New CEOs should put company culture before change

Although keen to make an immediate impression, Babbel’s new US chief executive explains why it’s more productive to absorb the company culture before making any major changes.

I recently became US chief executive of language learning company, Babbel. But I had little knowledge of the sector, having spent more than 20 years building online media businesses. I was previously chief operating officer at Business Insider.

Executives who have made the leap across different industries know just how daunting this can be, but the challenge put me in good company; when Babbel co-founders Markus Witte and Thomas Holl founded the organisation in 2007, they had no experience either. However, they got the right people on board.

Building on this foundation, my goal is to make Babbel a household name for language learning in the US. Here’s how I approached my first days and weeks.

The first five days – listening in

For the first five days, I listened and absorbed. A newly-minted chief executive might want to make an immediate impression, but I found it more productive to observe and learn.

The team that Mr Holl built when he started the New York office two-and-a-half years ago patiently walked me through every facet of the US business, including the company’s brand strategy, attribution models, key performance indicators, social media efforts, and much more. It was incredibly useful and like getting a crash course in “Babbel 101”.

Distinguishing between my past and current roles also helped. At Babbel and Business Insider, content is king – either as trending stories or language-learning content.

The company’s didactics department (more than 100 linguists and language specialists who craft lessons based on the learner’s native tongue) reminded me of the talented editorial team at Business Insider. Both teams are obsessive in creating the company’s core product. Noticing those sort of parallels can be really useful when you’re trying to get off to a strong, sure-footed start.

Week two – looking outwards

The entire New York team flew to Berlin to work at Babbel’s headquarters in Mitte, the city’s start-up district. When you’re a new chief executive, you want your team to also feel as though they’re part of a new journey. So make that happen. It was a terrific bonding experience having all 14 team members on the trip.

Meeting other Babbel employees – from 39 nationalities, all with the same shared mission – was energising. Working alongside our Berlin colleagues gave the US team a huge boost, culminating in a party at one of Berlin’s famous night clubs. The team-building process can never start too early – or in this case, never end too late.

After a great send-off, we were ready to get back to our own time zone and get cracking on our US plans.

Week three – focusing on the future

It’s a great experience to see what international companies have successfully implemented around the world and learn from a variety of markets. During my time in New York and Berlin, I was struck by Babbel's hybrid nature: half start-up and half established, thriving company. One of my main goals is to grow Babbel US to the size it is in Europe.

To achieve this, we will need to meet the needs of the American market, which is several years ahead of Europe in its digital evolution. To stay relevant with Americans, we will need to evolve what we’re doing. It is my hope that, within a year, we will take some lessons back to our Berlin colleagues.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, is a need to retain the strong start-up culture at the heart of the company. At Business Insider, I lived through the challenges of growing a start-up into a fully-fledged company, so I understand the balancing act of building a corporate framework while retaining the company’s DNA.

So my final advice for new chief executives is to be mindful of the culture into which they’re entering – and to avoid making quick or sudden changes. Focus on the key factors that drew you to the company in the first place. In my case, as I look to build Babbel’s US team, I will prioritise maintaining our start-up energy and mission-driven culture.

Julie Hansen is US chief executive at Babbel