How to Lead Leading Minds: support, autonomy and trust.

Introduction

Highly skilled people with deep technical knowledge, strong internal drive, and high expectations for their work environment, require a different kind of leadership. At Ubiq Aerospace, the challenge isn’t just to lead highly skilled individuals. It’s to create the conditions where highly skilled individuals thrive. That means building trust, not giving orders. It means removing blockers, not micromanaging tasks. And most importantly, it means understanding that leadership in a company like Ubiq, with over 20 PhDs in the building, it isn’t about control, it’s about cultivation.

Chief Engineer, Mikkel C. Nielsen, and VP of engineering, Ole Christian Spro reflect on how leadership at Ubiq is less about control, and more about creating momentum.

Staying true through change

When Ubiq was founded, the ambition was clear: to build advanced, autonomous ice protection systems for drones and aircraft. From day one, the team combined world-class academic backgrounds with a mindset rooted in practical, experimental engineering. While many companies start fast and then slow down as they grow, Ubiq has taken another path by retaining its rapid development pace and hands-on pragmatism, even as the organization has matured.

"The company has changed," said VP of engineering Ole Christian, reflecting on Ubiqs growth. "But we’ve made an intentional effort to preserve the ‘soul’ of the company. We still develop, test, and verify advanced aerospace technology at a speed that’s basically unheard of in this industry."

That’s not by accident. Compared to traditional aerospace companies, Ubiq moves fast because it builds differently, rethinking solutions from the ground up, making them lighter, smarter, and more efficient. Speed and quality are not opposites here. They are deeply interlinked.

Trust and Ownership, key tools for innovation

At Ubiq, no one is told how to do their job. We trust our people to know best. This philosophy of trust and ownership is core to the company’s culture. Employees are encouraged to take responsibility, define how they want to work, and make decisions. That freedom is paired with strong support from leadership, who are quick to offer guidance, connect colleagues across disciplines, and make sure no one is left without the tools they need.

"You have to give people real ownership," Ole Christian said. "You don’t give them a task, you give them a problem. Then you support them in solving it their way."

The result? Innovation that scales. Everyone can contribute in ways that go beyond their job descriptions. People don't just execute, they build, question, and improve.

Those who are eager to grow

Rather than hiring narrowly specialized experts, Ubiq looks for people with strong core competencies who are also eager to grow in new directions. The ability to work across disciplines, stay curious, and learn fast is often more valuable than being the best in a single niche.

"We look for people who want to grow," said Mikkel, Head of Software. "People who enjoy learning things outside their own domain, who see the whole picture. That’s what we need here."

This approach means that new hires are not meant to just fill gaps, they can open new doors and recognize new possibilities. The team becomes more flexible, more dynamic, and better able to respond to the unexpected. It's an approach that has paid off time and again, especially in projects that require quick iteration and close cross-functional collaboration.

The Culture Behind the Output

All of this trust, speed, autonomy feeds into a deeper cultural thread at Ubiq: a practical mindset driven by curiosity. People are encouraged to build real things and learn from real results. At Ubiq we don’t chase perfection for its own sake. We aim for working solutions, test them quickly and refine repeatedly. That mindset extends to leadership, too. Managing a team of highly capable people isn’t about having all the answers. It’s about creating a system where answers can emerge through collaboration, trial, and shared ambition.

"Everyone here wants to do something that matters," said Mikkel. "Our job as leaders is to make sure they can."