Meet Christian: A driven and empathetic leader
“You’d have to be a fool not to make money with happy employees and customers.”
Full of determination and empathy
When you step into the office of Christian Aarup, CCO at LPM-RIVAL, you meet a leader with both energy and warmth. “I hate stagnation,” he says firmly. And that drive shapes his work every single day.
Behind the determined look lies a strong sense of empathy. His door is always open, and no one should hesitate to drop by for a talk.
But you won’t always find him at his desk. For Christian, it’s important to spend time on the shop floor, talking to colleagues at the machines and making sure everything runs smoothly. As he puts it:
“What motivates me the most is when the team works, when people grow, and when we create results together.”
And then there’s the courage. Christian doesn’t hesitate to challenge the status quo: “I like to challenge the thinking of ‘this is how we’ve always done it,’” he says. For him, that’s a prerequisite for progress and development.
Roots and drive
Outside of work, Christian lives on an old farm with horses and dogs, where family life plays a big role. He also enjoys hunting and spending time with those closest to him.
As a child, he had no clear career dreams: “I didn’t really know what I wanted to be. I just dreamed of working hard and earning money, and it’s a bit by chance that I ended up where I am today.”
Today, he feels fortunate to be part of LPM-RIVAL. First and foremost because of the people behind the machines, who are a daily source of inspiration – but also because he finds the role of CCO both professionally challenging and personally meaningful. “It’s the perfect match for me,” he says.
Leadership built on trust and direction
Christian describes his leadership style as involving and trust-based. In his view, the leader’s role is above all about setting direction:
“My responsibility as a leader is to provide a good football pitch, so the players have the best conditions to succeed – they are the ones who create the results.”
He emphasizes humility and understanding: “I like to put myself in other people’s shoes – to understand their world. What works, what doesn’t?”
At the same time, he sees it as a strength to be surrounded by skilled people: “I don’t believe in dictating; it rarely leads to anything good. I’m constantly learning from the people I work with.”
New relationships, new opportunities
After LPM and RIVAL merged into one company, Christian looks forward to getting to know new people and new competencies:
“I look forward to broadening my horizon by meeting new colleagues and share ideas with them. I’m also excited to explore how we can create new business opportunities together with our customers.”
At the same time, he hopes that employees in Ølgod will experience a motivating leader who creates synergy across the company: “It’s not just about machines and more capacity – it’s very much about the skilled people behind the machines.”
Striving to be the best, not the biggest
Christian’s ambitions for LPM-RIVAL are clear:
“We want to be the preferred partner for our customers and the workplace people dream of working for. We must constantly get better, find smarter ways of doing things – not to become the biggest, but to be the best.”
He acknowledges that merging two companies and making everything work together is a big task. That’s why the main focus in the coming year will be on collaboration and development – both internally and with customers.
Happy colleagues and customers as the foundation
“You’d have to be a fool not to make money with happy employees and customers,” Christian says with a smile.
Although it may sound like a cheeky remark, there’s an important point behind it. Christian reminds us that behind every successful machine factory are people who thrive, collaborate, and grow – together with their customers.
