Seeing the whole house: a model for understanding digital transformation

Digital transformation requires a common language. Without a shared understanding of where the organisation stands and where it is going, prioritising and making good decisions becomes difficult. At Halogen, we often see that challenges in digitalisation projects arise in the "gaps" between different professional fields – where technologists talk about architecture, while designers talk about user needs and management talks about strategy.

It is therefore necessary to have models and frameworks that help us hold meaningful conversations across disciplines. Based on our own professional discussions and experiences with clients, we have developed our own model: The House of Digitalisation.

The house as a metaphor

The House of Digitalisation is an allegory for wholeness and interdependence. It is deliberately abstract in order to remain relevant across sectors, whether we work with the police, the armed forces, industry, municipalities, or product and service development.

The house consists of several "floors". A critical point is that changes on one floor inevitably affect the others. Often, these floors are inhabited by people with different expertise who may lack an understanding of each other's contributions to the whole.

1. Frameworks: what governs (the roof)

At the top of the house, we find the frameworks. These are the factors that define the organisation's room for manoeuvre:

• Societal mission and strategy: Why do we exist, and where are we going?

• Ecosystem: How do we interact with customers, partners, and the wider sector?

• Organisation and budget: How are we structured, and what are our financial constraints?

2. Practices: what we do (the living space)

This is the visible part of the organisation – where people meet systems. From a human-centred perspective, we look at:

• Employees and roles: Who does the job, and what tasks do they solve?

• Value streams and processes: How does work flow through the organisation?

• Tools: Which applications are used, and how well do they work in everyday life?

3. Technology and law: the foundation (the basement)

Beneath the surface lie the technical and legal conditions that determine what it is actually possible to build.

• Data and storage: What information do we need, and how do we access it securely?

• Integrations: How do the different systems talk to each other?

• Law and privacy: Which laws regulate data sharing, and what are we allowed to use the data for?

From insight to action

The model works best as a conversational tool. By "placing" a project, an initiative, or change process within the house, it becomes clear where the centre of gravity lies and which floors might be overlooked. The model aims to inspire discussion and curiosity rather than being a definitive answer, and we find that the model sparks engagement and is further developed into whatever it needs to be.

For a designer, it is about taking an interest in technology and law to understand the scope of opportunity. For a technologist, it is about understanding the strategic frameworks and the human practices that the technology is meant to support. For those working to deliver services, the context of the service becomes clearer, along with how digitalisation changes work processes. For leaders, it can clarify the impact of their decisions.

The goal is not necessarily for everyone to know everything, but for us to gain an overview of both the current situation and the long-term ambitions. This is how we move from fragmented IT projects to real, value-creating transformation.