Alumni of the year 2014

The winners of the 2014 Alumni of the Year were Catrin Fransson, CEO of the Swedish Export Credit Corporation, Markus Gustafsson, President and CEO of the communications company Prime, and Mikael Fall, world champion harmonica player.

Markus Gustafsson

Acclaimed President and CEO of the internationally recognized communications company Prime - and this without moving from Norrbotten. Markus Gustafsson who studied business administration at Luleå University of Technology is one of this year's alumni.
- It feels really fun and honorable, says the winner.

How did you get the job you have today?
- It was on a banana peel. I had a consultancy assignment for Prime and they asked me if I wanted to help make the company a world leader - which is hard to say no to.

What is the best thing about your job?
- The friends at Prime and United Minds. When everyone is extremely smart, driven, kind and weird, no two days are ever the same.

What in your career are you most proud of?
- My perseverance and the fact that Prime/UnitedMinds is rated as the best in the world in our industry.

When you look back on your education, what was the most important thing you learned?
- The ability to transform complexity into models and the importance of solid and structured work at a fast pace (I worked full time in parallel and did a year of study during my studies).

How did you experience your time at Luleå University of Technology?
- It was an incredibly good time in life as a whole. a) I learned a lot of new things b) I got to cycle to school c) I got to spend time with my wife during the day d) I got to know a lot of fun people

What is it like to run a Stockholm-based company like Prime and still live in Luleå?
- With 16 departures per day, I can start my meetings at 08.00 in Gamla stan and only half the office is in place. There is no natural law that says that international standards should be created from NY, London or Shanghai. International standards based on Luleå should be an obvious goal with the good conditions we have here today.

Do you have any tips for current and prospective students who want to reach where you have come?

• Be kind - then others will wish you well.
• Work harder than your peers - then you will get further.
• Take care of your physique - otherwise you will crash.
• Always give more energy than you take - the shortage in the future is energy and ideas.
• Become adept at identifying and solving many moderately difficult problems with limited information, in a short period of time - if you want to be a worthy leader.
• A relationship is for life - short-termism only wins temporary victories.
• Find a life outside of work - celebrating 25 years with my wife and without her and my children I would not be where I am today.

Catrin Fransson

Catrin Fransson has been named one of Sweden's most powerful women and when she left Swedbank after 26 years, it was as Deputy CEO and member of the Group Executive Board. Today, she is the CEO of the state-owned Swedish Export Credit Corporation. Catrin Fransson has a degree in Business Administration from Luleå University of Technology and is one of this year's alumni.

- It feels both fun and honorable, it is also interesting to be back here at the university, the business here has really developed since I studied here, says Catrin Fransson.

Was it a difficult decision to leave Swedbank after all the years at the company?
- Leaving a company that you enjoy working for is a difficult decision, but I found the assignment as CEO of Svensk exportkredit so exciting that I couldn't turn it down.

What is the best thing about your job?
- There are many things that are good about my job, but the most important thing for me is the mission. Svensk exportkredit's mission is to support the Swedish export industry by offering long-term sustainable financing solutions. In a country like Sweden, where we are so dependent on our export industry being competitive in order to create growth and jobs, it is a privilege to work closely with export companies and try to assist them with good financing solutions.

When you look back on your education, what was the most important thing you learned?
- It's been a while since I graduated, but I have of course benefited from the foundation in business and economics. The most important thing has probably still been to get the academic approach to issues, to be able to take on complex relationships and figure it out in a structured way.
I worked as an analyst for quite a few years and there it is really important to be able to find out relevant facts and then draw conclusions that are sufficiently well founded to take business risk.

How did you experience your time at Luleå University of Technology?
- Above all as an incredibly fun time. I was young when I started and thought it was great to be a student. Also, I met my husband who I still live with, so that gave it all an extra spice.

Do you have any tips for current and future students who want to get where you are?
- Above all, I don't think you should aim for any particular role or position. The most important thing is to find what you enjoy and what you think is fun to do, what you think is fun you are usually pretty good at. It's also important that your own values are in line with the company you are representing, otherwise it will be difficult to be honest with yourself.