This article was originally published in Norwegian on

Traditional business leaders who fixate their eyes on economic growth may miss the opportunity for more significant value creation, says Co-CEO and previous Leader of Business & Brand in EGGS, Ellen Lidgren. In this interview, originally published in SHIFTER, she and Co-Founder Ulla Sommerfelt share their visions for the Business Design field in EGGS.

Most businesses reach a critical point where the leaders experience that they need to redesign the entire business model. Changes in the market, digitalisation, the transition from product to service or requirements for sustainable operations force companies to transform.

These are critical stages in the company's journey and can result in drastic outcomes if the management makes the wrong choice. Ellen calls these moments strategic inflexion points. It is precisely in these critical stages that EGGS' business designers thrive.

"A strategic inflexion point is a crucial moment when an organisation must respond to change effectively. If not, the company may lose its competitive advantage. We saw several examples of this during the digitalisation of the business world. Not only did digital adaptation become an essential competitive advantage, but a necessity for the livelihood of entire industries - and that in just a few years", says Ellen.

Many businesses come to EGGS for help with their digital transformation. The task for our Business Designers is to help the business leaders in a context characterised by ambiguity and unpredictability. Not infrequently, working to develop new revenue streams from scratch is the key focus.

"We again see those entire industries that must change, and it must happen fast."

 Ellen shares that companies need to change their strategies, update their organisation, or perhaps even the complete way that they operate.

The acute need for sustainable change is precisely the reason why EGGS is investing heavily in expanding further within in business design now looking for more employees.

"There is too much talk about monetary value and not enough focus on other types of value. In an organisational context, leaders and shareholders often perceive economic value as the only reasonable value. Economic value is what we are used to measuring and what we usually base our decisions on. We are used to thinking of a business as a machine. But not all decisions can or should be made solely on monetary value. If you only focus on maximising profits, you risk losing perspective - and thus miss out on new opportunities for value creation," says Ellen.

Value is not just about money

Today, transformation into sustainable operations is one of the most critical areas for the business community, say Co-CEO at EGGS, Ellen Lidgren. PHOTO: Björn Audunn Blöndal / Pressworks

Ellen explains that a business designer focuses holistically on the business applying a combination of the designer's toolbox of creative methods with business understanding. The business designer has a hybrid role that mixes practice from several fields, such as service design, design strategy, product management, business analysis and management consulting.

Designers are good at understanding people and their needs but are not always so focused on monetary value-creation. On the business side, thoughts and languages are more often technical and sophisticated. Emotional argumentation and 'gut feeling' often fall short in the business-focused environment, even though both disciplines are looking for the same thing - creating lasting value," she says.

Business design is a newer discipline. The profession is a consequence of the evolvement of design as a discipline. Traditionally, design was about the design of objects and graphics. The field of design then evolved to include the development process. For a Business Designer, design now also includes designing business strategies and models. Traditionally, management consultants have had a monopoly on long-term strategic planning. We now see that the business market demands other problem-solving skills, which design, and technology offers.

"In EGGS, we work with our clients on reformulating all or parts of their business. In addition to assessing the visual and physical aspects of the company that their end-customers see and experience, we work on their entire value chain behind their products or services. We then help the company balance any tensions between their end-customers, their business processes and their financial value creation."

The hybrids

A business designer has skills within design, experience from design processes, and competence within finance and business. We seek the entrepreneurial types - those who are good at recognising opportunities. We need people who can build long-term relationships with clients. A business designer is also a consultant. She says that a lot of the service the business designer delivers is the actual dialogue and catering for the transformation process for the business.

What are we looking for in a skilled business designers?

The appreciation of design has increased in many organisations, Ellen confirms. More and more business leaders are using design methods and design thinking to solve problems. And designers are gaining more and more mandate, respect and understanding as design maturity increases. Business leaders have begun to understand that using design methods and tools at a strategic level can help close the gap between the company's intentions and their actual results.

"Business design is becoming more and more integrated as a discipline in the innovation processes of our clients. We see that design can provide value to the organisation, both operationally, commercially, humanly, and technologically, and at a tactical and strategic level," she says.

This is why business design is valuable in the green shift. Entire systems must be redesigned so that companies, suppliers, and clients can easily use resources repeatedly. The goal is growth for the business, but we will also leave a positive legacy for the next generations. Building a profitable, future-proof business today requires a change from the traditional model.

The maturity of design is developing

"The next challenge comes naturally: How do you scale? Many companies do not have standardised processes, and leaders are not used to scaling up service processes or service experiences. Many leaders have experience with product launches of physical products, not of services," says Lidgren. Transformation from product to service is a typical client project for us in EGGS."


How business design can transform companies