How Strategic Design Helps De-Risk Big Decisions

Selmer Eiendom 
Oslo

Big projects come with big risks. Changing regulations, shifting political priorities, and financial uncertainty can throw even the most well-planned initiatives off track. But what if you could cut through the complexity, align everyone involved, and make better decisions?

That’s where strategic design comes in.

At Lomi Agency, we’ve seen firsthand how research, visualization, and collaboration can bring clarity to uncertainty. Our work with Selmer Eiendom, a real estate developer, is a great example of how design doesn’t just make things look good—it makes them work.

Building for the Future in an Uncertain Landscape

Challenge

Selmer Eiendom was planning a multigenerational living project in a prime urban location. The timing made sense—Norway’s population is aging, and the government wanted to keep elderly people integrated in their communities.
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But getting from concept to reality wasn’t simple.

City plans kept shifting. Infrastructure projects—like a major new transit hub —were still up in the air.
Too many stakeholders, too many opinions. Developers, city planners, politicians, and construction firms all had different priorities.
Unclear user needs. What did elderly residents actually want? And how could those needs be balanced with what was financially and practically viable?

It was a classic case of too many moving parts, not enough clarity—exactly the kind of challenge that strategic design is built for.

Process

Selmer Eiendom brought us in to reduce uncertainty and make smarter, more confident decisions. Here’s how we helped.

Understanding What People Actually Need

Instead of making assumptions, we talked directly to the people this project would impact most. By conducting in-home interviews with elderly individuals, we got a better sense of their priorities, fears, and barriers when it came to moving into new housing.
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One major insight? Many elderly people wait too long to consider a move, making it financially and logistically harder. This led us to create a decision-making guide—a simple but powerful tool that helped residents start planning earlier. Not only did this help future residents, but it also gave Selmer Eiendom an edge in the market by addressing a real, unmet need

Turning Big Ideas Into Tangible Concepts

Good ideas get stuck when they stay abstract. To move things forward, we turned research into visual concepts, sketches, and design models that made the vision clear.

This wasn’t about making things pretty—it was about creating something concrete that people could react to.

Developers could see how the spaces would work.
Investors could picture the opportunity.
Politicians could understand the impact on the community.

When people see an idea rather than just hear about it, decision-making happens faster—and with more alignment.

Bringing Everyone to the Table

Too often, major business decisions happen in silos. Developers, policymakers, and users don’t always have a chance to collaborate early enough, leading to misalignment and late-stage changes that slow everything down.

To break that cycle, we ran cross-functional workshops that brought together elderly residents, construction managers, real estate developers, and city planners. By putting all the perspectives on the table before key decisions were made, we helped Selmer Eiendom create a more realistic, viable plan from the start.

Consolidation of the deliverables from the work streams

A lot of companies see design as something that happens at the end of a project—something you apply once the "real" decisions have been made. But in reality, strategic design is one of the most powerful tools for managing risk.

When done right, it helps businesses:

Cut through complexity by making the unknown more tangible.
Align teams and stakeholders so projects don’t stall due to miscommunication.
Make better decisions, faster by using research and visualization to surface real insights.

At Lomi Agency, we help businesses navigate uncertainty—not by guessing, but by using proven design methods to turn complexity into clarity.

Making the right decisions isn’t about luck. It’s about design.