Saab 2012 Annual Report Download - page 27

SAAB ANNUAL REPORT 2012 23
Engineer making a
career at Saab
Jessica Öberg, Deputy Head of
Land Division within the Support and
Services business area, launched her
career at Saab by moving to the U.S.
to work as a consultant. She returned
home to Sweden three years later,
rmly convinced that Saab was where
she wanted to pursue her career.
– Tomorrow’s employees are looking
for employers that have a modern
mind-set in terms of professional
development, diversity and gender
equality. Thanks to our Talent & Man-
agement Reviewand our mentorship
programme for women at the start of
their careers, I am condent that we
will succeed in attracting both women
and men who possess the right skills.
“Future employees meet opportunity at
Saab” – one of many student meetings aimed
at forming relationships and increasing
awareness.
To present Saab as an attractive employer to students at
the Institute of Technology at Linköping University, 150
budding engineers were invited to a “Saab evening” in
Linköping.
Invitees hailed from many different specialisations and
courses of study. During the evening, they attended a
presentation of Saab as a company, received detailed
information on the operations and Saab’s different busi-
ness areas and heard several reports on what it’s like to
work at Saab. Several of Saab’s products and simulators
were also demonstrated – and to simplify things as much
as possible for the visitors, they were bussed from the
university to Saab.
– I’m interested in working with product development
and am looking forward to learning more about Saab’s
different areas, said Johan Järvenhag as he took a seat
next to the Skeldar model, which attracted many curious
glances during the evening.
Speed and flexibility secured key skills
Combitech’s new development centre in Trollhättan was
opened on 12 June 2012. The centre offers complete
development projects within Nordic industry, including
the aviation and automotive sectors, and the goal is that
the centre will employ over 200 employees.
With hand-picked engineers – most of whom come from
Saab Automobile – and expertise in areas including virtual
product development in the aviation and automotive indus-
tries, the centre can offer development services from idea
to industrialisation. Many of the employees have worked
together previously, which has facilitated expedited take-off
and cost-efcient, high-quality solutions.
The development centre is an opportunity to benet from
the outstanding engineering skills available in Trollhättan.
Saab is a customer of the centre and parts of Gripen’s
structural design are being done on-site. Extensive aviation
development skills were transferred to the centre over a
period of just a few months during 2012.
“Saab has fresh wind beneath its wings” – Lena
Eliasson, new Senior Vice President and Head of
Group Human Resources, also nominated for 2013
Employer Branding person-of-the-year award
– From the moment I started at Saab, I felt an extraordinary
amount of energy. We all want to move ahead and develop, and
there is so much positive energy here.
We care about our employees. Our philosophy is that every
individual should have a development plan. Feeling stimulated and
having the opportunity to grow are of rst and last importance in
terms of doing a good job. Saab has many training collaborations
for all levels. The key to reaching young talents, according to Lena,
is to focus on the future. – We have projects in grade schools
aimed at getting kids interested in technology. We have many ini-
tiatives that target students – everything from trainee programmes
to thesis and summer job offers – but we are also very particular
about getting out and meeting the talent. It’s the face-to-face
meetings where we can show everything that Saab is. To ll our
future recruitment base, we have to think in the long term.