In conversation with Olga Gasheva
Cultivating diversity and team dynamics
Olga Gasheva works at Lindström as the Director of Group Financial Reporting and Control, based in Riga, Latvia. She joined Lindström in 1998, and her 26 years with the company have been a valuable learning experience. Interestingly, Lindström was once a client of a Latvian audit company where Gasheva used to work. Her prior familiarity with the company, combined with its appealing attributes, led her to choose Lindström.
“One of the key strengths of her team is people with different nationalities and personalities.”
Gasheva’s career trajectory within Lindström has been dynamic. Currently, she leads a team responsible for finance group reporting and internal control for supporting management reporting, providing business partnering activities, and conducting internal audits. Her team, consisting of 10 members, handles many financial matters. These young and motivated professionals are committed to continuous learning and knowledge sharing.
“For me, the values of the company and overall culture align with my personal values and life targets.”
Nurturing We Care culture and embracing change
Lindström’s “We Care” culture is pivotal in fostering personal and professional growth. According to Gasheva, employees are encouraged to take on challenging tasks and projects, allowing them to expand their knowledge. The company’s sustainability efforts extend beyond mere compliance; they focus on long-term implications for customers and the planet. From the very beginning, from management to all levels, the company does not overpromise. You can trust that what is agreed will indeed happen.
If you’d asked Olga Gasheva three years ago what her favourite part of her job was, she would have said travelling and meeting new people. At that time, her role involved numerous audits, allowing her to meet new people and expand her professional network. However, in the present day, she really enjoys leading her team even more and experiencing growth. She took on additional responsibilities last year when she took over the centralised core function with quite a big team during a colleague’s parental leave. This experience further honed her time-management skills as she efficiently allocated limited time across various tasks.
“How to add even more value to our business partners during the co-operation”
Olga Gasheva says that working at Lindström has taught her many new skills over the years, for example, how to bring more benefits to our business partners during our collaboration with them. She has learned and applied different leadership styles to suit different people and situations. Gasheva has had teams and projects of various scales at Lindström. She has also gained experience and knowledge in project management and change management.
Insights and advice for aspiring professionals
Gasheva’s advice to anyone who wants to do a similar job is that the most important thing is to know why people want to learn new things and change their behaviour and knowledge in relation to your goals. She says that education and experience are valuable, but she also thinks that one can always learn something new. The company’s values are becoming more important when people apply to work for Lindström, which helps us match the right people with the company and the other way around.
As a leader, Olga Gasheva has learned how to adjust to the situation and person even though she is quite straightforward. Olga looks for motivated people in her team instead of micromanaging anyone. She supports her team members when needed and promotes an active approach and cooperation.
Who: Olga Gasheva
Role at Lindström: Director of Group Financial Reporting and Control
Location: Riga, Latvia
Outside of Office: Gasheva does yoga and travels in her free time as balance to work.
Related
