About Lauren Hamilton, Founder, Forme Strategies

I founded Forme Strategies to help organizations navigate change with clarity, confidence, and strategic foresight. Over two decades, I’ve led multi-disciplinary teams, run complex organizations, and advised boards across North America.

My Background

Started my career in architecture and urban design, working with cross-functional teams that shaped cities and communities.
Grew into enterprise leadership as Managing Principal of a three-office, cross-border practice.
Scaled teams, and led cultural integration at a global level.
MBA from UC Berkeley Haas School of Business.
Dual U.S. - Canada Citizen.

Why Forme Strategies? “Forme” reflects the evolving structures and systems organizations need to thrive in flux. Forme’s approach combines:

Strategic foresight
Systems thinking
Organizational design
Human-centered change

My Perspective

Cross-border lens: I've built and run businesses on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border, giving me firsthand insight into navigating different markets, regulatory environments, and cultural nuances.
Leadership experience: As an owner, a manager and a leader I’ve piloted organizations through scale, merger, and transformation.
Future-forward mindset: At Berkeley Haas, I studied strategy, systems, and organizational change in one of the world’s leading hubs of innovation. I remain actively engaged with its programs and network to stay ahead of transformational industry, geopolitical, economic, and ecological shifts.

Born in Chicago, USA; based in Vancouver, Canada. Available for work across Canada, the U.S., and beyond.

STRATEGY + LEADERSHIP IN ACTION

Stories of transformation from inside creative and founder-led firms

Before founding Forme Strategies, Lauren Hamilton spent nearly two decades leading teams, projects, and transformations from the inside — across creative, technical, and executive roles. These stories aren’t theoretical frameworks. They’re lived experience. And they reflect the kind of strategic, cultural, and leadership work Forme now brings to clients navigating complexity and change.

Fiat Lux: Aligning Leadership and Structure

Helped regional leaders align priorities, streamline decision-making, and restore client trust after a complex organizational change left roles and strategy unclear.
Activating the Sleeper Sell(er)s

Reframed business development as authentic storytelling and relationship building, empowering technical staff to confidently engage clients using their unique voices to grow the firm’s reach.
Fixing the “Frozen Middle”

Unlocked mid-level leadership capacity by redesigning communication systems, shifting power dynamics, and creating real pathways for input after scaling.
Business Fitness: From Static to Adaptive

Built agility and accountability across a multi-studio practice by redesigning structures, clarifying roles, and introducing new decision-making cadences.
Planning a Second Act

Enabled a tricky but inspiring founder transition and designed a multi-year succession plan that strengthened culture, ownership, and business development performance.
"Thar be Dragons" - Navigating Post-Merger Integration

Stabilized operations and retained key staff during global integration by combining political fluency with operational fixes and advocacy for resources.