10. october 2024
On Tuesday, October 1, 2024, it marked exactly 10 years since Thomas Hedebrandt first stepped into the CompanYoung office for his first day. Excited and nervous, although those are not words one would immediately use to describe Thomas today. We spoke with him on the occasion of his anniversary to hear why he chose to stay at CompanYoung for an entire decade.
When Thomas started at CompanYoung in 2014, it felt like joining a startup. It was a young team, the ambitions were high, and the goal was clear: to help young people make well-considered choices about education and careers.
It was a time when Facebook was the dominant platform, and one of CompanYoung's widespread solutions was a student start-up application that allowed young people to see who their future classmates would be. Since 2014, significant changes have occurred—in social media, youth and education in a broader societal context, CompanYoung as a company, and personally for Thomas.
From the start, Thomas was part of generating new ideas. One example is our chat service, eVejledning, which he helped develop and pitch to the first customers six years ago. What began as a pilot project has now grown to handle approximately 30,000 unique chat inquiries a year from various institutions.
In addition to eVejledning, Thomas Hedebrandt highlights UVAX—our large annual survey of young people's choices in education and careers. A survey that today forms the foundation of CompanYoung’s solutions and the advice Thomas provides daily.
UVAX holds great significance for both CompanYoung and Thomas’s work.
“It’s great to present solutions to our partners with confidence, knowing they are based on knowledge and insight. We are the ones who know the most about young people, and we keep up with developments, both in terms of social media and young people's behavior and way of thinking,” he explains.
Thomas recounts how UVAX began as a physical event where we presented the year’s results to a large gathering of our clients attending the event. Today, the UVAX survey is presented over several days via online webinars, where hundreds of participants tune in.
And Thomas himself is not shy about stepping in front of the camera when CompanYoung is presented during the UVAX webinars—so we’re likely to see him again this November when UVAX '24 is introduced.
Looking back at the past 10 years at CompanYoung, there are many positive things to highlight. There have been many successful collaborations, many of which trace back to Thomas's early years at CompanYoung.
Over 10 years, CompanYoung has grown from being a startup to becoming the largest player in its niche. This growth has been driven, in part, by a series of acquisitions; the avalanche started in 2021 with the acquisition of Edura, followed by Elevaid, and most recently the acquisition of Bruun & Partners in 2024.
Over time, and especially with the various acquisitions, CompanYoung has expanded its focus from primarily attraction to also prioritizing well-being and retention.
This places demands on Thomas as a Senior Client Manager, but it only makes the work more important, he shares.
“On a societal level, we need to focus on both attraction and well-being, which is why I find my work more important and exciting now that we are also working on well-being and retention. It’s great to offer solutions that can help our clients all around and ultimately help young people succeed and thrive,” he explains.
When asked why Thomas has been a part of CompanYoung for 10 years, the answer is clear and threefold. There is a noble purpose, big ambitions, and great colleagues.
As cliché as it may sound, Thomas emphasizes the importance of working on something meaningful. The noble goal of helping young people make the right education and career choices and complete their studies is important to Thomas—and to CompanYoung.
CompanYoung's CEO Kevin Rebsdorf greatly appreciates Thomas Hedebrandt’s contributions over 10 years and his role in the company. He shares:
"Thomas has been part of a significant portion of CompanYoung’s journey. But he hasn’t just been along for the ride. He has greatly contributed to taking CompanYoung to where we are today. With his dedicated focus and great personality, he has helped shape our development and the positive environment at CompanYoung. And it’s not just us here at CompanYoung who have had the pleasure—so have his many partners, who I know value the collaboration.
I am truly grateful to have had Thomas as a colleague for 10 years, and I’m already looking forward to the next 10.
Congratulations, Hede!"