"Growth Companies Require Strong Leaders"

Epicenter Stockholm has just celebrated its 10-year anniversary. The Nordics’ first digital innovation house was launched with the goal of helping entrepreneurs accelerate and grow. A decade later, the company runs innovation labs for large corporations and supports local innovation hubs around the world in scaling globally, working with everything from startups to medium-sized growth companies.

– Given the state of the world, we generally have a positive climate for medium-sized businesses in Sweden today. Over the past ten years, financing opportunities have changed dramatically. The major banks have failed to provide business loans, and new lending players have advanced by being fast and relevant. It’s become easier to access financing, and thus easier to grow, says Jack Melcher-Claësson, Head of Accelerate at Epicenter Stockholm and a speaker in Norion Bank’s Corporate Accelerator program.

Sweden ranks second in the world for innovation, with factors like peace, gender equality, and low corruption historically playing a big role in the emergence of groundbreaking companies. In recent years, digitalization has further fueled innovation and reshaped the playing field for many medium-sized firms.

– The obvious trend is AI, which has brought many positive effects. At the same time, we see that innovation capacity can decrease when it becomes easier and cheaper to do things. This is most evident in large companies, but it’s visible in medium-sized ones too. As a company, you still need a product or offering that customers actually want, no AI can change that.

According to Jack Melcher-Claësson, it’s crucial to view AI as a tool, not an end goal. Equally important is ensuring that foundational needs like leadership, organization, and capital are met along the growth journey.

– The biggest challenges for growth companies are scalability and talent. The ability to grow sustainably is critical—but that requires resources, both organizational and financial. It’s also a challenge to identify, attract, and retain talent over the long term.

Leadership is a key factor in navigating these challenges. As a company grows, its internal dynamics shift, a new organization takes shape, and leaders are put to the test.

– It’s easy for a founder to become one with the company and make the mistake of confusing their personal dreams with the company’s goals. It’s a delicate balance, especially when external shareholders are involved. We often say that the real challenges start when the company goes from one coffee machine to two. When not everyone meets in the same place, the natural connection between employees disappears. Suddenly, people no longer know what’s happening in the company, and it becomes necessary to schedule meetings and hire middle managers. That’s when leadership becomes critical to growing successfully.