Annual Report 2017

Anne Årneby, CEO of Nordic Morning Group Plc.

Background

Historically, Nordic Morning Group was made up of the parent company, Nordic Morning Plc, as well as six Finnish and six Swedish subsidiaries. Each group company had a specific market position and provided services that complemented each other.

New strategy work gets underway

On January 12, 2017, Anne Årneby joined as the new CEO. During Q1 2017, a strategy team was formed under her leadership. The team consists of 15 people, including the Managing Directors of each sister company and support functions. Together, they developed a new strategy that builds on the group’s history and culture of change and learning which already exists in the group’s DNA.

This mindset is reflected in the group’s common ‘Why’ and ‘How’ which influence the direction and guidelines for how all employees work.

Nordic Morning Group´s ‘Why’: making the world a better experience

Today it’s difficult to differentiate a company through a unique offering or product. A few companies in the world can say they have a unique offering or product, but the majority don´t.  

In the digitalized world, the power is with the customer. After all, alternatives to your product or service are just a click away. Customers’ expectations are increasing exponentially – arguably, at the same rate at which their loyalty is declining. There is no alternative for companies when it comes to differentiation – the experience their brand or service provides needs to be at the core of their business.

For the ones who succeed, the good experiences are shared and can build global brands faster than ever before.

This has created a demand for superior customer experiences. In today´s digital, connected world, the customer experience is at everyone’s fingertips – both in terms of being a part of it or commenting on it. This means that there is always an audience and always possibilities, or a risk, if you haven´t thought through your customer experience.

And this is the reason we believe in making the world a better experience. Today, more than before, every little detail counts. You need to align what you say and what you do at all levels, if you are to be successful.

That´s why our talent is our strongest asset and why each and every individual working at Nordic Morning Group is part of creating a better experience, every day, in every meeting and in every detail of our daily work.

Nordic Morning Group´s ‘How’: challenging established thinking and ways of working through people and technology

Our history goes all the way back to 1859, when we started printing stamps for the Russian Tsar. Finland was not an independent country at that time. Finland became independent in 1917 – 100 years ago. That’s when we started to print the first Finnish stamps. Communication has always played a very important role in society. And it still does.

We have developed over time and what we can follow from the industrial revolution to the present, is a red thread of always being at the forefront, challenging established thinking and ways of working through people and technology.

We have always had change and learning in our DNA, as an organization and in our culture. Otherwise we wouldn´t have been around for more than 160 years.

From a conglomerate to three business areas with clear offerings

We are on a change journey. Our client’s needs are changing due to the digital transformation that affects all industries, as well as society.

During the first half of 2017, the Nordic Morning Group began implementing its new strategy by dividing its operations into three new business areas. The Nordic Morning Group now consists of the following business areas: Nordic Morning, Edita Prima, and Edita Publishing.

The Nordic Morning business area consist of the following agency brands merged into one company: KliKKi, Countquest, Sitrus, Seed and Ottoboni. The management and steering structures have been simplified and the overhaul of our business operations continues.

The aim of our strategy work is to repackage our capabilities and services to better meet today’s client needs and the digital business environment of tomorrow. We have done this in close collaboration with our clients to deliver a superior customer experience, driving growth and customer loyalty.

Our business areas target three different markets:

• Data-driven marketing & service design to drive growth and customer loyalty
• Services for automated customer communication and sales support material
• Learning and problem solving using digital technology and content in new ways

That means that all three business areas within the group share our 'Why' and our 'How' but what each business area offers differs from a customer centric point of view:

• Nordic Morning – Driving growth & customer loyalty
• Edita Prima – Eliminating inefficiencies
• Edita Publishing – Smart learning

Financial statements bulletin 2017 (PDF)