I share openly what I have learned over 25 years – the successes, the mistakes, and everything in between.
No polished facades. No consultant jargon. Just honest reflections on recruitment, leadership, and HR -
and what actually determines whether a company succeeds.
The EU Pay Transparency Directive is changing the game for Swedish employers. Pay gaps must be justifiable. Employees gain the right to ask. What does your organization need to do now?
The Pay Transparency Directive — what it means for you as an employer. Read More »
It happens in almost every recruitment process: you have a candidate who feels right – but something nags at you. A qualified psychometric assessment gives you the substantiated basis you actually need...
Not sure about the candidate? You do not have to guess. Read More »
They ask their employees: 'What do you need from me right now?' Not in a survey. Directly. Every week. It changes team dynamics in a way nothing else does...
One thing the best managers do every week. Read More »
That's a statement I've heard many times over the years – and one I've used myself. But the more experience I've gained, the more nuanced my view of it has become. Because it's not entirely wrong. But it's not the whole truth either. What it means – and what's often misunderstood When people say
You hire for competence. Attitude you cannot train. Read More »
The most effective leaders don't work more. They make different choices about how they use their time. Five habits I've seen make a real difference – based on 25 years of working with leaders.
Work smarter, not harder. Five habits that actually make a difference. Read More »
We talk about leadership as something you either have or don't have. That's not true – and it's a dangerous idea. Leadership is a craft that can be learned, trained, and improved with the right support.
Good leadership is not a personality trait. Read More »
I've met many leaders over the years. Skilled, driven, committed people who carry a great deal of responsibility and do so with an impressive facade of control. But behind that facade – I know this now after 25 years – it's often lonely. The myth of the self-sufficient leader. There's a notion that a good…
A manager who never asks for help is not strong – they are alone. Read More »
When the structure disappears over the summer, the culture shows itself as it really is. Magdalena Hagström Ståhl on what summer reveals — and what you should do with it come autumn.
The summer holiday reveals more about your culture than any meeting. Read More »
Everyone wants the right person in place by September. Few understand that the process needs to start now. A recruitment takes 6–12 weeks — and summer isn't a reason to wait. It's the reason to start.
Recruit now. Not in September. Read More »
Most recruitment processes do not fail at the selection stage. They fail before they begin — when nobody really knows what they are looking for.
Three questions before you start recruiting. Read More »
There is a middle ground many companies find themselves in — too large to manage without HR support, too small to hire a full-time HR manager. That is precisely where interim HR makes the greatest difference.
You do not need to hire an HR manager to have one. Read More »
AI engineers, cybersecurity specialists, cloud architects — which tech roles dominate the recruitment market in 2026? Magdalena Hagström Ståhl on what it means for you as a hiring manager.
The IT and tech roles companies are fighting over in 2026 Read More »
Experience doesn't mean having all the answers. It means knowing which questions to ask. That's what separates a senior consultant from someone who's simply been around a long time.
25 years in the field. And still learning something new every week. Read More »
A bad hire at the executive level costs more than salary and recruitment fees. It costs you the team, the trust, and the culture. And it almost always starts with not knowing what you were looking for when the process began.
You cannot afford to hire the wrong person. Read More »