Impact & Advocacy

CEOs for D&I: Mitt Liv's CEO program

"CEOs for D&I" is a CEO program launched in 2021 by Sofia Appelgren, the founder of Mitt Liv. The initiative aims to encourage the business sector to enhance their efforts towards diversity and inclusion within their organisations and take responsibility for promoting increased diversity and inclusion in the job market.

The goal of each program is to arrive at a company-wide commitment that is annually presented at Mitt Liv's symposium. The network of CEOs across all programs also collaborates to foster a unified influential voice, pinpoint priority issues for advocacy, and generate meaningful influence within the business landscape and political sphere.

Group 3

Participants 2023

Alexander Wennergren Helm

CEO, Ernströmgruppen

Elisabeth Peregi

CEO, Kappahl

Jakub Jankowski

CEO, IKEA Industry

Martin Malmvik

CEO, Axel Johnson International

Paula da Silva

CEO, P27 Nordic Payments

Group 2

Participants 2022

Carl Dahlén

COO North West Europe, Securitas

Elisabeth Beskow

CEO, DNB Sweden

Freddy Sobin

former CEO, Kicks

Jan Dernestam

CEO, Mannheimer Swartling

Joakim Skarborg

CEO, Novax

Sofia Götmar-Blomstedt

CEO, PwC Sweden

Group 1

Participants 2021

Jan Berntsson

former CEO, Deloitte Sweden

Simone Margulies

CEO, Hemköp & Tempo

Pernilla Bonde

former CEO, HSB

Jacob Torell

CEO & Founder, Next Step Group

Thomas Ekman

former CEO, Dustin Group

Robert Dackeskog

CEO, Duni Group

Magnus Rosén

former CEO, Nobina AB

Therese Bohlin

former CEO, Prime Weber Shandwick

How we work

In the program the group meets on three occasions during a year, where they focus on discussing challenges and opportunities with diversity and inclusion, the demands of the outside world, and their responsibilities as CEO. The participants get to meet researchers, leading public debaters and take part in concrete cases from other organisations.

The goal is for the work to result in a joint action program for diversity and inclusion - with commitments that the companies have identified together to shift the work in their organisations, as well as to contribute to making a difference in the labour market.

Each group's action program is presented annually at Mitt Liv's symposium "An inclusive labor market", where previous groups also present how the work has progressed in their organisations.

Ongoing work and results

Group 1

A joint action program

In March 2022 the first group of CEOs presented a joint action program in which they undertake to implement a number of concrete measures to increase the diversity and degree of inclusion in their organisations. The commitment means that they will:

  • Have a diversity & inclusion strategy in place during 2022

  • Measure diversity and inclusion

  • Ensure inclusive recruitment processes

  • Educate all leaders in inclusive leadership programs

  • Introduce a job program for foreign-born individuals

  • Inspire other CEOs to do more.

Group 2

Recommendations for company boards and grassroots inclusion

In March 2023, the second group of CEOs presented their collective commitment, which consists of two parts:

  1. Developing a recommendation/blueprint outlining the requirements that company boards should set for their executive teams to achieve inclusive companies and contribute to more inclusive societies.

  2. All companies commit to engagement with organisations working with grassroots inclusion in vulnerable areas. The goal is for each company to, in various ways over the course of a year, provide their employees with the right conditions and tools to reach out to youth in at least ten disadvantaged areas in Sweden.

Diversity and inclusion is essential for businesses to succeed. Greater diversity generates more ideas in the room, which in turn provides better conditions to make good decisions. This is not a problem that we can solve alone, it requires effort from many stakeholders working side by side.

Elisabeth Beskow

Elisabeth Beskow
CEO, DNB Sweden

Contact us

Interested in participating in our upcoming programs? Get in touch with us!