Orkla - Young Professional - Patricia Möller

How to become a better project leader

2010-02-23T04:45:00.001-08:00

As a brand manager at Lilleborg you are often the project leader in a number of various projects. The projects differ from each other regarding budget, time-plan, basic conditions and objectives but most often they conclude with either a relaunch of a current product or the launch of a new and exciting innovation in the marketplace. Since project leading constitutes a significant role in the brand manager’s job description, all Young Professionals at Lilleborg are obliged to participate in a very interesting and useful project-leader course.

The course is held by a qualified and well-educated project leader with a lot of “real-life”-knowledge and experience. During the two days, traditional project leader-theory was mixed with work shops and group assignments. The newly found knowledge was applied on real Orkla-projects, which made it much more relevant and useful.

Below you see Michel Esnault lecture valuable project-leader theory, theory that later on is applied on a real Orkla-project and presented by Ståle, in front of his team.

Do you want to work at Orkla?

2009-11-09T05:58:00.000-08:00

Due to some internal organizational changes, we are fortunate to welcome no less than 5 new employees at Lilleborg, see picture below. It has been a while since Lilleborg employed so many new talents at the same time and this morning I took the opportunity to meet them and discuss some interesting and relevant job-related topics.

First of all, I was curious why they all had applied for a job at Orkla. Very quickly I found out that of all advantages, the following were the ones commonly highlighted by the new employees;
- It is very interesting and developing to work in a company that most often own the entire value chain.
- Orkla is perceived as one of the best brand building companies in Norway, which is extremely attractive if you want to work within Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG).
- Orkla focus on developing people and creating value which means that as an employee you will be able to attend a number of educational courses, academies etc to develop yourself and your skills.
- Orkla offers innumerable possibilities and carreer paths for all employees.
- You get a great amount of individual responsibility early in your career and you often work closely in teams.

Then, I wanted to know what it was like to apply for a job at Orkla. The new employees told me that the whole process had been quite straight forward and well communicated. If Orkla find your application interesting you will be contacted and then conduct a number of interviews, a test and a business case. You get the needed information well in advance and it is recommended to spend some time on useful and necessary preparations. It is advised to be prepared to answer a number of frequently asked interview questions and to have a basic understanding of how to solve various business cases. Most important of all is to “be you” and to be honest, say the new employees in agreement. Further, if you are uncertain what to wear at the interview, business casual is always a safe choice and it is often better to be over-dressed than too casual.

In the picture you see 4 out of the 5 new young professionals at Lilleborg: Øyvind, Silje, Caroline, Silje.

The Orkla Brand Academy, module 2

2009-09-24T04:32:00.000-07:00

Last week it was time for the second module at Orkla Brand Academy at Låven in Sarpsborg. The topics for the week were “Consumer Insight and Market Research”. The week was split in two where the first part focused on “Consumer Insight” and the processes from identifying opportunity areas, brainstorm ideas, conduct consumer research, from gathered data formulate insights, create concepts and finally to present them in a adequate way, supported by mood pictures and symbols. To work closely in groups and to do all the steps interactively all through the entire module was a great way to strengthen and secure newly attained skills.
The last part of the module consisted of an interactive game called Microlaunch where we should decide the best possible mixture of various market research techniques to secure a successful launch of a new product. Critical key learnings considering market research were achieved throughout the game and it was a lot of fun playing it.

A social event took place the last evening and it was nice to be outdoors and compete in sport activities for a change after a long week indoors with a lot of food and snacks.

A visit to the printing office in Trondheim

2009-08-31T07:33:00.000-07:00

When working as a brand manager you have a quite complex job-description which is reflected in the wide diversity of working tasks you have to conduct. To have a great amount of individual responsibility and to work in an organization that makes it possible for you to be involved in all parts of the supply chain is extremely rewarding. Not only do I get experience and develop skills within the marketing "field", I learn a lot about production, logistics and packaging as well.

A couple of weeks ago me and the “packaging expert” from the Solidox project group, went to our printing office in Trondheim to confirm a new art work. The printing making process had to be checked and so the first copies of the final art work for the new Solidox variant for kids, Solidox Ice Age 3. When confirming the art work and final print there are many parameters to control and I am very glad that I had great assistance from my experienced co-worker from Lilleborg, see pictures below.

Rhetoric-course 15-16 June 2009

2009-06-29T01:20:00.000-07:00

Rhetoric is one of the arts of using language as a means to persuade. To move audiences to action with arguments is as relevant today as it was for the ancient greeks 2 000 years ago.

To learn how to write a good speech and to use arguments to move audiences in the “right” direction is very relevant for me as a brand manager, where I frequently need to persuade people in my sorrounding. These newfound skills will be applied in everyday life as well as in more professional settings, whenever I feel the need for some “persuading” ;)

In a couple of days it is time for 4 weeks of vacation, I wish you all a nice summer!

Lago di Maggiore, Italy

2009-06-08T06:49:00.000-07:00

Since Lilleborg and Unilever collaborate within some business segments (toothpaste for example), I have to be updated on the latest R&D from Unilever to be able to take advantage of this cooperation. As a mean to achieve and attain these benefits I “had” J to go to the annual RBT-meeting. The meeting was located in the north of Italy, at the very beautiful Maggiore Lake. The meeting was well organised and the location was fantastic. To have a meeting at a luxurious resort, with great food and a spa is something I definitely can get used to ;)

I learnt a lot during the two days the conference lasted and I definitely gained some relevant insights in addition to the useful and interesting update of Unilever’s innovation funnel. But it was not all work and no play…The last night of the conference we had a fun and challenging teambuilding activity, a sailing race on Italy’s second biggest lake. My team did not win (we blame the skipper :) ) but it was nice to get to know my “global co-workers” in a more relaxed

and informal setting while enjoying the stunning view of the alps.

Orkla Brand Academy 30/3-3/4 2009

2009-04-20T08:33:00.000-07:00

All brand managers in Orkla get the opportunity to attend the famous and prestigious Orkla Brand Academy. The academy consists of 4 modules, each focusing on specific marketing tasks. A couple of weeks ago I got the opportunity to attend the first module that covers branding, segmentation and positioning.

For 5 days we had interesting seminars, lectures and workshops led by prominent professors and consultants from abroad and marketing experts from Orkla. Each seminar was followed by a workshop where the newly acquired knowledge was put to test and later presented in plenary sessions.

Examples of topics covered in this module are; Orkla guide to positioning, how to position your brand, how to get the best possible brand stamps, when to conduct brand extensions and line extensions, the emergence of eco-marketing etc.

We were approx. 30 Orkla employees from all over the world that attended the module at Borregard Mansion in Sarpsborg, Norway. The stay at the mansion was fun, exiting and extremely useful for my position as a brand manager. It was rewarding to meet interesting people, solve various challenges and to eat and drink well. The final evening we played bowling and had some beer and pizza, which was a nice way to relax after a quite demanding week. We will all meet in September again to participate in the second module that focuses on consumer insight, which will be so much fun! :)

Young Professional meeting 18-20 March in Oslo

2009-03-24T02:18:00.000-07:00

Last week it was time for the Orkla Young Professional meeting in Oslo, an event that I had been looking forward to for quite some time. For three days we had interesting lectures held by members from the Executive Board in Orkla, seminars about business ethics and group exercises covering different aspects of employer branding.

The fact that almost all members of the Executive Board held lectures at the YP-meeting showed that Orkla as an organisation prioritizes and values the young professionals. To hear Orkla President and CEO, Dag J. Opedal, talk about his 20 years within the organisation and his plans for the future was motivating and I learned a lot about Orkla’s history during his 2 hour lecture.

During the three days the meeting lasted the schedule was filled with activities during the days and casual, relaxed dinners in the evenings. The hotel had a nice design and the food was amazing.

Between lectures you could eat popcorn and soft ice-cream which was very popular….at least for Ståle and Madeleine that work together with me at Lilleborg :)

Snow storms, laughter and interesting meetings up north

2009-03-09T05:09:00.001-07:00

To obtain great and necessary understanding of Lilleborg as an organisation, a program consisting of over 40 relevant activities is compulsory to attend when you begin as a Young Professional at the company…one of these activities is visiting Lilleborg’s production site, Ello, in Kristiansund.

Said and done…a cold Wednesday, 8 newly hired employees at Lilleborg went by a small airplane from Oslo to Kristiansund. For two days we had interesting meetings with representatives from various key functions, worked in the production line and had time to get to know each other as well as the production site.

Making a movie

2009-02-16T01:42:00.000-08:00

It is busy days at the office, many fires to fight, two major reports to write and the exiting yet time-demanding advertising process for the new Solidox product. To launch a new product means heavy investments in media spending and hence development of commercials, print, outdoor, internet-banners etc. An advertising agency is responsible for the production of the advertising material but this takes place in close co-operation with the marketing division at Lilleborg. To see how an advertising agency is organised is interesting and to be involved in the creative process of producing commercials, ads etc. have been quite an experience.

But it is not just long hours at the office…I have had time for some out of the office pleasure as well…last Monday it was time for the opening of Oslo fashion week at the new and fancy opera in Oslo. I didn’t hesitate for long before I decided to attend the event and it was a fun to hang out with my co-workers from Lilleborg under a more informal setting :)

Laying the foundation

2009-01-20T01:09:00.000-08:00

Every year, the marketing division at Lilleborg creates strategic plans for each brand for the forthcoming 2-3 years. New plans and projects are formulated and existing plans are updated and revised. To define the oral care category in Norway and decide what strategy to follow and which projects to conduct is a demanding job and something that will keep me quite busy for a while. The coming weeks will be hectic and a little stressful but I am looking forward to learn a lot about the marketplace and our competitors.

Back to Business

2009-01-12T23:06:00.000-08:00

Christmas is over and so is relaxing and peaceful days of leisure and rest…back to work, back to business. The vacation was great by the way and the small gifts I made at Lilleborg’s “Christmas preparations party” were appreciated by both friends and family. It was fun to do my own shower gel, pick colours and select fragrances. In the pictures below you see Stian and Jesper producing their own shower gel and me, proud of the deep red shower gel I was able to produce (FYI, the rest of them looked like crap)

“Where it all comes from”

2008-12-08T02:48:00.000-08:00

To obtain great and necessary understanding of Lilleborg as an organisation, a program consisting of over 40 relevant activities is compulsory to attend when you begin as a Young Professional at the company.

To visit the local warehouse, the plants in Ski and Kristiansund and the Lilleborg Museum are examples of physical places we go and see to enhance our understanding of the business. Then we have the practical meetings/activities about everything from how to use SAP to how to sign up for the volleyball-team. Last but not least we have the informative meetings where focus is to deepen our knowledge about the various departments within the organisation and their

interdependence and correlation.

A couple of days ago it was time to pay a visit to the Bentse warehouse, the place where it all comes from. All products that are produced at Lilleborg’s two plants are being transported to the Bentse warehouse for storage and further distribution and transportation.

And as the true warehouse nerd I am, I really enjoyed the visit. The warehouse was quite impressive with its combination of old and modern technology and it was interesting to see how the various processes were organised.

Below you see some pictures from the warehouse and as you can see the door between the two sections was remarkable narrow :)

An interesting Friday up north

2008-11-20T06:28:00.000-08:00

Lilleborg has an outstanding sales apparatus in Norway with more than hundred enthusiastic and driven sales consultants and sellers. The sales organization is divided into 4 different geographical regions which have meetings on a regularly basis. To inform the sellers about new product launches, campaigns etc. one representative from Trade and one from Marketing attend these meetings as well. Last Friday it was my turn to represent Marketing at a meeting held at our plant, Ello, in Kristiansund for the north region.

The meeting was held by Tore (sales manager for the north region) as you see in the picture to the left. The purpose for the meeting was to motivate the sellers in their quite demanding and stressful job, to follow up their individual performances and last but not least to get together and socialize.

Since the meeting was held at Lilleborg’s plant, Ello, a guided tour at the production site was compulsory. Before entering the site we all had to wear robes and sexy hairnets, as you see in the picture to the left. .

And it was interesting to see how the Solidox toothpaste (the brand I am responsible for) is produce and stored.

And unfortunately that is all I can show you from the plant… over and out for this time!

Athens, a nice location for a meeting

2008-10-27T02:21:00.000-07:00

The meeting was well organised and the location was fantastic. To have a meeting at a luxurious resort, 200 metres from the warm Mediterranean Sea is something I definitely can get used to ;)

The food was delicious and here you see Stian and the brand manager for Pepsodent in Scandinavia, Carl-Gustav, relaxing at the patio after enjoying a nice meal.
I learnt a lot during the two days the conference lasted and I definitely gained some relevant insights in addition to the useful and interesting update of Unilever’s innovation funnel. But it was not all work and no play….

In the evening we participated in a fun and challenging teambuilding activity held at the beach. Our team was called Dionysus and we did well in almost all of the six different disciplines in the so called “Olympics”.

Our great team-performance was rewarded with a bronze-medal later that night at the barbeque dinner.

Time to face the experts..

2008-10-24T07:22:00.000-07:00

Last week it was time for the yearly Nordental exhibition, an event that attracts more than 6000 dentists from all over Norway. This year the exhibition was very conveniently located in Oslo.

Solidox had of course a stand at the exhibition; since we are interested in continuing building a good relationship to the odontological sector. This to get input from dentists about our current products, to have a beneficial discussion and last but not least to get insights about existing gaps in our current portfolio.

To get hold of this information we had to attract the dentists to our stand with nice design and
free samples ☺

Here you see me, Camilla and Randi at our stand, nice and calm just minutes before the exhibition opened!

This is what the stand looked like for three days…a lot of people! Our plan worked out well but gosh what I was tired in the evenings. To give out thousands of goodie bags and answer tons of questions surely took its toll on me.

But our hard work paid of in more than one way. Not only did we get many useful insights from dentists all over Norway, establish a good relationship to odontological sector with free samples and nice conversations.
We also got nominated and awarded (3rd place) for “best stand 2008” ☺

There is more than hard work..

2008-10-23T05:47:00.000-07:00

After a long day at work it is nice to relax and socialise with my co-workers under more informal circumstances. Not very long ago the girls at my floor had a “cheese & wine” evening which was a great opportunity for me to get to know the people I work with on a more personal level.

To work at a company that spends 300 Mnok each year on commercials, print, outdoor etc. has many benefits. One of them is invitations to fancy premiers with free food, drinks and celebrities. Below, you see some pictures from the Top Model premiere in Oslo where Sunsilk was one of the sponsors. The premiere was located at SAS Plaza where the view from the top floor was amazing.

The event was well organised but quite crowded as you see in the picture. Nonetheless it was nice to get in touch with fashion and glamour a cold and ordinary Monday night in September.

A smelly job

2008-10-21T02:47:00.000-07:00

When developing new products there are many things you have to consider. Not only do you have to decide what the product should look like and what benefits the new product is going to give its consumer. You also have to create a whole concept based on the specific and fundamental consumer insights that influences the whole development process. The development of the product’s key characteristics such as function, taste, smell, colour etc is critical for its success and this is something we are all aware of at Lilleborg and something we try to help each other with.

In this picture you see Elodie, brand manager for Axe and Sterilan, who wants my opinion about various fragrances for deodorant. I don’t know if I need to say that I had quite a headache after smelling at 20 different fragrances in my office.

This picture shows a more planned and organised “smelling session” where a number of fragrances were tested against each other. The purpose was to identify which fragrance to pick for a specific product.

There is no such thing as a typical working day

2008-10-21T01:25:00.000-07:00

To try to explain what a typical day at work looks like is going be difficult since there is no such thing as a “typical day at work”..none of them look the same and that is what makes this job so interesting and fun. Yesterday I spent the whole day in supermarkets, helping a sales consultant with the new big hair campaign for Define and Sunsilk. This to enhance my understanding of what a sales consultant do and to understand what a great job they are doing in stores to increase sale and present our products in an attractive way.

In the picture you see Dag, a very nice sales consultant that made me understand the key basics of how to attract potential buyers in the store!

This masterpiece took me over two hours to build…you know it is hard work, unpacking products, putting them on shelves and then the most important..to make it look good!