Sune Stilling joined Maersk Growth, the strategic investment arm of Denmark-based shipping, transport and energy group AP Møller – Mærsk (also known as Maersk), as head of growth in January 2017, when the unit was formed.
Concerning Maersk Growth’s ethos, Maersk chairman Jim Hagemann Snabe commented: “When we get the great ideas of startups and have access to scale through the large companies such as Maersk – we create what I call innovation networks, where we simultaneously have unlimited creativity and unlimited scale.
“We need startups because they challenge the status quo, and if we are serious about challenging our old assumptions, we need to stress test them with new technology and business models – and in this regard, corporate VCs, when done right, are a great mechanism for creating direct access to a vast array of new technologies and business models.
“How do we navigate the biggest issues concerning global trade in the future? And how do we ease the barriers for [small and medium-sized enterprises] struggling with increasing complexities, regulations and financial constraints? I believe in the power of collaboration between new and established players to be a large part of the answer.”
Maersk Growth has backed a score of innovative, high-potential companies in complementary and adjacent growth areas such as smart logistics, enabled trade and sustainable supply chain. These have ranged from Germany-based logistics technology developer Forto to UK-based e-commerce fulfilment service Huboo.
Most recently, Maersk Growth contributed to funding rounds for Israel-based cloud and fabless semiconductor company Wiliot in February 2020 and US-based freight services portal Loadsmart in September 2019.
The latter deal entailed Loadsmart helping Maersk launch Maersk Transportation, which facilitates the last-mile delivery shipment arrangement in the US through its web and mobile app-based platforms. The services include instant quotes, booking and real-time tracking of dry van truckload shipping.
Stilling said at the time of the partnership: “At Maersk Growth, we want to define the future of trade. From the onset, we recognised the synergies between Maersk and Loadsmart and our joint opportunity to drive change through technology. Our partnership will increase inland business opportunities to add value to our clients.”
Following an early career in the IT industry, Stilling joined Maersk in 1999 as a trainee and now has over two decades of professional experience under his belt, having spent time in different group divisions covering transportation, logistics and energy.
During that time, Stilling assumed managing director, CEO and senior leadership positions to concentrate on aggressive turnaround, transformation, divestment and profitable growth in emerging and developed markets worldwide.
Before joining Maersk Growth, Stilling had been CEO of Egyptian Drilling Company, a joint-stock oil field services company in the Middle East and North Africa region, for two years.
Stilling holds a graduate diploma in international business from Copenhagen Business School, an MA in information and communications technology from Aalborg University, an MSc in applied finance from Singapore Management University and an executive MBA with honours from IMD Business School.
