New in Norway

How does it feel to be new in Norway? What do you experience? How do you create a new life in an unfamiliar country? Which organisations do you need to interact with? These questions are critical to building effective, connected services for those who come to Norway.   Together with IMDi, Halogen needed to create a rich understanding of what it’s like to be an asylum seeker, a child moving to the country on their own or someone moving for work.

Using both service design and systemic design methods we mapped out the experience to understand the whole picture: user needs, the flow of information, the actors involved, the systems used, the time it takes and how it feels to experience the ‘system’.

These detailed user journeys identified challenges, and helped different stakeholders commit to a common goal. The project is IMDi’s basis for building digital holistic and connected services in Norway, and has directed where to focus attention to improve the ‘New in Norway’ experience. It also brought together important actors across sectors, including UDI, NAV, Skatteetaten and private sector companies.  

Our reflections

Truly connected services require a deep understanding of the user and to see the service as a whole. ‘New in Norway’ demonstrates the value of service design to digitalisation work in the public sector. As well as the value of conveying the needs of groups of people that typically don't have a loud voice in society or the media.