The DNA that makes up Implement

Tor: When we came to Implement, we’d already been consultants for 5-6 years, and for me, Implement felt like the first “real” place. I felt it was the first place I wasn’t pretending to be something I was not. It was a feeling of being home.

Henrik: For me, it’s the culture that’s super inspiring. And being surrounded by experienced people, doing amazing projects for cool clients. And secondly, the influence I have in making this my own. To be allowed to be part of moulding something that I’d like to be part of myself as well. 

Anders: I have worked with a lot of clients. Fantastic people in amazing organisations. But I never felt that I wanted to stay there. I always decided to move on and get other experiences. That’s why consulting is so appealing to me. And the company we’ve created here just makes it even more appealing. 

Tor: We’ve been here for such a long time, but it’s constantly evolving. We have a core that’s the same, but everything else is always changing.

Anders: When we started, I honestly thought that a consultancy with our amount of autonomy couldn’t get bigger than 70-80 people. We surpassed that in the first year, and now, when we are close to 2,000, the mystery of how the bumble bee still flies is more interesting than ever. But, of course, it is all in the power of distributing decisions, allowing for autonomy, and making people feel appreciated.

Henrik: Implement was an extremely entrepreneurial organisation back then. And although we have grown and become more focused, the entrepreneurial mindset is still there, which I really like. If you see an opportunity, go do it instead of waiting for someone to tell you.

Tor: I think there’s a core that’s basically the same. I also think that we, over the years, have managed to hone it and become even more aware of what that is. The autonomy of the individual and that people shouldn’t be bossed or managed. And still, I can see that structures and support systems have professionalised tremendously. Which, of course, is a necessity but also the difficult part. Because how do we keep the autonomy for the individual as big as possible while, at the same time, acting responsibly for the common good?

Henrik: I remember that the original value we had in our first strategy was about meaning something to each other. And that’s something that still is in our culture. A dedication to not make it meaningless. It must mean something for us to be here, also on a personal level. It’s not just business.

Henrik: We will continue to grow. But for me, at least, the idea has never been about growth. The ambition is to create higher quality and bigger impact for our clients, and growth is just a consequence of us living up to that ambition. For me, the obvious next step is to explore the global potential of that ambition. To develop much more global thought leadership and a much more global delivery setup. To be much more global in our mindsets and attitudes.

Anders: When I started, we were 50 people, all from Denmark. Today, we are 68 different nationalities, which, on the one hand, is fantastic. On the other hand, it’s a change of a magnitude that is hard to grasp. We may feel we’re well on our way to becoming a global player, but I think our mindset has only just started to change around that.

Tor: I think the cool thing about Implement is that we don’t know precisely where we’re heading because it’s an ongoing conversation. And it’s a conversation between a lot of people. Actually, all of us and not just a selected few. But I believe we will grow. It’s in our DNA.

Henrik: People here have an interest in other people and a common idea that work is not just about getting things done but about making a difference. Outside of Implement as well as inside it.

Anders: They are nice people with a high EQ on top of a high IQ, which, to me, is a prerequisite for building our unique identity and culture.

Tor: We’re talking about almost 2,000 people, and, of course, I don’t know all of them. But I hope that we’re more interested in helping and less interested in earning more and that we’re truly interested in the human side of transformation and what drives real transformation. It feels like that – and that’s good.

I also think that, on average, we’re more appreciative than most organisations. Towards each other and our clients. There is this sense of real interest in “what can I learn from other people?” It means we meet other people more openly about how they can help us help them.

Anders, Henrik and Tor (laughing): We don’t know, to be honest.