saving the planet
To paraphrase Jason Statham as the inimitable Turkish in Guy Ritchie’s 2000 lad-classic, Snatch, “what do I know about sustainability, doesn’t it come from Copenhagen?”
Always take the call is a good habit to have, with a splash of common sense, and with that position firmly entrenched so it was that I got a LinkedIn message from an old Lenovo colleague, excited and keen to speak to me about a Danish start-up in the carbon emissions data environment. So having next to no knowledge of SaaS, sustainability, climate change and the green economy, I decided to jump in and find out.
The first thing to understand was whether what the cheerful Danish folks were proffering was ‘real’ or not, cue the network, a bunch of phone calls, further introductions and market testing. The feedback was as clear as it was enthusiastic; if Rejoose can do what they say they can do, it’s game changing. Cue more phone calls, more introductions and an alarmingly steep learning curve on SaaS, sustainability, climate change and the green economy.
Extending a brand’s profile beyond regional borders is a tricky business and a couple of things need to chime to be heard. Firstly, in Rejoose’s case, with a push, a shove and a leveraging of connections, we got time with leaders in sustainability functions across the channel. Demo after demo we got the same feedback, full of love for what Rejoose represents and provides and instant appreciation of the internal benefit to their business. The commercial teams were a little trickier to engage, so we decided to focus on validation by association.
A top down strategy formed as we recognised that direct partnerships with global vendors and distributors would not only enhance our offering and accelerate operational efficiency, but also elevate Rejoose’s profile and expedite our sales process, whilst at the same time being of considerable advantage to the vendor. Easy, just pick up the phone, set a meeting and agree terms. Famously, tier one vendors are uncomplex, fast acting organisations requiring little more than a PDF and a loose set of legal documents!
The Copenhagen team at Rejoose is exceptional, no hyperbole, truly exceptional. The confidence is infectious, which carries through to conversations at the highest level. Learning about everything from CSRD to APIs, the acronym landscape widened every day, but my job was to provide clarity by simplifying our offering and commercialise the language.
Validation and scale were my key actions and so I set about connecting with brilliant people around the world, some sustainability experts, some sustainability curious, some sustainability adjacent. It helps when you’ve got the most disruptive product in the market, expertly packaged and instantly scalable, but you’ve still got to be in front of the right people.
The vendors publicly promoting a direct Rejoose connection started with Lenovo on all products across the globe, which we announced, after nearly two years of conversation, at Canalys in Barcelona in 2025. Next up the world’s biggest distributor, TD SYNNEX, as our exclusive sell-through partner, announced at CRN Sustainability in Tech Summit 2026. We have more of this level of partners to announce in 2026 and I will update here as and when, starting in April 2026 to coincide with GTDC EMEA in Amsterdam.
I pulled on my experience of forebearance during my summer of 2019, leaned into my network which included some from my days at OKI in the early 2010s, understood that the miles on the motorway in the early days of Lenovo were being replaced by Teams miles and air miles, and subscribed fully to the fact that it is critical to Keep The Faith.
Expanding into international markets is daunting, especially if that is your plan to succeed. What I know to be fact is that despite the job titles, the responsibilities and the organisational complexities, you can navigate your way to global agreements if you appreciate and fully acknowledge the fact that every single person you speak with is just that, a person. A person that pays their bills, walks their dog, parties, collects stamps, loses their temper from time to time, has a sports team that did well or didn’t at the weekend, and a burgeoning inbox and inescapable downward pressure.
Tom Mardahl, CEO & Founder @ Rejoose “Matt is the person I call when I need to think something through properly – whether that is a major strategic decision, a commercial challenge, or something that just needs a straight answer from someone with real experience and good judgement.
What I can say with genuine confidence is that I have yet to bring Matt a problem where he has not had something useful to offer. That is not a small thing. He sees around corners, opens doors, and tells you what you probably need to hear rather than what you might want to.
Every time.
As a bonus – and I say this as a Dane who thought his English was perfectly fine – Matt has quietly expanded my vocabulary in ways no classroom ever could. Turns out there is an entire layer of British business vernacular I was blissfully unaware of. Matt delivers it with a straight face and zero condescension, which is either very generous or very funny. Probably both.
Sharp, knowledgeable, and genuinely good fun to work with. A proper wingman.”
Acting with integrity, being the solution and even having some fun means that what could be perceived as an almost insurmountable, long term, high risk, no guarantee plan is eminently achievable. Effort, confidence and connections.