Systems
Thinking through the baseline business you have, the system it operates in (supply chains, regulation, incentives) and the scenarios available to you for future success. The change that’s fundamentally required is usually systems change.
Independent design & strategy practice
We must examine
our current understanding
of progress.
Reframe Progress is the practice of Lennard Hulsbos. Twenty years in and around innovation, sustainability and digital transformation, helping design, product and leadership teams create impact through systems design, then translating it into products, services, organisational structures and systems of information. That’s where the work has value.
Worked with
- Uber
- Unilever
- Philips Healthcare
- Qiagen
- Circle Economy
- Cleverbridge
- Empower.eco
The practice
Systems, strategy, design. Yes, that’s three words, but one practice, and it can be applied from an organisational, product or service perspective.
Strategy
Business and design strategy, with the added option to help set up your teams for success. Projects rarely fail for a single reason: no management buy-in, no organisational support, no urgency, no understanding of why the change is needed.
Design
From product direction through to design systems and shipped software. Whatever you make has to solve a problem your users have (though they may not know it). That’s where every business solution finds success, or failure.
Ways to work together
Whether you’re developing a new product or brand (or revamping an old one), rethinking supply (value) chains, need an organisational redesign or just want a c-level sparring partner.
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Projects
A defined piece of work with a defined end. Research and strategy sprints, repositioning, product direction, a design system, a workshop series. From a fortnight to a year.
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Fractional leadership
Interim leadership, or a c-level sparring partner. Previously CPO, VP of Marketing & Design, Head of Consultancy, Managing Partner and CEO.
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Company building
Founding and rebuilding. I started my first company in 2007 (Cradle of Design) and have since founded a studio, rebuilt a consultancy practice and led a company as CEO with founders, investors and regulators in the room.
Lennard is a design strategist who seeks to link the business, human, technological and planetary realities into actionable and sustainable business strategy. Lewis Atkins, Design Director, Manyone
Selected work
Twenty years across EU, APAC, Africa and the US: tech, SaaS, FMCG, automotive, telco, supply chain and sustainability.
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Jörð.tech: a system of material intelligence
Building a system that treats materials as accountable assets, so traceability, compliance and verification come out of how partners already operate instead of being reconstructed for the audit. The first full solution, Collect & Recycle, is being readied for SaaS.
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Empower.eco: fractional CPO, then CEO
Took over as CEO after a difficult stretch, with former founders, unhappy investors and regulators all in the room. Set a new commercial and product strategy, closed the gaps between management, sales and engineering, and made software delivery roughly three times faster.
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Cleverbridge: Strategy Consultant, then VP Marketing & Design
Repositioned the company from B2C to B2B SaaS, rebuilt the brand into an atomic design system, and rebuilt the digital marketing infrastructure. The reposition helped land two major accounts in nine months, representing +$100 million in gross revenue. Average search position improved 60%, first-page listings went from zero to seven in three months, and sales-accepted inbound leads rose 150%.
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Manyone NL: Managing Partner, founder
Founded the Dutch studio to spearhead sustainability by design. Built the net-zero 2030 strategy for Unilever’s Swedish Glace, twenty years ahead of Unilever’s own corporate target, alongside brand, packaging and sustainable packaging strategy, plus Toolkit Earth, a design toolkit for global supply chains.
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Iris Amsterdam: Head of Consultancy
Brought in to rebuild the consultancy practice. Increased profit margin by 50% while posting the highest gross revenue in company history. Grew the Uber account 42% (the practice’s first account over a million) and shipped a dynamic psychographic communications framework across 53 markets.
What people say
What really makes Len stand out is the fact that he can make you see. See the new perspective, expand the possibilities and truly reinvent a business, and that’s exactly what digital transformations need today.
Lennard brought unparalleled creativity and strategic thinking to his role at Cleverbridge. As a key player in defining our positioning and strategy, his contributions have been instrumental in our success. Lennard’s visionary perspective shaped our new flagship product, marrying innovation with practicality in a way few can.
In a nutshell, for me, Lennard is a hard worker, extremely straightforward, smart, and transparent. He has all the skills that a good CEO needs.
About
I’m Lennard Hulsbos. Twenty years delivering innovation, design and sustainability strategy, plus the execution, organisational design and change management that has to follow it. Previously practice lead on blockchain and AI, and part of the youth delegation working with the Dutch government on the national climate action plan.
After years working in design, innovation and sustainability around the world, I was (am) fed up with the constant narrative of innovation while the industrial status quo remains unwaveringly destructive. I fundamentally believe the change that’s required is systems change, and that revenue and profit margin take care of themselves once an organisation understands why it exists.
I work from a planet-centred and user-oriented product and service design perspective, across a fairly wide spread of industries. Founder, Strategy Director, Head of Consultancy, Managing Partner, VP of Marketing & Design, CEO. Lived and worked on three continents. Incurably curious.
Speaking & teaching
- UNDP Building Resilience in the Real Economy
- WEF Davos Supernodes Social Change and Digital Futures
- Socio-Economic Council (SER, NL) Education in the Energy Transition
- Digital Futures @ Microsoft Circular Economy and Social Resilience
- Hyper Island Lecturer on circular economy and digital innovation
- Tongji University Design as a Competitive Advantage
- Disruptive Innovation Festival C.UBI: a transitional model
- Creative Mornings The Value of Weird in Design and Business
Also: Codam Academy with Mozilla & EFF, FC Bayern Munich Hackday, Menorca Millennials, Techfest, Benelux Chamber of Commerce Shanghai.
Start a conversation
Feel free to reach out. Tell me a bit about what you’re working on and I’ll get back to you within a couple of days.