Kalle Kuusik is a leader known for his extensive management experience and ability to bring about significant and effective changes. With a background rooted mainly in complex manufacturing enterprises, Kalle has become an expert at breaking old patterns, guiding processes, and inspiring his teams to reach new heights.
Kalle’s journey has taken him through several well-known organizations, including Enics, Eolane Tallinn, Eltel Networks, Boomerang Logistic Group, and Printall, where he has played a key role in leading change. His approach has always focused on achieving results and developing teams, emphasizing finding the right people.
In recent years, Kalle has worked with Arista to find top talent who share his vision and values. In this context, we spoke more broadly with Kalle about leadership quality, change management, and recruitment. His vision is clear: leadership is not just about delegating tasks, but about inspiring people and creating new opportunities where leaders can rely on key individuals.
Change management is an art that is not suitable for everyone. What have been your choices in shaping your journey?
“I consciously choose companies where change needs to be implemented. When selecting leaders, I often start with the knowledge that I want to surround myself with people who are experts in their fields. I believe that involving a broader circle of doers in decision-making ensures steady, targeted, and effective progress.”
Comprehensive leadership certainly brings its challenges to a leader, doesn’t it?
“The role of a leader is to share trust, responsibility, and independence. To share a vision of the future and act as a kind of glue for the team. I tend to keep a small reserve or buffer in my plans—time that I can invest in situations where I’m needed to keep things moving or to resolve issues as they arise. These challenges do come up. I stay well-informed about the details but don’t feel the need to manage any area of responsibility for too long. However, I am ready to support and contribute wherever necessary.”
What do you consider important when adding a new team member to ensure team spirit and joy at work are maintained?
“When bringing a new member into the team, it’s very important that they fit well, have the right competencies, and show independence and initiative. They need to want to develop and move things forward. If they don’t grow, others will move ahead. You can’t be afraid of making mistakes; there’s always room for improvement. This applies to everyone, in my view.”
If team collaboration is crucial for implementing change, then it makes sense to map out the competencies of the entire team during the recruitment process and assess how well a new leader fits with them. A good fit ensures a quick integration into the team and effective daily operations.
Kalle Kuusik’s story is an inspiring example of how passion and dedication can foster positive change and drive the development of organizations.
Kalle Kuusik
Photo: Rene Riisalu
