Jonathan Cabeza

It has been almost a year since I started working at Husqvarna Group as a Global Trainee. It has been a great experience so far. However, there is always the “not so good” because, most of the times, life isn’t perfect. That being said, I wish I could get a dollar every time I see or hear people resisting change. Change is a necessary “evil” that, if used properly, can let us maximize our potential, increase our efficiency, and let us be leaders instead of followers.

Most of my time as trainee has been spent improving processes and developing tools to make better business decisions. During this period, I have been observing, learning and testing what it takes to drive change.

True leaders have the vision to understand the benefits of change and how it pays off in the short and long run. On the other hand, people might resist change because they are familiar with doing tasks a certain way and cannot see how an additional task to be done or a completely different process can benefit them. Other individuals feel that they are already proficient with current processes and they fear that the new process may reduce their actual performance. The latter are conscious that there are better more efficient ways to do their job, but they are scared of starting on a clean slate, learning new methodologies and possibly being mediocre when it comes to using new procedures. Good news! Persuading these individuals is possible thanks to a very valuable tool called emotional intelligence.

Emotional intelligence is an immensely broad subject. Therefore, I will share with you the “dos” and “don’ts” from my perspective on how to effectively implement change using emotional intelligence that I have found useful in order to encourage others to adopt change successfully:

1. If you are at a higher level in the corporate ladder, do not attempt to leverage power to introduce change; remain approachable when having discussions with other coworkers.
2. Do not command what needs to be done and fail to explain the reasons why this needs to be done. It is important to inspire a shared vision to make sure that all parties involved can envision what the future could be like and how the organization, as a whole, can benefit from a given change.
3. Do not cover up the possible challenges that your team may face to avoid opposition or rejection. Instead, clearly outline challenges and benefits associated with this new change, and provide the necessary resources and tools to increase the chances of success.
4. You may be a very intelligent individual, but do not establish a one-way communication with coworkers because team effort can always help making something good into something great. Always ask for input from colleagues; there is always room for improvement. This will help you challenge the process.
5. Even when your new process or change is clearly better than the actual one, do not belittle the current process or the people who use them for liking it. Instead, sit down and spend time with employees reviewing how the current process works and show them how the new one works; if the new one is better, your workforce will likely welcome the change.
6. Change could bring a considerable amount of extra work. Do not try to cut corners by following the new process partially. Instead, model the way by following the rules and regulations. Lead by example to ensure that others feel inspired to adapt to change.
7. Do not forget to recognize privately and/or publicly when someone is adapting to change effectively. This encourages the heart to keep the good work and make others feel that their efforts do not go unnoticed.

Resistance to change is a common occurrence at the workplace and we should be prepared to handle it properly. You can enhance the chances of success when bringing change to your team by getting input from the people involved, sharing challenges and benefits entailed, providing the necessary tools and resources, guiding colleagues through the new process, modeling the way and encouraging the heart. An obvious improvement over the current process or situation, and an influential role in your company are not enough to introduce change successfully. Use emotional intelligence; it is your friend.

Jonathan Cabeza

Global Trainee
Product Management & Development – Wheeled
Charlotte, USA

My name is Wieland Klingspor and I joined Husqvarna Group´s Global Trainee Program in September 2013. My home base is Husqvarna Group Germany and I’m currently working with the Sales & Services department in Huskvarna, Sweden.

The Global Trainee program provides me with the opportunity to build a strong network within the company and to get to know several departments outside my area of expertise. So far I have been working with Sales Husqvarna Germany, Sales Gardena Germany, R&D Electric, Product Management Pro Electric and Sales & Services Nordic. In each department I have been in charge of my own project and at the end of each assignment my results have been evaluated.

The assignments have been structured so that I have been able to bring in my own ideas and suggestions while getting a thorough understanding of the respective departments’ tasks, processes and challenges. After having worked with 5 different departments already, I can say that I have developed a thorough understanding of internal processes and the impact of decisions on other departments. Cross-functional understanding is core to work strategically. The more you work with and in different departments the better you understand decisions or concerns from various standpoints. Undoubtedly, these experiences prepare me for the time after the Global Trainee Program in a good way. Noticed: The whole is more than the sum of its parts.

I am looking forward to my next assignment in Charlotte, USA where I will be working at the U.S. Sales department. But before that, I will meet my trainee colleagues in Shanghai, China, for an intensive one week training module. Every six months we meet for a one week training module at one of the Husqvarna Group’s sites around the world. The training modules help us to improve valuable soft skills and broaden our horizon.

I am honored to be part of the Global Trainee Program and glad I have chosen this path in my career, since I have grown professionally and personally – and I’m very curious about the next couple of months. Let’s stay on our toes!

Wieland Klingspor
Global Trainee
Sales Department
Germany

Andriy Shyshka

How much IT can you put into a chainsaw? It sounds almost like an opening to a traditionally-inappropriate joke that my Bulgarian friend, Hristo, would make on a Saturday night. Yet, this very question was circling around in my head early April morning, spring 2014, when I arrived to the Husqvarna Group office in Huskvarna, Sweden to be interviewed by the CIO Martin Althén. I wasn’t wondering much about traditional, enterprise IT. Clearly, a company as vast as the Husqvarna Group would require a mature IT infrastructure to operate worldwide.

To someone like me, majoring in IT innovation management, the crucial point was the ability to deliver cutting-edge products with embodied digital experiences. I needed a clear innovation agenda, a vision; and Martin was the right person to ask. Just a few hours later, all my questions were answered.

I’m from Ukraine and if you like me, are not a Swede, the name Husqvarna might make you think of forestry, construction or gardening equipment – some of the current generation products. However, here in the north, an average Swedish home will tell you about Husqvarna’s history just as much as the company’s museum. From rifles, sewing machines, kitchen equipment all the way to chainsaws, watering and robots (big and small) – all of these find their place on the product timeline. If companies would have DNA, the Husqvarna Group’s would be all about adopting to market needs, changing radically and innovating continuously – this is something the company has been doing successfully throughout 325 years.

However, there is no time to sit still. Yet another challenge is coming: connectivity and digitalization, which have been affecting our world as long as I can remember. It took decades to bring all the business transactions on-line, several years to get people linked to the social media and now we are seeing how ordinary objects become smart, context-aware and connected, bridging the boundary between physical and digital spaces. I believe that Internet of Things (IoT) will become the next giant leap for our industry by reshaping business models, changing the way people use our products, adding features and services you could only dream of. This change is what the Husqvarna Group acknowledges and is ready to embrace. Nevertheless, harnessing the opportunity brought by connectivity and digitalization will require more than an R&D investment. It calls for a new generation of leaders who are innovative, open-minded and who, at the same time, are trained with the company’s core values in mind, dedicated to its mission. This is where Global Trainees, including me, come into play.

It has been over six months since my traineeship started. As you might have already noticed, I believe I can make an impact during this two-year period and I’ve been given the opportunity to do so. My first assignment was within the Strategy and Architecture (S&A) team in Huskvarna to support the Enterprise Architecture (EA) and different innovation activities. I began by assisting with an application portfolio management initiative. This gave me a clear understanding of the vast application landscape powering enterprise systems of the Husqvarna Group and, at the same time, common problems that S&A team has to face. The next was training and certification in TOGAF – a must-known framework for every EA practitioner, followed by codifying a business process framework and establishing corresponding relations to the application portfolio within EA repository. Then it was time to tackle the innovation agenda. For several months, I’ve been involved in a concept project around an indoor positioning system. My contribution found its place in all stages: from gathering requirements to the straight software development. After participating in an Internet of Things forum last November, I started to get involved more and more with the connectivity domain. Currently, I support the newly established Digital Solutions and Services department with the evaluation of technologies and platforms that will become the backbone for the Group’s connected products and customer-facing IT offerings.

My experience as Global Trainee has been extremely rewarding so far, but there is another aspect of my journey as a trainee that deserves separate attention: people; they are the most valuable asset the Group possesses. If you appreciate a diverse international environment, enjoy an atmosphere of trust, and you are ready to take on new challenges, you will feel at home working at the Husqvarna Group. This is the place where your coworkers can easily become your friends. Seriously, we are all that cool.

Although my current assignment is not over yet, my thoughts are starting to drift away to the next one. The assignment will be based in Ulm, Germany, working directly with product management and development at the Gardena Division. This is an area rather unfamiliar to me, but from what I’ve heard not less exciting. I’m looking forward to getting outside my comfort zone once more and build new long-lasting business relationships that will help me support the Husqvarna Group’s business goals during my journey as Global Trainee.

Stay tuned for more updates!

Andriy Shyshka
IT Trainee
Global Information Services
Huskvarna, Sweden

Ulrike Nagel

My name is Ulrike Nagel and I joined the Husqvarna Group’s first Global Trainee Program in September 2013 and have just finished my third, six-month rotation.

I’m German, and I spent my first six months at the regional marketing department in France. After that, I went to Charlotte, USA, were I worked in the product management and development team for Zero-turn mowers. After these first two assignments, I realized how valuable it is to be sent out to different sales organizations.

Working for managers in different areas in the organization was an absolute amazing experience; and I was – and still am – able to observe processes from an outside-in perspective and can compare working procedures in different countries.

I just finished my last assignment at the regional sales and service department in Huskvarna, Sweden. It has really been an amazing experience because I got the possibility to be part of the project lead for the implementation of Husqvarna Group’s first concept store, located in Stockholm.

The project was highly confidential and everyone involved, internal and external, had to sign a non-disclosure-agreement. I steered the project together with a consultant and we both agreed that our goal was to make this concept store a worldwide benchmark for all our 26.000 highly treasured dealers. At the same time, the store should also be an internal competence center to support Husqvarna Group becoming an even better business partner for the dealers.

Husqvarna Group has never had such a project before, so it was a necessity for all departments involved to start from scratch with their respective areas of responsibility. It was truly a cross-functional team effort with people from several departments, such as legal, controlling, IT, sales, marketing and HR. I’m still overwhelmed by the immense, indescribable learning curve I had over these past six months in Sweden – and I’m truly thankful for being provided with the chance to take on such a huge responsibility.

The concept store consists of an exhibition area, a service workshop, conference rooms and offices. Together with external suppliers we created a plan of the store. What was absolutely great was that I could literally see how my suggestions were taken into account. Most of it, I could see a few weeks after the plans turned into reality. For example, the design of the store was changed so that one of the Group’s greatest current successes, the automatic lawn mower, was put more into focus, together with the Gardena irrigation systems. The irrigation is connected to real-water and at the opening day, it was just an incredible feeling to hear from visitors that they liked it.

During the project, I also got the chance to work with many external suppliers, like the company creating the store’s IT system, a partner that implemented a queuing system and screens in the store, lightening specialists, a manufacturer of store- and service equipment, a designer, marketing agencies and recruitment specialists. A truly great experience.

In general, I’m sure you realize how amazing it was for me to be part of it all. I loved absorbing all the procedures. I believe that the openness to learn and to adapt is one of the most important skills for us in this ever-changing globalized environment we are all working in.

I’m very proud to work for Husqvarna Group, a multinational group that is changing and adapting to always suit our customer’s the best way possible. This has just been shown with the implementation of this fantastic concept store. I hope you will all go there when you are in Stockholm or visit the website http://husqvarnaconceptstore.se/. You can also find the store on Facebook under Husqvarna Concept Store.

Let’s look forward to an amazing future with companies and employees willing to think outside the box, as this is key to success.

Ulrike Nagel
Global Trainee
Sales Department
France

Andy Grayson

My name is Andy Grayson and I am currently a Global Sales Trainee working for Husqvarna Group in Charlotte, USA. I have been with the company for about a year and a half and have gained a lot of valuable knowledge and experience.

The Global Trainee Program is a very interesting and unique concept. There are very few companies that will hire kids fresh out of college and put them through such a rigorous process. I graduated in May of 2013 with a degree in Business Management out of a small school in South Georgia, USA. The experiences I have had and the duties I have been given are far outside of the realm of what any normal entry level management job would be.

There have been months when one week I am running our chainsaws out in the forest of North Carolina, USA, the next week I am attending presentations by the head of Project Management in our office in Ulm, Germany, and then the following week I am participating in strategic discussions with some of the best marketing professionals in the industry here in Charlotte. Being able to work for a multinational company with such a rich heritage has opened many doors for me in both my professional and personal life.

One of my favorite aspects of the program is how it allows trainees to build a network with strong relationships and lasting friendships. I have worked with some of the best in the business and forged friendships that I can call on when needed. Also, the Husqvarna Group’s Global Trainee Program spans across different countries all over the globe. We tend to lean on each other during projects to maintain a global perspective when we present our findings.

At the end of the day, I am extremely thankful to work for a company as sustainable and progressive as Husqvarna Group. Seeing as how our company is 325 years old, I feel that I can confidently say my coworkers are the best at what they do and have been for a while now.

Andy Grayson

Global Trainee
Dealer Sales Channel
Charlotte, USA

Jonathan Cabeza

My journey as Global Trainee at Husqvarna Group started 9 months ago after obtaining a graduate degree at Duke University in Durham, USA. One of the few things that we were reminded about at school is that, with time, everything has gone global, which made the Global Trainee role very interesting to me.

I began a few months before the program officially kicked off in order to help one of our executives improve monthly reporting processes. At the time, I was not an expert in cost and finance, but I am always happy to learn something new. During those 9 months I was also able to get some exposure to product management, learn about all the products we manufacture and meet people from all over the world who are directly or indirectly involved in the creation and distribution of our products.

Husqvarna Group is the world’s largest producer of products like robotic lawn mowers, garden tractors, chainsaws and trimmers, and on my first rotation, I was asked to help documenting the reporting process for Cost Savings Projects for the wheeled category in Charlotte, USA, and improve it, if possible. The process would take about 8 hours of work after becoming proficient at it; it took me 23 hours the first time around. This showed me that the process needed to be improved more than it needed to be documented for someone else to do it. After several meetings with my former boss and also mastering the process, I had a clear idea about how to reduce the man hours needed and how to improve its accuracy. I always believed that anything I can do, I can do better. Therefore, after several iterations, ten or so, I was able to reduce it from 8 hours to 15 minutes while improving its accuracy by automating the whole process into a 37-tab Excel file. Currently, we not only save several thousands of dollars a year going through what used to be a tedious and inaccurate process, but we are now reporting accurate figures every month.

Global Trainees 2014

Late August was finally here and it was time for me to go to Sweden to officially start the program and meet my international counterparts. During this time I was able to meet the people behind the Global Trainee Program as well as most of the key decision-makers on Swedish soil. Teamwork was a great part of the workshops we participated in, which allowed all trainees to get to know each other better. Additionally, we were able to get our hands on all sorts of products Husqvarna Group manufactures, from a simple trimmer to an impressive demolition robot. During those two weeks in Sweden we were able to participate in networking events and dinners that allowed us to interact with company people in an informal setting.

Upon my return to the States, my first official and current rotation began; this time I was working for the Product Management and Development team for Consumer Brands in Charlotte, USA. My main objective here is to come up with the necessary tools and templates for the entire Group to use, in order to be able to make appropriate business decisions and at the same time maintain a consistent format amongst all product managers. This assignment was definitely more abstract than the first one and it took several meetings with product managers and current supervisor to determine what I needed to do and how. Three months later, I am in the late tuning stages of the main template I created, which should be released to the Group within a month. This template is automated as well, which will help product managers save time year after year when they are due for an update.

Overall, my experience as Global Trainee has been highly positive and rewarding. I have met and worked with helpful and smart people, while at the same time I have been able to learn new skills and sharpen others. Being able to get different outlooks from people all around the world when working on any given project has allowed me to change the way I think and do things; now I have a more global perspective in decision-making. I anxiously look forward to the following rotations and to the wealth of knowledge that will come along with them. I will keep you posted…

Jonathan Cabeza

Global Trainee
Product Management & Development – Wheeled
Charlotte, USA