Fredrik Nilsson is Vice President of the Americas for Axis Communications, overseeing the company’s operations in North and South America and serving on the global management team. In his 20-year career at Axis, he has undertaken various roles in both Sweden and the United States. Since assuming responsibility for the Americas in 2003, revenues have increased from $20M to over $450M. Nilsson has also been instrumental in leading the surveillance industry shift from analog closed circuit television to network video. SourceSecurity.com Editor Larry Anderson spoke to Fredrik to find out more:
How did you come to work in the security industry?
Axis Communications invented the network camera in 1996, and in 2001 I moved to North America to work on Business Development for the security market. I did not know much about the market at that time, but I found it to be a market with many good people who enjoyed sharing their knowledge and introduced me to their contacts.
What is the best professional advice you have received (and from whom)?
My manager, Bodil Sonesson, VP of Global Sales at Axis has given me great advice over the years. She says that your career “is a marathon not a sprint,” meaning, in order to be successful long-term you have to have a work life balance and be resilient in order to manage the ups and downs of business and your career.
What's something few people know about you?
Like my father who was a university professor and author, I love to educate. In fact, my first role at Axis was as a technical writer, producing manuals for our products. Since then, I have written a book to help the industry understand the multiple facets of IP video technology.
What's the most rewarding thing about what you do for a living?
Years ago, I started working closely with Mission500 which is a non-profit organization that works closely with the security industry to serve the needs of children and communities in crisis. This is an organization I truly believe in and as such I decided to donate all of the royalties from my newest book to help the organization.
| Outside of work, Fredrik Nilsson enjoys skiing with his family in Maine |
What are your interests outside security?
I love skiing with family and friends, as well as playing golf. I work out and play soccer with my children. I enjoy music and play the guitar. I also spend time working on and driving old and new sports cars.
Where was your last vacation?
My family loves to ski, so we spent the week of February vacation with our two boys in Sunday River, Maine which was great fun for everyone. After 10 years of trying to teach the kids how to ski they are finally self-sufficient, and are quickly becoming better skiers than me and my wife.