New Tools for a New Era Growth strategies, a new governance model and a forthcoming 20th anniversary. We take a look at the future with the CEO and founder of Maison Moderne, Mike Koedinger.
2014 marks the 20th anniversary
Mike Koedinger Founder and CEO, director of Publishing
Maison Moderne will be celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2014. What does this mean for you? It is a time for reflection. A good opportunity to try to understand the past, learn from it and prepare for the future. To realise that Maison Moderne has a unique place in the media landscape, having become the leading independent media company in Luxembourg. This anniversary is also a time to celebrate our successes, the culmination of the work carried out day after day by all of our dedicated and unstinting employees for the past two decades. The company has grown significantly in recent years. How do you explain this? We decided, in spring 2008, not to pursue our plans to open offices in Switzerland and Belgium, but instead we opted to focus on growth in Luxembourg. It was the right choice. Firstly because there was, and there still is, a lot to do in Luxembourg, and then because a few months later, Lehman Brothers collapsed and the economic and financial crisis began. The advertising market experienced a contraction which would have made the launch of brands on new markets very difficult. In Luxembourg, however, we launched new titles – Archiduc and Delano; and new services – Business Club and Content Marketing; we added new skills – Digital, TV; and we began to publish books. During this period,
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our headcount almost doubled. Today, thanks to our 70 employees with their outstanding and diverse skills, we are ready to cross a new threshold. A new threshold—does this mean new launches? Yes and no. 2014 will not be a year of major launches or of the creation of new media brands. Although launching a new title is the most exciting aspect of our trade, it is also the simplest aspect. We have decided instead to tackle some of the more difficult aspects. First of all, to improve the intrinsic quality of each product and of each service—its content, its form and its positioning. Second, to increase its profitability, and finally, having managed to pull off the first two goals, to work on enhancing “Happiness at work”, improving the quality of life at work for all our employees. In order to pull off this entrepreneurial challenge, I proposed to my partners, in the summer of 2013, the implementation of a new governance model to change the way in which all decisions are taken. At the heart of this new organisation will be a board of directors consisting of the members of the management board plus two independent directors who will contribute a new outlook as well as their expertise in corporate management. We therefore delighted to welcome Jean-Claude Bintz and Daniel Schneider on our new board of directors.
Jean-Claude Bintz joins as president of the board of directors
Daniel Schneider joins the board of directors
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