Creating smart solutions is a not only applicable to our products, it is also applicable to how we run the company. We do not believe in large central organisations. Our people should be close to the market and close to the production. We find the synergies of being a large company where it is useful, without centralising where there are no reasons to do so.

This leads us to Thule’s management philosophy, called ‘Management by Objectives’. A philosophy that very much is the core of what Thule is all about. The cornerstones build on delegated responsibility and entrepreneurship within the frames of the agreed strategy. Openness and communication are of vital essence, as of course cost awareness – run the business as if it were your own. This breeds responsible and decisive managers that are close to the company roots and the day-to-day business. The management takes pride in having their ears peeled to the consumer needs. We do it by travelling around a lot, working in stores, visiting our customers. That is how we know what works and what doesn’t.

Recently, a new Performance Management System has been put in place to evaluate and follow up on management development in a uniform, structured and comparable way throughout the Group. The purpose is to create comparability and ensure that Thule – although spreading over the world – is still working as one company, with a common set of values.