Boosting Brand Strategy Expertise: Eddie’s Experience at Berghs

Hi EDDIE! who are you and what do you do? 

Hello, my name is Eddie Sjöberg and I work as a Strategic Communications Manager at LKAB Wassara, which is a subsidiary within LKAB Group. I manage internal and external communications, Brand Strategy and Business Development.

You recently completed our brand strategy course. What made you choose this course? 

I took this course because being a subsidiary within a large group like LKAB can be complex, especially when our strategy, customer base, and identity differ from the parent company. When I saw the advertisement for this course, I felt it was an excellent opportunity to acquire better tools, inspiration, and frameworks for the many brand strategy projects and challenges I was facing.

What did you take away from the course?

I got what I had hoped for, namely; tools, inspiration, and frameworks.
What I also got, but hadn’t anticipated, was all the inspiration and experience I would gain from my fellow course participants. Many were incredibly inspiring, and it was very educational to hear about other people’s successes and setbacks in different types of industries. One insight I’m taking with me is that brand strategy can be both incredibly complex and at the same time incredibly fundamental, whether you’re Nike, Volvo, Apple, or a small family business.

What was it like having Rob Scotland as your instructor?

Rob was great, simply put! He brought a lot of energy into the sessions and made class feel like an open and safe space for us to discuss and share ideas and experiences.

The fact that Rob was so open and willing to share insights, experiences, trials and tribulations from his years in this field, gave us students so much more beyond the standard set curriculum for the course.

What did you find the most fun or valuable during the course? 

All of the guest lecturers that Rob brought were interesting and gave a wide range of perspectives and insights on the course subject. The lecturers displayed their different approaches, from different backgrounds, towards the mutual goal of creating solid brand strategies.

It was also great fun and highly educational when we as students were asked to contribute to “Live Brand Surgery” during a few of the sessions, tackling real issues brought in from various members of the class.

Have you been able to apply what you learned? 

Yes! Aside from the frameworks and workable concepts learned in the course, for me, a huge part of the lessons learned were those related to mindset, and almost mental model-esque insights about Brands.

Such as:

• Brand Strategy needs to be foundational, and at the same time remain fluid and “alive.”
• Most global multi-billion dollar Company/Brand have made huge, multi-million dollar branding mistakes, failed product launches, and unimpactful campaigns, etc. So relax, mistakes will happen!
• It is often your job as Marketer or Brand Strategist to ask the uncomfortable questions. Why are we doing this? Does the product/campaign/visual really communicate who we are? Do our actions live up to what we have stated as our mission?

What does a typical day at work look like for you?

My day today, as I am writing this, started off with checking metrics on the LinkedIn page, making sure that we are keeping momentum on Socials.

Later today I have a meeting with a new colleague from Group IT, onboarding and coordinating our work together with our external web bureau for Q3 and Q4.

And later today I will finalize a document detailing the launch of our first internal-use-only AI Agent that I have been working on, scheduled to launch in Q4.

What’s the best part of your job?

I think the best part is the wide range of projects and challenges I get to contribute to, whether it's business development, marketing activities, digital or internal comms, or brand strategy. There's also something very fulfilling about working for a company whose financial success has a direct positive impact on the country which I call home.

And the challenges?

Actually, one of the challenges was a big reason why I wanted to take this course!

Being a part of a group like LKAB, with multiple divisions and subsidiaries can be complicated, when the overarching group Brand Strategy isn't necessarily easily realized at the fringes of the group. The subsidiaries have their own mission statements and goals, but still can’t stray too far from the Group Brand Strategy. How do we navigate this, in a business-efficient way? That is one of the daily challenges that this course has helped me navigate.

Where do you find inspiration?

As it relates to my professional life, I usually find it through taking courses like these, where I get exposed to new people with interesting perspectives and jobs. And believe it or not, LinkedIn is also a fairly common source of inspiration for me! I try to have a well-curated feed, filled with people who do the same things as me, people who have vastly different jobs than me, and people who post really solid educational or inspirational content.

Do you have a career tip you’d like to share?

Lateral thinking has helped me a lot! Early in my career, I was fixated on specific jobs and titles, and felt discouraged when I didn’t get them — not realizing I simply lacked experience.

Whether you dream of working as an A&R or a Product Manager, start by gaining skills in related roles. For example, an event job can teach you to manage people and projects, while working at an Apple Store can help you understand customer needs and products.

The point is, there are many paths to your goal. Stay open-minded, be patient, and think laterally rather than locking yourself into one route.

What would you say to someone considering taking this course?

Show up to the sessions with an open mind, and don't put any pressure on yourself to be able to remember every slide, framework, lecture and useful insight delivered during the sessions. Rob did a good job of providing a wealth of materials after the lectures for us to dive into on our own time.