Hello Friends,

Welcome back to yet another episode of ‘‘FIKA Friday At the Office’’. In this episode, I catch up with the FIKA OG (short for Original - Gen Z lingo): Henrik Jarleskog, Head of Future of Work, Sodexo Europe based out of Stockholm, Sweden.

Henrik brings a unique perspective to workplace transformation. His journey has taken him from playing ice hockey in Sweden to leadership roles across Nordic countries, including strategy positions that ultimately led to his current focus on the evolving workplace landscape. With his background spanning line management, consulting, and now future of work strategy, Henrik offers valuable insights into how companies are adapting to post-pandemic realities.

The Fika Culture and Workplace Connection:

I explore the Swedish concept of "Fika" (coffee breaks) with Henrik and how it relates to modern workplace dynamics. Henrik explains that Fika is about more than just coffee—it's about meaningful face-to-face connections:

"I'm a strong believer in the Fika culture where you actually meet up face to face. You break some bread or some smaller cookies and you have a coffee to it. You do it every now and then when you want to and when you need to... I think it's a beautiful thing because it is really strengthening both the weak and strong ties that you have with people around you."

Golden nuggets from Henrik:

1. Meeting colleagues remains the top driver of workplace happiness - "Still in the absolute top of workplace happiness is to meet your peers and your workplace friends that you build relationships over time."

2. Flexible work is becoming a performance driver - "I made a pretty bold statement a few weeks ago where I said that 2025 will be the year when flexible work becomes a performance driver."

3. Top-performing companies tend to be hybrid - "The Fortune 500 companies in Europe in October 2024, if you look at the top ten from a stock performance perspective at the time were 100% hybrid companies."

4. Team-based work agreements are the logical next step - "One size fits all decisions regarding where and when to work doesn't make sense anymore. Leadership of groups or teams, they will sit down with their teams to figure out what's the best way we can work."

5. Workplace strategies should connect to company purpose - "When you sit down and you really try to update or redesign your workplace strategy or your future work strategy, connect that strategy to the purpose of the company."

Take a listen of this podcast episode for practical insights on evolving Hybrid Work world & more.

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Tack så mycket (Thanks so much)

Ram

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