A somewhat unexpected request from the Danish Prison and Probation Service opens new doors
It started as an ordinary day at Tele-Mark A/S, until an email from the switchboard reached Mads’ inbox. The short message to contact the Danish Prison and Probation Service sparked speculation. Tele-Mark A/S or Mads had never received such a request before. Had someone in the family done something stupid? Maybe it was something about an employee that he had to deal with?
A little nervous, Mads called back to the Danish Prison and Probation Service, not knowing what to expect. Fortunately, all concerns were quickly dispelled when the conversation revealed that the Danish Prison and Probation Service wanted to explore the possibility of an exciting collaboration with a company like Tele-Mark A/S. Jan from the Danish Prison and Probation Service shared the vision that a possible collaboration could help optimize efforts to continue to provide relevant work assignments to the inmates, and suddenly Mads’ fear of an undesirable situation was replaced by excitement and a degree of pride.
It turned out that Jan had gotten the inspiration for the collaboration from a relation in his network who has been collaborating with Tele-Mark A/S for a long time. The idea of adding professional meeting booking to the process of finding more work for the inmates was initially met with some skepticism in the Danish Prison and Probation Service, but as Jan says with a smile, “a slightly odd idea can sometimes lead to groundbreaking results.”
After overcoming doubts, the management decided to test it out. Tele-Mark A/S was selected as the preferred partner for the task. This marked the beginning of an unusual alliance, where a thoroughly trained Tele-Mark A/S contact person was assigned to be the first contact to potential partners on behalf of the Danish Prison and Probation Service.
The first small round in North Jutland has just been completed, and the result has exceeded all expectations. Jan, who has been leading the meetings, shares with satisfaction, “We have had about 20 meetings, and in only one of them have we not taken work home. It has really made an impression throughout the organization, and right up to the department.”
Jan, who at first felt like a “slightly crazy idea maker,” is now confident. “When I first launched the idea, it was almost as if everyone thought I should be put in to get that idea. But now, now that we have established that it has a very positive effect that exceeds all expectations, no one thinks that anymore. The results have clearly shown that the collaboration should be rolled out during Q1 2024,” he concludes.
Mads adds: “It has been something different for us, calling on behalf of the Danish Prison and Probation Service. Normally, one of the challenges of working with BtB meeting booking is to be put through to the right decision-makers. It is completely the opposite when we call on behalf of the Danish Prison and Probation Service; no questions are asked, just put through. I don’t think we have ever tried that before,” concludes Mads.
Tele-Mark A/S and all employees are sincerely proud that our wonderful workplace receives inquiries from, and can service, organizations such as the Danish Prison Service. It helps us understand ourselves, as we get up every day and go to work to provide the best for our customers, while working in an industry that is mostly known for being very negative.
