Navn/alder? Laura Lykkegaard Selander, 43 år
(klik på navn for at se Linkedin profil)

Hvor bor du? Og hvor længe har du boet der? Cape Town, Sydafrika. Udstationeret i Februar 1993, et år før det første demokratiske valg, udsendt af et dansk/tysk selskab på en 1-års kontrakt. Det blev til “lidt” mere. Nu er jeg her på 17. år, og har ingen planer om at flytte fra Cape Town.

Hvad er din baggrund/virke? I Danmark og Tyskland arbejdede jeg indenfor marketing og avis-udgivelser. De sidste godt 16 år har jeg startet og ledet en række virksomheder i Sydafrika, bl.a. en avis, Europæiske Rejseforsikrings emergency selskab, og nu eget pressebureau og konsulentvirksomhed.
Bekendt med normer, tone, genveje og hvordan det fungerer i det sydafrikanske business landskab, samt lærdom også fra de fejltagelser jeg gjorde mig i nystartede virksomheder siden 90erne.

Hvad arbejder du på i øjeblikket? Jeg kigger på mulighederne for at importere et spændende produkt fra USA. Men den største udfordring nu ville være at hjælpe IKEA med at etablere sig i Afrika via Sydafrika. På trods af global finanskrise virker det som om verden har forstået at Sydafrika faktisk er stabilt og særdeles investeringsgunstigt. Og det er ikke kun Fodbold VM 2010 og det konservative sydafrikanske banksystem, som trækker investorer til landet. Læs bl.a.: http://www.goglobal.dk/aktuelt/?NewsID=699.

Entreprenørens sprudlende energi kribler i mig for at tage fat i nye tiltag. I mit virke i Copenhagen Goodwill Ambassador korpset er der bl.a. fokus på COP15 Klimakonferencen. Energi og klima er interessante størrelser, og her peges der også på Sydafrika som foregangsland for resten af Afrika.
Som dansker er jeg komfortabel med åben forretningsførelse, og begreber som friendly management og transparency er om ikke fremmede, så et sælsyn på disse breddegrader.

Hvor længe har du været medlem af DABGO? Siden April 2008

Hvad er det bedste ved det sted, hvor du bor? The Capetonians! En kosmopolitisk by og et spraglet samfund. Jeg elsker i den grad de mange kulturer der findes her. Naturen er fantastisk, madvarerne af høj kvalitet, vindistrikterne er smukke, bjergene er majestætiske, og de to verdenshave omkring os gør klimatet perfekt.

Hvor og hvordan finder du nye kontakter, der hvor du bor? Gennem mit eksisterende store netværk. Jeg overraskes også ofte af hvilke fantastiske kontakter jeg møder blandt forældrene til mine sønners kammerater. Og seneste skud på stammen: DABGO netværket.

Fortæl os om dit DABGO-medlemskab - hvad har DABGO gjort for dig? Hvad har du selv bidraget med? Og hvordan har du brugt DABGO indtil nu? DABGO er genialt fordi det er simpelt! Jeg er DABGO Group Manager for kontinentet Afrika (en lille gruppe på et stort kontinent) og derudover vært for vort Stambord i Cape Town, som har eksisteret siden Oktober 2008. Der er nye ansigter ved hvert stambord, - og flere af dem har ikke tidligere vist sig i “danske” sammenhænge, men er tiltrukket af DABGOspheren.

Hvad er dit bedste råd til at netværke?  Positivitet, ærlighed, åbne arme og nysgerrighed. Men det skal være genuint!

Hvad savner du mest ved Danmark? Udover familie og de gode gamle venner, så savner jeg de lange lyse sommerdøgn, hyldeblomstsaft og julen.

Name: Eva Beim Wind
Title: Investment Manager
Company: Invest in Denmark (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark)
Abroad home town: San Francisco
Denmark home town: Copenhagen
Years abroad: combined approx. 2.5 and counting…

I have quite an unorthodox background for working within my field - a double MA (English/Spanish & European Studies); during my studies it dawned on me that I lacked interest, talent and temper to teach/research, so I explored alternative options and was fortunate enough to get an internship at the Danish Embassy in London with Invest in Denmark; that got me hooked and since then, I’ve covered a multitude of aspects of Investment Promotion from PR, web and branding to working with IT investors from all over the world. In February 2008, I was stationed to Innovation Center Denmark (Silicon Valley), where I work with colleagues around the US and Canada to promote Denmark as a top tier investment location.

Description of job role, responsibility and challenges:
I act as an advisor to senior decision makers regarding establishing, relocating or consolidating business activities in Denmark. I primarily work within the ICT and Life Sciences sectors – especially where they converge - with the aim to grow the existing Danish clusters.

An example of your professional success
Most of our efforts remain confidential, but a surprising number of establishments, acquisitions and investments into Denmark bear our fingerprints….

People I would like to network with?
I particularly benefit from networking with people whose outlook and profile differ from my own.

What can other DABGO members do to support my business?
Have Invest in Denmark in mind if your company (or other US companies) could be a good match for Denmark – our services are free of charge and as you might have guessed from the above, fully confidential.

What can I help other DABGO members with?
Pretty much anything related to the above: from customised benchmark analyses comparing cost/quality parameters for various international locations to arranging fact finding missions and introducing foreign companies to cooperation partners and service providers.

Any good advice for DABGO?
Keep it short & simple

Linkedin profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/evabeimwind

Name: Jonas N Olsen
Title: VP Strategic Partnerships
Company: On-Ramp Wireless, Inc.
Abroad hometown: San Diego, USA
Denmark hometown: Roskilde
Years abroad: 10 (8 in the US)

Description of background, education and how you ended up abroad:
I finished my MS in Business Administration and Computer Science at Copenhagen Business School in 1998 and immediately went to work for PricewaterhouseCoopers. One of my first weeks there, I was sent on a training course to St. Louis, MO here in the US. That is where I met my wife, who had also just joined the company. After some long-distance romance, we moved to Palo Alto near San Francisco in the fall of 2000 and later to San Diego.

Description of job role, responsibility and challenges:
After nearly six years building a company in the satellite communication space, I recently sold my share of the company. After some, in my humble opinion well deserved, time off I joined On-Ramp wireless in the summer of 2008. The company was founded in early 2008 and is developing a disruptive new wireless communication system for sensor networking and location tracking. Our engineers has found a way to get 25x range and capacity, given the same power consumption, compared with existing technology in the space. My responsibilities lie within business development with a special focus on partnership search, positioning and vetting.

An example of your professional success
Since this is not a job application, I will stay away from the usual platitudes. I think my professional success materializes in an ability to focus on the day-to-day grind with a positive attitude, and to always try to put the people around me in the best possible position to succeed. America is a very individualistic culture compared with Denmark, so it takes some patience and faith to believe in that approach. It probably also costs in terms of advancement opportunities, but it is what personally works best for me. Not entirely platitude-free, I guess.

People I would like to network with?
I am not a “natural” when it comes to networking, so I relish the opportunity to work with DABGO and meet its members. I enjoy meeting “new” Danes in the San Diego area, and I have also met quite a few good business contacts. In my experience, you can get something out of networking with almost anybody.

What can other DABGO members do to support my business?
In my current capacity at On-Ramp Wireless I am looking for OEM/ODM partnership opportunities. Danish companies are typically on the forefront of new technology implementations. If you work for, or know of, a company that could see the potential for enhancing their product or service through integration of our truly revolutionary wireless solution, I would be very interested in hearing from you.

What can I help other DABGO members with?
Adapting to life in the US. Job search (to some degree). Networking.

Any good advice for DABGO?
Hmmm, don’t know if it belongs here, but I think we should try to simplify our web-presence. Right now we are on LinkedIn, Facebook, and dabgo.net. Some City Managers are even using eVite as well.

Linkedin profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/jonasnolsen

Name: Thomas L. Baron       
Title: Project Manager          
Company: SimCorp USA, Inc.     
Abroad home town: Los Angeles, CA
Denmark home town: Kokkedal, Nordsjælland
Years abroad: 1 year

Description of background, education and how you ended up abroad:
I began my career 11 years ago as a trainee in Jyske Bank. After finalizing the training and two years of served duty in the Jyske Bank branch of Kgs. Lyngby, I changed the career path to the IT business.

I began as an IT Supporter in the IT Department of Unibank (Today Nordea) in Høje Taastrup in 1999. While being in Unibank/Nordea I had various roles during the period 1999-2005 from IT Supporter, Developer, Senior Developer to Junior Project Manager - and worked with various business areas such as HR, Finance and Investment Management.

In 2005 I started as a Business Consultant in the Danish Software Company SimCorp A/S, where I shortly after my start became a project manager for the implementation at one of SimCorps clients. During my time at SimCorp Nordic, travelling became daily work, primary within the Nordic countries.

In January 2008 I expatriated to Los Angeles working for SimCorp’s business Unit in New York. Here my job was to take over an existing client and to build up the LA office together with a few other colleagues.

Description of job role, responsibility and challenges:
As a Project Manager my role is to implement SimCorp’s system in accordance to the contractual agreements with the client. This covers deliveries within the agreed deadlines, quality, scope and resources. Further there is a managing part in the work as well - to manage the highly skilled and professional team of consultants who also work in the project team. The challenges are as always to solve the puzzle using the dedicated resources in the most optimal way in accordance to the deadlines and quality.

An example of your professional success:
The fact I am working in USA - which I consider as a professional success. I know, that a lot of people in different companies, even at SimCorp, have big dreams about working and living in another country. But not all make it due to various reasons. I was so privileged to get this opportunity, which is why I took the chance/risk. I also write ‘risk’, since it is a big step to move away from friends and family and start on your own in a new culture. So, I would say - still being happy to work and live here after a year - that I consider as a personal success.

People I would like to network with?
Everyone. I love helping others - or learning from others, so I am not picky. Even if no knowledge transaction is made, it is always interesting to hear about others experiences. This is why, I also find the DABGO Stambord interesting to attend.

What can other DABGO members do to support my business?
Learn more about SimCorp! Our product, SimCorp Dimension, is a very professional portfolio management system and trading platform, and we will gladly demonstrate it for potential new clients, which belong to the segment of Banks, Insurance companies,
Pension funds and other Investment Companies with Fund and Mutual Funds.

What can I help other DABGO members with?
I can help people find each other. Already knowing a lot of DABGO members, can help me pair them with other members within the same interests area. Also I can help new expatriates how to handle a lot of settle in questions.

Any good advice for DABGO?
Yes, keep it simple. Don’t make it to a ‘club’ with memberships and stuff. I am sure that the optional way of networking will work better than a mandatory membership.

Linkedin profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/thomasbaron

Name: Søren Lindstrøm
Title:    Partner, Attorney-at-Law
Company: Baker Botts L.L.P. (international law firm)
Abroad home town: Dallas, Texas
Denmark home town: Aarhus
Years abroad: 12 years   

Description of background, education and how you ended up abroad:  Søren is a partner of the international law firm Baker Botts L.L.P. He is licensed to practice law in both the U.S. and Denmark, and holds law degrees from Aarhus University, King’s College London and Tulane University.
During law school in Denmark, Søren became interested in international studies and travel.  After obtaining his “advokat” license with Gorrissen Federspiel Kierkegaard in Aarhus, he moved to the U.S. in 1996 and worked at Sullivan & Cromwell in New York before joining Baker Botts in 2004.
He lives in Dallas with his wife (from Texas of course) and two children.
Description of job role, responsibility and challenges:  Søren advises clients ranging from start-ups to large publicly held companies in corporate and transactional matters, and has substantial experience in advising Danish businesses in U.S.  His most important goal is to help his clients be successful in their business endeavors (and stay out of trouble).
An example of your professional success:  Søren always finds it especially enjoyable and rewarding to assist Danish businesses in the U.S.  Recently, he advised a Danish company in connection with an acquisition of a U.S. company.  Søren believes that the ultimate success is when a new client contacts him as a result of a referral by a current, satisfied client.

People I would like to network with:  No limits.  Sometimes the most unexpected contacts turn out to be the most valuable.

What can other DABGO members do to support my business?  Next time your business needs legal advice, don’t forget to contact that “Danish/American lawyer in Dallas”.

What can I help other DABGO members with?  All legal aspects of successfully establishing and running a business in the U.S., including incorporating a business in the U.S., corporate and commercial transactions, employment contracts and patent issues.

Any good advice for DABGO?  Grow the Texas network!

Linkedin profile: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/7/146/3a