Pehr Gustaf Gyllenhammar (born 28 April 1935) is a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

businessman. He is mainly known for his 24 years as

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

and

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

Volvo The Volvo Group ( sv, Volvokoncernen; legally Aktiebolaget Volvo, shortened to AB Volvo, stylized as VOLVO) is a Swedish multinational manufacturing corporation headquartered in Gothenburg. While its core activity is the production, distributio ...

, between 1970 and 1994. In the early 1980s he took the initiative for the

European Round Table of Industrialists The European Round Table of Industrialists, abbreviated ERT, is an advocacy group in the European Union consisting of some 50 European industrial leaders working to strengthen competitiveness in Europe. The group works at both national and European ...

(ERT). Gyllenhammar lists his current position as Vice Chairman of Rothschild Europe (although a search of Rothschild Europe's website for his name yielded no results). Gyllenhammar was made Commander of the "Ordre National du Mérite" in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in 1980 and he was made Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

in France in 1987. Gyllenhammar became an Honorary Master of the Bench of the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wal ...

, London in 2001.

Early life

Gyllenhammar was born on 28 April 1935 in

Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...

, Sweden, the son of Pehr Gyllenhammar Sr., a Swedish business man of the Swedish noble family Gyllenhammar, and his Jewish mother, Aina (née Kaplan). He did his military service at

Bohuslän Regiment The Bohuslän Regiment ( sv, Bohusläns regemente), designation I 17, was a Swedish Army infantry regiment that traces its origins back 1661. It was disbanded in 1992. The regiment's soldiers were originally recruited from the provinces of Bohu ...

(I 17) in

Uddevalla Uddevalla (old no, Oddevold) is a town and the seat of Uddevalla Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. In 2015, it had a population of 34 781. It is located at a bay of the south-eastern part of Skagerrak. The beaches of Uddevalla are ...

from 1954 to 1955 and became a sergeant. Gyllenhammar graduated from

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

in 1959 and did internship at law firms in Sweden and studied maritime law in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and then aspects of Industrialism at the Centre d’Etudes Industrielles in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

in 1968.

Career

He was employed at the insurance company Amphion AB in Gothenburg from 1961 to 1964 and became Deputy Chief Administrative Officer of Skandia Group in 1965. Gyllenhammar became Deputy CEO in 1968 in 1970 he replaced his father, Pehr Gyllenhammar Sr., as CEO. After only a few months he moved to

where he became the CEO in 1971. He replaced his

father-in-law A parent-in-law is a person who has a legal affinity with another by being the parent of the other's spouse. Many cultures and legal systems impose duties and responsibilities on persons connected by this relationship. A person is a child-in-law ...

Gunnar Engellau, who became chairman, in that position.

At Volvo

Gyllenhammar became one of the most famous businessmen in Sweden at Volvo. He mixed success with failure. He oversaw a wide-reaching diversification of Volvo's business, buying, among other things

pharmaceutical company The pharmaceutical industry discovers, develops, produces, and markets drugs or pharmaceutical drugs for use as medications to be administered to patients (or self-administered), with the aim to cure them, vaccinate them, or alleviate sympto ...

Pharmacia Pharmacia was a pharmaceutical and biotechnological company in Sweden that merged with the American pharmaceutical company Upjohn in 1995. History Pharmacia company was founded in 1911 in Stockholm, Sweden by pharmacist Gustav Felix Grönfeldt ...

. What finally forced him to leave Volvo was a failed merger with French company

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...

After Volvo

After Volvo, Gyllenhammar withdrew from Swedish public life and moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

where he eventually became chairman of

insurance company Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...

Aviva. He returned to Swedish business in 2004 as Chairman of

Investment AB Kinnevik Kinnevik AB () is a Swedish investment company that was founded in 1936 by the Stenbeck, Klingspor and von Horn families. Kinnevik is an active and long-term owner investing primarily in digital consumer businesses. Current CEO, Georgi Ganev, w ...

. Gyllenhammar is no longer a member of Investment AB Kinnevik's board.

Other work

Gyllenhammar was the CEO of ''Svenska skeppshypotekskassan'' and Ship Transport Secondary Loan Fund (''Skeppsfartens sekundärlånekassa'') in Gothenburg from 1970 to 1976, chairman there from 1976, board member of

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (, abbreviated SEB, is a northern European financial services group headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. In Sweden and the Baltic countries, SEB has a full financial service offering. In Denmark, Finland, Norway, ...

from 1979 to 1994 including vice chairman from 1979 to 1994. Gyllenhammar was board member of

United Technologies United Technologies Corporation (UTC) was an American multinational conglomerate headquartered in Farmington, Connecticut. It researched, developed, and manufactured products in numerous areas, including aircraft engines, aerospace systems ...

Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

from 1981, Swedish Intercontinental Airlines from 1982,

Kissinger Associates Kissinger Associates, Inc. is a New York City-based international geopolitical consulting firm, founded and run by Henry Kissinger since 1982. The firm assists its clients in identifying strategic partners and investment opportunities and advisi ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

from 1982 to 1997,

Atlas Copco Atlas Copco (Copco from Compagnie Pneumatique Commerciale) is a Swedish multinational industrial company that was founded in 1873. It manufactures industrial tools and equipment. The Atlas Copco Group is a global industrial group of companies ...

from 1982, Hamilton Brothers Petroleum in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

from 1982, S. Pearson & Son in

from 1983 to 1997, Swedish Employers Association from 1979, Sveriges Industriförbund from 1979, FA-rådet from 1981, member of the Reuters Holdings PLC from 1984. He was also a board member of Philips Electronics NV in

Eindhoven Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,Régie Nationale des Usines Renault SA in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

from 1990 to 1993 and well as chairman of Procordia from 1990 to 1992. Gyllenhammar was board member of Polygram NV from 1996 and became chairman of the board of Commercial Union PLC in 1998 and senior advisor of Lazard Frères & Co LLC in New York City in 1996. Gyllenhammar was the chairman of Aviva and deputy chairman of Rothschild Europe, chairman of Reuters Founders Share Company Limited and of the

European Financial Services Roundtable The European Financial Services Round Table (EFR) brings together chairmen and chief executives of leading European banks and insurance companies. The purpose of the EFR is to contribute to the European public policy debate on issues relating to fi ...

. He was also a member of the International Advisory Committee of

Chase Manhattan Bank JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase Bank or often as Chase, is an American national bank headquartered in New York City, that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of the U.S. multinational banking and fina ...

1972-1995.

Majid Al Futtaim Group

Majid Al Futtaim Group, a major business chain in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

, listed Mr Gyllenhammar as its Chairman from June 2007 until March 2009.

Political views

Gyllenhammar has in the past been an outspoken supporter of the Liberal People's Party. In his 1973 book ''I Believe in Sweden'' (''Jag tror på Sverige'') he was steadfast in his support for the Scandinavian model and argued for the kind

social liberalism Social liberalism (german: Sozialliberalismus, es, socioliberalismo, nl, Sociaalliberalisme), also known as new liberalism in the United Kingdom, modern liberalism, or simply liberalism in the contemporary United States, left-liberalism ...

the Liberal People's Party used to support. Gyllenhammar served on the Party board and was widely considered as a future leader of the party. At times, he revealed an ambition to become

Prime Minister of Sweden The prime minister ( sv, statsminister ; literally translating to "Minister of State") is the head of government of Sweden. The prime minister and their cabinet (the government) exercise executive authority in the Kingdom of Sweden and are subj ...

Personal life

Gyllenhammar was married 1959–2008 to Christina Engellau (1936–2008), the daughter of Volvo CEO Gunnar Engellau and Margit (née Höckert). They had three daughters and one son: Cecilia, Charlotte, Sophie, and Oscar. He married the horse sports journalist Christel Behrmann in 2010. They divorced in 2012. In April 2013 he married the British-Canadian doctor of psychology, Lee Welton Croll. Their first child was born in 2016. *

Cecilia Gyllenhammar Anne Cecilia Gyllenhammar (born 10 August 1961 in Gothenburg) is a Swedish author. Family Cecilia Gyllenhammar has two sisters, Charlotte Gyllenhammar and Sophie Gyllenhammar Mattson, and a brother, Oscar Gyllenhammar. She was married to docum ...

, his oldest daughter, who grew up as the "Princess of Göteborg", has written a novel about the childhood of an upper class girl, the daughter of a business man in Göteborg, marked by

eating disorder An eating disorder is a mental disorder defined by abnormal eating behaviors that negatively affect a person's physical or mental health. Only one eating disorder can be diagnosed at a given time. Types of eating disorders include binge eating d ...

and self-disgust. The novel is strongly critical towards Cecilia's upper-class background and, she admits, contains critic of both her parents but also purely fictional elements. In the novel, the father is described as constantly unfaithful and the mother as failing to love her daughter. Cecilia refuses to give any detail of what is purely fiction in the novel, but claims both her parents have read it and supports her. Cecilia gave up a career as a journalist and has chosen not to make a career because of those of her parents. *

Charlotte Gyllenhammar Eva Charlotte Gyllenhammar (born 16 December 1963) is a fine artist based in Stockholm, Sweden. She began her career as a painter, but swiftly moved on to sculpture and installation after completing her studies at the Royal College of Art in Londo ...

, a younger daughter, is a well-established artist with numerous exhibitions, public art commissions, and representation at various museums in Sweden. * Sophie Gyllenhammar Mattson worked as a consultant before embarking a successful career as a designer of gold and jewels and has established her own brand "Sophie by Sophie". * Oscar Gyllenhammar was working for Icon Medialab before starting his own IT company Compost in 2000 and has since made a failed attempt to start an internet portal (autoo.se) "together with some friends".

Awards and decorations

Swedish

H. M. The King's Medal, 12th size gold (silver-gilt) medal worn around the neck on the Order of the Seraphim ribbon (1981) * SWE_Order_of_Vasa_-_Knight_2nd_Class_BAR

SWE_Order_of_Vasa_-_Knight_2nd_Class_BAR

Commander 1st Class of the

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry, awarded to citizens of Sweden for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. It was instituted on 29 May 1772 by King Gustav III. It was u ...

(1973) *

Knight of the

(1965)

Foreign

FIN_Order_of_the_White_Rose_Commander_1st_Class_BAR

Commander 1st Class of the

Order of the White Rose of Finland The Order of the White Rose of Finland ( fi, Suomen Valkoisen Ruusun ritarikunta; sv, Finlands Vita Ros’ orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. ...

(1986; Commander 1977) * St_Olavs_Orden_kommandør_stripe

Commander of the Order of St. Olav (1 July 1984) * Commander_Ordre_de_Leopold

Commander of the Order of Leopold (1989) * Legion_Honneur_Commandeur_ribbon

Commander of the

(1987) *

Ordre_national_du_Merite_Commandeur_ribbon

Commander of the National Order of Merit (1980)

Honorships

*Member of the

Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences or ''Kungliga Ingenjörsvetenskapsakademien'' (IVA), founded on 24 October 1919 by King Gustaf V, is one of the royal academies in Sweden. The academy is an independent organisation, which promo ...

(1974) *Honorary member of

nation A nation is a community of people formed on the basis of a combination of shared features such as language, history, ethnicity, culture and/or society. A nation is thus the collective identity of a group of people understood as defined by those ...

at Lund University (1975) *Honorary Doctor of Medicine of the

University of Gothenburg The University of Gothenburg ( sv, Göteborgs universitet) is a university in Sweden's second largest city, Gothenburg. Founded in 1891, the university is the third-oldest of the current Swedish universities and with 37,000 students and 6000 st ...

(1981) *Honorary Doctor of Technology at

Brunel University London Brunel University London is a Public university, public Research universities, research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian era, Victorian engineer and pioneer of the I ...

, England (1987) *Honorary Doctor of Engineering at the

Technical University of Nova Scotia The Technical University of Nova Scotia (TUNS) was a Canadian university located in Halifax, Nova Scotia. TUNS was officially founded as the Nova Scotia Technical College on 25 April 1907. On 1 April 1997 it was merged into Dalhousie Universit ...

, Canada (1988) *Honorary Doctor of Social Sciences at the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin yliopisto, sv, Helsingfors universitet, abbreviated UH) is a public research university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku (in Swedish ''Åbo'') in 1640 as the ...

(1990) *Honorary Doctor of Law at the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...

, USA (1993) *Honorary Doctor of Economics at the School of Business, Economics and Law,

(2003) *Fellow of the

Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences The Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences ( no, Norges Tekniske Vitenskapsakademi, NTVA) is a learned society based in Trondheim, Norway. Founded in 1955, the academy has about 500 members. It is a member of the International Council of Aca ...

*Honorary Master of the Bench of the

in London (2001)

References

{{Skandia chief executive officers, state=collapsed 1935 births Living people Businesspeople from Gothenburg Swedish nobility Swedish people of Jewish descent Swedish businesspeople Swedish chief executives in the automobile industry Liberals (Sweden) politicians Volvo people Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences Members of the Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences Lund University alumni Directors of Skandia N M Rothschild & Sons people