans, including those with disabilities. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) set standards that federal websites must meet, but compliance has historically been inconsistent. The National Design Studio has made accessibility a core principle, building it into every component and pattern from the ground up rather than treating it as an afterthought.

This proactive approach to accessibility extends beyond technical compliance to encompass broader questions of digital inclusion. The design system includes components optimized for low-bandwidth connections, recognizing that not all Americans have access to high-speed internet. Language accessibility features help serve the millions of Americans who speak languages other than English at home. These considerations reflect a more sophisticated understanding of the diverse needs of the American public and the government’s responsibility to serve all citizens effectively.

Navigating Political and Bureaucratic Challenges

Despite the technical and design merits of the “one government” approach, implementation faces significant organizational and political obstacles. Federal agencies guard their independence jealously, and any initiative that appears to impose standardization can trigger resistance. Agency leadership may view their unique website design as part of their organizational identity or worry that standardization will limit their ability to communicate their specific mission effectively.

Barbaccia and his colleagues have learned to navigate these sensitivities by emphasizing flexibility within structure. The design system provides a toolkit rather than a rigid template, allowing agencies to maintain distinct visual identities while adhering to common usability patterns. This approach has proven more palatable to agency stakeholders who might otherwise resist what they perceive as a one-size-fits-all mandate. Building coalitions of early adopters and demonstrating tangible benefits has also helped overcome institutional inertia.

The Path Forward for Federal Digital Services

Looking ahead, the federal government’s digital transformation faces both opportunities and challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically accelerated demand for online government services and exposed weaknesses in existing digital infrastructure. This crisis created both urgency and political will for improvement, but sustaining momentum as the immediate crisis fades requires continued leadership commitment and resource allocation.

The National Design Studio represents just one component of a broader ecosystem of federal digital service organizations, including the U.S. Digital Service, 18F, and agency-specific innovation teams. Coordination among these entities and clear delineation of responsibilities will be essential to avoid duplication and ensure efficient use of limited resources. The success of the “one government” vision depends not just on design standards and technical platforms, but on cultivating a culture of user-centered design throughout the federal workforce.

As Barbaccia and his team continue their work, they’re not just redesigning websites—they’re reimagining the fundamental relationship between government and citizens in the digital age. The initiative recognizes that in an era when most Americans’ primary interaction with government occurs through a screen, the quality of that digital experience shapes public trust and civic engagement. By creating more coherent, accessible, and effective digital services, the federal government has an opportunity to demonstrate that it can adapt to changing citizen expectations and deliver the modern, responsive governance that Americans deserve.