Playing his part in Sleipner’s already significant and growing share of the market for thrusters and vector fin stabilisers, Marius Torjusen heads the company’s extensive sales and marketing side as CCO
How it all began
Overseeing 50 people across the company, comprising of 25+ internal staff at the head- office in Fredrikstad, Norway, and 25 staff in Sleipner’s subsidiaries, along with 45 official external distributors and installers, Marius is in high demand morning, noon, and night. And when you factor in all the OEMs and end-user customers, who benefit from his product knowledge, combined with his affable demeanour and significant inter-personal skills, it’s easy to see why Marius is a shining example of Sleipner’s customer-orientated approach.
Mornings are sacrosanct to Marius and it’s ‘his time’ to spend a few moments walking the dog and gathering up his thoughts before the day proper begins. He’s a routine kind of guy, and breakfast is always taken with his children, where any problems and ideas from the younger generation’s perspective can be aired and discussed before dropping the kids off at school. In dealing with so many people across so many different time zones, once he’s arrived in the office at about 8.30am it’s about getting a sense of where the company is heading on that particular day. A round-up and a talk with staff to make sure everyone is aligned with their particular priorities, means that Marius can then settle into his own work, favouring an ‘open door’ policy and an open dialogue with Sleipner’s international clientele.
A working day
Three of Sleipner’s core values and principles set the tone for the working day, including being knowledgeable, trustworthy, and future-ready, and Marius will typically field calls and sales enquiries from many of the industry’s biggest OEMs including Sunseeker, Ferretti Group, Princess, Fairline, Bavaria, Groupe Beneteau and Axopar to name just a few. “When I first came here, I spent a lot of time mapping out the touch points of where the customer might need special help, or need attention and, potentially, where a problem or query might arise. “Therefore, we try and track how we are doing on all of these key touch points, making sure the customer journey is a good one. “We then ask ourselves, how was the entire onboarding experience for the customer, for example, and how could we have done that differently and better? Did we deliver on time, for example, and if there was a problem of any kind, how could we do that better next time, to avoid a repeat?
The personal touch
“When dealing with customers or staff, I still think the personal touch is the way to go, despite all the digital communication aids at our fingertips. Particularly in our market, which is still quite small, and where everyone tends to talk to each other. “I favour an open dialogue with customers and business tends to come out of that high customer service,” says Marius. “Giving people that bit of care and attention, and focussing on trying to solve problems for customers and staff goes a long way. “Of course, sales turnover and our future commercial ambitions are, ultimately, what drives us forward. But it’s not a hard focus on selling product every day, because the reputation of the company has given us a position as the clear market leader in our field. Business tends to follow organically as a result, and it’s more about maintaining that level of expectation.” A typical afternoon for Marius will see him planning the next sales visit, or boat show. “Travel is split one third boat shows, one third with the sales team and one third with OEMs,” says Marius, “equating to approx. 100 days a year which is high enough for most people.”
Winning ways from an early age
Growing up as part of a keen sailing family, Marius was placed, bodily, in his first ever dinghy at the age of just 2 years old, and it comes as no surprise, therefore, that he is an accomplished cruising and racing sailor, and living by the sea in Fredrikstad with his wife, and two boys, he uses the family motorboat as much as he can. He’s sailed with some of the best-known yachters in Scandinavia and spent seven seasons as a professional captain on larger yachts when he was younger. His first boat was an Optimist made of wood, and he won his first ever regatta at the tender age of 9, only to be told he was too young to be allowed to collect his medal! He first started coaching sailing when he was 15, and has taken part in a number of competitive classes, included seasons spent racing Europe, Yngling, Melges 24, First Class Eights and 11 metre one designs, in addition to a number of high-profile inshore and offshore campaigns.
