Jorgen Knudstorp, Ceo, on RebuildingLego (重塑乐高的“男孩”：克努斯托普)
Sitting in his office in Lego’s home townof Billund in the heart of rural, central Denmark-surrounede by sets thatinclude a gigantic Disney castle-the spiky-haired 48-year-old retains a boyishair. He was introduced to the toymaker as a child by his teacher and engineerparents when initially all he wanted was a racing car.
But Mr. Knudstorp is no wide-eyed romantic.
He also brought to Lego much of his professional background as a McKinsey consultant. He gives each of the five phases he has led Logo through since 2004 a pithy description-survive, purpose, let growth loose, step up, leap – before adding: “I apologise for the management lingo.”
The first person outside the foundingfamily to run Logo, his initial task was to staunch the bleeding, asjournalists prepared obituaries for the lossmaking and over-extended toymaker.Mr. Kundstorp adopted a strict focus on cash, selling off peripheral businessessuch as theme parks and video games, and cutting the number of parts Lego made.Foreign outposts were scaled back or closed down. Tiny Billund again became theheart of the group.
In a second phase, he worked on productivity and identity by moving much of Lego’s production to countries such as Hungary and Mexico, and boosting the brand. Only in the third period – 2009-11 -did he feel the toymaker could look to grow, you are hiding your problems. Growth is like sugar – coating your problems,”he adds.
The latest phase, beginning last year, wasborn out of the difficulties of becoming so big. Small problems developed: Legowas fined 130,000 for preventing German stores from offering discounts;employee satisfaction levels were flat, and the number of staff increased by aquarter in just one year.
Mr. Knudstorp says he worries about whatconsultants at Bain call the “westward winds”, forces that push bigger companies away from what made themsuccessful in the first place. “ It is bureaucracy, itis because you are getting bigger, the pressure of scaling, of having the entrepreneurial spirit despite being a very big company,”Mr. Knudstorp adds.
Some of the same issues that confronted Mr. Knudstorp in 2004 are creeping back in. The number of parts used by Logo hasincreased, but he stresses that so has turnover. Offices have been opened inLondon, Singapore and Shanghai but Billund remains the company’s centre. A newheadquarters is being built, and an architecturally impressive Logo House toshow off the brand. “We are careful about not losingour soul,”Mr. Knudstorp says. Films and video gameshave followed the same model of having another company better suited to thosefields using the Lego brand.