#40 - Axel Berntsson - Lessons learned leading through change?

Axel Berntsson has built his career around leading and transforming industrial businesses. With a background spanning management consulting at Accenture and senior leadership roles at CPS Color, ESAB and Absolent Air Care Group, he has developed extensive experience in driving growth, change and performance across global organisations.

Today, Axel is President and CEO of Bulten Group, a global industrial company with operations across Europe, Asia and North America. Before joining Bulten in 2025, he spent almost seven years as President and CEO of Absolent Air Care Group, where he helped expand the business into new markets and build the organisation for profitable international growth.

In this episode of the BayInCo Podcast, Axel shares his leadership journey and the experiences that have shaped his view of what it takes to successfully lead organisations through growth, transformation and change.

Together, we explore what great leadership looks like when strategy needs to become action. How do you create a performance-driven culture without losing people along the way? How do you challenge an established business model while building confidence in a new direction? And how do you balance long-term value creation with the pressure to deliver results today?

Axel also reflects on his journey from management consultant to CEO, the lessons he has learned from leading international industrial businesses, and why leadership ultimately comes down to creating clarity, building strong teams and having the courage to make decisions.

Recently recognised as one of Sweden’s Future Top Executives 2026, Axel brings a pragmatic and hands-on perspective on modern leadership.

Whether you are a CEO, senior leader, aspiring executive or simply interested in how organisations successfully navigate change, this conversation offers valuable insights into leadership, transformation, culture and building businesses that perform today while preparing for tomorrow.

Let yourself be inspired in our latest episode of BayInCo podden that started in 2023.

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