Saab grows in Gothenburg as demand soars
Global military expenditure is at an all-time high as peace and security in multiple regions has deteriorated. Swedish company Saab is a leading company in the defence sector. On 13 November, hundreds of representatives from the local business community had the chance to meet and hear more from Saab’s president and CEO Micael Johansson, when he was interviewed on stage during our seminar in Gothenburg.
Johansson has headed Saab for the past five years. Early on came a tough period with the pandemic. Saab got through it quite well. They didn’t lay off a single employee and managed to keep the operations rolling.
Then came the tragic and ongoing war in Ukraine, which started in February 2022. In turbulent times, Saab is growing.
“In Europe, we have lived in relative peace for a very long time. Much of the defence capabilities, both in Sweden and across Europe, have been dismantled. The invasion was a rude awakening for many countries, particularly in Europe. Suddenly everyone wants everything, and immediately,” said Micael Johansson.
“We follow many discussions with political representatives, defence ministers, armed forces, and one can conclude that there has never been greater polarization or a more tense situation globally,” he said.
Saab was founded in Sweden in 1937, originally to provide military aircraft for the country. Today it serves the global market of governments, authorities and corporations with products, services and solutions ranging from military defence to civil security.
“One must have some form of deterrent and defence capabilities. Protecting our way of life, and safeguarding our societies and populations, as well as the societies and populations of other like-minded countries. That is what we [Saab] stand for,” said Johansson.
“We should not profit from war. But we should benefit from protecting our communities and populations and having a certain deterrent effect,” he said.
Johansson has been with the company for nearly 40 years. During the past few years, he said the pace in Saab’s operations has increased dramatically. The company has invested heavily in expanding its operations with new factories and production lines. Its headcount has also increased by 5,000 people.
“This a lot, considering we are company that now has 25,000 people. It’s a huge challenge to bring new people into the company and make sure they quickly become productive, without negatively affecting overall productivity,” said Johansson.
How Saab is growing its Gothenburg operations
Today the Saab Group employs around 3,200 people in Gothenburg. The biggest site is in Kallebäck, where it has around 2,100 employees. Saab Combitech, a technology consulting company which is wholly owned by the group, also has major operations at Lindholmen Innovation District.
“In terms of our sensors, Gothenburg plays an incredibly important role. The microwave cluster here is the foundation for why we have such strong expertise in sensors. It concerns sensors in all domains: in the air, on the ground, at sea and underwater.”
In Gothenburg, the group has been growing by around 300 to 500 people per year. And Johansson expects this pace to continue, possibly for the next few years.
“We are starting to outgrow the Kallebäck site. We need to expand in Gothenburg,” said Johansson.
A lot of the new positions are software oriented. But Saab also needs talented engineers who understand AI, data engineers and production technicians.
While the headcount is growing, so too is turnover. Last year Saab’s sales grew by 23% year-on-year. This also comes with certain challenges, according to Johansson.
“It’s very important to grow in a controlled way, because there is a risk that the floodgates will open, of course, and we’ll just invest in everything.”
He said that Saab has managed quite well to balance scaling up capacity and production, with efforts in research and development.
“This is incredibly important because Saab is a company that has always invested heavily to stay at the forefront – and we must not lose that just because there are such demands for growth. It’s not an easy journey. It’s something we have to work on every day,” said Johansson.
Fact:
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, total global military expenditure reached a record high USD 2443 billion in 2023, an increase of 6.8% in real terms from 2022. Large increases were recorded in Europe, Asia and Oceania, and the Middle East.
