Vivianne Aggestam Podcast Transcript
Vivianne Aggestam joins host Brian Thomas on The Digital Executive Podcast.
Welcome to Coruzant Technologies, Home of The Digital Executive podcast.
Brian Thomas: Welcome to The Digital Executive. Today’s guest is Vivianne Aggestam. Vivianne Aggestam is a sustainability expert and has worked in the political spheres of Brussels and New York, and to more recently in Bogota, Colombia. Environmental topics have always been a passion after being brought up in Sweden.
After spending over a decade in the environmental sector, mainly working in agricultural development, she ventured into the tech industry. She started her own tech consultancy at 30 years old, while living in Columbia. It was a risky move, but the right one after feeling she wanted to give more in other areas.
Now, her company Globedesk has been spreading across countries and continues to grow.
Well, good afternoon, Vivianne. Welcome to the show!
Vivianne Aggestam: Thank you so much for having me. I’m such a great fan of your podcast!
Brian Thomas: Well, I really appreciate that. And thank you for jumping on at this time of the day. I know you’re currently hailing out of the great country of Sweden, but I know you traverse the globe from. Just about everywhere, obviously, virtually, but you do spend some time in South America as well. So, I appreciate that. And Vivianne, let’s jump into your 1st question here growing up in Sweden. How did this cultural backdrop influence your early interest in environmental and eventually technology topics?
Vivianne Aggestam: Yeah, it’s a great question, actually, and an interesting one. Well, to start off with, I would say that Sweden is a really unique place to have your childhood in. There’s a lot of emphasis on the environment from an early age. And not only its biological function, but how to preserve it and what our responsibilities are as humans.
So, I think this made me interested in going into sustainability topics as I grew older. And I think, I mean, moving forward into the technology aspect, which is also interesting as Sweden is the leading global hub for scientific research and technological innovation. So, I think tech has always interested me in the past, but I didn’t really know how to get into it until I started my company Globedesk.
So, I think overall I consider myself pretty lucky to have grown up with really strong environmental principles together with this fantastic innovational tech spirit that, that Sweden has.
Brian Thomas: Thank you. I appreciate the back story there growing up and being exposed to obviously a myriad of different ideas and things that are related to your culture and some of the innovation there that Sweden provides.
So, really appreciate that. So, Vivian, your career has taken you from the spheres of Brussels and New York to Bogota, Colombia. What motivated these geographic and professional transitions? And how did each location shape your career path?
Vivianne Aggestam: Yeah, well, I consider myself. Incredibly lucky to have been able to live and experience in so many cultures and cities up until now.
I believe I’ve personally always been very hungry and curious to experience new ways of living and the different ways of working. And that has definitely been a core motivator for me to move around and understand these variations. Now I strongly believe that all of these countries have shaped me personally and professionally in different ways and has taught me how businesses work so differently in each country.
And this has kind of also helped me, of course, with my company Globedesk. Our customers might want to have very different tech teams or setups or technical skills or how this is communicated. So, I have been able to not only understand, let’s say local markets, but perhaps more importantly, understanding my customers and see how they like to be communicated with.
And more importantly, how they like to do business. So, I find that these sorts of variations that I have experienced by moving around extremely exciting because it’s, You wouldn’t think perhaps that two neighboring countries that could have been very similar, but be completely different in terms of making business.
Brian Thomas: That’s awesome. It’s like in a way you get to do all the travel, like on holiday or vacation, but, but obviously that’s part of your business the, the travel and, and what you’re doing across the globe, which is quite a trek from Sweden to Bogota, believe me, it is so I appreciate that and Vivianne making the shift from environmental sector to the tech industry is a bold move.
What sparked this career pivot and how did your background in environmental work influence your approach to technology? Yeah, my gosh, you’re so right. I think so many
Vivianne Aggestam: people think it’s so such a strange transition. But personally, I think it’s the best change I have ever made. But perhaps I, perhaps I shouldn’t call it a change necessarily.
It’s more a combination of the two. I think when I started Globedesk with my incredible partner, Sarah, I always told her that I wanted to do something within sustainability and perhaps push a sustainable business approach. So, working remotely and promoting this way of work is definitely a large part of that.
So, I feel extremely pleased that I keep pushing my ideas internally and ensuring that we take responsibility for each decision that we make. And again, I consider myself very, very lucky to have a business partner that’s really open to new concepts. And I think also in addition to that, the environmental sector is always a great need of technology for us for us to try and overcome our challenges we, we have at the moment and for the future.
So I think for us as a company, we work with a lot of sustainability companies and we also attract a lot of sustainability startups. And this makes me really. Excited personally. I’m very humbled because it means that I can be in touch with both sectors. I work with so many incredible people that really inspires me.
And that makes me just more passionate about what I do.
Brian Thomas: That’s awesome. I appreciate that. And we’re a technology podcast. Obviously, I’ve been a technologist for many years and. Embrace that story. So, I do appreciate that.
Vivianne, the last question of the day, Globedesk has been spreading across countries and continues to grow. What strategies have you employed to scale your business internationally? And what have been some of the unexpected hurdles along the way?
Vivianne Aggestam: Yeah well, it’s been an incredible ride for us. I have to say, I can’t believe that we have grown so well, both in the States and in Europe. I think we would never, ever expect that when we started our first company.
So, I see in terms of strategies for us, at least, I think networking has been a huge part for us. This has allowed us to meet the customers or potential customers, but also understanding our customer needs. I think this is super important. I would think also you would think that recruitment and hiring techniques are the same everywhere, but it really isn’t again.
It goes back a little bit to this idea that each country is very different, and they all work very differently. And I think other than that, our remote and relocation opportunities is something we have a large focus on. So, I can see that this is a trend that just won’t go away, either for talents or for companies.
So, I think that we’re very much a remote first orientated company. And In terms of the hurdles, of course, we have felt them just like everybody else. I think, especially the last 12 months of global and economic changes that have sort of took us all up. I think finally now we’re starting to see some positive changes for companies some light at the end of the tunnel, which is great to see also, especially for startups, which I know are always often a one man show.
And it’s been hard for them. So, in addition to that, I would say AI is a topic and its effect on the market. That we will see more and more. I think some see it as hurdles and some see it as, as great opportunities. So, I think for us, those are the main ones at the moment.
Brian Thomas: Thank you. I appreciate that.
Yeah, there’s been a lot of hurdles the last few years for sure. But having a remote first company obviously helps you overcome some of those obstacles and challenges, but I do like the fact that you’re embracing This global culture of working with people from different backgrounds, different parts of the world and truly making the world a better place.
So, I appreciate that Vivianne. And Vivianne, it was certainly a pleasure having you on today. And I look forward to speaking with you real soon.
Vivianne Aggestam: Thank you so much for having me. It’s been a great pleasure.
Brian Thomas: Bye for now.
Vivianne Aggestam Podcast Transcript. Listen to the audio on the guest’s podcast page.
