Photo: Alexander Wennergren Helm, CEO Ernströmgruppen, Elisabeth Peregi, CEO Kappahl, Helene Mellquist, CEO Volvo Penta, Jakub Jankowski, CEO IKEA Industry, Martin Malmvik, CEO Axel Johnson International and Paula da Silva, CEO P27 Nordic Payments.

CEOs for D&I, launched two years ago by Mitt Liv's founder Sofia Appelgren, is a program aimed at encouraging the corporate sector to intensify their efforts in diversity and inclusion within their organisations and take responsibility for promoting increased diversity and inclusion in the job market.

Previous cohorts totalling 14 CEOs include names like Elisabeth Beskow (DNB Sweden), Robert Dackeskog (Duni Group), Jan Berntsson (Deloitte Sweden), and Simone Margulies (Hemköp & Tempo). This year's cohort starting in September 2023 consists of six CEOs and companies:

  • Alexander Wennergren Helm, CEO of Ernströmgruppen

  • Elisabeth Peregi, CEO of Kappahl

  • Helene Mellquist, CEO of Volvo Penta

  • Jakub Jankowski, CEO of IKEA Industry

  • Martin Malmvik, CEO of Axel Johnson International

  • Paula da Silva, CEO of P27 Nordic Payments

– The competition for qualified employees who can contribute to the transformation we, and the entire industry, are undergoing is fierce. At the same time, we know that teams with diversity and an inclusive approach are more successful than homogeneous teams. Through Mitt Liv, we get an opportunity to reach new segments of the job market, and if we can contribute to integration at the same time, I see it as an additional advantage, says Helene Mellquist, CEO of Volvo Penta.

The group's objective is to arrive at a joint company-wide commitment that will be presented at Mitt Liv's symposium on April 24, 2024. With 20 CEOs and companies now on board, Mitt Liv will also establish an alumni network for all participants. The aim is to create a strong collective voice, as well as to identify which issues should be advanced and to generate influence within both the business sector and politics.

– It feels incredibly exciting that with this new constellation, we're addressing discussions and challenges faced internationally in the realm of diversity and inclusion. Our focus will be on collectively understanding the challenges and opportunities for how this work can support the companies' competency development needs, and to provide tools for driving these matters both within their organisations and externally, says Sofia Appelgren, founder of Mitt Liv and initiator of the program.