At the young age of 16, Marcel Darroch-Davies chose to skip his engineering education at college to accept the offer of an internship at Axelent Ltd. In April 2019 he took up his new position as MD for Safe-X in Hillerstorp. A career step made possible by the company Grow with us mantra.
The step from growing up in picturesque Marlborough in the south of England to MD posts around the world, making large and important decisions in boardrooms, has obviously not been achieved overnight. His early dreams of becoming an engineer came from natural ability and an interest in technical drawing. And it was the promising teenager’s eye for design that first caught the attention of Axelent.
Today, 35-year-old Marcel Darroch-Davies looks back on half a life in Axelent’s service. A persevering push towards professional success, where effort was duly noted and rewarded.
“I think I have an understanding of how boardroom decisions affect everyone you work with. All the way through to those working in the warehouse. So, the journey has been invaluable in that respect and paved the way for continuous personal development. For me, that is what the Axelent company culture is all about. Showing appreciation to those who make the effort,” he explains.
There are plenty of examples of people who, under Axelent's Grow with us, have been given the opportunity to pursue a career in the company, at both national and international level. It is a long-term approach and is based on the basic idea of giving employees professional development opportunities at the right stage in their careers. To provide a global tapestry of opportunities with Axelent always looking towards the next stage. Employees grow and develop together with their employer, making Axelent a sort of multinational family company.
“If possible, we try to recruit internally in order to strengthen that family feeling. People support each other the whole time. I can call anyone at any time if need be. That’s a great assurance if ever there was one,” continues Marcel Darroch-Davies.
With almost 20 years in the Axelent family, he has seen the company grow from a front row seat. He watched as the employees of Axelent UK grew by 700 (!) per cent in a matter of years and witnessed the constant encouragement to continue developing internally under the Grow with us mantra.
“I’ve travelled and worked with both Stefan Axelsson and Andreas Gotmark. They've made similar journeys, been given the opportunity to work in Sweden and abroad. That also says a lot about Axelent as a company,” says Marcel Darroch-Davies.
For him, recent years have meant a lot of travelling, with the world as his workplace. He has held positions such as European Sales Manager and in the past 18 months acting MD in Italy. Marcel is now looking forward to a quieter life in Hillerstorp near Värnamo. His family will be moving to Småland later in the year. Marcel already has a favourite pastime to look forward to.
“HV71 is the only team for me! I’m not as passionate about football as most other Englishmen. Ice hockey has always been my sport and passion. It's going to be nice living closer to my favourite team,” he laughs.
