116: How to Make Sustainability Addictive with Niclas Persson, CEO of Deedster

Andrea speaks with Niclas Persson CEO and co-founder of Deedster, a company aiming to accelerate the transition to sustainable energy through engaging technology. Niclas discusses his journey from serving in the Swedish Air Force to working in the financial industry before realising he wanted to make a bigger impact regarding climate change. Niclas talks about the importance of purpose and meaning in attracting talent and describes some of the challenges in educating the market and achieving product-market fit in this new domain. He shares perspectives on taking risks as an entrepreneur, letting go of control as a leader, and staying patient amidst uncertainty.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Climate change demands urgent, large-scale action - "every drop matters." Corporations are taking the lead with long-term transition strategies.
• Solving climate change is difficult and boring for many - focusing on the upsides through exciting, rewarding technology is key to engaging people.
• Having a strong purpose attracts talent and makes building company culture easier. People want meaning and impact.
• Educating the nascent "net zero" market on what's possible poses a challenge in achieving product-market fit and revenue.
• As CEOs, finding and empowering smarter people, and then letting go of control frightens but enables the company to flourish.
• Balancing bold risk-taking with patience amidst uncertainty has served Niclas well throughout his entrepreneurial journey.

BEST MOMENTS

"Recruiting teams and getting partnerships in this domain is quite easy...The purpose, the meaning, the purpose of what you do is so strong."

"We have really, really hard conversations and maybe too often...we know each other so well, we can be very straight and blunt."

"You need just to try to find smarter people than yourself and then hire them, and then empower them."

"Be bold, take a lot of risk, as much risk as you can, and even beyond."

"For now, this sustainability net zero, I cannot think of anything more important and relevant."

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ABOUT THE HOST

My name is Andrea Petrone. I'm a Human Performance and Leadership Advisor, Executive Coach and International Speaker. I help leaders and their teams to change their mindsets and master their leadership capabilities so they can achieve extraordinary performance. I've been in the corporate world for more than 20 years working globally - in 6 countries and 3 continents - for medium-large companies.