Coaching Case at Velux - Top management coaching

Achieve a trusting, human connection with your employees as well as stakeholders.

Velux

“Because of my curiosity I often seek new challenges that can sometimes result in chaotic experiences. But after my coaching sessions with re:lead, I usually land in a place where it is clear to me how I should move forward".

Sven Eric Nilsson
Vice President at VELUX

The challenge

When Sven-Eric showed up for his first coaching session with Jørgen Sørensen in 2006, it was at the invitation of his own manager in SAS Sales and Marketing, and not without reservations about whether this personal coaching would be some 'hocus pocus'. Sven-Erik was already a successful and experienced manager at 39, and had his bag filled with management tools - sometimes so many that he would often be in complete doubt as to which tool to choose. He was skilled and was constantly offered new challenges - but an inner doubt regarding his ability to hit the ground running still followed him. In retrospect, there was no consistency between the person he was at work, and who he was at home.

Our approach

Jørgen's ability to meet Sven-Eric sincerely, and at eye level, quickly dismantled his reservations about coaching and created a trusting space. It also helped that in addition to his people skills, Jørgen understands business and the operational and strategic realities that managers operate under. For Sven-Eric, the decision to 'go all in' and dare to be vulnerable and fully transparent was crucial in establishing his coaching relationship.

Initially, the focus of the coaching was on guiding Sven-Eric in making proper contact with his deep, basic human values, and to understand and sense how he was influenced by his upbringing and family background. In the following phases, Jørgen, as an interlocutor, helped Sven-Eric ad hoc in clarifying the dilemmas, questions and experiences of 'chaos' that at times has been a part of his leadership. Jørgen's strong knowledge of Sven-Eric and his ability to spot the underlying themes consistently helped Sven-Eric in leaving the coaching sessions with renewed clarity. Over time, the conversations have changed from being 80% based on management challenges to now being 80% based on human existential themes.

In addition to the ongoing executive coaching sessions, Sven-Eric has used Jørgen and other re:lead consultants to facilitate development processes for several of the management teams and organisations that he has been responsible for.

The effect

By getting to know both himself and his core values better, Sven-Eric has gained a fundamental confidence in being himself. A tangible certainty that 'I am doing the best I can' has replaced Sven-Eric’s previous uncertainty about his own abilities. This means that he now has a fundamental calmness in regard to taking on new management challenges as well as demanding personal conversations. As a manager at Velux, Sven-Eric seeks to achieve and build a trusting human connection with his employees as well as other stakeholders - because as he says: "it makes everything much simpler".

As a manager, one sometimes ends up in a storm of conflicting interests, expectations, unjustified lawsuits, etc. This is where a connection to yourself and your integrity helps you find calm and a clear direction. The results have not been lacking - in fact it is quite the contrary. After several promotions in SAS where he became VP for e-commerce , Sven-Eric has built a successful e-business in VELUX. He then spent a period of time as CEO of Stylepit before returning to his job as VP at Velux. Sven-Eric also exercises his leadership on a number of boards.

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