Gro Merete Brækken (born 8 December 1952) is a Norwegian businessperson known for her extensive leadership experience in various sectors including oil, refinery, natural gas, shipbuilding, banking, and aid and development. She has held significant roles in both national and international companies and organizations.

Early life and education

Brækken was born in

Narvik () is the third-largest List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway, by population. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Narvik (town), town of Narvik. Some of the notable villag ...

and spent her youth in

Mo i Rana (Norwegian language, Norwegian; ) or (and unofficially , ) is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city, and the administrative centre of Rana Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the Helgeland region of Nordland, just sou ...

Moss Mosses are small, non-vascular plant, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic phylum, division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Wilhelm Philippe Schimper, Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryo ...

, and

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

. She graduated with a MSc in Chemical Engineering from the

Norwegian Institute of Technology The Norwegian Institute of Technology ( Norwegian: ''Norges tekniske høgskole'', NTH) was a science institute in Trondheim, Norway. It was established in 1910, and existed as an independent technical university for 58 years, after which it was ...

in 1975.

Career

Brækken's career spans several industries and leadership positions. She started her career at Norske Shell (1976-1982), followed by a role as Head of Dept. Gas Sales Administration at

Statoil Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger, Norway. It is primarily a petroleum company operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. In th ...

Stavanger Stavanger, officially the Stavanger Municipality, is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the third largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the ...

(1982-1988). She then served as the CEO of Ulstein International (1988-1990), where she was responsible for ship design, international sales, and marketing. Her tenure at

Den norske Bank Den may refer to: * Den (room), a small room in a house * Maternity den, a lair where an animal gives birth Media and entertainment * ''Den'' (album), 2012, by Kreidler * Den (''Battle Angel Alita''), a character in the ''Battle Angel Alita'' ...

(1990-1994) included the position of Regional Managing Director for Oslo & Akershus private market. In 1994, Brækken joined the

Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise The Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (, NHO) is an employers' organisation in Norway with more than 30,000 members. It was founded in 1989 as a merger of the Federation of Norwegian Industries, the Norwegian Employers' Confederation and the ...

(NHO) as Deputy Managing Director, where she was in charge of trade and international policies. She significantly contributed to the areas of tax, trade laws, environment, education policies, and R&D until 1999. Brækken's leadership extended to the non-profit sector as the Secretary-General of

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide. The organization raises money to imp ...

in Norway from 1999 to 2009, where she managed to double the revenue and facilitated a major international merger. In 2010, she became the CEO of the Norwegian Oil and Gas, a position she held until 2015. From 2016 to 2023, Brækken served as the Managing Director/CEO of the Norsk institutt for styremedlemmer (Norwegian Institute for Board Members).

Board Memberships and Other Roles

Throughout her career, Brækken has been an active member of various boards and committees. Notable positions include: * Board Member, Kitron ASA (2015–present) * Deputy Chair, Duvi Pensjon (2017–present) * Chair, Norwegian Petroleum Museum (2015-2023) * Chair, Norwegian Air Ambulance Foundation (2015-2022) * Board Member, Cambi AS (2010-2023) * Member of the Corporate Assembly and the Nomination Committee, StatoilHydro ASA (2007-2010) * Board Member, The Vestfold Hospital (2003-2008) * Deputy Board Member, Norfund (2000-2004) * Chair, PTL AS (Prosjekt- og teknologiledelse AS) (1999-2009) * Board Member and later Chair, Norwegian Refugee Council (1997-1999) * Board Member, Jansons legat (1997–present) * Board Member, Norwegian Export Council (1995-1999) * Deputy Chair, Statkraft SE (1991-1994) * Board Member, Akergruppen (1989-1999) * Board Member, Kongsberggruppen AS (1987-1997) * Norwegian representative and later Vice President of Committee A, International Gas Union (1984-1988)

Personal life

Brækken currently resides in

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

. She is married to Ingvald Fergestad and has three children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Braekken, Gro Norwegian business executives Norwegian Institute of Technology alumni People from Rana, Norway Norwegian chemical engineers Norwegian civil engineers 1952 births Living people