Global culture

Editor's note: Lars Pettersson has worked with the Fortune 500 company Sandvik for almost 30 years and became global president and CEO of the Sweden-based engineering equipment and service provider in 2002.

His company is actively expanding its business in China. During a recent interview in Sandvik's headquarter in Sandviken, Sweden, Pettersson shares his ideas on Sandvik and China with China Business Weekly reporter Liu Jie.

Q: How does Sandvik sell its products and services to customers?

A: Sandvik typically sends through a direct distribution organization. We have our sales representatives and technicians, who visit our customers mainly on a daily basis. So we can work with our customers in workshops on the machines, or discuss new technologies. We not only sell machines, we also provide after-sales services and support training. Our ambition is really to know more about the customers' processes. By doing this, we are able to help our customers to find better solutions with new technologies or a different way of working. This is also a very good foundation for our development, products and services.

Quite frankly, you have to segment the market. Normally we work with our customers - the direct sales organization with the top or big companies and medium-sized companies - because they are companies with scale. Of course this is the very dominant part of the 50,000 people working Sandvik's sales department. But for small customers, direct sales work it is not financially viable, so in many cases we use distributors. In this case, we regard distributors as our customers and provide training for them, and also collect information from our customers.

Q: Would you like to briefly describe corporate culture of Sandvik?

A: A culture of a company is a very important thing. You cannot say as a company Sandvik has only one culture. In China, we are a Chinese company; we should have a Chinese culture. In Japan we are a Japanese company with Japanese culture. In the United States, we are many ways a US company. But of course, there are some overriding principles and values that we all share.

The first one is openness, we would like to make this organization open and transparent - everybody can ask questions and air opinions. I also try to communicate with our employees directly. For instance, on the quarter basis, I make a presentation on the Internal net, which everybody can see.

We like to find solutions together with our employees. We don't order our people what to do, but make commitments and support them. We found, when they are in such an environment, they are much more aggressive.

In addition, fair play is very important. We do business under this ethic and treat people in this way.

Then we have a culture of strong orientation towards efficiency and profitability.

Q: What's your impression of China?

A: I first went to China in 1992. In Beijing there were no cars, just bicycles.

The biggest change in my mind is the release of creativity. In fact, the people I have met have opened up and have become much more creative. Much more open - this is the most important change for me.

The cars and bicycles are a much more obvious change, but the more important thing is that when I was there for the first time, most of the people I met expected to be told what to do. But now I found a lot of creativity, a lot of energy, a lot of entrepreneurship and a lot of desire to take initiative and to do things. I think this is a wonderful thing.

This is very important for Sandvik. This is very much in line with the kind of employees we would like to have in our company and the spirit we would like in our company, of entrepreneurship, of commitment, of taking their own initiatives and being really creative rather than being told what to do.

(China Daily 11/10/2008 page7)