Lars Kolind Danish entrepreneur, writer, public speaker, teacher Date of Birth: 05.05.1947 Country: Denmark

1. Danish Entrepreneur, Writer, Public Speaker, and Educator
2. Professional Career
3. Author and Political Involvement
4. Awards and Honors

Danish Entrepreneur, Writer, Public Speaker, and Educator

Lars Kolind is a Danish entrepreneur, writer, public speaker, and educator. He was born on May 5, 1947, and studied at Aarhus University, where he graduated with a Master's degree in Mathematics in 1972. He also attended Copenhagen Business School, earning a degree in 1977.

Professional Career

Kolind's career began at Oticon, where he worked from 1977 to 1988. During his time there, he served as the Chief Operating Officer and later became the CEO of the company. Under his leadership, Oticon's profits increased significantly, from 2 million Danish kroner in 1991 to 136 million kroner in 1995. His innovative restructuring of the company was widely discussed in numerous articles and business books, including Tom Peters' "Liberation Management."

After leaving Oticon, Kolind served as the CEO of William Demant Holding A/S, a company specializing in hearing aids. He held this position for ten years and further contributed to the company's success. Additionally, he has held positions as a non-executive board member in various companies, including K.J. Jacobs AG, Grundfos, Poul Due Jensens Fond, Unimerco Group, Zealand Pharma, LinKS, and Wemind.

In 2000, Kolind established a venture firm called PreVenture A/S, which was managed by BankInvest. Although PreVenture ceased operations in 2009, it owned several companies, including Retail Internet A/S, Yellowtel A/S, Isabella Smith A/S, and KeepFocus A/S. Today, Kolind is the majority shareholder of KeepFocus A/S and Wemind A/S through his own company, Kolind A/S. His family also owns Løndal Østerskov A/S.

Author and Political Involvement

Kolind is a popular business author, and his book, "The Second Cycle–Winning the War against Bureaucracy," published in 2006, has been translated into multiple languages and received critical acclaim. He is also involved in politics and has supported the newly-formed Liberal Alliance party, donating 100,000 Danish kroner to the party in 2007. Although he ran as a candidate for the Liberal Alliance in the Fyn region in the parliamentary elections in November of the same year, he was not successful. However, he continued to actively support the party.

Awards and Honors

Throughout his career, Kolind has received several awards and honors. In 1993, he was awarded the Danish IT Prize, followed by the National Management Prize in 1996. That same year, he was named "Man of the Year" and became the "Social Entrepreneur of the Year" in 1998. He co-founded the National Network for Social Cohesion in 1996 and the Copenhagen Centre for Social Cohesion in 1998. In 2007, Kolind became the Chairman of the World Scout Foundation and a member of the World Scout Committee in 2009. He has also been honored with the highest international award from the World Organization of the Scout Movement. Additionally, he is a Knight of the Dannebrog Order and a member of the Danish Academy for the Technical Sciences.