Lasse Berg

3️⃣ tips to drive more impact from your Board Meetings 👇 We have received a lot of great feedback on our way of doing board meetings So good that multiple elements have been added as best practice at some prestigious universities and implemented in a couple of Denmarks biggest companies 🏢 It is not rocket science, but here a few tips based on our learnings: 1️⃣ Video Material as preparation 🎥 Before the board meeting starts everyone should know what to discuss (Agenda) & have the needed context to discuss it. We use videos to ensure that, where with just 1 hour of video content we can add a lot of relevant context to bring everyone up to speed 🚀 This should not take more than a couple of hours to prep & I would recommend to almost only use your day-to-day work material as the things you record from. Loom is a good software tool to do the videos This brings me to my second advice 😃 2️⃣ Do not spend time on reporting - aim to create value 📊 When talking to founders I often get surprised on how many spend the majority of their board meetings doing reporting. That SHOULD be done beforehand (ideally monthly) and all potential questions to this should be addressed in writing before the meeting. It is okay to spend the first 30 minutes on clarifying questions to material etc. - but do NOT let it overflow and capture the meeting 👻 Instead we often design workshops with clear Desired Outcomes and work with the Board like it was an internal strategy session daring to be 100% transparant & vulnerable and utilise their experience on the topics to get as much value as possible. We never vote or make definitive decisions (with the exception being fundraising and similar matters) - instead we regard it as input and make the business decisions in the Leadership Team, who has the needed day-to-day context to make great decisions 3️⃣ Board don’t really make the differences, but can for sure be supportive At the end of the day the impact in a business is created daily and I have never heard anything that felt that their board meetings, where truly transformative. Ensure you have the best possible people to get feedback on strategy & aim for the maximum output, but… Also remember to have fun 🏎️ This builds a stronger relationship making it easier and better to use the board members between the meetings, which is where the actual value is created 💸 (Picture is from our go cart session at the last board meeting - sadly the 3 ligthest people made the podium 😉) These were a few tips based on my experiences, but I am but no mean an expert, so would love to hear you: How do you maximise the value of your investors & board members inside & outside the board room? 🤔

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Is Your Reference Checking Process Biased? Reference checking has long been a one of the most common steps in recruitment, but traditional methods often come with biases. And these biases can be hard to discover without a larger data set and proper analysis. Last year we at Refapp wrote an article together with Melissa Wheeler at RMIT University to highlight two major bias challenges in reference checking: gender bias and leniency bias. Implicit Gender Bias: Studies show that women tend to receive more negative or less enthusiastic references than men, even when their qualifications are equal. Leniency Bias: Candidates often select referees who will give them the highest scores, skewing the reliability of the feedback. Solution: Structured Reference Checks New research and digital tools, show that structured reference checks—using mostly standardized numerical scales and gathering data from more referees gets us closer to a fair and effective reference check. Key benefits of structured reference checks through a digital platform like Refapp: - Eliminate gender and leniency bias - Increase response rates (86% response rate within 24 hours!) - Provide more reliable, data-driven insights (and recently benchmarking) to candidates past behaviour and performance. As recruitment evolves and AI continues to develop, it's clear that collecting relevant data from multiple perspectives of the candidate is essential to getting the full picture. Let me know if you would like to read more! #Recruitment #BiasInHiring #DiversityAndInclusion #DigitalHiring #ReferenceChecks #HRTech #Refapp

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Build a Vital, Indispensable Post-Sales Motion. A sustainable and healthy post-sales motion is non-negotiable. It is the lifeblood of any successful business, ensuring customers remain engaged, satisfied, and loyal. Without it, customer churn will cripple the company. That is what we are going to discuss Friday with Customer Success Snack at the Pleo office Final call to select your Breakouts! See you at 8:20AM with a kanelbullar. PS: Did you already participate in the European Salary Benchmark Survey? Check the link in the comments. #customersuccessisyoursuccess

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Discover and unlock your growth potential in Norway

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What is the most important hiring KPI? At yesterday’s networking lunch at Alva Labs HQ we discussed this. Some of the more commonly used metrics turned out to be: - Time to Hire - Candidate experience - Hiring manager satisfaction - Time to production The one metric I believe has the biggest impact is Quality of hire. It is a lagging metric for hiring, but it is a leading metric for overall company success. At Alva we measure QoH through a survey filled out by the hiring manager after 3 and 5 months of the onboarding. We use the following questions: 📍How is this employee acting in lines with company value X? 📍I am comfortable handing over work tasks to this individual. 📍The employee works independently on tasks. 📍The employee contributes to the team. 📍The employee has enough knowledge to conduct their job. 📍The employee is close to reaching their ramp targets. 📍How likely are you to keep the employee after the probation period? The correlation between these questions and actual performance down the line has turned out to be very strong. How do you measure quality in your hiring process?

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"My Webinar only got 30 signups 🙃 " A statement I hear quite a lot and is often perceived as a negative result. But ask yourself this: Is it really easier to get 30 sales dialogues booked on your calendar 🤔 ? Many companies try Webinars out and give up due to "dissapointing" results but I have to say I mostly see this going wrong from the "managing expectations" side rather than the actual result side. Think about it, you have 30 people in a virtual room that specifically tune-in to listen to the topic that resonates with them and you're an expert on. This is a great way to build trust which is paid back at the point where timing is right for that customer. You've displayed yourself as a key knowledge bearer of the subject that interests them and there is no safer feeling for buyers than knowing they buy from someone that understands what they care about! 😎 Go host some webinars 🚀

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Unlock sales success with the world's leading #AI-powered pre-meeting platform. With Crystal Knows, gain instant insights into your prospect's preferred communication style. 👉Reach out to me or my colleague for a demo in Danish or English, and discover how AI can enhance your sales performance. Carina Herschend Crystal Knows Nordic #crystalknows #DISC #crystalknowsme

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In my most recent talk with Dan Öhlander, now the RVP at Okta for the Nordics, we discuss his sales leadership experience over the past 15+ years at companies like Snowflake, Microsoft, Oracle, and Google . We dive into topics like: 👉 How the best sellers work tactically with the CRM 👉 How sales recruitment has changed over the years 👉 What he's looking for when hiring at Okta today 👉 How hiring criteria differ between hunters and farmers and more.. Find the full Mployed Sales Insight episode here: https://lnkd.in/dquVezCH

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😡 Something that annoys me..... Recruitment ads for a "head of sales role" in a start-up environment that thinks you can get three persons in one..... ❓ Why? Well, look at this example.... "Initially, the role will focus heavily on hands-on sales work. Over time, your focus will naturally shift toward strategically expanding our sales team with top talent" ⁉ So.... 1. Do you think a HoS can just stop selling from one day to another? 2. What does "naturally" and "over time" mean? Problem: There is not one single HoS out there that has managed to continue selling, start recruitment, fix onboarding, have successful people management, extend training capabilities, and sit in the leadership room discussing every strategic decision related to product, pricing, OKR:s, why are we not selling bla bla bla bla, at the same time and still being successful in a start-up environment. 💡 So what to do instead? 1. Hire a skilled AE who can take over the CEO: 's sales processes and start building a pipeline themselves. Maybe together with an SDR. No quota, no target but good base salary and great commission if selling. 2. Sign up a fractional resource (yes, here I´m biased..) with many years of experience in SaaS sales and leadership and who has worked with start-ups and scale-ups before, to "pave the way" before hiring a long-term solution. Set structure, build playbooks, understand why customers buy (and stay), and support the existing sales team to become masters. 1 ➕ 2 = 3. With an increasing number of discovery meetings, new customers who sign up for the service, and basic processes in place, l can promise you that there will be way more potential candidates out there to take on the HoS employment long-term and that will be able to continue to drive growth. But not by doing three people's jobs... 4. Let the fractional HoS be involved in recruiting the long-term HoS! And if you are lucky, your first AE might be the best positioned to take over the HoS role.... 😉 There is a reason why there are very few "playing coaches" in Football... Either you focus on developing yourself or you develop others. The same goes for business. Sales Leaders out there who have been in the start-up world. Give me your thoughts!

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👀 How to find dream hires 62% faster! And SLASH 'Time to Attract' by 20 days – on average. 💪 With a 23 billion SEK turnover, over 3,000 employees, and 400+ locations... ....our client Apoteket AB completely transforme TA into a proactive powerhouse. We couldn’t be prouder of the incredible results we’ve achieved together! Massive shoutout to ✪ Carolina and her entire TA team! ☝️ What’s your take: Is TTA a fairer KPI to measure TA teams on than TTH? Let’s discuss! 👇

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Day 1 at TechBBQ in Copenhagen: 3 Key Highlights! What a vibe on the first day of TechBBQ 2024! Here are the top things that stood out so far: 1. AI is the Game-Changer: Whatever you're building, AI better be in the mix. Whether it’s automating tasks or leveling up customer experiences, AI is becoming a must-have for any startup aiming to stay ahead and scale fast. 2. Talent is Your Power Move: Over and over, the talks highlighted how crucial it is to find the right people. Startups are laser-focused on finding talent that’s the perfect mix of skills and culture fit, while also creating workplaces that have a strong sense of purpose to keep them onboard. 3. Sustainability is the New Baseline: Sustainability is no longer a ‘nice-to-have’—it’s essential. The frontrunners are those baking it right into their business models, setting a fresh standard for how to succeed Can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings! #TechBBQ2024 #Copenhagen #Startups #Innovation #AI #TalentMatters #SustainabilityMatters #NordicStartups #FutureOfWork #SwedishStartupRecruitment

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How do you create a positive commercial team culture? ⭐ Johan Jarskog, CEO at Next One Technology, joined Josef in B2B SaaS CEOs a few months ago 🎙️ 🚀 They talked about: - Creating a positive commercial team culture - Why 50% inbound and 50% outbound is a great mix - What's the most important things in a great sales process - And much more...💡 Listen to the interview by searching for" B2B SaaS CEOs" where you listen to podcasts 🎧 #ERPsystem #SaaS #B2BSaaSCEOs

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How do you turn one client meeting into you writing a proposal that hits the mark? We recommend a technique called STONES (developed by Lars Tewes - one of our expert Sales trainers - who has spent 30 years advising on consultative selling approaches). STONES stands for: Situation, Tomorrow, Obstacles, Now us, Explore solutions, Solidify. Situation, Tomorrow, and Obstacles should be at the heart of any conversations you are having. These stages involve asking a lot of questions and listening carefully to grow your understanding. 1️⃣ Situation - Where are they today? 2️⃣ Tomorrow - Where would they like to get to? What does the future look like? What benefits will they receive as a result of solving that problem? 3️⃣ Obstacles - Why haven’t they solved this already? Once you've got a clear understanding that they want to talk about how you might help, you can move on to the next stages of STONES. 4️⃣ Now us - Ground yourself as somebody who has the credibility, experience, and expertise to be able to suggest solutions to their problem. 5️⃣ Explore solutions - Have a co-creation conversation about what the best solutions might be. Perhaps you bring in examples that have worked with other clients or brainstorm a structure around a potential solution. All the while, start to test whether or not this is something that is going to work for them. 6️⃣ Solidify - Come away with a very clear next step. Ideally, that next step will be you putting a proposal together (advice on writing crisp, compelling proposals also available!). If you'd like a example meeting script for using STONES just comment below👇 and I'll send one over to you. ………………………………………………………………………………… 👋 I’m Deri - a consultant who helps consulting team leaders develop exceptional teams ❓ How? Training courses & talent processes Liked this post? Want to see more? 🔝 Connect with me 🔔 Click the bell on my Profile ✅ Subscribe to my newsletter (featured post in bio) 🖋️ Subscribe to The Skilled Consultant

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Finding the Right Balance: Full-Time Team vs. External Consultants   In today’s fast-changing work environment, finding the right mix of full-time team members and external consultants is key. At Sparkk SA, we know this balance helps boost both efficiency and flexibility.   Why does this balance matter?   🔄 Flexibility: External consultants bring new ideas and specialized skills for specific projects.   📈 Scalability: Adjust your workforce size and skills easily to meet project needs, without long-term commitments.   💰 Cost Efficiency: Using external resources smartly can help control costs and improve operations.   Sparkk SA provides skilled professionals in engineering, IT, and scientific fields to help your business thrive. Whether you need to expand for a project or fill a skills gap, our flexible solutions are here to support your goals.   Want to learn how we can help you find the right balance? Let’s connect! 🤝

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The Customer Success spirit keeps spreading across Europe 🇪🇺 and we don't want you to miss out on our insights from the latest Customer Success Snack event in Copenhagen, where over 90 CS professionals were gathered to share practical insights for driving customer success, and I had the pleasure of moderating two discussion groups! Dive into our article "Unlocking Customer Success: 22 Actionable Steps and Tips Shared at our CS Community Event in Copenhagen", summing up all the valuable insights shared at the event by Nicki Hunt, Line Dahl Michelsen, Harry B., Viktor Byström & Milosh Dunjic: https://lnkd.in/d6j7rSKH We are gearing up for H2 events, so stay tuned via Customer Obsessing Consulting & Customer Success Snack 📣 #CustomerObsessing #CSInsights #CustomerSuccessCommunity

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7 Core Competencies of Scale-Up Sales Leaders continued… 3/7: Creating an Engine Building a sustainable revenue engine is key to long-term success. To create yours: 1️⃣ Develop Scalable Sales Processes: Set up processes that can grow with your company. 2️⃣ Leverage Sales Tools: Ensure your CRM systems and sales tools are fit for purpose. 3️⃣ Focus on Lead Generation: Keep the top of your funnel full by refining your lead generation strategy. 4️⃣ Equip Your Sales Team: Provide them with collateral like case studies and ROI calculators to close deals faster. #SalesGrowth #RevenueEngine #LeadGeneration

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*change management* 4 weeks it has been since I have returned back to work from maternity leave. And so much has changed at Sana Commerce during the 12 months I was gone. ⏳ BUT what has stayed the same is that I really enjoy the work that I am doing (with a different focus now, but still in the partner business). 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Yes, there are a few hiccups when it comes to processes and such but for me this is normal when working in a position that was newly created, so naturally one needs to find structure in the chaos first. That is what I am good at. 🌱 And what also hasn't changed is that we have people that care about what they do and that are good at their job and like making an impact and seeing things improve when implementing their own ideas. 🦸‍♀️ This is a work environment that makes me thrive and especially now working 100% remote it means that everyone who is in a call with me needs to put up with my level of energy. That probably is exhausting at ties but remember: positive energy attracts positive results ✨

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Have you signed up yet? Join Ripe at RevGenius demo day! TOMORROW :) Thursday, Nov 21st, 11 AM ET / 5 PM CET I’ll give the demo straight from our Stockholm office 🇸🇪 before heading back to the US 🇺🇸 Join us to see live how we help SaaS GTM teams create more meaningful and relevant engagement, for users who are ready to buy or expand. Spoiler: It's NOT by blasting 1000s of emails to book 1 meeting 🤯
 The idea of Demo Day is simple (shoutout Jared & team): — It should be much easier to know if a platform is right for you — So skip the discovery call, get straight to the product Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/drnMwG2E Hope to see you there! PS: If Ripe isn't your flavour tomorrow, you can also see demos of other amazing companies in the GTM space, like: - PandaDoc - Vidyard - Unify - mmhmm - FullyRamped

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As a sales enablement pro, I’m always thinking about how to make selling easier. But lately, I’ve had a different thought: it’s not just selling that’s tough—buying has become more challenging, too. If we can empathize with our customers and simplify their buying journey, we’re not just closing deals—we’re building lasting partnerships. Don’t just focus on selling your product; focus on solving problems. Understand how your customer buys so you can help keep the process smooth. Here’s an unsolicited tip: if you’re only talking to one person from a prospective customer, you’re missing the bigger picture. You’re overlooking the needs and pain points of other stakeholders (a whole lot based on SBI research)—and that’s going to slow down your sales cycle. When you make the buying process easier, everyone wins. #SalesEnablement #Empathize #DontJustSellSolveProblems

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