Articles from Auriga Magasinet No. 2, September 2007
Clear message from new Chairman
Openness and dialogue is the way ahead for Auriga Industries A/S, says Ole Steen Andersen.
Shortly after taking up the position as Chairman of the Board of Directors, Ole Steen Andersen wrote a feature article expressing distinct views and clear messages under the heading “Yes to Cheminova - yes to saving lives”. The article was printed in the Danish national newspaper Politiken and can now also be seen on the Danish Auriga website (only in Danish).
- I felt the need to step forward. The media furore in Denmark after the television programme about India was targeted primarily at the management and main shareholders of Cheminova, and I wanted to issue a clear message from the Board of Directors of Auriga Industries A/S being the parent company. I believe that with the CSR report, for example, we are well under way to becoming more proactive in relation to our stakeholders. It is important, especially for Cheminova and for Cheminova's employees, that we talk more about the important and necessary role played by our products, says Ole Steen Andersen.
After two years as Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors, he became Chairman of the Board of Directors of Auriga in April.
- Even before joining the Board of Directors, I knew what the company stood for. I have always held both the former President and CEO, Arne V. Jensen, and the Aarhus University Research Foundation in great esteem, and my perception of Cheminova as a well-run company was confirmed by my first visits to the production site and the contacts which I made there. Since then, my positive impression of Cheminova has only been substantiated further, adds Ole Steen Andersen.
I am in no doubt that there will be a host of opportunities open to Cheminova in the coming years.
I hope that we shall be able to maintain profitable production activities in Denmark well into the
future, says Ole Steen Andersen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Auriga.
A challenge
Ole Steen Andersen sees the job as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Auriga group as a great challenge. He also sees considerable scope for continued growth.
- We have announced that the divestment of the subsidiaries Hardi and Skamol is proceeding according to plan. Skamol was sold in the summer, and my aim is for Auriga to become a one-string company in the course of 2007. This means that we can devote more resources to developing Cheminova, and I am convinced that to do well in a globalised world, you must focus 100 per cent on the job in hand, Ole Steen Andersen points out. In this context, he mentions the Business Plan 2010, which is an ambitious development plan for Cheminova.
- The world has changed since this plan was conceived, and we must, of course, review it carefully and make the necessary adjustments. However, I am in no doubt that there will be a host of opportunities open to Cheminova in the coming years, says the Chairman.
The very fact that Cheminova's products are important to millions of people all over the world, and that Cheminova is at the same time a company which is constantly in the public eye, requires a stance on a number of ethical questions.
- I see it as the job of the Board of Directors to participate in the ethical debate, which also involves a number of dilemmas for Cheminova. On the other hand, it is up to the Board of Executives to represent Cheminova when it comes to the daily management and practicalities, says Ole Steen Andersen.
In Denmark
Today, Cheminova is an international company engaging in the production and sale of its own products, but which also wishes to play a role in the continued consolidation of the industry.
- It is important, both for Cheminova and for the chemical environment in Denmark, among other things at our universities, that chemical production stays in Denmark in future. I hope that we shall be able to have production activities in Denmark for many years to come, but these activities must, of course, be competitive. The consolidation of our industry will continue, and we must therefore pay close attention to the opportunities which crop up for Cheminova, says Ole Steen Andersen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Auriga Industries A/S.
See the article from the Auriga Magazine .pdf (56 KB)
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