Ingka Group leadership accelerator programme delivers youngest-ever market managers

Bloom was introduced in 2022 to accelerate a more diverse and agile leadership pipeline at Ingka Group, ensuring fresh perspectives are introduced at leadership level. The programme is designed to nurture, develop, and accelerate participants into market manager roles through a mix of training, on-the-job experience, and mentorship. Bloom is designed to target co-workers who are right at the start of their IKEA career, and therefore perhaps not yet identified as leadership potential. The programme has been intentional about increasing diversity, as Ingka Group continues to work to reflect the communities it operates in.

Several Bloomers have already stepped into key roles as market managers. These new appointments include the youngest-ever Market Managers in Sweden, Norway and France, Calle, Thea, and Solene respectively. Solene even led the successful opening of IKEA’s newest city store in Paris earlier this year.

Thea from IKEA Norway shares her experience with Bloom: “Bloom has set me up for success, through putting me far out of my comfort zone, but also providing a safety net to fall back on to if needed.”

Younes, a Bloomer from IKEA Germany added: “Bloom means for me that people were there and believed in me and encouraged development through the empowerment of real responsibilities. For me Bloom was not about what you get, but about what you become.”

Of the 73 Bloomers who joined together in Sweden this week for their programme graduation, 61% identify as female, and 33 nationalities from 22 markets are represented. The average age of the graduating cohort is just 28, significantly younger than the company-wide average of 47 for market managers.

Ulrika Biesèrt, Chief People & Culture Officer, said: “Building a diverse workforce is crucial for a thriving, innovative organisation. Programmes like Bloom are essential to ensure a strong succession pipeline and empower future leaders from all backgrounds, helping us stay relevant and resilient in an ever-evolving market.”

Anna, a Bloomer from IKEA Sweden, said: “Bloom is for me an opportunity of a lifetime, where we dare to be different, and believe in people, I’m proud of being a part of that and creating a better future.”

Bloom OMNI

Given the success of the first iteration of Bloom, Ingka Group will next launch Bloom OMNI, a condensed and more targeted version of the original programme. Bloom OMNI aims to develop around 60 new leaders across 10 markets to be ready for Retail Leader roles, in the food, digital, sales, customer fulfilment and home furnishing retail and design (HFRD) functions. A retail leader at IKEA is focused on executing the company’s long-term strategic priorities into exceptional customer experiences and business outcomes.

Bloom OMNI will continue to provide a network, mentorship, learning content, and Bloomer development events, but in addition participants will learn in the role by doing a rotation of specific roles across both stores and offices to prepare them for their future leadership roles.

Biesèrt added: “Like the original Bloom, the purpose of OMNI is to identify talents that are not already in succession pipelines and bring more diversity into leadership. I congratulate our first cohort of Bloom graduates; our business is in good hands”.

About Ingka Group

With IKEA retail operations in 31 markets, Ingka Group is the largest IKEA retailer and represents about 90% of IKEA retail sales. It is a strategic partner to develop and innovate the IKEA business and help define common IKEA strategies. Ingka Group owns and operates IKEA sales channels under franchise agreements with Inter IKEA Systems B.V. It has three business areas: IKEA Retail, Ingka Investments and Ingka Centres. Read more on Ingka.com.