We asked one of our international candidates if they wanted to share their experience on the topic 'International working in a commercial sales role in Sweden'. Jocelyn was more than happy to share his story on how he landed in a commercial role in Sweden.
'You are an international, living in Sweden. How did you secure a sales role in Sweden?'
I have been working for over 13 years in Sweden starting from “scratch” so to say without any knowledge of Swedish at all. My first assignment was a bit special since I started a part of a “junior expat” program financed by the French state, I landed in a Swedish structure part of an international group therefore Swedish was not a requirement in my daily tasks. This means that all the entire recruitment process was made in English.
Did you need to learn Swedish in order to work in a commercial setting in Sweden?I would say that being able to speak Swedish is not a requirement for most of the medium and largest companies in Sweden. Indeed, from my experience, the majority of these companies have implemented English as “concern-språk” / corporate language in that sense most of the commutation is made in English and/or in both languages. It is actually rather common to have colleagues or members of the management teams coming from different parts of the world. From my point of view, many of the companies in Sweden are actually interested in building a multicultural environment to capitalise on questions such as open mind, understanding, respect and inclusion. While searching for a job, as most of the job ads are written in English, I would expect most of the applicants to reply with a CV and cover letter in English. In case the applicant's professional experience matches with the addition the fact to not speak Swedish will according to me not be a barrier. However, I would say that most Swedes would appreciate (without highlighting it) that you learn the basics of Swedish and/or show interest in Swedish mentality and traditions if you have been working in Sweden for several years or planning to stay for a longer period. The above will for sure help you to integrate yourself into society and develop social life during and outside working hours.
How is it, for an international, to work in a commercial role in Sweden? Is it different from other countries you have worked in?
Since most of all Swedes are fluent or have at least a good level of English there is almost never a language barrier, from my side I have never faced such. The Swedish company structures are according to me more horizontal and do not include the same level of hierarchy as for instance French-based companies. This means that all roles are important and offer what the Swedes are calling “Frihet under ansvar”, freedom under responsibility, or freedom and responsibility in that sense professionals are able to structure and organise their work as it suits them best to succeed.
There is a couple of advice I could give: professionally speaking: be curious of your surroundings (what’s happened before and after my area of expertise at work), challenge the status quo (be energetic and driven), show ethics and respects others and if you like to you will be able to grow your professional profile. Personally speaking: be yourself, be open-minded, learn the local language at your own pace (dare to speak even if it’s not perfect) and show interest in your Swedish surroundings.
Jocelyn Mangeard, LeasePlan
Thank you to Jocelyn, for sharing this experience.
Are you an international working in Sweden and wish to share your story?
Reach out to us, by emailing karin@beyondo.se
