Building a culture of learning through Axis Axchange

At Axis Communications, we pride ourselves as a learning organisation. This is an embedded core part of our culture, where we encourage individual growth, both on a personal and professional level. 5 years ago, we introduced Axis Axchange to promote learning and development and encourage collaboration between teams. We recently spoke with three Axchange participants to find out more about the opportunity and what their experiences have been.

 It  can take place either within your region in the form of a visit to another team, or to another office where you can collaborate with a team based in a different country. The length of the initiative can also vary from one day to three months. Taking part in Axchange is an individually tailored experience, which means everyone has different goals and intentions.

So, why take part? Here, Mikael Pendse, Ann-Sofie Edstrand, and Enikö Szasz explore the benefits of Axchange.

Mikael Pendse, a Video Analytics Engineer of the R&D team in Sweden, worked with the sales team in Axis US West business area to understand how the department interacts with customers. Sweden-based Business Navigator, Ann-Sofie Edstrand and Team Coordinator, Enikö Szasz opted for an opportunity to work within their existing department in an alternative office, having each chosen to travel to the Singapore office this year.

Furthering your development

Enikö and Ann-Sofie each already had a close relationship with their colleagues in Singapore but through Axchange, they wanted to deepen their understanding of the business and where it actually takes place.

“My goal was to build on those relationships and increase my network. I love experiencing different cultures, meeting new people, and collaborating so I felt it would be a valuable experience,” Ann-Sofie recalls. Meanwhile, Mikael utilized the initiative as an opportunity to expand his knowledge beyond the activity of his own team: “I’d been wanting to get close to customers and see how they work and gain a better understanding of selling the products that we engineer so this seemed like a great opportunity.”

Axchange enabled Mikael to see how Axis products were being sold in the market, which was a key takeaway for him. Mikael’s role as a developer also provided insight and education that the sales team otherwise could not have obtained. For instance, during his visit he was able to work on installing cameras and helped to solve some analytics issues that customers were experiencing. “I’ve been a part of Axis for ten years and the tech has really evolved in this time. Having the opportunity to work with the sales team has helped keep things fresh and has encouraged my growth and development,” he adds.

In being able to see first-hand what working in other markets at Axis entails, it puts your own work into perspective and can provide you with fresh insight to share with your own team. Reflecting on her experience, Ann-Sofie explains: “When I get to be where the business is happening and understand our core work, it gives me better insights for when I come home and put that into my role.” This can also have a positive impact on the wider team, Ann-Sofie explains. Once she returned from Singapore, she shared her experiences and learnings with her team in Sweden to help improve their way of working and inspire others to take part in Axchange.    

The cultural benefits of Axchange

“In just a few weeks, Mikael became part of our work family and from here forward will always be an extended member of Team West.”

Robert Prady, Axchange Receiver and the Area Technical Manager for the West U.S. Business Area

All previous participants expressed that Axchange has a positive impact on the Axis culture, encouraging those who take part to work with different members of the company to get a real understanding of how they work. If you have the opportunity to go abroad for your Axchange, there’s the added bonus of getting to experience a new culture.

Following Enikö time in Singapore for her Axchange, she now understands why the department there ask certain questions, what it’s like to work in a system where only a small part of the big picture is visible, and the impact of the time difference with Sweden. “After my Axchange, we have synchronized routines and instructions between the departments and today we have a better collaboration, we trust each other and speak the same language.”

Ann-Sofie was surprised by how familiar the culture within the Singapore team felt. She expected more nuances but found that they shared a similar culture that aligned with our core values at Axis. “Seeing  the Axis culture reflected in another office in a different country was really interesting,” she says. “I love experiencing different cultures, meeting new people, and collaborating, so I really embraced the opportunity.”

“The experience has been outstanding. I’ve built lifelong relationships, a great network and a better understanding of how we operate locally. I really hope others take part in Axchange”

Ann-Sofie, Axchange Participant

Want to learn more about how Axis embraces the culture of learning? Listen to our podcast.

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