Last year, one of our studios at GT30 was gilded by exuberant energy and pastel colors. If you walk past the building, you will always spot one or more diligently working women, always dressed in bright colors. There is always something new happening and everyone’s always in a wonderful mood! Number10 was founded by Caroline Lidman and Maria Fabricius who are working very close to their head of division, Lisa Stenberg and their current apprentice Monica Tesanovic. With their company name, they wanted to hint at a football reference, but they are working with everything but sports – we wanted to find out what!
Lisa Stenberg! You work as the head of division at the PR-firm Number10. Tell us, who are you, what do you do and what is the secret to such an exuberant work group?
We are a gang of passionate doers who come together with a strong desire to create communication that brings change. At Number10 we mix experience from marketing PR, personal PR, and politics in order to reach out with trademarks and chosen topics that we like and can support. That makes us much more driven to work with our assignments. I think it’s our engagement that is experienced as being exuberant, which I’m happy that you have picked up on!
Before you started working at Number 10, you worked at the Swedish Center party’s communication unit. What got you to opt out of politics?
I will never completely leave politics. You either work on the inside or you use your experiences and competence and create change from the outside. But everything is politics in the end. Here at Number10, it’s probably the first time where I feel like I can use all my potential and channel it in the right direction – into our customer assignments. After that, it’s like many things in life; timing. It may sound like a cliché, but I’m not just building my company, but also my dream life. As the mother of a one-year-old, I value my time more than anything and working with PR is not a nine-to-five job and I’m able to combine both worlds.
Caroline Lidman, a co-founder, has previously said that you shouldn’t just look for your dream job, but also your dream boss. Do you agree?
I agree completely. When you accept a job, you also accept your future manager who will either give you the power to grow to your full potential or to be totally honest, drain your power which often leads to separation – and you are the one who has to go. We often talk about how managers are supposed to be, but not so much about what we can do to find the right manager. You have to know what kind of manager you feel comfortable with, what makes the job meaningful and what drives you in order to go looking for the manager that will make this possible.
Right now, you are a group of 4 women working at Helio and you have all been regularly featured in different media, both individually as well as in a group. You seem like a very comfortable gang who have a lot of fun together. How important would you say that it is for you to click with the people you are working with outside of work as well?
We do have a lot of fun together. We also work extremely hard and there are a lot of intense days with a lot of challenges. That’s when you really need to be able to relax together and have a good attitude in the office. Of course, you don’t have to spend time together 24/7, but I make a lot of effort in making sure that I surround myself with people who have the right energy and are go-getters with commitment. There is no time or space for bullshit, so we are attracted to people who are here to achieve a change like us, with a heart and a positive attitude.
You say that your company works with strategic communication, opinion-building, and marketing PR. Is this the magic recipe for your success or are there more ingredients that are essential for Number10?
I believe the success is in how we mix experiences from marketing PR, personal PR, and opinion-building in a combination with lots of commitment and implementation power. We don’t just talk; we make things happen. We are brave and that is passed on to the brands that we are working with. That’s why we view ourselves as a kind of plugin, we become extra brains and muscles that make a thought and an idea come to life – for real.
Describe your dream client and dream project!
When we get to be that trampoline who makes a brand or a person take space and create a change for the better, that is what makes our hearts beat twice as hard!
Aside from your roles in Number10, each of you seem to be working on your own initiatives. You are engaged in women’s health, have released a book and is holding lectures on the theme. Maria Fabricus has founded Openact and Caroline Lidman is working on her third book. How involved are you in each other’s side-projects?
To work with Maria and Caroline is like always having the world’s most awesome cheerleaders behind you. We support each other and make each other grow. I would never slow down their projects. A modern work environment will take advantage of that power and see how we can create synergies. That is how we grow!
What is your future vision for Number10?
We will continue to work very hard in order to hopefully give a slightly different image of what PR-consultants are and can be. Number10 wants to be a trampoline that will take society-evolving companies, individuals and ideas and elevate them through communication and new solutions.
We would like to know more about your differences and similarities so here are a couple of quick questions for you about the management group!
Who gets up the earliest in the morning?
Could be me, since I have a one-year-old who wakes me up at the crack of dawn, but we all like to get started and get going so snoozing doesn’t exist for us. We have too many dreams to achieve!
Who leaves the office last?
Right now, it’s probably Caroline who is currently working on her new book until late at night together with the entrepreneur Aleksandar Goga.
Who goes to the country-side and who travels to Paris?
Lisa country-side! Maria Paris!
Who talks the most?
Wow! We all have a tendency to talk about things that get us going.
What are your weirdest habits?
Maria usually works with very funny themes for her weeks. At the start of fall, she was living like Obama. In December there was a Christmas theme and lately, she’s been living like Warren Buffet. It is always very exciting to find out what the next theme will be.
Would you say that it’s your differences or similarities that make you such a good match professionally?
A little bit of both! We have the same goals but they can look very different which creates dynamic and power.
How do you feel about sitting in a co-working environment, what are the advantages that you can benefit from in your organization?
We love GT30! All the people, the spontaneous meetings that might lead to business, the service is outstanding, an exercise studio to recharge energy, the delicious food at Penny & Bill – the list goes on. As I mentioned earlier, it’s really important to have the right energy, and there is a lot of that here in this building.
We’re happy to hear that you feel so comfortable here! Out of curiosity; have you done any exciting collaborations with any of the other members in this building?
We are in exciting meetings right now, so hopefully; you can find out about some new activities soon. A little secret, like it has to be in this business sometimes!
Thank you, Lisa!
Psst… If you are curious about our memberships, click here! If you want to know about our layout, co-working spaces and meeting rooms, click here instead! Follow Number10 on Instagram via @number10stockholm and us via @wearehelio for new updates and fun stuff!
