Hello CEO: Jimmy Nowén, Kontek
Our article series Hello CEO is back with current issues for our member companies. Jimmy Nowén is CEO of Kontek, a Visma-owned specialist company in payroll & HR with products and services for the entire payroll process.
What are your current priorities/focus areas?
- Intelligent and efficient data flows, for example in the context of APIs, integrations and automation, are a major focus at Kontek. This allows for automatic data retrieval and transfer from one system to another without having to process the data, so that when the payroll administrator needs to do their job, the data is already in the system. The aim is to help payroll administrators to work both more efficiently and with higher quality, to spend time on more value-adding tasks.
Do you use AI in your work and if so, how?
- We see great opportunities with AI, both within Kontek and in the products that our customers use. Right now, we are in the phase of mapping and prioritizing the areas where we believe AI will have the greatest importance and effect. This fall, we will launch a number of experiments both to learn and identify the areas that provide the greatest customer value. AI will be a significant part of both our product roadmap and business planning going forward.
How is Kontek working to secure the need for tech skills?
- To secure the need for tech skills, we have broadened our recruitment to several locations in Sweden and especially in Stockholm where the supply of developers is higher. We have also opened up to hiring outside Sweden, and have hired a development team in Latvia. We see that the desire for flexibility is great among developers today and we meet it by allowing everyone to work from home a few days a week. Another way to secure the need for skills is to retain your staff. As an employer, we at Kontek have very high ambitions. It is crucial for both our business and our technical competence that our staff thrive, develop and feel good.
What initiatives would you like to see from politicians and policy makers?
- We need to promote and create the conditions for an innovative society in every way. Providers of public clouds today offer platforms with infrastructure that enables complex and intelligent solutions that, in turn, accelerate innovation. At the same time, there is, and should be, enormous respect and fear of data falling into the wrong hands. This is where politicians and authorities play a crucial role. Partly by assisting Swedish companies with information about opportunities and risks, and partly by creating and deciding on regulations that provide both security and competitive growth in Swedish business compared to the international scene. Take the breakthrough with AI as an example. As a tech company, we naturally want regulations on the development and use of AI. It is important that algorithms are transparent, not least from an ethical point of view.
How does Kontek work to prevent cyber attacks?
- Here we at Kontek have great advantages of being part of a large group. With Visma behind us, we have taken many steps in recent years to increase and invest in the security of our products and services. We continuously work on code scanning to identify potential flaws in components or libraries. We also have security specialists who actively perform penetration tests to identify flaws. In addition, we have procured monitoring systems to prevent cyberattacks. We have policies and frameworks for our development work all the way from architecture and design to testing and release. We also continuously train our staff in information security.
How important are sustainability issues for you?
- Incredibly important. We see how we can work with and contribute to sustainability from many different aspects. Our products and services help Swedish employers minimize manual processes and save time, which both reduces the climate footprint and contributes to social sustainability. Internally at Kontek, we work continuously with our sustainability agenda, which ranges all the way from how we travel as climate-friendly as possible to how we ensure that the work environment at Kontek is inclusive, equal and developing.