The energy industry in Skaraborg is recruiting new employees

In an industry where everyone is a colleague rather than a competitor, good practices and developments spread quickly. Contributing to sustainable energy solutions and enabling the transition from fossil technology are also big motivating factors for Åsa and her colleagues in the energy industry.

By the time Åsa Holmqvist Ekman had worked with PR and marketing in the industry for 18 years, she wanted to try something new. She felt called to do something essential for society, so she began working for Skövde Energi, one of Sweden’s biggest energy companies. 

She and around 80 colleagues not only work to provide Skövde with electricity and district heating today, but also to ensure the transition to sustainable, green systems moving forward.

“This is the place for anyone looking to progress – there’s always so much happening in this industry. I really feel like I’m making a contribution to the development of Skövde and Skaraborg.” 

Describing people who work for other energy companies as colleagues feels strange for Åsa, who previously worked in the private sector. But that’s precisely the way things work in the energy industry. 

“Because the electricity grid is a natural monopoly, we’re able to collaborate fully with other energy companies. Whenever we do something new, we always consider discussing the matter with someone who’s done something similar. There’s a great deal of cooperation both inside and outside Skaraborg. This helps us be efficient and create a culture of sharing between the companies. What’s more, we get so many colleagues throughout the energy industry.”

It’s important for Åsa and her colleagues that more people become aware of the industry. 

“We welcome interns and people attending training courses whenever we can. Being able to support trainees and provide them with early insights into the industry is really important to us.” 

While getting more people onto training courses is part of the effort to attract more employees, we’d also like to see more people move to Skaraborg and become new colleagues. Åsa believes many people would love life in Skaraborg if they were only aware of the opportunities here.

“The best part about everyday life here is how close everything is; there’s more time for the family and pastimes, and we’re also so close to cities like Gothenburg and Stockholm.  I live in Mariestad, and the archipelago there is glorious! Now that I’m working in Skövde, I also get to enjoy Billingen with its utterly different table rock landscape. There’s also a whole lot of culture and a great deal of creativity everywhere in Skaraborg. Not only is everything authentic and real, it’s also always evolving – it all happens all at once!”