Back to school at the Annual Danish Top Executive Summit 2017

Photo: David Perrin

The Annual Danish Top Executive Summit 2017 invites top executives back into the classroom. To be held next summer at CBS, the event will provide members of the Danish Management Society (VL) with the opportunity to attain a clearer perception of the future when they learn about the newest knowledge from CBS and get to meet students – tomorrow’s leaders.

VL is a network of top Danish executives and CBS’ aim is to serve industry and commerce in Danish society, a task it has taken on for almost 100 years. That’s why coupling the Annual Danish Top Executive Summit 2017 with CBS’ centenary next year was an obvious choice, explains Per Holten-Andersen, the president of CBS.

“CBS has incredibly talented students. On top of that, we provide them with an excellent education based on powerful research environments in, for example, IT and business, innovation and entrepreneurship, strategy, organisation, business management and business administration. Our outstanding students and research knowledge are the reason why VL members should head out to CBS. Not only that, our campus is beautiful,” he says.

The Chairman of VL, Jens Wittrup Willumsen, also highlights the shared interests of the Annual Danish Top Executive Summit 2017 and CBS.

“Many of our members have a history with CBS and many CBS students are keen to work for one of the companies our members represent,” he explains, adding that there is a great deal of focus on the skills companies need to avoid being left behind due to the accelerated pace of developments today, for instance, within digitisation.

“It’s imperative that the business community understands what’s necessary. Both to give companies the best conditions to develop but also to create workplaces attractive to students. Successful, passionate entrepreneurs are the new rock stars of the business world, and if traditional businesses are to have a chance at recruiting new CBS graduates, then they need to know what’s required today,” believes Wittrup Willumsen.

Jørgen Tang-Jensen, CEO of VELUX Group, can easily mention several reasons to attend the Annual Danish Top Executive Summit 2017.

“‘Back to school’, can you imagine a more inspiring title than that for the Annual Danish Top Executive Summit? Don’t we all dream of immersing ourselves in an inspiring student environment again, however briefly? This event gives us the chance at one of the most important educational institutions for industry and commerce in Denmark. Innovation, for instance, is one of the topics on the agenda and we all need to be completely on the ball when it comes to understanding the significance of innovation for businesses. Especially in Denmark, where we can’t compete with cheap labour,” Tang-Jensen asserts.

About VL
The Danish Management Society (VL) comprises top Danish executives and its objective is to promote knowledge and understanding of modern management principles and consequently contribute to economic growth, social progress and a higher standard of living in Denmark. The society has about 4,000 members organised into network groups, known as VL Groups, with 30-40 members each. Membership is by invitation only.