We operate in all sectors

The merger of Novozymes and Chr. Hansen into a unified biological solutions group has happened very quickly for Novonesis. That’s why expectations for 2024 have risen ahead of the group’s capital markets day in London on Tuesday.

Ester Baiget, CEO of Novonesis, smiles as she reflects on her first four and a half months as CEO of the combined group in an interview with MarketWire.

“We see good dynamics in all sectors. We expect sales growth of 5-7%, and thanks to positive dynamics and extremely smooth integration, we are currently on top,” he says.

“It was not only the top management that ensured this – it was the particularly good work of all team members. We do many things at once and we are up to date with the situation,” says the President.

Integration was not lost on the dance floor either. Cost synergies have already reached 80% by the end of June compared to the previously expected 50% for the full year 2024, well ahead of schedule.

There is no merger without layoffs

Ester Baiget explains that everyone is committed to integrating the company’s two different cultures – for example, employees’ temperatures are taken every month.

“Every month we check the atmosphere through a survey among employees. It takes five minutes to respond, but it’s extremely important for us to track how people are feeling. And the response rate is about 80%. And this is at the highest level,” says the CEO.

However, it is difficult to imagine a merger and cost synergies of approximately DKK 200 million over three years, not to mention layoffs. This also happened in the Novonesis trial.

“We have about 400 positions where we performed double functions. In total, about 300 colleagues left us.”

“We are a growing company – and when you put two and two together, certain positions overlap. You don’t need two CEOs, you don’t need two IT heads, and so on. And now we have improved the organization so we can focus on development,” says Baiget.

“We are in a good place now. We have finished defining the organization,” he emphasizes.

(English edition: Kristoffer Grønbæk)