Haydn Evans

Co-founding partner & consultant at Make Hay

Profile

I’m an entrepreneur, designer, educator, and leader with over twenty-five years experience. I work strategically and hands-on to build brands, companies, products, and services that see you and your needs, reduce complexity, and create value when all is said and done.

I’m skilled at fostering the right conditions for teams to thrive through leading-by-doing, facilitation, coaching, and building a culture for experimentation and feedback. I’m a proponent and practitioner of visual thinking, using it to tame complexity, quickly communicate ideas, co-create, and understand each other.

Work
experience

Make Hay

Co-founding partner & design consultant
March 2023 - present

I work with our clients as an embedded design leader and contributing member of innovation and venture development teams. I’m equally comfortable with creating and transforming an idea into a testable minimum viable product as I am crafting a new value proposition or fostering a culture of innovation.

  • Currently supporting innovation teams at Gjensidige with strategic and service development initiatives

  • Contributing to innovation practice development within the organisation

Oda

Director of Design

March 2022 - March 2023, Oslo

Oda is Norway’s leading online grocery store that delivers a huge range of high-quality, affordable and fresh groceries to millions of doorsteps. Using data-driven methodology, with a focus on sustainability all the way along the value chain, Oda boasts the most efficient retail system in the world.

I worked as part of Oda’s design leadership team supporting service improvement initiatives in Norway and assisted in the roll out of Oda in Finland and Germany.

  • Supporting line manager for designers in Oda Growth, 9 in total

  • Part of the Oda Growth leadership team working with Strategy and People

  • Facilitating and contributing new product exploration & development

  • Supporting recruitment processes

  • Practice development for all designers at Oda (30+)

  • Hands-on design work

Blank

Design Director

April 2018 - March 2022, Oslo

Blank is a consulting firm that specialises in designing and developing digital products and services. Blank also has a culture and track record of starting up and building its own ventures, one of which I was involved with during its early stages, called FOLQ.

At Blank I sat in the leader group affecting business development and strategy, sales and marketing, line management, practice development and as a design consultant (80% allocated) in client work.

  • Clients included: The Norwegian Post Office, Karpe, Ruter, Oslo kommune, Folq.no, Ice, ReMarkable

  • Worked primarily with Posten (3 years), as part of their Innovation Lab. Worked on various innovation initiatives, culminating in co-founding and working as Lead Designer on the award winning start-up amoi.no, a marketplace platform connecting shops and services to people living in Oslo, Bergen & Stockholm.