Connecting people and solutions
Nicknamed “Kalle” in Swedish, Carl Wanngård strives to be a high-performing link between businesses, products and services on one hand and people and tailored solutions on the other. He successfully combined his education in engineering with many years of experience in software development, people management and sales. His academic choice at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg was with electrical engineering and a focus on computer systems. That said, fairly early on in his professional career he was pointed towards sales and people, and that’s where you find him now.
Realizing that he was good at business and people, he slowly left the software development business behind, even if he never totally left the area. He now has 10+ years of experience in consultancy organizations and embedded/intelligent systems within the automotive, telecom, defense and life science sectors. He has worked as a consultant manager for nine years now (2020), mainly both selling consultancy services and managing teams of consultants. Before that he worked with software development for five, six years.
“… a people-oriented person, highly dedicated, efficient and organized.”
– Something I deeply believe has had an impact on me as a person is my running. I’m a dedicated, ambitious runner. The running helps me in my private life and in my work performance. I run six, seven hours in a week’s span, distributed at four, five different occasions. And I always have high goals (and expectations) as I prepare for upcoming races.
Today Carl has two small kids and enjoys the family life. Answering the question of how to describe himself, the people around him is his main focus.
– I am a people-oriented person, highly dedicated, efficient and organized. I always strive to make decisions that works out well for all parties involved. Both in private and at work.
What do you do at Volupe?
– I work exclusively with sales and business development; Norway is the market I work with the most. A job that includes some travel days.
– If you want to know more about advanced simulation and the Siemens products that we bring to the market, I’m your man.
Why do you do what you do?
– I’d say there are many reasons. I like sales, connecting with people on a daily basis sounds more fun to me than software development. I had a manager that some years ago saw my potential and kind of pointed me into sales. Then, being approached by a headhunter (for Volupe), I realized that selling software products and solutions sounded like lots of fun. The timing was perfect and being part of the development journey of our company has been rewarding so far. I really like to be part of the entrepreneurial mindset here.
“I ask a lot of questions; I am curious, use my creativity and try to be flexible.”
What’s your driving force?
– To create value for others, to help them solve their problems and overcome obstacles. When I worked as a consultant manager, it was a lot about helping people to find new challenges. Here I rather help the customers to get the best value out of either the product or the tasks at hand. Teamwork and success as a team is important to me, both for myself and for the people I support.
Do you have a specific way or approach in work?
– I ask a lot of questions; I am curious, use my creativity and try to be flexible. Our product is somewhat complex and demands a big investment on the customer’s part. It’s important that I can make them think outside the box, to be able to close the deal. I need to help the customer find the right possibilities. Help him or her to see how our solution can be tailored, meeting the specific needs they have or will have.
“Only together can we make our customer happy. We need to be in sync.”
What’s important to you, as you meet others?
– To listen! You know, one mouth and two ears? It’s important to be able to try to understand what the customer really needs. It’s actually essential, as we at Volupe work as a team and others in our team do the technical presales- and support activities, while I handle the commercial parts. My role is to get to know what the customer dearly wants. That is the only way I can give my co-workers the best possible conditions to do their bit. Only together can we make our customer happy. We need to be in sync.
What do you take big proud in having done?
– Here at Volupe… Ask me again in a year and I will hopefully have a whole lot to tell you.
– I’m fairly new here, so I have things to accomplish. But I have always accepted my challenges, and that has taken me to many different places in life. I’m proud of my courage in this, and also that I know that I’ve always been true to both myself and others. And I feel pride in the fact that I still live according to my personal values, and that I am a good fellow being.
So, what does the future bring?
– I see myself being distinctly involved in building Volupe into something really good. We have a good relationship with Siemens, and we must nurture it well. I see myself as a natural part of the forthcoming Volupe adventure.
– I also believe that some of the experiences yet to come will make me improve as a person. Because I want to continue to develop, as Volupe develops and we grow into more areas of technology. The thought of that journey excites me, and I believe it will be lots of fun to be aboard this ship in the future. I’ll probably also improve my Norwegian.
