|
|
 June 2014 |
|
 Time For Change
How time flies... It is summer again, where did the spring go? My years as the President of the Swedish-American Chambers of Commerce of the USA have also been flying by, and it is now time for me to say good bye, at least to this position, but hopefully not to you. This summer I will return with my family to Stockholm, Sweden, after almost six wonderful years in the U.S. During my time in the U.S., the SACC network has been important to me. My SACC path started as a member of SACC-DC and after two years I became the President of SACC-USA.
I couldn't be more proud over what SACC-USA has achieved during these years; a new vision for the network and closer collaboration between the regional chambers, new improved programs, services, and events for our members which also assure the financial stability of the organization.
Even though much has been done, even more is still needed, and I am sure my successor will be able to take on that work. Please welcome Mr. Einar Thodal-Ness as the incoming President after the summer! As a business veteran with long international experience and a passion for Swedish-American business and culture, Mr. Thodal-Ness will bring a lot to the table - learn more about him below and meet him in person at SACC Summit, October 2-3!
Before signing off my position I am happy to conclude some of SACC-USA's large projects and events. Since the America Day in Gothenburg in late March, the team at SACC-USA has been busy with finishing the new updated version of the booklet" Sweden Creates Jobs in America". You can order a printed version from SACC-USA or download it online where it soon will be available. We have also successfully finished a cleantech program with customized trade missions for small Swedish businesses. The SACC-USA Executive Forum and the Executive Roundtable on Water & Energy were held in May. Below is a brief update.
Finally, I want to acknowledge all of you who made my journey with SACC-USA so rewarding; all fantastic people within the SACC network, the SACC-USA board of directors, especially the three chairmen I have worked with; Urban Lundberg, Bradley J. Olson, and Matias Bonnier as well as my fantastic staff and interns! This position has given me the opportunity to meet so many people from all kinds of businesses, organizations and government in Sweden and the U.S. - I am so grateful for all your shared expertise, introductions, and great collaboration! Thank you!
|
|
SACC-USA's New President - Einar Thodal-Ness
|
We are happy to introduce SACC-USA's new President. An interview with Einar Thodal-Ness will be published in the next eCurrent.
Work experience:
32 years at SEB. Head of New York Branch, Head of Tokyo Branch, Regional Head Southern Sweden, Head SEB Securities Services, Responsible for Financial Institutions coverage and risk USA, Canada and Japan. 3 years at JP Morgan Chase. Business experience from 29 countries and 22 U.S. states.
Experience from the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of SACC New York and the Swedish Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan. Board of Directors experience from Sydsvenska Handelskammaren.
Interests:
Economic and political development, sports (follow the NY Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning closely). Have visited more than 100 sports arenas around the world.
|
Name: Einar Thodal-Ness, 59 years old.
Lives: in the Tampa Bay, Florida area. Looking for a home away from home in Washington DC.
Family: Married to Linda with children Eric, 18 and Jacob, 15. The final family member is our dog Tiger, 8.
|
|
|
Internship in Sweden for Americans
|
The SAGA Trainee Program is organized under the auspices of the Swedish American Green Alliance (SAGA), a bilateral partnership between the United States and Sweden.
The SAGA Trainee Program offers several traineeships to U.S. students and young professionals at companies in the Sundsvall region of Sweden. The succesful candidates get an opportunity to work on issues related to corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability.
The students/young professionals will arrive in Sweden in mid-September and return to the United States in mid-December 2014. The traineeships are available to U.S. citizens only. Applicants must be at least 21 years of age and have a demonstrated interest in corporate social responsibility (CSR) and environmental issues. Housing and airfare provided.
| 
|
|
|
SACC-USA Executive Forum
SACC-USA proudly hosted this year's Executive Forum on the topic "Glocalization: Transnational Business Challenges." The Executive Forum gathers business leaders in the Swedish-American business community to share insights and experiences on topics that impact businesses. Prominent Swedish companies such as Atlas Copco, Alfa Laval, Ericsson, SSAB, Skanska, PartnerTech & Loomis participated.
The day started off with a round-table discussion on experiences in managing local business conditions in a globalized economy, M&A strategies and cultural challenges. Ms. Judy Rising Reinke, from the US.Department of commerce was the luncheon keynote speaker; she addressed how the U.S. government works with business expansion support. The program continued with a visit to the office of the the United States Trade Representative (USTR) for a briefing on the TTIP negotiations with David Weiner. Following this, the West Wing Writers shared their tips on how to deliver a speech, define the message, and target it to the heart of your audience. The day ended with a dinner reception graciously hosted by H.E. Ambassador Bj�rn Lyrvall - a strong supporter of Swedish-American trade and the SACC network.
|
|
|
The SACC-USA Trainee Program provides a unique opportunity in offering U.S based companies easy access to Swedish Trainees through our J-1 visa program. We are happy to present a short informational movie for you to better understand what we offer, how we do it and what a J-1 visa entails.
|
 | | Understand the SACC-USA Trainee Program |
|
 |
Executive Roundtable on the Water and Energy Nexus
|
As part of our Cleantech initiative SACC-USA successfully hosted an Executive Roundtable Discussion on Water and Energy together with the Swedish Embassy and Stockholm International Water Institue, SIWI. The purpose of the roundtable was to bring a number of stakeholders from the private and public sector, together to have solution based discussions on the importance of the water and energy nexus.
Issues discussed included:
- Private corporations need to better navigate how governments, non-governmental organizations, and multilateral institutions are shaping the water-energy nexus.
- How will top management work better within their own corporate structure to integrate technology and innovation in water-energy resource management and in business planning and operations?
- Where will innovation in water and energy come from? How can we best scale-up and leverage technologies to meet the exponential growth in world demand for water and energy resources by 2030?
Participants included Fortum, World Bank, General Electric, CH2mHILL, 2030 Water Resources Group, Harvard University, Atlas Copco, Partnertech, Xylem, Global Water Partnership.
|  
|
|
Regional Chambers' Upcoming Events
|
|
On the Radar
SVT has released the participants to the new season
of "All for Sweden" (Allt F�r Sverige)
The reality series where Americans with Swedish roots travel to Sweden to search for their family. All for Sweden can only be seen in SVT World outside Sweden. New season begins broadcasting in October.
|
|
| SAS opens direct business route to Houston
SAS is launching services between Stavanger and Houston to start on August 20. This fulfils the wishes of leading players in the oil and gas industry for better connections between Norway, the rest of Scandinavia and Houston, Texas.
|
|
|
President Obama's bold move
In a new, major policy decision, Obama will bypass Congress with a plan forcing power plants to cut their emissions by 30% (from 2005 levels) over 15 years. Coal produced an estimated 74% of total CO2 emissions in the U.S. in 2012, compared to other forms of electricity generation like natural gas and petroleum. The plan represents one of the biggest actions taken by the U.S. government - and the biggest taken by any U.S. president - to slow climate change.
|
|
|
Skanska builds new Apple HQ
Apple builds new head quarters in Cupertino, California to the tune of $5 billion. Skanska USA is the general contractor in a joint venture with DPR Construction. According to Dagens Industri, with reference to Bloomberg, the contract is worth approximately $1 billion (SEK 7.5 mdkr) to Skanska USA.
|
|
SAS launches new cabins on intercontinental routes
Do you want a hotel room in the sky? Starting in 2015, SAS will equip their intercontinental aircrafts with a new cabin design. Passengers will be welcomed into a warm and friendly hotel room-like ambiance, where they can relax and enjoy their time in the sky.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
