KTH’s Alum of the Year reshapes culture in the trucking industry
She can drive an 18-wheeler and lead 100,000 employees – Karin Rådström is the Swedish KTH engineer who heads Daimler Trucks, the world’s largest truck manufacturer. She is KTH’s Alum of the Year and she credits rowing for teaching her how to lead.
A gigantic truck is parked across the narrow pedestrian path outside Stockholm’s rowing club located next to the Djurgårdsbrunn canal. It’s an odd sight in the idyllic setting. Karin Rådström has just climbed into the driver’s cab to be photographed for the KTH Alum of the Year award. She points out that she can drive the vehicle too – it’s part of the job.
Since October 1, 2024, she has been the CEO of Daimler Truck – the world’s largest truck manufacturer – making her one of the most influential people in the global transport industry. She has also recently been named Sweden’s most powerful woman in business, and she’s in Stockholm for a few days for engagements linked to both recognitions.
Running a company with over 40 production sites and more than 100,000 employees wasn’t on her radar back at KTH.
“I didn’t even have the self-confidence to believe I’d get a job,” she admits. “Now I can say KTH prepared me well for working life.”
Rowing at national team level
The rowing club is familiar territory. She used to train at national team level, and her name still appears on plaques inside the old clubhouse.
Her years on the team taught her some of her earliest leadership lessons: the importance of mental fitness, the power of teamwork, and the necessity of rest.
“If you want to perform, you need to recover—otherwise the training doesn’t make you better. That’s very applicable in CEO life,” she says.
“There’s no magic—just hard work and surrounding yourself with good people. I’ve learned that if I push myself, I’m capable of things far bigger and better than I ever imagined. That mindset gave me the confidence to say yes to new opportunities, even when I wasn’t exactly sure how to do the job.”
She entered the transport industry as a trainee at Scania – “the first company that offered me a job” – and stayed for 16 years, rising to the top ranks and becoming the first woman trained at Scania to join the executive board. In 2021, she moved to Germany to lead Mercedes-Benz Trucks. Three years later, she heads the spun off division Daimler Truck. Over the years, trucks and buses have become part of her DNA.
“I love trucks and buses. They’re the backbone of society and the economy. Without them, supermarket shelves would be empty, hospitals wouldn’t get medicine, and garbage would pile up in the streets. Working in this industry feels very meaningful. It’s also cool that no matter where I go in the world, I see ‘my’ products on the road.”
Introduced sneakers and hoodies
Based in Stuttgart with her family, Karin Rådström has helped modernize the company’s culture. Decision-making is faster, employees have more autonomy – and sneakers and hoodies are now part of the office dress code.
So how do you lead across cultures? Rådström has learned that people are more similar than different in what they need from a leader.
“I went to a culture training before a Scania assignment in Kenya, where the trainer said: ‘now your Swedish style of leadership won’t work’. But I realized pretty quickly that the leadership needed was very similar to what I had been doing before.”
“No matter where you are, people want to understand the bigger picture, feel their work has purpose, and know their contribution matters,” she says. “Of course, you still need to adapt – in Germany, for example, I sometimes have to push through the urge to over-analyze.”
Leading a global transport giant comes with constant tension between ambition and reality – especially when it comes to climate goals.
“Being part of decarbonizing road transport is inspiring,” she says, “but also sometimes frustrating.”
The technology is ready – electric trucks are already rolling – but adoption is slowed by high operational costs for customers and a lack of charging infrastructure.
“Progress depends on political decisions and external investments, so I spend a lot of time engaging with politicians and decision-makers,” she explains.
At the same time, Daimler Truck is navigating internal changes. “We’re pressing the brake and the gas pedal at once,” Rådström says. The company is undergoing a major restructuring in Germany while still ensuring growth and delivering for customers.
Balancing transformation and business performance isn’t easy. But, as she puts it:
“If it was easy, then anyone could do our jobs.”
Met her husband at KTH
After the photo shoot and back on familiar ground by the rowing clubhouse, Rådström reflects on what the KTH recognition means to her. She had hoped to visit the KTH campus during her brief stay, but this time, the schedule only allowed for a detour to the boat club.
“It’s humbling – there are so many KTH graduates doing amazing things,” she says.
The university gave her both a foundation for her career and, unexpectedly, for her personal life:
“A professor once told us many would meet their future spouse at KTH. I thought that was silly – but he was right. I met my husband there, and we’ve been together for 23 years.”
Looking back, what advice would she give her younger self on graduation day?
“Believe in yourself. You can contribute.”
Text: Anna Gullers