Experienced shipping executive Henriette Hallberg Thygesen has re-emerged with two new board positions two months after bringing to an end a three-decade career at Danish giant AP Moller-Maersk.
She was elected as a director this week of ISS, a Danish facility management services company.
And Thygesen has also joined the board of Vestas, the huge Danish wind turbine maker and vessel charterer.
The Dane already sits on the board of Scandinavian airline SAS.
She left Maersk in February after 30 years, her last role being chief customer delivery officer under new chief executive Vincent Clerc.
During her time with the group, she chaired Maersk Supply Service, was CEO of towage operation Svitzer, director of strategic planning at Maersk Oil, and research manager at Maersk Tankers, among other jobs.
Signing off, Thygesen said in a statement: “Today, what really stands out and matters to me is how many amazing customers and fantastic colleagues I have worked with during the past almost 30 years. And how the journey has been filled with opportunity to pursue constant progress.”
The executive highlighted two milestones from her career.
The first was becoming the Shanghai branch manager back in 2002.
“It has been one of the most formative roles I have had. This experience and role helped transform both my business understanding, but also my thoughts and beliefs on leadership and an appreciation of all the similarities that exist among us as colleagues and transcend background, race, religion, politics,” Thygesen said.
Time for a change
Then there was the pandemic.
“During the crisis, I was reminded of how incredible the people in the Maersk organisation are. Truly standing up for doing what is right for customers and communities,” she explained.
The executive explained why she left by quoting an old saying: “A ship in port is safe, but that is not what ships were built for.”
Thygesen said the time was right to catch “new wind in my sails”.
