Googol @ Åre Kapitalmarknadsdagar 2015

On March 25-27th, Googol attended Åre Kapitalmarknadsdagar http://arekapitalmarknadsdagar.se/ which were held for the 6^th time in this Swedish mountain resort. With a growing participation year-by-year attracting heavy national company leaders as well as regional, investors, politicians and advisors alike, this event has the ambition of becoming a “mini Davos” where all sides of our society meet to discuss important and actual business topics.

The conference and the debates was brilliantly moderated by Günther Mårder, CEO-to-be for Företagarna, and Anna Ekelund, head of the News Desk at Dagens Industri.

In parallel, a competition between start-ups seeking further funding took place and was won by the medtech innovator MYoroface. The Nasdaq OMX Stockholm stock exchange was also opened from Åre both days to signal the importance of the event.

Growth and innovation was the leading theme for most of the lectures, and how advancements in technology such as digitalization enables transformation of all kinds of business. This fits well the focus of Googol, working with large companies in augmenting their innovation capability and “intrapreneurship” and how they can engage with smaller, innovative start-up entrepreneurs. Googol hereby also improves the climate for small entrepreneurs with competence, connections and sometimes even capital.

Furthermore at Kapitalmarknadsdagarna, we were given viewpoints of the state of the Swedish national economy and the Moderate party leader launched three initiatives to boost Swedish entrepreneurship.

According to Googol’s representative, the high-lights of the conference where:

• What does digitalization mean to you? Anders Berglund, CEO of Google Sweden
• Disruptive thinking – the key to fast innovation Olaf Diegel, Professor at Lund University
• Silicon Valley – an important HUB for the digital development Anne Lidgaard, manager for VINNOVA’s office in Silicon Valley
• Zero inflation and negative interest rates – how is the health status of Swedish economy Andreas Wallström, Chief Analyst at Nordea Markets
• Future accessibility in Sweden Torborg Chetkovich, CEOof Swedavia
• TMT Predictions: Major shifts in technology Duncan Stewart, Director of TMT Research, DeLoitte Canada
• Growth in Northern Sweden Knut Rost, CEO of Diös Fastigheter
• From big politics to private business Pär Nuder, Chairman of Third Swedish National Pension Fund
• Are politicians painting themselves into a corner? Peter Wågström, CEO of NCC
• What is bubbling in the business world? Jan Olsson, CEO of Nordic Region, Deutsche Bank

In addition to all these inspiring lectures and debates, the event offered ample opportunities for good business networking. Googol is already looking forward to next year’s Kapitalmarknadsdagar in Åre and to possibly contribute to the formal program with views upon how to build innovation capability in Swedish industry and business society.

-Clas Rolander, Senior Advisor @ Googol