Articles
Value creation by combining a strong entrepreneur with a capital-rich owner
It was 2016 when Harald Mix called me and told me that Altor had made an acquisition of Infotheek, a fast-growing IT company based in the Netherlands. Harald told me that the company was led by a strong CEO (Jordy Kool) and wondered if I would consider helping the...
Time to upgrade to Lars 2.0
After many years of hard work to put Nexus in order and to prepare the company for the future, I more and more often came to think about the advise from Henrik Engsner from 2014 (see separate article) "You should start thinking about a next chapter where you can help...
Nexus – Securing our financial status
I've shared some stories about how we worked to develop Nexus to ensure survival and then long-term success. In my columns I have told you how Nexus initially was fragmented in its offering based on many acquisitions with limited synergy how we formulated our...
Having good people who care about you is priceless.
This happened in 2014. I was completely focused on Bisnode's transformation and was working almost around the clock. One day I had a visit from Henrik Engsner. Henrik was working as a senior headhunter at the time, with a lot of top-level assignments. I had met Henrik...
We will win this time!
In a previous article I told you how we at Nexus were invited to participate in a large procurement to secure the fleet of a major vehicle manufacturer. How we put together an attractive bid. How we made it to the final of that tender. How we were given the...
Nexus. Learning from loosing a deal…
I've written a few columns about how we prepared Nexus for a more focused and winning future during a period of extremely hard change. Now we were well into this journey. We had a tight management team, we had decided that we would focus on identity and securing it...
Jonas says “Lars. I am fast – but I know a person who is even faster…”
In a couple of stories I have told you how we methodically worked to sort out the security company Nexus Group to set the company in the right strategic position to be a future winner.I have also told you how I had great help from Jonas Dahlberg with the initial rough...
The value of being a good listener
As a leader, you have a tremendous opportunity to utilize one of the innate qualities you've been equipped with since birth - you have two ears (and only one mouth...).I've always had genuine trust in my team members. I believe that employees see and think for...
Do things for real!
If you have followed me and my stories, you will have noticed that I have implemented many big and radical changes in the companies I have been responsible for. Changes aimed at getting the business right, based on a strategic and holistic approach.I have always...
Speed must be our friend
My friend Jeff Stibel taught me a phrase that I have used often since: 'Speed must be our friend'.I believe there is great value in maintaining a fast pace, especially when implementing change. But it must never be at the expense of carelessness or nonchalance.In my...
The value of focus
I joined Nexus Group as its new CEO in 2015. The company had been growing through acquisitions for some time.When I took over, Nexus Group owned several different technologies, some of which overlapped and some of which competed.The acquisitions had also blended...
First – try to understand …
As the newly appointed CEO of Nexus Group I was faced with enormous complexity. Despite the relatively small size of the company (just over 300 employees in 11 countries), there was a multitude of offers, some of which overlapped.I did what I always do when I start a...