Chalmers: New chairman of the board

On 1 January, Hans-Olov Olsson took over as chairman of the Board of Chalmers, succeeding Sven Eckerstein. Olsson, who is 68 years old, was President and Chairman of Volvo from 2000 to 2006.

“In Hans-Olov Olsson, Chalmers has an internationally experienced industrial leader as a chairman. His considerable knowledge of the automotive industry and interest in competence and development issues will be a major asset to us,” said Kurt Eliasson, Chairman of the Chalmers Foundation, which is responsible for appointing members to the board.

Olsson, a graduate in economics and information processing from Gothenburg University, started his career at Volvo in 1966. He held a number of managerial positions in Sweden, Japan, Europe and North America up to 2000 when he was appointed President and Chairman of Volvo Car Corporation, a post he held until 2006.

In addition, Olsson was previously deputy chairman of the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise and former chairman of the Association of Swedish Engineering Industries. He is on the board of several companies, including SKF, Elanders and Lindab International.

As the chairman, Olsson will have the opportunity to be involved in influencing development now that Chalmers has received major funding following the government’s extra grant allocation for strategic research.

Another new appointment to the board is Tom Johnstone, chief executive of the engineering firm SKF. Johnstone, holds an MA in mathematics and economics from Glasgow University. He began his career at SKF in 1977 and he has held a number of positions. Between 1995 and 2003 he was president of the SKF Automotive Division and since 2003 he has been SKF President and CEO.

The Chalmers University Board is responsible for general planning, co-ordination and follow-up of the university's activities. The Chalmers President has overall responsibility and reports directly to the University Board.