Kirunabostäder adopted open strategising to transform obsolete planning into a disciplined organisational capability, aligning governance with commercial goals to drive a decisive financial turnaround.
User Story
From Multi-Million Deficits to Strategic Financial Success
-5,3MSEK
forecasted loss - achieved break-even
55
professionals actively engaged in strategising
8
certified in Open Strategising
2
years working with the method
Starting as a new CEO, introducing Open Strategising was transformative. It gave us a clear, actionable strategy, created a shared language, and rapidly built strategy competence across the organisation, getting the board on board from day one.
The Starting Point: The Risk of Obsolescence
When Jörgen Svonni took the role of CEO at Kirunabostäder, he recognised a need to update the strategic framework. Several existing documents had become outdated over time, including the business plan from 2008.
The company’s performance management was a direct copy of municipal administration styles; it lacked commercial timeframes and was disconnected from the practicalities of a property management firm. With no "common thread" and a financial landscape complicated by Kiruna’s massive urban transformation, the company was drifting into sustained financial deficits. The board issued a clear directive: the strategy must be rebuilt from the ground up to save the company’s bottom line.
The Systematic Solution: Concrete Inclusion and Discipline
The solution was to implement a more structured and data-driven strategy process, tailored to the organisation’s needs and circumstances.
Political & board Alignment: A "stroke of genius" in the process was the deep involvement of the politically appointed board. By bringing owners into the strategy work early, the company achieved unprecedented alignment and support for professional, rather than purely administrative, goals.
Focused performance scorecards: Vague vision statements were discarded in favour of concrete metrics. The CFO, department managers, and key personnel were empowered to own their own scorecards. For example, the rental department focused exclusively on vacancy reduction, while the project department measured occupancy rates.
Systematic efficiency: A digital "suggestion box" was introduced to capture efficiency gains from the frontline. Every idea was assessed against its measurable financial benefit, creating a direct link between employee input and the balance sheet.
The Result: Financial Turnaround and Strategic Confidence
Working systematically quickly yielded tangible returns, proving that even in complex, owner-steered environments, strategy discipline drives results.
Zero-result achievement: From a daunting budgeted loss of 5.3m SEK, the company successfully closed the gap to reach a break-even (zero) result.
Direct bottom-line savings: For instance, systematic changes in waste management will save 400,000 SEK annually. Furthermore, a strategic decision to consolidate office space freed up rental area that now generates 650,000 SEK per year in direct income.
The power of 'no': A firm strategy allowed the CEO to confidently decline external requests—such as taking over cultural buildings—by proving they did not align with the company’s core financial recovery goals.