Cooperation is in our nature
Merging four and a quarter municipalities into one great Municipality of Skanderborg has indisputably required an exceptional effort by especially politicians, local government employees and numerous associations and organisations.

On 1 January 2007, the previously independent municipalities of Skanderborg, Ry, Galten, Hørning and the Parish of Voerladegård in the former Municipality of Brædstrup joined forces to become one strong Municipality of Skanderborg with nearly 55,000 citizens.

At the helm of this historic merger were four politicians from Venstre, the Liberal Party of Denmark, who served as mayors in each their municipality before the merger. They are Aleksander Aagard of Skanderborg, Jonna Grønver of Ry, Jens Grønlund of Galten and Søren Erik Pedersen of Hørning.

Looking back on the long and complex merger process, they all agree that the successful completion of the process was only made possible by the enormous amount of goodwill shown by all parties involved. They showed their willingness to make the necessary contributions to ensure that from day one the new Municipality of Skanderborg is strongly organised and structured to meet the challenges of the future already.

Below, the four key politicians, who took up their new local government positions on 1 January 2007, offer their assessment of the strengths that characterise the Municipality of Skanderborg and outline their visions for the new municipality.

Aleksander Aagard (Venstre, the Liberal Party), Councillor of the Municipality of Skanderborg and Councillor of Region Central Jutland: “Our strength lies in the combination of well-educated citizens, who have the highest average income in Region Central Jutland, a resourceful workforce, a business sector widely distributed throughout the municipality and a divine natural landscape. Ours is a strong municipality, which is able to take good care of its citizens and offer quality services at a high professional level.

The combined qualifications of the municipality’s staff add solidity and ensure that the competences of individual managers or staff members can be fully used and developed. When a large organisation is to work together as a team, it is important that each member of staff has sufficient self-determination and opportunities for development. At the same time, the municipality is based on a high degree of decentralisation, which provides each institution with much freedom in its daily activities.”

Jonna Grønver (Venstre, the Liberal Party), Councillor of the Municipality of Skanderborg: “We now have a well-run, efficient and prosperous municipality which has the courage to find new ways of servicing our citizens in the best and most cost-efficient manner. At all levels and in all institutions, we must get as much value for money as possible. Therefore, we must focus on management and try out new management systems. We have also set our aims high in the areas of education and information. For example, Skanderborg should be a municipality where nobody leaves school without secondary education qualifications. We must focus on knowledge and globalisation.

In terms of location, the Municipality of Skanderborg has every advantage. Its infrastructure and its proximity to the major city of Aarhus ensure that the municipality is advantageously located for businesses and citizens alike. Skanderborg is a good brand, and a certain prestige is attached to being domiciled or living in Denmark’s most beautiful municipality.”

Søren Erik Pedersen (Venstre, the Liberal Party), Councillor of Municipality of Skanderborg: “The new and larger municipality is stronger than the smaller municipalities were. Where we used to have one expert within an area, we now have several. This translates into better, safer and faster procedures and an even more professional working environment and ensures that the administration does not come to a halt, e.g. during holidays.

First and foremost, we must make sure that we have superb managers who make all members of staff perceive themselves as ambassadors of the Municipality of Skanderborg. The positive feeling of staff members is important because it rubs off on the citizens as well as the service. Therefore, we must as quickly as possible turn what used to be five different cultures into one team whose members all work in a single team spirit.”

Jens Grønlund (Venstre, the Liberal Party), Mayor of the Municipality of Skanderborg: “We have all that is required for us to shine as the pearl of East Jutland: A beautiful and very attractive municipality, many jobs, well-educated citizens and a rising growth rate. We are well on our way, and we are being helped along by the positive attitude of our citizens, who include a great many enthusiastic volunteers. This is an involvement which we hope to not only maintain but further nurture and develop.

The organisational structure of the Municipality of Skanderborg is flat, dialogue-based and non-bureaucratic. Being flexible and able to respond quickly to outside changes, this structure makes us strong and geared for the future. The new Municipal Council is made up of representatives from the four previous municipalities and the one parish, but already in the general constitutional process we proved that the Council is representative of the entire new and larger municipality. I regard it as my most important task as Mayor to provide the unity required in this merger process.”