From local to global, with the core intact

The pride, joy and personal fulfillment of being part of two local companies, TransGroup and Mahé’s transformations, are palpable as they share their insights on the exciting journey from a local to a global freight forwarder with the core still intact.

Kim Brodersen, Executive Vice President. Photo: Private photo

What binds us together as a company across regions?

Throughout his career with us, Kim has visited over 55 countries, interacting with many different cultures, rules, and regulations; still, there’s a common denominator at the core of the company regardless of the region, he explains:

‘We share the same approach to always finding a solution. Though challenges, we persist and keep believing there’s a way, even where others don’t. Solving our customers’ problems fuels pride pivotal to our mindset and proactive customer approach.’

Angie expands:

It’s in our innate ‘can-do-attitude’ to be creative and ambitious in our pursuits. We bring a human approach to our customer and their needs and accept that, as humans, we will make the occasional mistake. The crucial part is that we learn from our mistakes not to repeat them, which embodies who we are:
We see every challenge as an opportunity to do more, better, and learn. This approach is vital to our continuing growth journey.

The freedom to create

‘The freedom to be creative builds strong teams and instils a feeling of belonging in people – I see it across the globe’, Angie continues.

Both agree that the top management’s encouragement and empowerment to keep learning, taking chances and advancing within the company have contributed to keeping both with the company for so long. ‘Our voices have mattered.’ Most importantly, close collegial relations like the one they share have made it possible to go the extra mile when required.

Today, they pay it forward by mentoring new team members, and Kim is often asked to share his in-depth knowledge, expertise, and extensive network when entering new markets.

Angie Santillan, North American Chief Administrative Officer. Photo: Private photo

How do we onboard new team members and fields of expertise to an ever-expanding organisation?­­

In her role, Angie has been part of several acquisitions in North America. Experience has improved their onboarding process to include three absolute musts: ‘Listening, communicating, and information sharing are key components in onboarding new colleagues and ensuring skills and expertise integrate well. Through listening and open dialogue, we learn how our new colleagues were successful in their operation before, compare with ours, and consider their concerns to extract the best from two worlds,’ she continues before concluding. ‘It’s a privilege to see how the teams that have joined us over a series of acquisitions have integrated very well and have complimented our ambition and culture.’

Kim singles out acquiring ASL, a German-based automotive logistics provider, which added considerable expert skills and capabilities to the organisation, including their own airport code for cargo handling of special vehicles. ‘It blew my mind they had managed that’, he says.

The DNA manifests itself daily

The successful onboarding of new team members circles back to the customer-driven focus, revealing another way the DNA of uncomplicating our customers’ world manifests itself in day-to-day operations. Kim explains:

We have succeeded extra-ordinarily well in ensuring customers experience personal service and interest in developing their business together. We are always a step ahead.

As Key Customer Account for industry leaders for many years, he co-created several effective new solutions that best serve the customers based on their needs, making their supply operations easier. ‘Transparency builds trust and close relations hard to break’.

Angie shares the experience: ‘We have not lost a single customer on the journey from a local to a global company. On the contrary, our customers are excited about our global presence and its opportunities.’  

Touching on being a global player with experienced local knowledge and extreme growth ambitions of becoming a leading logistics provider, they are both confident:

‘We have the potential, the mindset, the people, and the drive to succeed.’