Kontek: A Visma company in Sweden
“The most prominent signs of our growth are increases in revenue and headcount; we're more people making more progress”, says Maria Ericsson, CEO of Kontek.
Quick facts about our Swedish company
Kontek specialises in payroll and HR processes, delivering payroll, time & attendance, travel expenses, staffing, and HR systems. The company was founded as early as in 1934, and acquired by Visma in 2021. Today, their 175 employees are located in Ljungby, Göteborg, Stockholm, and Värnamo in Sweden.
- Total revenue 2022: SEK 230 million (EUR 20.8 million)
- Growth since acquisition: 18.5% top-line growth and 20 FTE growth between 2021–2022
Maria Ericsson, CEO of Kontek
Tell us a little bit about Kontek – and your story prior to becoming a Visma company?
Kontek was originally a family business, and was in the family for three generations. Since our early days in1934, we’ve always focused on simplifying payroll processes. Over time, the company has been through several technology shifts, always with a steady growth.
As payroll specialists, we offer cloud products that unify and automate our customers’ payroll and HR ecosystems. A lot of customers outsource their complete salary handling to us, while others do it themselves with our support when needed. They can also switch between these two options. The flexibility of moving between our service levels is what makes our customers satisfied!
“Kontek could remain under its own brand – a strong brand connected to our quality and reliability – and still get the benefits from a large group.”
Why did you choose to be acquired by Visma? Did you have any hesitations?
We had several reasons. First of all, we knew that going from a small and local family-owned company to becoming part of a big group could impact our culture. Therefore, it was important to us that Visma’s values matched with ours, which they did. Secondly, Kontek could remain under its own brand – a strong brand connected to our quality and reliability – and still get the benefits from a large group. We saw that Visma could contribute to developing Kontek, where technology development and security are important areas.
How did you go about onboarding your company and employees?
Very well! The onboarding has made us do some internal changes, which have had positive outcomes. For most of our employees, Kontek remains the same as before.
In what ways has Kontek grown since being acquired?
Financially, we’ve been growing at the same pace, and according to the same plan, as before. The way we do things, however, has improved a lot. We’re challenged in so many different ways – which boosts our growth in the broad sense of the word. It’s been and still is really useful to be a part of Visma.
How do you experience your own autonomy and go-to-market freedom?
Oh, it’s very autonomous. I think we’re autonomous in our way of thinking and our strategy, only with Visma helping us with fine tuning. It’s a very good way of doing business. The promise we got when we agreed to affiliate has really lived up to its expectations, and I’ve personally experienced that companies who are acquired by Visma really can keep their independence and entrepreneurial spirit.
What are the advantages of belonging to a larger group of software companies?
Belonging to a large group opens up opportunities for new collaborations and new knowledge. When we need support in new areas where we aren’t experts, there are always knowledgeable people there to support us, like with ISO certifications and price and packaging of our products and services
“I’ve personally experienced that companies who are acquired by Visma really can keep their independence and entrepreneurial spirit”
