Nordic Newsletter June 2024

As the days grow longer and the sun shines brighter, we are excited to welcome you to the summer edition of our newsletter! We hope that the summer holidays will bring you plenty of opportunities to relax and recharge. We are available for you the whole summer, so don’t hesitate to contact us!  

Cecilia Brinck, Managing Partner Sweden

Company News

We welcome Emma Jordell!

Emma has several years of experience as Financial Manager within the private school sector and within the travel industry. At Nordic Interim, Emma is Financial Manager for Sweden and Denmark.

Nordic Interim Sweden celebrates 20 years!

As Nordic Interim in Sweden marks its 20th anniversary this year, we're excited to share our history with you. Our company's success is dependent on our colleagues, clients and Executive Interim Managers.

We have talked to our very first client, Lilian Fossum Biner who was then the SVP Head of Group HR and Organizational Development at Electrolux Group.

“As I was heading up the HR function for the Electrolux Group, we were searching for a manager for Compensation and Benefits.  As this is a highly specialist and complex area, these recruitments can take time. Since we didn't want to feel any pressure during the recruitment process for a permanent hire, we chose to bring in an Interim Manager. Margaret Brooks, whom we engaged as interim Compensation & Benefits Manager via Nordic Interim. Margaret turned out to be a great support, not only for the comp and ben tasks, but also to support in driving other projects.  We were extremely pleased with Margaret’s contribution, which gave us peace of mind during the recruitment process without losing momentum.”

Interviews

Cristina Petrescu ♦️: “Executive Interim Management plays a crucial role in addressing critical challenges for companies”

In our interview with Cristina Petrescu, CEO of Securitas Sverige AB we gain insight into Executive Interim Management from a client's perspective. She has an intriguing background from among others, Ericsson, Tietoevry, and Sodexo, and shares her valuable perspectives on the benefits of Interim Management and its role in meeting critical needs within companies.

You have used Executive Interim Management solutions several times, what is the benefit with this solution for business-critical challenges?

“Already during my time at Tieto Evry, I came into contact with Executive Interim Management through Björn Henriksson whom I met in various contexts. It's an exciting setup where both companies and individual needs are operationally solved, matching experience and expertise with the client's challenges in a quick and easy way. A recruitment process for a C-level role takes a long time, which you often don't have, and at the same time you need a fast, good, and secure solution. Maybe you need a size 38, but you bring in a size 40 for speed, scale, strength, and drive – and not least, for a good and senior leadership.”

Read the whole interview here!

Jan Montell: "The Executive Interim Manager's superpower"

“We didn't even consider any other options than an Executive Interim Manager during the rapid scale-up phase of the company.", says Jan Montell, Chairman of the Board at Skarta Energy Oy.

Skarta Energy is a Finnish renewable energy developer focusing on emission-free, industrial-scale solar power projects. In early 2023, when Skarta Energy gained a new majority owner, CapMan Infra, a need arose to build a new company infrastructure and establish a comprehensive, independent financial management system from scratch. “I saw that Executive Interim Management was the only right solution. We needed speed, experience, and a hands-on approach.", he explains.

Read the whole interview here!

Driving successful turnarounds: Insights from Søren Thimmer

We have talked with Søren Thimmer, an experienced Transformation & Program Manager, to uncover the secrets behind driving successful turnarounds. With an international and commercial background, his approach is anchored in his core values: results, optimism, and integrity, with a keen emphasis on customer and stakeholder perspectives.

What are the initial steps and considerations a company should take when starting a transformation process?

“You need to identify the type of transformation required and understand the ambition and underlying problem. You need to ask yourself what you are about to change. Are you in survival mode or are you doing ok but need to strategically move the business? It is a slightly different toolbox depending on if it demands an operational or strategic change. Most important is that the CEO needs to keep running the business and prioritize his/her part in the transformation, which of course also applies for other leaders in the company. If the skills for leading a transformation or turnaround is lacking internally, it is essential to get external support by engaging an Executive Interim Manager as someone needs to take the overall responsibility for the change, prioritize, set responsibilities, follow-up, etc. To succeed with a major transformation, it is key to be very transparent and communicate regularly.”

Read the whole interview here!

Meet Jan Långbacka, Managing Partner, Nordic Interim Finland

Jan has worked in business development and general management positions for over 20 years in both international and Finnish companies, such as GE, OP, Terveystalo, and Schneider Electric.

 Why did you decide to join the Nordic Interim team?

“I had done three interim assignments, two of them through Nordic Interim. I already knew Kari Peuhkuri, and over the years we discussed the possibility of me joining Nordic Interim. About 2.5 years ago, Kari called me and asked if I was interested. At that time, Nordic Interim had grown both in Finland and internationally, and capital investors had joined. The company had a strong growth agenda and the goal of expanding into a global Executive Interim business. In addition, I truly believe that with Executive Interim, all parties win. Interim Managers can make versatile use of their expertise in interesting and challenging assignments, and the client companies receive top expertise at their disposal for a limited period of time.”

Read the whole interview here!

Valtus Alliance

Valtus Alliance is growing - We welcome 5 new members!

Our ambition to be the leading global Executive Interim Management network is further strengthened by our new members: Noble House Consulting Pte. in India, Clareza Partners in Japan, Cognisium in Australia, Think Consulting in the USA, and CE Interim | Cross-cultural Executive Interim Management in Eastern Europe, the Balkan, and the Baltics.

Contact us!