Meet Ole Højgaard Sørensen

For almost a quarter of a century, Ole Højgaard Sørensen has had his daily routine at SKIOLD.

For almost a quarter of a century, Ole Højgaard Sørensen has had his daily routine at SKIOLD.

It began with a temporary position in 2003, but since 2007 he has been a permanent member of the team - and today he holds the title of service technician.

In a job where machines meet people, and technical ingenuity goes hand in hand with human understanding, Ole Højgaard Sørensen has found his niche.

From farmer to fitter

He trained as a farmer in 2000, but the very next year he decided to change industries. As a jack-of-all-trades, he was sent all over the place through a temp agency, but one assignment turned out to be more than just temporary.

‘At one point I was sent out as a temp at SKIOLD, but I stuck around and I'm still here,’ he says with a smile.

Initially, the job consisted mostly of assembly work, but over the years the tasks became more complex.

Today, he primarily works with service and maintenance of dry feed systems for agriculture. A task he takes on with both pride and responsibility.

Service is key

Over the years at SKIOLD, 49-year-old Ole Højgaard Sørensen has experienced both ups and downs among customers. These experiences have confirmed his belief that both service and maintenance of the machines are extremely important.

‘If service and maintenance are neglected, things will eventually go wrong. Just like a car needs servicing and an oil change, the products that run around the clock and all year round in the farmers‘ stables also need to be maintained,’ he explains of his varied tasks.

Screwdrivers and spare parts are one thing, but for Ole Højgaard Sørensen, building relationships is just as important. He meets many different kinds of people in his work, and he appreciates all the customers he visits over the course of a year.

‘That gratitude and being appreciated is very satisfying. For me, it doesn't matter if the working day was 2, 5 or 12 hours. You have to remember that we are dealing with live animals. If a livestock facility is down, we stay with the farmer until it's up and running. Then it doesn't matter if it's 9pm,’ he says.

A job with freedom and responsibility

Ole Højgaard Sørensen works all over Denmark alone in one of SKIOLD's service vehicles, which suits him fine.

‘It's a job with freedom and responsibility. If I have sick children or something else urgent, I can work at home, which is important when you have a large family,’ he says, referring to life at home in Løgstør with his wife and their five children.

When things get busy, he hangs in there. And if a colleague needs a hand, help is never far away.

‘We all pull together and there's always help to get and help to give. It's important to keep the wheels turning,’ he says.

Loyalty and job satisfaction

If you ask Ole Højgaard Sørensen what has made him stay at SKIOLD for over 20 years, the answer is immediate:

‘Good colleagues and being followed so closely by customers who are grateful that I have visited them,’ he explains and emphasises that for him it's not about finishing as quickly as possible.

‘It's about making a difference. If I've made a farmer happy, I go home happy and park the service van.’

His spare time is spent playing the saxophone, among other things.

‘And then the whole family goes for a ride on our old mopeds, and it can be a trip out fishing. Because in our family we enjoy doing things together, and it's great to get out into nature and catch a fish,’ says Ole Højgaard Sørensen.