Being a natural analyst and problem solver, no details escape her sharp eye. Ever since her language-intensive programme in high school, Ann knew she had a knack for quickly grasping patterns and flows.
“I found it so interesting how Latin connects so many languages; you could immediately see all the similar structures.”
But the best part is, you don’t have to be multilingual or some type of data wizard to truly connect with Ann and enjoy her wonderful company.
Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I was born and raised in Sandviken and have of course always been aware of the Sandvik Group as a major employer in the area with family members and relatives working within different parts of the organization. But it was not until my studies at the Uppsala University (where I got my Master in Business Management in 2011) and my master thesis project that I came in contact with Sandvik Coromant. The topic was Management Control systems and the balanced scorecard concept where Sandvik Coromant was as part of the empirical study. One thing led to another, and I never left.
What was it like doing your master thesis at Sandvik Coromant?
It was a great experience. The work with the thesis gave me great insight into the organization. We were given access to key individuals who guided us in the right direction when it came to relevant KPIs but also structure and areas to focus on. And of course, access to the strategy to suggest proper focus areas.
How did you end up in the data office?
I have a background in finance and my first 8 years with Sandvik Coromant were within the Global Business Control department. I have been working with more or less all areas of the closing process as well as profitability analysis. Here is where I learned that clear definitions are key: are we comparing apples to apples or apples to oranges? In many of the analyses we were looking to explain or find the cause of a deviation or something similar, and here is where I really enjoyed digging into the data and finding the answer to the question. The fact-based answer.
When a position was made available to do this to an even greater extent, I wanted to take the opportunity to develop further in the area. I joined the data office in 2018 as a reporting specialist for the support functions with the task of supporting requirements related to reporting and analytics needs to enable a fact-based and data-driven culture.
You wanted a different challenge?
I’ve always found a lot of challenges in the positions I’ve had within my area. There is a lot to learn, and if I go back to my time in Business Control, I always felt like there were many things to pick up and dig into. Eight years is a long time and it felt like a natural transition to take on the position of reporting specialist in the data office back then. I knew I could help and offer a lot of support with my financial background, interest in analytics and number crunching.
Sounds like you’re a natural problem solver.
What we do within the data office is of great importance as we are enabling Sandvik Coromant to be a data-centric organization and supporting informed and fact-based decision-making.
Data is, these days, treated as one of the most important assets of an organization and it’s within our responsibility to make sure we are utilising the information as the true asset it actually is and transforming data into value for the organization.
The data office turns raw data into insights that inspire action.
What we do within the data office is of great importance as we are enabling Sandvik Coromant to be a data-centric organization, and supporting informed, fact-based decision-making.
Data is, these days, treated as one of the most important assets of an organization and it’s within our responsibility to make sure we are utilising the information as the true asset it actually is and transforming data into value for the organization.
Speaking of transforming — data visualization has become a form of art in itself. How is it handled within your team?
Within the data office team, we are offering a “single source of truth” to the organization, made available as a report package, where the data is visualized in a way to make it easier for the user to identify patterns, trends and outliers from large data sets, and tell a story out of the data.
But it also means the users don’t have to question the data, its definition nor the source, but get right into analyzing the data and take decisions and actions based on the facts available.
Before we get to that point of actually visualizing the data there is a lot of work in the background. Within our function we have an end-to-end responsibility, meaning we also are responsible for making consolidation of data possible and making it available to the organization. We also have the responsibility for master data and information management, making sure our most critical information is represented in a consistent way throughout our applications by addressing the importance of a common set of attributes for customers and products, for example.
So, expectations are high?
Sure, high, but rightfully so. It’s our responsibility that our data, our asset, is utilized and made available in the most optimal way to ensure the organization has the information they need to execute on our strategy.
When we talk about how to develop the analytics capability within the company going forward, you can say that there are three levels: hindsight, insight, and foresight. We would like to transition from making decisions and initiating activities based on hindsight information and descriptive analysis and move towards foresight input and prescriptive analytics as well. We are, for sure, great at recognizing the hindsight – what has been happening, the facts from previous activities and transactions. The foresight is where we start going into these predictive and prescriptive analytics – how can we make things happen.
Working with data all day must require a lot of focused energy. How do you prepare yourself for work – do you have any special routines? Or how do you relax after work?
I have my two kids, they’re 7 and 4. A lot of their interests will naturally become mine, so that’s what we do in our free time. We’re an active family and we spend a lot of time outdoors. Our son is quite active within ice hockey, floorball, and soccer, so that’s what we do a lot as a family: tournaments, trainings, games. My husband is a coach, too, for several different sports.
What would you say to students/potential applicants who might be reading right now and thinking about sending in their resume to Sandvik Coromant?
The possibilities are endless within Sandvik Coromant and the whole Sandvik as a group. There will always be areas to explore, and you will have full support and be encouraged to continue your learning path and take ownership of your own development.
Thank you, Ann, for the tour of the park around the old Mackmyra distillery and for showing us the hockey arena in Valbo – so full of good energy and memories! Best of luck on the path to ultimate data wizardry.
Stay tuned for more cozy and personal interviews with Sandvik Coromant employees. Who are they, what do they do, what is their vision? These are the people who make us thrive.
