Runar Nilsen is an experienced business leader, known for reversing negative trends in Norwegian and international industrial and commercial enterprises. He excels particularly at addressing complex challenges, initiating and driving changes, achieving results, and negotiating better terms with stakeholders, consistently focusing on cash flow and working capital management.

Nilsen has extensive experience in logistics, IT, and general management, including roles as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Financial Officer (CFO), and Chief Restructuring Officer (CRO), as well as varied board experience. He is analytical, results-oriented, and practical, and can effectively engage at all levels of an organization, from production to the boardroom.

He has worked as an Executive Interim Manager since 2003, when he left Møller Gruppen (now known as Møller Mobility Group) after eight years. His career began with consulting roles in IT development and consulting, including at Tieto Enator. In 1995, he decided to take on a line management role and joined Møller as Logistics Director for new cars and car parts. Eventually, he also became responsible for all IT and for major logistics and IT change projects in the company. Møller is one of the largest privately-owned companies in Norway within car import and sales, real estate, and investments. For the last two years at Møller, he led the investment division, with a strong focus on financial and operational restructurings. In 2003, he decided to leave the company and start a new career as an Executive Interim Manager, focusing on turnarounds and restructurings.

His first assignment as an interim manager was as CFO for Raufoss, a 50% state-owned listed company that produces spare parts for, among others, GM. Raufoss has operations in Norway, France, and Canada. The company was threatened by bankruptcy, and together with the interim CEO, he led the restructuring and sale of the operational companies and then the liquidation of the parent company in solvency. To achieve a successful outcome, the focus was on negotiating agreements with customers and investors, selling the subsidiaries, and delisting the company from the stock exchange.

Why did you take on the role of CFO?

"I received an offer and took it. You have to try new things. Although I didn't have a background as CFO, I am quite good at finance – especially when it comes to cash flow and working capital management. It's also important to ensure you have a good head of accounting and a financial team, so that I, as CFO, can focus on implementing the changes and strategy."

 What was the market for Executive Interim Management like in Norway at that time?

"There were many who worked in temporary positions while waiting for a new leader to be put in place. However, Interim Turnaround and Restructuring Managers did not exist in the Nordics at that time, so my colleague and I were very early in this field. Many companies lacked restructuring and implementation skills. It's easy to set a strategy and lead a successful company, but implementing significant changes is something completely different. We established a team from our networks, and we introduced the concept of specialized turnaround managers in Norway. We worked a lot with branding to establish a leading position. It's not like going into a regular position; it's about the experience and the ability to get started immediately."

 How did you get assignments when the "Interim Turnaround concept" was unknown in Norway?

"We got our assignments through our personal networks and a lot of media attention during our time in the Kværner group (later TH Global Ltd.) where I was first temporary EVP & CFO and later CEO. We led a significant global turnaround and restructuring project involving 250 legal entities around the world. Our reputation spread, and today about 50% of the assignments come from the investor side. Which, incidentally, is worrying – it indicates that owners and boards are often unable to act quickly enough when a crisis arises. Today, the role of Interim Chief Restructuring Officer has evolved, is growing, and is getting more and more attention. My roles are usually a combination of operational and financial restructuring."

How do you lead a successful restructuring process?

"Knowing the specific industry is not the most important thing; 80% of the challenges are usually the same regardless of the industry. You have to understand the main drivers in the business and the organization – and you have to be good at people management and leadership in general. Good skills in cash flow management are crucial and often not well enough taken care of by the finance function. Communication is also very important. It is a common big mistake not to communicate clearly with employees to avoid making them worried. You have to be brutally honest with the teams to build trust, and you have to dare to make decisions. In a crisis, speed is as important as money – start immediately and correct and adjust along the way. Often, management has become the bottleneck, so you have to set effective decision-making processes and be calm in the storm. If measures take too long, it makes everything more complicated. If the company faces critical challenges, be sure to get help early while the options for finding alternative solutions are still there."

Why should one engage an Executive Interim Restructuring Manager to lead such projects?

"Often, the business lacks both the necessary skills and capacity internally when a crisis arises. You can't do two jobs at the same time, and you don't have time to learn how to do this if you haven't done it before. It is very important that daily operations continue to function!

If you engage an Executive Interim Restructuring Manager, the organization can continue to focus on the business while the interim manager focuses fully on the project and the necessary changes. An interim manager also has no history and legacy in the company, which means that you do not need to take into account internal politics, previous decisions, or personal relationships. They also have extensive experience from similar assignments as they have done it before."

You have held many board positions; what is the role of the board during a restructuring?

«In a crisis, the board must be closer to the organization, vigilant, and flexible. Generally, I believe boards must react sooner than they do when management reports poor figures. We often see denial and hope. I think many boards need to wake up and address problems more proactively than they do, and place less emphasis on potential personal liability for board members. They are responsible to owners, investors, and other creditors, and that must be taken seriously!»

As an Executive Interim Manager, you work long days; how do you ensure you maintain a good work-life balance?

«I love to travel, and for example, I recently returned from a break in Santorini. I am also very interested in wine, and I love good food. Boating along the west coast of Sweden or the east coast of the Oslofjord and skiing are also two things I do to recharge and get energy. And I am getting better and better at avoiding work on weekends.»