All posts by Madeleine Brekke

Journalist Tasting of American Wines

AmCham News

Journalist Tasting of American Wines

Kicking off the new year, AmCham hosted journalists and Vinmonopolet representatives for a tasting of American wines at ARTS Restaurant in Aker Brygge. There, member importers Anora, Engelstad, Haugen-Gruppen, Palmer Group, Robert Prizelius, Treasury Wine Estates, and VCT Norway presented over 40 unique vintages currently on the Norwegian market, including newly launched products. In addition, AmCham proudly presented four wines not yet available in Norway.

Our Master Class on California wine variations – led by Oslo Wine School’s General Manager Jane Nisbet Huseby – included:

  • Marimar Estate Blanc de Noir 2019
  • Robert Mondavi Winery Fume Blanc 2019
  • Tyler Sanford & Benedict Vineyard Chardonnay 2020
  • Francis Ford Coppola Directors Sonoma County Pinot Noir 2019
  • Marimar Estate La Masia Pinot Noir 2018
  • Lieu Dit Cabernet Franc 2021
  • Black Stallion Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
  • Bonterra The McNab Cab 2019
  • Beaulieu Vineyard Rutherford Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2016
  • Pahlmeyer Napa Valley Merlot 2016

Full List of Wines Presented 

AmCham and our member wine importers enjoy opportunities to jointly inform on American wines. We look forward to future tastings with journalists, partners and members!

US Wines in Norway

Photo: Traci Milimo

In collaboration with member importers, AmCham works to increase knowledge and accessibility of American wines in Norway. US wine market share has increased considerably in the past years, due in large part to our members’ tireless efforts.

Vinmonopolet currently offers close to 25,000 products from 85 countries, including over 700 US reds and 300 whites. In 2022, US reds accounted for 9.4% of Vinmonopolet’s total red wine sales, while US white wines comprised close to 2% of such sales (Source: Vinmonopolet).  

Photo: Traci Milimo
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Past Wine Tastings

Dream Big California Wine Tasting

March 19, 2019 No Comments

Grand Wine tasting Event summary Linkedin Facebook Twitter DREAM BIG! https://amcham.no/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/WineTasting-3.mp4 Held in the spacious Oslo Konserthus Glasshuset, AmCham, the US Commercial Service, and California

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Rising Leaders Afterwork with PortalOne

AmCham News, Rising Leaders,

Rising Leaders Afterwork with PortalOne: The Secret Sauce for Hybrid Gaming

For the last afterwork of 2022 and the program finale, Rising Leaders  participants and AmCham members had the opportunity to visit hybrid gaming company and Norwegian unicorn, PortalOne’s brand new offices at Aker Brygge. Welcoming them were the two co-founders and brothers, Stig Olav and Bård Anders Kasin as well as Head of Brand and Communications, Ingrid Williams.

The sleek modern office has classic arcade game machines spread throughout and a glass view into the green screen studio where all the magic happens.

Hybrid gaming embeds live shows directly into games on players’ phone where they can compete against a celebrity guest in real time or try to beat their friends on the daily scoreboard. Celebrities have so far included Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande and their lineup for 2023 includes The Rock, Beyoncé, and Christina Aguilera just to name a few.

Stig Olav notes that society today is very much in a constant, dual attention environment, whether it is watching TV while using our phone or other, so a game with a live show, player chat and gaming simultaneously is also doable. The power of the hybrid gaming model is that the daily shows inside the game and particularly season finales create a massive draw and player return. PortalOne’s “secret sauce model” is an internal company secret and has other industry giants banging their heads against the desk. The inner workings of their studio has transformed the way that they can produce a type of content without moving cameras, reducing the need for more than two operators and the price of production significantly, which in turn means production of content that is ultra-scalable.

Rising Leaders gathered for the last 2022 afterwork at PortalOne's new office.
Participants and members speak with character designers and get to see the motion capture suit in action.

Bård Anders explained that PortalOne “is very much advertisement free and will always be, to not interrupt the player experience” however, elements within the game may be given attributes and can be easily adapted to include logo designed skins (outfits for the characters) or theme driven game pieces. The live shows act as a magnet and supercharge the engagement levels meaning that they also can have sponsored prizes.

As a 3rd generation of entrepreneurs and investors the brothers, Stig Olav and Bård Anders have built their industry knowledge through the TV and gaming industry. Bård Anders functions as the CEO of PortalOne, and has previous experience working as a Technical Director at Warner Bros. There, he worked on movie productions like the Matrix Trilogy. He also co-founded The Future Group, which provides mixed reality solutions for media production. 

As for Stig Olav, he functions as the CXO and has previously worked as a developer and executive producer of interactive entertainment and mobile games. His background includes 10 years in the television industry, includes leading roles for shows like The Voice and Who Wants to be a Millionaire. He describes himself as a “mixed media artist” or MMA; an homage to his passion for sports and the industry.

The unofficial motto at PortalOne is “be brumble” a mix between “brave” and “humble”. Stig Olav recounted how someone who previously had worked for him got him his connections in Hollywood, reminding the participants that you never know who will open the next door for you.

As advice to the Rising Leaders, Bård Anders and Stig Olav expressed the importance of finding correct investors that have knowledge within the industry you are in. PortalOne’s impressive list of investors include Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund; TQ Ventures, the investment fund led by Scooter Braun; Schuster Tanger; and Andrew Marks. Coatue Management’s investment was led by Arielle Zuckerberg and the Rogue Capital Partners investment was led by Alice Lloyd George. Sunny Dhillon led the investment from Signia Venture Partners whose LPs include Warner Bros., Disney and Tencent. In addition, a number of angel investors also invested in PortalOne. These include Kevin Lin, co-founder of Twitch; Mike Morhaime, co-founder of Blizzard and Dreamhaven; Amy Morhaime, co-founder of Dreamhaven; Marc Merrill, co-founder of Riot Games; Xen Lategan, former CTO and executive advisor at various companies such as Hulu, and Eugene Wei, former Head of Video at Oculus and Head of Product at Hulu.

They also advised to be mindful that once you are backed by investors there is still a lot of work to be done and to be prepared for obstacles. The company still operates as if they have less to plan for the long term.

The future looks brighter than the neon sign in their lobby with the future goal of IPO. The same way that Spotify is for music and Netflix is for shows, they want to be the number one portal for hybrid games. AmCham thanks the PortalOne team for their hospitality, and willingness to share their experience and time with us.  

Building a Unicorn

PortalOne is a US company run from Norway. In 2021 they established a production studio in Los Angeles and launched a closed beta for American and Canadian users. As of December 2022, the company has 55 employees, 48 of whom are in Oslo and seven in the US. Their goal is to stay small and outsource where they can, noting that “the bigger the company is, the harder it is to do it”. Currently, they are responsible for full game design and are working on a fifth game to be released.

PortalOne holds the global exclusive rights to all Atari games for the next seven years, after formally being owned by Steven Spielberg for the blockbuster hit “Player One”. The retro-inspired games are based on classic Atari arcade games.

Prizes are given to the top-ranking players, called skill prize, and prizes are also given at random to any player that participated in the daily challenge, called a luck prize – meaning that you don’t need to have a good score to win. The top player receives $100 and the top ten receive $10 each. “We don’t want hardcore gamers because they have good players, but that segment is smaller.” They want the games to be for everyone – regardless of age or gaming ability and currently have players up to age 75. As of December 2022, they have millions of games played in total and around seven thousand test players.

Stig Olav shows participants some of the classic arcade games in the PortalOne office.

Past Rising Leaders Events

Rising Leaders Afterwork with PortalOne

January 3, 2023 No Comments

For the last afterwork of 2022 and the program finale, Rising Leaders participants and AmCham members had the opportunity to visit hybrid gaming company and Norwegian unicorn, PortalOne’s brand new offices at Aker Brygge.

Read More »

Rising Leaders Afterwork with Airthings: From an Idea to a Global Scale Up

AmCham News, ,

Rising Leaders Afterwork with Airthings: From an Idea to a Global Scale Up

Rising Leaders and AmCham members gathered at Airthings’ modern Oslo headquarters.

CTO and Co-Founder Erlend Bolle kicked off the meeting with a candid, humorous retelling of the Airthings story, highlighting key moments in their incredible journey from Norway-based startup to international scaleup.

Founded in 2008, the company’s products have made radon detection easy to deploy, as it is accurate and user friendly. The products have changed access to monitoring and analyzing radon and other indoor air pollutants.

Fast forward to today, and the company has established offices in the US, Canada, and Sweden, with over 140 employees from over 30 nations. Over 300K monitors have been sold worldwide.

Creating sustainable hardware products from start to finish - and everything in between

Airthings’ Sustainability Manager Erwin Hasselbrinck shared his background from Greenpeace, his passion for the environment and how he approaches his mission of creating a sustainable hardware product from start to finish.

Hasselbrinck continues establishing Airthings’ circular principles – embedding UN Sustainable Development Goals into Airthings’ core business. The key has been to involve employees across all departments in the search and assessment of solutions to create circular and sustainable business practices and value chains.

With the recent launch of their newest indoor air quality monitor, the Space CO2 Mini, considered the company’s most sustainable product to date, they have managed to reduce carbon footprint by 50% compared to their first all-around product in the same category. Loaded with features, Space CO2 Mini is equipped with additional sensors for temperature, relative humidity, air pressure, noise, light, virus risk and occupancy.

Erlend Bolle

AirThings

Erwin Hasselbrinck

AirThings

Not only is the hardware more sustainable, the addition of these new technologies and sensors helps facility managers to radically reduce energy consumption and use energy more efficiently while proactively fostering a healthy indoor air climate for occupants, benefiting both the planet and their bottom line.

As buildings use 40% of the world’s energy – and 30% of that comes from heating, ventilation, cooling, and lights – being able to make data-driven decisions, regulating according to when people are actually present, and reallocating energy usage when necessary, unlocks significant cost savings.

The presentations were followed by a highly engaging group discussion where participants could ask questions, followed by the opportunity to mingle with representatives from Airthings and AmCham member companies. AmCham thanks the Airthings team for their hospitality, willingness to share their stories and taking the time to answer questions from the group.  

About the Rising Leaders Program

Rising Leaders, a joint AmCham-US Embassy initiative, brings together entrepreneurs, young professionals, and student leaders in an innovative program that promotes diversity and connects promising talent. Through the program, participants engage international business leaders, learn about AmCham member companies, explore careers, and gain business and leadership skills.

The 2021-2022 Rising Leaders class – comprised of 18 women and 10 men between the ages of 22 and 35 – bring with them experience from healthcare, classical music, urban planning, organizational psychology, immigration, engineering, communications, technology, teaching, economics, finance, and marketing. All 28 program participants have demonstrated leadership, entrepreneurial, and/or business excellence in their educational pursuits and careers thus far.

For more information about the program, or to learn how your organization can get involved, please contact Madeleine Brekke.

Rising Leaders Afterwork with PortalOne

January 3, 2023 No Comments

For the last afterwork of 2022 and the program finale, Rising Leaders participants and AmCham members had the opportunity to visit hybrid gaming company and Norwegian unicorn, PortalOne’s brand new offices at Aker Brygge.

Read More »

Kongsberg and Lockheed Martin signs contract for Norwegian Air Surveillance Radars

Business News, Defense / Security, , , 
Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace (KONGSBERG) and Lockheed Martin signed a contract
for KONGSBERG's support of the delivery of the TPY-4 radar to Norway for the
Norwegian Radar Sensor (NORSE) Project.

Through this ca 900 MNOK contract, KONGSBERG will be a significant partner and
subcontractor to Lockheed Martin for the deliveries to the NORSE project. The
KONGSBERG scope of delivery includes hardware, software and final assembly and
test of the TPY-4 radar systems before installation at the radar sites.

"This contract with Lockheed Martin exemplifies the importance of building
durable and trusted partnerships to serve both national and international
customers. Together we will deliver world class radar technology to the
Norwegian Armed Forces. This contract is not only important for KONGSBERG but
also for our subcontractors in Norway," says President of Kongsberg Defence &
Aerospace, Eirik Lie.

In 2018 Lockheed Martin and KONGSBERG signed a Teaming Agreement for cooperation
on the delivery of TPY-4 radars to international customers. 


Kongsberg (OSE-ticker: KOG) is an international, knowledge-based group that
supplies high-tech systems and solutions to customers in the energy, merchant,
navy and defence and aerospace industries. Kongsberg has more than 11,000
employees in 40 countries and a total revenue of NOK 27.5bn in 2021.

Read more HERE.

AmCham Financial Forum: National Budget Impacts for Business & (Re)negotiating Office Spaces

Accounting / Financial, AmCham News

AmCham Financial Forum: National Budget Impacts for Business & (Re)negotiating Office Spaces

Member and partner leaders gathered at Dalan Advokatfirma’s downtown office for our quarterly Financial Forum. This session focused on commercial property agreements, the suggested 2023 Norwegian National Budget impacts for business and a transatlantic economy in flux.

As post-pandemic offices continue to evolve, many AmCham companies are (re)negotiating price, size, and shared costs – while increasingly focusing on ESG impacts.

Presenters

Benedicte Krogh Grimstad – Partner

Dalan Logo (1)

Karoline Røvik Zeiner – Partner

Dalan Logo (1)

Mahmoud Farahmand – (H), Member of Stortinget’s Finance & Economic Affairs Committee

Stortinget Logo

Benedicte Krogh Grimstad and Karoline Røvik Zeiner, Partners at Dalan Advokatfirma, led the discussion through market trends within commercial real estate – noting their observations of a change in purpose for office spaces. Grimstad covered market trends as well as shared cost considerations for current energy pricing. According to Grimstad, companies are not downsizing as one would predict with prevailing work-from-home initiatives, but rather creating more flexible working environments with social zones and meeting points for collaboration. “The office is becoming a destination where people want to be.”

Karoline Røvik Zeiner when on to expertly detail the rapid emergence of standardized environmental addendums to commercial rental contracts. Obligating both landlords and renters to “contribute to environmentally friendly use and operation of the property,” such agreements include environmental standards, maintenance, improvement regimens and investment cost share provisions.

Slide Dalan

National Budget Impacts for International Business

On October 6th, Norway’s minority center-left coalition government presented its proposal for the 2023 National Budget. Mahmoud Farahmand (H), Member of Stortinget’s Finance & Economic Affairs Committee, joined to discuss the priorities and reductions set forth and how these will impact the international business community.

“Increased employment tax will hamper Norway’s ability to compete in international markets,” stated Farahmand. Some international companies are in fact already hesitating to hire locally, as roundtable employment venue selection examples illustrated.

Farahmand also emphasized that the proposed discontinuation of reduced electricity tax rates for Norway-based data centers will severely hamper the country’s ability to digitize and compete for strategic cloud infrastructure. Targeted crypto mining regulation, it was agreed, should be finalized in lieu of spoiling Norway’s longstanding industry efforts and progress.

AmCham and Hill+Knowlton have summarized the proposed budget with the international focus of AmCham members in mind, available HERE.

About the AmCham Financial Forum

AmCham’s collaborative Financial Forum enables cross-industry leaders to openly exchange and learn from their peers – building a better understanding of what it takes to maintain successful international operations in Norway.

Read more about our Financial Forum and please contact Madeleine.brekke@amcham.no for interest in future meetings

AmCham Financial Forum: IPO Frenzy and Transparent Compensation

May 24, 2022 No Comments

Leaders gathered at KPMG Norway’s downtown offices for AmCham’s quarterly Financial Forum. Reflecting on his own observations over the past years’ “Norwegian IPO Frenzy,” our forum was kicked off by Geir Bjørlo, Partner at Corporate Communications. With 100 listings since 2020, the pace has now slowed to only a handful due to current uncertainty.

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Three Questions with Lars Tomasgaard, Managing Director – Nordox

AmCham News,

THREE QUESTIONS WITH

Lars Tomasgaard

Managing Director, Nordox

Nordox has a leading position as a global supplier of dicopper oxide (cuprous oxide), with origins dating back to 1886. Please describe how the chemical is utilized in different industries.

The chemical’s unique qualities make for varied use. Nordox builds upon its long history, adapting to technological changes and new market requirements.

In the marine industry, dicopper oxide is used as a biocide in antifouling paints. Slightly elevated levels of copper on ships’ hulls prevents the build-up of foulants, avoiding increased fuel costs caused by friction from marine growth.

In conventional and organic agriculture, dicopper oxide is used as fungicide for the protection of a wide range of agricultural, horticultural and forestry crops.

Other applications range from fish farming and animal feed production, textile and building materials such as roofing granules, to heavy duty applications in the ceramics and glass industries.

Please tell us about Nordox’ US operations, such as types of export use and geographic regions.

The US is Nordox’ second largest market after China, with a long history of working with US companies and vendors. Some of these collaborations date back 50 years, in addition to newer relations to entrepreneurs who have had great success in implementing dicopper oxide in their products.

In terms of use areas, we are seeing some innovative ways of utilizing copper, an element that has long been known to have antibacterial and antiviral properties. For instance, we supply cuprous oxide to the US for use in hospital bed linens, face masks, bandages, other medical supplies – and even in socks for military use.

In agriculture, dicopper oxide is ideal for warm and moist areas where bacteria typically thrive, such as in California, from Fresno up to the Canadian border, and in Florida. In California, for instance, where weather can be dry, dew forms at night, as well as rain during winters. For organic wine production, US wineries utilize Nordox products since they are OMRI-certified.

The utilization of fertilizers and related industrial products are key to ensuring agricultural predictability and feeding the world’s population. What role do Nordox products play in supporting food production, such as a fertilizer on soils with a copper deficiency?

Dicopper oxide is an important tool to prevent crop loss due to fungicidal infections and copper deficiency. Lower yields mean less food produced per area. Our products protect an area corresponding to three times Norway’s arable land.

Bonus question! What is your favorite destination in the United States?

That has to be Portland, Maine! I like the sea and lobster. I have visited once before and would very much like to return. I vividly remember and thoroughly enjoyed the air and atmosphere.

AmCham Norway’s 22nd Annual Golf Tournament

AmCham News,

Generously sponsored by Oracle and PwC, the AmCham Golf Tournament celebrated its 22nd anniversary at Hauger Golf Club, bringing together 28 teams comprised of 104 players from all sectors of Norway’s international business community to network and compete for the coveted Søderstrøm Cup and round trip tickets to the US from Norse Atlantic Airways.

The tournament’s format, Texas Scramble and special hole competitions – kept golfers on their toes and ensured everyone had a great day “in the office”.

Gathering for the third and final time at Hauger’s challenging yet picturesque course, this year’s weather could not have been better. Players kept cool in the sun, enjoying refreshing beverages throughout the day, courtesy of Coca-Cola and enjoyed a delicious BBQ dinner buffet al fresco.

In a close team competition, PwC came in first place and walked away with the tournament cup, four round trip tickets from Norse Atlantic Airways to any of their US destinations, as well as prizes provided by Anora, Edrington, Helly Hansen, and Mondelez.

Three teams came in just behind with -14. Determined by handicap, KPMG came in second, just ahead of GE Healthcare in third, and Helly Hansen coming in at fourth. The 2nd and 3rd place winners walked away with prizes from Anora, Hauger Golf Club, Grand Hotel Oslo, Oracle, and Shades of Norway.

As in previous years, several individual prizes were also up for grabs. Bayer’s Andreas Røskaft, earned the “Closest to the pin” taking home American wines courtesy of AmCham. Panamera’s Caroline Martens won the women’s longest drive, taking home an Eleni & Chris hair and skincare set from IC Scandinavia. Global Blue’s Elia Hoelstad captured the men’s prize for longest drive, coming away with a ROAM hair and barber set from IC Scandinavia. Five players competed for the final putt off with Per Arne Evensen (Interim Norge) coming out on top, taking home a gift card from Hotel Bristol, American wines and the Viking Arm tool.

The increasingly popular tournament is held in August each year. For questions about participation, prizes, or sponsorship for the AmCham Golf Tournament, please contact Madeleine Brekke at amcham@amcham.no

The winning team from PwC: Musse Berhane, Snorre Lunde, Karine Bolme, Lil Lootus

2022 Prize Sponsors

AmCham Financial Forum: IPO Frenzy and Transparent Compensation

Accounting / Financial, AmCham News

AmCham Financial Forum: IPO Frenzy and Transparent Compensation

Leaders gathered at KPMG Norway’s downtown offices for AmCham’s quarterly Financial Forum. Reflecting on his own observations over the past years’ “Norwegian IPO Frenzy,” our forum was kicked off by Geir Bjørlo, Partner at Corporate Communications. With 100 listings since 2020, the pace has now slowed to only a handful due to current uncertainty.

Oslo Børs is hotter than Nasdaq and London. Oslo Børs holds a unique position internationally and is world-leading within the energy, shipping and seafood sectors, making Norway a preferred country for IPOs – as international stakeholders trust Norway’s financial institutions and methods.

Most of the Norwegian IPOs are related to sustainable investments and “energy capital” considerations. More listings are expected to take place post-summer, with the next window occurring in September through October.

“Uplisting” has been a buzzword over the past 12 months, says Bjørlo, referring to the process of listing an existing public stock on a major exchange. For example, transferring the listing venue from Euronext Growth to the main list on Oslo Børs. Uplisting reflects the company’s growth ambitions and shareholder base while contributing to increased visibility and access to a larger investor audience.

It has been very common for companies going public to announce targets for their projected earnings in 2025 rather than their actual past performance since a lot of companies still don’t have meaningful revenues. This practice is not usual on the NYSE for example.

Bjørlo walked participants through the “IPO toolbox,” illustrating how to build a trustworthy and credible company, as well as how to avoid post-listing value destruction. “ESG reporting is where accounting was in the 50’s,” suggesting there is still much work to be done in making ESG reporting more sophisticated.

Norway continues to be a preferred country for investments in seafood, shipping and energy, with the latter now branching to renewables in addition to “traditional” energy markets.

Presenters

Geir Bjørlo – Partner

Simona Vasile – Tax & Legal Partner 

CC powerpoint graphic
Image: Corporate Communications

Empowering Talent: Structure, Values, Technology Enabled Processes, and Equitable and Transparent Compensation

Simona Vasile, KPMG Tax & Legal Partner and the Head of Technology & Innovation at KPMG Law, presented trends and methodologies on current pain points of talent retention, gender pay gaps, how the remote workforce is reshaping policy decisions, and compensation benefit strategies while preserving value.

Following the pandemic, many companies still allow their employees to work remotely, however, making sure the employees stay compliant becomes a bigger liability. According to Vasile, “the ability to work remotely looks amazing from the talent perspective but can be an absolute headache for companies.” For employees looking to work from another country, this could mean that they need to be paid the local salary and pay taxes in the country they work from. Vasile also notes that there are differences between industries. Tech companies generally allow their employees more remote work than other industries.

Companies have tried to incentivize employees to stay in their positions (and some at their desks, or at least their country) through a variety of perks such as travel, bikes, and meals, but each incentive requires many layers of administration for the company. Many companies therefore opt for monetary bonuses according to Vasile.

Vasile also shared innovative technology insights using automation, AI and data analytics to both better understand employee preferences and customize the employee experience by creating seamless interactions with collaborators and partners. One such tool that KPMG uses is an Employment Methodology Framework to evaluate companies on aspects including employee retention, diversity and gender balance, and employee compensation.

Image: KPMG

About the AmCham Financial Forum

The AmCham Financial Forum is a platform that provides member financial leads the opportunity to interact, share best practices, and learn from each other – building a better understanding of what it takes to run a successful international finance department in Norway. 

Read more about our Financial Forum and please contact Madeleine.brekke@amcham.no for interest in future meetings.

Rising Leaders: External Perspectives with Pablo Barrera Lopez

AmCham News, Rising Leaders,

Rising Leaders: External Perspectives with Pablo Barrera Lopez

Rising Leaders participants visited Yara International’s headquarters where they were welcomed by Senior Vice President of Food Systems Transformation, Pablo Barrera Lopez.

After a detailed overview of Yara’s history and mission, Pablo shared his personal career journey and how he landed his first role at Yara. Pablo grew up in Haugesund and holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics and Business Administration and a Master of Science in Finance, both from the Norwegian School of Economics (NHH). After nearly five years of working at Boston Consulting Group, he was eager to influence the direction of a company and wanted to work internationally. Yara fit the bill. During his eight-year tenure at one of the most international companies in the country, he’s held diverse roles ranging from strategy and business development to supply chain and even Country Manager of Yara Chile, his parent’s homeland.

Currently, Pablo still works at Yara, however he has been seconded to IMAGINE as the Executive Director of the Food Collective. There, food and beverage company CEOs address issues in the food industry to systematically collaborate on challenges across the value chain. 

Pablo emphasized the importance of connecting with colleagues outside of one’s function and exposing oneself to external perspectives – “otherwise, you become too operational.” He considers himself to have a very low threshold for reaching out to others and really enjoys learning and connecting with stakeholders across the value chain, which is a critical aspect of his role at IMAGINE. He encouraged the Rising Leaders to truly understand their organization’s strategy and figure out a way to uniquely contribute to it.

AmCham thanks Pablo for his willingness to share his personal experience with the group and Yara for their hospitality.

Speaker

Pablo Barrera Lopez - Yara International

About the Rising Leaders Program

Rising Leaders, a joint AmCham-US Embassy initiative, brings together entrepreneurs, young professionals, and student leaders in an innovative program that promotes diversity and connects promising talent. Through the program, participants engage international business leaders, learn about AmCham member companies, explore careers, and gain business and leadership skills.

The 2021-2022 Rising Leaders class – comprised of 18 women and 10 men between the ages of 22 and 35 – bring with them experience from healthcare, classical music, urban planning, organizational psychology, immigration, engineering, communications, technology, teaching, economics, finance, and marketing. All 28 program participants have demonstrated leadership, entrepreneurial, and/or business excellence in their educational pursuits and careers thus far.

For more information about the program, or to learn how your organization can get involved, please contact Madeleine Brekke.

Past Rising Leader Events

Rising Leaders Afterwork with PortalOne

January 3, 2023 No Comments

For the last afterwork of 2022 and the program finale, Rising Leaders participants and AmCham members had the opportunity to visit hybrid gaming company and Norwegian unicorn, PortalOne’s brand new offices at Aker Brygge.

Read More »

Business Advancements in Focus: Executive AI Training Course

AmCham News, Technology

Business Advancements in Focus: Executive AI Training Course

AmCham staff and members participated in a two-part Executive Training course on Artificial intelligence (AI) provided by Simula Learning during April.

The course was developed for business executives with limited technical experience to familiarize themselves with the terminology and concepts of AI.

Day 1 focused on introducing participants to Artificial Intelligence with basic definitions, including data sources and methods, as well as defining machine learning and a general understanding of neural networks. Participants were then given the opportunity to teach a self-driving robot to avoid falling off a table. 

Day 2 focused on use cases of AI, machine learning techniques, privacy and ethics around AI, implementation for respective industries as well as opportunities and limitations for the future of AI. Participants worked in groups to design an AI system for an education use case. Looking at future technology the session covered several fascinating projects in natural language processing, coding, and image generation.

The class was taught by PhD-candidate Hanna Borgli and Associate Professor Håkon Kvale Stensland from Simula.

To see what other executive courses are available through Simula Learning visit: https://www.simulalearning.no/for-bedrifter