On October the 1st 2022, Ole Fritz Adeler will take over the position as CEO of Envidan from Morten Fjerbæk, who has chosen to resign from the daily management.
Ole Fritz Adeler has been in HOFOR for the past 10 years, most recently in a position as Interim Technical Director and before that he held the position as Supply Director with responsibility for the entire water and wastewater area within HOFOR. Before joining HOFOR, Ole has had various management roles in Krüger/Veolia, both nationally and internationally.
The desire to find a new CEO to be in charge of Envidan’s ambitious development plans originates from Morten Fjerbæk himself, who elaborates:
“During my 10 years as CEO of Envidan, we have undergone two ownership changes and acquired a number of companies – and we have now reached a point in Envidan’s development where I believe that our ambitious goals can best be achieved if we bring other competencies into the CEO position. I presented this to our majority shareholder, who fortunately supported my decision.”
The current CEO, Morten Fjerbæk, has been actively involved in the process of finding his successor and does not hesitate calling the appointment of Ole Fritz Adeler a scoop:
“I am really proud that we have succeeded in hiring such a competent and strong profile – in fact, I would go so far as to call Ole a dream replacement, because I am absolutely sure that with him we have found the right person to take Envidan forward.”
Strategic mindset and unique insight into the industry
Ole Fritz Adeler has a large network in the water and wastewater industry, where he has been a visionary leader in both the consulting and utility world. In addition to having a professional profile that matches Envidan’s business areas 100%, Ole has a unique insight into all corners of the water and wastewater sector and the right strategic mindset to be able to translate Envidan’s strategies into reality in collaboration with the rest of the management and all the skilled employees in Envidan.
Ole Fritz Adeler himself says about his new position in Envidan:
“I am proud to have been given the chance to lead one of the most exciting companies in Scandinavia in an industry I know inside out. I think Envidan’s profile with its primary focus on the water cycle and the three business areas – consulting, turnkey and software – is unique, and it is a business model that holds enormous potential.”
“But of course it will not be easy to say goodbye to HOFOR, where I have been for many years. HOFOR is a fantastic workplace with great visions for the future of water and wastewater management and a workplace where I have had the opportunity to influence the direction of some of today’s most important agendas on drinking water, wastewater, climate and sustainability. These are the agendas that drive me, and it will be the same at Envidan, which has already proven that it can deliver state-of-the-art solutions within the water cycle with sustainable development as the overarching theme.”
“I’ve always had a lot of respect for Envidan and the spirit of the company, so I’m really looking forward to experiencing this from the inside and becoming part of the very special Envidan culture. Last but not least, I look forward to continuing the good cooperation with the utility industry “from the other side of the table” as a supplier. I am convinced that it is a huge advantage to have been part of a utility company for many years when I in the future will be in charge of a company like Envidan.”
High level of satisfaction at private equity fund Waterland
In 2020, the majority shareholding in Envidan was acquired by the European private equity fund Waterland, and together with Envidan, an ambitious growth strategy has been drawn up, which Ole Fritz Adeler will now be in charge of executing. Kaspar Kristiansen, Managing Director of Waterland and Chairman of the Board of Envidan, said:
“We have been extremely satisfied with Morten’s leadership. He has delivered good results over many years and, together with the employees, has the credit for Envidan today being a strong name in the water and wastewater sector. But I also respect Morten’s wish to be replaced as CEO and I am delighted that Ole Fritz Adeler has agreed to pick up the baton. Ole has all the right qualities, both professionally and personally, and combined with Ole’s experience and network in the industry, we get a CEO who can contribute to Envidan’s development in the coming years.”
However, Morten Fjerbæk will continue to play a role in Envidan in the future.
“The Envidan culture runs in my veins,” Morten admits. “So even though I have decided to take a step back, I would very much like to contribute to the continuous development of Envidan. I am therefore very pleased that, in agreement with Ole, I will take up a role as Business Developer on October the 1st, and I also look forward to continuing my work as part of the Board of Directors of Envidan A/S”.
The new CEO of Envidan is happy that Morten stays in Envidan:
“I have known Morten for almost 30 years – and know that he is a huge capacity. He knows the business inside out and is a fantastic ambassador for Envidan and Envidan’s values. I look forward to taking over the leadership from Morten and am very pleased that he is staying at Envidan. I look forward with great anticipation to the collaboration, both with Morten but certainly also with the rest of the board, with the management and with all other employees.”
