On the actual day that ISS opened the trading day at the NASDAQ Stock Exchange in New York City, Bob Greifeld highlighted ISS’ successful IPO, its effectiveness and innovation. "You are the epitome of a NASDAQ listed company,” he said.

"We are here today thanks to the great efforts of our more than 520,000 colleagues around the world,” said Group CEO Jeff Gravenhorst.

"We are indeed pleased to be back on the stock exchange and proud to stand here today. I take our successful IPO in March as a vote of confidence in ISS, in my colleagues, and my management team. It illustrates our position as leading global service provider with the ambition of becoming the world’s greatest service organisation,” Gravenhorst added.

‘Investors want us’

ISS Chairman Lord Allen of Kensington, said. "Following eight years under private equity ownership, ISS is now again a publicly traded company. Investors want us. Initially almost 20,000 institutional and private investors bought shares in ISS, and although our Headquarters are in Copenhagen Denmark, our new owners are indeed very international – exactly as it is the case for our business.”

The Group CEO and Chairman pushed the orange NASDAQ button to mark the opening of the trading day while approximately 50 ISS executives and uniformed employees from the local organisation were cheering and clapping.

The Consul General of Denmark in New York, Ambassador Jarl Frijs-Madsen was also among the guests at the bell ringing ceremony.

"It is a pleasure to celebrate the listing of ISS which is the biggest Danish employer globally with more than half a million employees and a company with a stable and strong financial performance," said Jarl Frijs-Madsen.

The ceremony was broadcasted on CNBC, Bloomberg and a number of other TV stations as well as social media and on the giant screens on Times Square. Here, ISS’ corporate movie and the slogan ‘ISS adds the human touch to the stock exchange’ was also shown in several feet high letters.

The entire group of executives and employees gathered outside, after the ceremony, for photos and interviews.

"It was a great and fun experience. It makes me even more proud of working for ISS,” said a smiling Sandra De Jesus, cleaning assistant with ISS USA, after the ceremony.

ISS is listed at the NASDAQ Copenhagen Stock Exchange.