“I cannot see myself at any other company”

Magdalena Norman really didn’t expect to have a career at Scania.

“When I left school I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” she says. “I only wanted to earn some money and then decide on my life and get more education. My goal was to work for a couple of years in a good job that paid well.”

But a couple of years has turned into 13. These days, Magdalena is truly established at the company’s Södertälje base, and recently became Head of Preparation within Transmission Assembly.

So why did she stay?

“I was very surprised when I started because it wasn’t what I thought it would be,” says Magdalena. “I’d never imagined that I would be building rear axles for trucks and I wasn’t at all technical, so it was an eye-opener!

“But it was fun. I learned new things every day, plus there were lots of things that I liked about the company, such as its sustainability efforts and the way of working.”

However, Magdalena never imagined herself as a manager. It was her team leader at that time, Robin Ericsson, who recognised her potential and set her on the path to where she is now.

“When my team leader asked me to stand in for him I thought: ‘What? No! Why me? I’m not a leader; you should ask someone else.’ But after a while he made me believe that I was a leader.

At the beginning of 2023, Magdalena took another step in her Scania career by stealth when she began her new managerial role at Transmission Assembly, leading a team of eight people.

“I’m in the same building today as when I started in 2010, but now I’m a group manager working in Industrial Engineering. It takes a lot of engineering knowledge, but stepping out of my comfort zone helps me grow. The best thing about my work is my fantastic team. We are a diverse team with different backgrounds and that makes us strong with great skills. It’s also great to be able to exchange knowledge and experience with colleagues every day and to be part of Scania's journey towards sustainable transport,” she says.

“And for me personally, it’s great fun to learn more about the technical side. I’ve previously been involved in the production of the rear axle and gearbox and knew a lot about it already, but I didn’t know much about the industrial engineering side.”

As Magdalena combines her work as a manager with being mum to a one-and-half year-old child and renovating a large old house, she feels that she’s at the right workplace, and looks forward to continuing her Scania journey.

“I cannot see myself at any other company now,” she says.