As the newly appointed CEO of Bisnode, I travelled around the countries to get the opportunity to meet all employees and learn more about the business in the 19 countries where we operate.
I came from my role as CEO of Atea Sverige Sweden. A company that we had built into a fantastic business, driven by a common set of values. Values that had also influenced how we built our reward model.
So it was with a strong belief in committed people who really trusted me as a leader that I took on my new role as the new CEO of Bisnode.
This is where I initially made a mistake.
I had underestimated the value and strength of the continuity we had at Atea. I had been CEO for many years and we had a strong principal owner in Ib Kunøe. Together we provided stability, continuity and trust.
Initially, I made the mistake of assuming that I had the same ‘platform to stand on’ as a leader when I joined Bisnode. I underestimated the fact that the invisible but very tangible force that carried me at Atea did not automatically follow me into my new job as CEO of Bisnode.
So when I gave an inspired speech to everyone in our German organisation, I ended it with ‘Welcome to the Bisnode family’.
After the speech, one of the German employees comes to me and says: ‘We don’t want to be part of the Bisnode family. We have our family at home…’.
I thanked for the feedback and thought to myself that I have to do better, gain the trust of the employees and gradually increase their commitment to what we are trying to achieve.
It was more enjoyable to speak to the same group of people a few years later. Now they had begun to understand who I was and what I stood for. That I wished them and the company well. The atmosphere and ability to receive my message was now completely different.
I wanted to share this important insight with you. You have to earn your right to ‘take your place’.
hashtag#Leadership hashtag#Trust
The picture below is from one of our town hall meetings in Germany. A happy Lars chatting with friends.
We don’t want to be in your family …
