1. Company facts /
  2. History /
  3. Lars Magnus Ericsson /

Ericsson the man

Lars Magnus Ericsson - Ericsson the man

As the inscription on the Varmskog marker suggests, Ericsson was content to be known by his works. He did not seek personal recognition and, in fact, avoided it whenever possible. When Stockholm University in 1909 wished to confer on him the prestigious degree of honorary doctor of philosophy, he declined respectfully, citing his "lack of qualification for the honorable distinction..."
Perhaps the best glimpses of Ericsson as an individual are contained in the brief biographical sketch prepared by Hemming Johannson in 1946.

"His outer appearance was impressive, his attitude unassuming but marked by ingrained grandeur and dignity, his utterances were always well considered, wise and logical," Johansson writes.
Johansson leaves no doubt that Ericsson inspired both respect and fear in many who approached him for the first time. But he adds that this reaction yeilded to an affection that grew in strength when one found "that beneath the apparently cold exterior there were concealed a warm heart and a sterling character."

According to Johansson, Ericsson possessed great ability for directing his suordinates:

"His orders were often garbed in the soft folds of wishes, without thereby losing anything of their force. His temperament was even and the writer cannot recall a single example of Ericsson forgetting himself even under difficult and exacting situations... If he had reason for displeasure, this found its expression in biting sarcasm and reflections which, though pointed, were politely expressed, all of which possibly had a greater effect on the victim than if the correction had consisted of invective."
Ericsson's authority over his workers was based both on his recognized knowledge of workshop practice and on his "genial and unaffected" manner of dealing with them. Johansson says the workers looked up to Ericsson, had warm affection for him and tried to do their best to please him. "It was a kind of patriarchal relation, a mutual trustful cooperation..."
Many who dealt with Ericsson considered him a pronounced pessimist. Johansson prefers to characterize him as cautious, although he concedes that Ericsson probably had no "prophetic vision" of the future development of telephony.
In Ericsson's business, the term "speculation" had no part, Johansson records. But he describes his friend as being able to make quick decisions involving appreciable sums of money "when a desirable goal was to be gained..."
"For my part," Johansson writes, "I cherish the opinion that Ericsson was basically optimistic. Extremely cautious he was, but between pessimism and caution there is a wide gulf. His energy and capacity for work, his intense love of work and his conduct in daily life were not the characteristics of a pessimist."

This is Ericsson

Ericsson for

What's on

General