Dynavox Group: Championing Equality and Innovation in Communication Aids

Equality, diversity, and varied backgrounds are proving beneficial for Dynavox Group, a rapidly growing, profitable, and world-leading company in communication aids that empower individuals with a voice.

Dynavox Group holds a global market leadership position in communication aids for people with communicative disabilities. Linda Tybring, CFO, shares insights into the company’s significant growth potential.

“50 million people are unable to communicate. And each year, two million individuals receive diagnoses such as cerebral palsy, autism, ALS, or Parkinson’s disease. The need for our aids is immense. We operate in a market with unparalleled growth opportunities, yet only two percent of those diagnosed actually receive the help they require,” she explains. “Awareness of our products and how to implement them in the market is remarkably low. In Sweden, for example, the regions are the financiers, while in the USA, it’s public or private insurance companies.”

Linda joined Tobii AB, within the Tobii Dynavox business area, in 2018. Tobii Dynavox was subsequently spun off and became an independent listed company in 2021. In 2024, the parent company changed its name to Dynavox Group, where Linda now serves as CFO for the entire group.

She oversees a team of approximately 90 people within both finance and IT, including an organization in the USA. Her primary responsibility as CFO is to optimize the company’s financial performance and determine its financial needs.

Dynavox Group provides opportunities for individuals, both externally and internally. Employees are encouraged to maintain a balance between career, personal life, and parenthood. The company actively works with each employee to identify their development needs and facilitate their progression, through training, networking, and new projects.

“We set high goals and ensure they are monitored and achieved by each employee. It’s easy to talk about Dynavox Group because we have a product that impacts everyone. New employees quickly become engaged and see the difference we make. For example, a child gains the opportunity for a completely different life, instead of being trapped in their body without being understood. The difference we make is ingrained in our company’s culture, creating a strong and positive environment,” says Linda.

Sustainability and diversity are integral to the company’s DNA. Dynavox Group actively works towards the UN’s Agenda 2030, particularly focusing on three of the global goals: Goal 3, Good Health and Well-being; Goal 4, Quality Education; and Goal 10, Reduced Inequalities.

“Our entire company is a form of equality work. Everyone should have equal rights to speak around the world,” Linda states.

A health economic study conducted in Sweden by the research firm Augur, commissioned by Dynavox Group, demonstrated the impact of communication aids. The study reveals that the quality of life doubles for people with disabilities who use communication aids. The quality of life improves not only for the user but also for those around them.

“Often, it’s strong mothers who drive the issue, and with communication aids for their child, they may be able to return to work and be a mother instead of a caregiver. From an economic perspective, the study shows that society receives three times the cost back for each prescribed communication aid. Such results are incredibly rare in health economic studies. And imagine an ALS patient being able to continue working and needing less assistance,” says Linda.

The board members of Dynavox Group are equally divided between women and men. In leading positions and in the group management, the figure is between 44 and 48 percent women. Linda emphasizes the importance of working for equality in the business world.

“We have an even gender distribution, which we are incredibly proud of. We actively work to maintain these results and also hire different nationalities in all our offices. This creates a culture that is beneficial for our business. It’s simply good business,” she says. “Having an equal number of women and men in the business contributes to creating a perspective that other companies don’t have. We also have an equality committee that looks at different perspectives to make the company even better. And then I strongly believe in trying to incorporate different perspectives through multiculturalism. It’s important in decision-making because you see things differently, which leads to much better decisions.”

To meet and recruit individuals with diverse perspectives and backgrounds, they participate in various events, such as Women in Tech Sweden, an organization for women in the tech world.

“During the year, we also collaborated with the Womengineer foundation, which works to encourage more women to become engineers. During Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, we invited teenage girls to our office to test the latest technology and discuss new innovations,” says Linda.

Evidence of the significant need for the company’s products is its rapid growth. Since the coronavirus pandemic, Dynavox Group has grown by approximately 20 to 30 percent per year. They have gone from 450 to over 900 employees worldwide, with approximately 150 people in Stockholm, Sweden.

“It’s fantastic. When we went public in 2021, we had a turnover of 872 million SEK, and last year we landed at almost two billion SEK. We are large in the USA with approximately 80 percent of sales.”

“In the USA, we have the regulations with us, where the product contributes to a human right,” says Linda, continuing: “Our financial goal is to grow by 20 percent per year and increase our profitability to over 15 percent. The plan is to recruit 70 employees solely to our new hub for product development in Stockholm this year, so the future is exciting.”

Facts

Specialized solutions enable people with disabilities such as cerebral palsy, ALS, autism, and spinal cord injury to have their own voice, learn to read, and live a more independent life. Hundreds of thousands of people worldwide have benefited from our integrated solutions with hardware, software, clinically developed language systems, mounting solutions, training, and support. Because impaired voice and mobility are common among our users, the solutions can be used through alternative access methods, such as eye tracking or touch screen.

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