Annual Report 2008

After annual reports entitled “The Bow is Drawn” (2006) and “The Arrow Flies” (2007), we faced a bit of a creative struggle this year. Up until the end of August, that is. That was when one of our teams received a project appraisal from a major client, beginning with the now legendary words from a seasoned CEO: “Fantastic job. I used to believe that management consultants couldn’t contribute much new thinking. But I must say that you have restored my faith in consultants”.

At the time, this was merely another positive review to fuel conviction in a different consulting model. But as the financial crisis unfolded and revealed a fundamental lack of confidence in the global economy, it was hard not to revisit that memorable day. Obviously, we have no illusions about our ability to affect global affairs, but we do think that consultants can and should play some small part in restoring faith in the value of focused strategies, effective organisations, and our collective ability to solve highly complex issues.

At CoCoCo we will remember the year gone by for the ongoing cooperation with a wide range of fantastic clients in the Nordic region. For a set of record results. For our growth and success in Oslo. For the lowest employee turnover among our peer group. For the extreme number of joyous maternity leaves. For the publication of three well-received books. For the equally successful “India – inevitable growth” seminar. For receiving the prestigious ACQ Award for “Commercial Due Diligence”. For becoming a carbon neutral company. For unprecedented media coverage. And for all the fun.

Some of the most fun and memorable moments came during our trip to London in the spring, enjoying St. Martins Lane Hotel and the workshop facilities and spectacular view at Tate Modern. Our traditional stay in Båstad will also be remembered along with our two “Club CoCoCo” evenings at our offices, the latter with 600 guests. 600 people with red drinks, looking at “red art” created by renowned artist Marco Evaristti, may seem excessive. However, it was easily manageable compared to the 75 children that stampeded our offices during the Christmas celebrations with our families. We will also remember 2008 as the year when Professor Dr. Peter Lorange, former president of IMD, joined our board. Peter’s international track record is simply first rank, with an educational background from Yale and Harvard and a career at world class institutions such as Sloan, Wharton and IMD. We all look forward to working with Peter in the years to come.

When looking forward, we feel confident. Not that we think CoCoCo will remain untouched by the global recession. But we are confident about our model, the strong relationship with our clients and our five distinct service lines, as you will see on the following pages.

Torsten Hvidt