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Being a project manager at Universum is in many ways the perfect job. Fantastic colleagues, an enjoyable work environment and challenging work are a daily part of Johan Olson’s life.
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Johan Olson is project manager with research and consulting at Universum. A position he has held for almost three years now and he is enjoying it more than ever.
What makes you stay at UNIVERSUM?
I find employer branding to be a very interesting topic because it’s about people and psychology: intangible, complicated and simple all at the same time. It also involves very big decisions compared to branding in general. Making someone buy a bag of crisps is one thing, but having someone choose their career because of your work is something entirely different.
So you enjoy it then?
Definitely! We have a completely different approach than other consulting companies and the work atmosphere is so relaxed and enjoyable here. That does not mean we don’t work hard; there are just different ways of doing that. Having fun while working makes you want to work that little bit harder too which is what makes a difference in the end. Universum is a continuously growing company that is fast moving with plenty of quick decisions and resources can be allocated to new projects with tremendous speed. Almost from one week to the next.
Your input is quickly heard?
Yes, very much so! If I see a process that can be done better or more efficient it usually doesn’t take more than a couple of weeks and we have the new solutions installed. Be it in our survey reports, our delivery or just the general process. It doesn’t matter if you are a project manager or an analyst or assistant; if you have good ideas Universum will listen.
How about responsibility?
Universum will give you plenty of responsibility right from the start. That is how you learn. Your colleagues are an enormous knowledge resource and before you know it, you will be one too.
What does your job entail?
As a project manager for research and consulting I am responsible for the Swedish, Danish and Chinese markets. Within research I help create the Universum surveys and then process the data that comes back to us. The consulting part is everything from small workshops to large projects spanning the markets that are my responsibility.
Which is the best part of your job?
The best thing is meeting with clients and doing presentations, workshops and even sales meetings. It is quite challenging to pedagogically explain to someone what it is we are about to do, or want to do. You must really know your business if you are taking the role of an expert.
What does Universum look for in a coworker?
At research we are looking for people that are meticulous and analytical. However, we already have quite a few “number crunchers” so we wouldn’t mind forward thinkers with new ideas. Driven, energetic and self propelled.