The media are scrutinising Bostäder i Borås

We welcome the scrutiny and we are keen to do things right. That is why we have also started an internal investigation. Out of 400 suppliers, we have found 17 agreements, some of which have ended, where we lack correct documentation of the procurement. As a municipal company we must be able to show how a procurement was carried out, and in these cases we cannot. We take that seriously, and we have therefore taken a number of measures to ensure compliance and to strengthen the control and follow-up of our agreements. That work has been under way for some time.

Bostäder i Borås AB owns and manages almost 7,000 apartments and 300 commercial premises in Borås. It has around 120 employees and a turnover of about 600 million kronor.

Three years ago, Mikael Hansson was recruited as chief executive. The board gave him the task of creating a modern, forward-leaning company with its sights set on the vision - to be a better landlord. The journey from municipal administration company to modern property company is a long one, and it means major changes for every employee.

- Over the past three years we have worked hard and come a long way in professionalising procurement, processes, control and follow-up of agreements. The historical shortcomings have been considerable, so an important part of my task has been to get structure and control in place together with my colleagues, while we have driven a major change of the whole company and the way it is run. I am the first to say that we are not there until every single agreement follows all the rules and our routines to the letter. We will keep working until every agreement has been procured and documented by the book, says Mikael Hansson, chief executive of Bostäder i Borås.

Bostäder i Borås has around 400 agreements, and just over 98 per cent of the contract costs meet the rules. The agreements that lack correct documentation are now being reviewed and will be phased out. New procurements will be carried out to ensure compliance.

Local media have also asked questions about the working environment, after anonymous sources described a culture of silence, domineering behaviour from management and nepotism.

- Experiences of that kind always make me both sad and surprised. The ambition of the board, the management and myself has been the opposite: to build an inclusive culture where people can speak freely. The experiences that have come up have been raised with the board, the management and union representatives, and they have been investigated. I do not recognise the culture in the picture being painted. Of course we have to take these experiences seriously, but I can also note that more than seven out of ten employees said the company is a very good place to work in the latest employee survey, Mikael Hansson continues.

Any form of bullying, discrimination or other inappropriate behaviour is of course completely unacceptable here, and if it does occur we have routines and processes for handling such situations.

The information from the media also includes questions about a supplier paying for beer and wine at conferences - and whether that could amount to some form of bribery.

- Anything that can be perceived as a bribe is completely unacceptable. No one here should be open to bribery, and the mere suspicion that it could happen is serious enough. Suppliers should not pay for anything in connection with our conferences, even when they are hired into a management position. If that was not clear before, it is crystal clear now. We have a very restrictive policy on dinners at conferences, Mikael Hansson concludes.