Linköping Science Park has had a very lucky start to the new year since Hela Galvis  joined the team in early January. Hela will step in as a Project Manager for the talent attraction project Switch to Sweden

– I feel very excited to dig into this project, though, it tackles a huge challenge. But I always keep a positive mindset and make things work, says Hela.

Though Hela is newly employed she is not completely new to Linköping Science Park. Her first contact with the park was through the Student Board where she got an overview of the work that is done within the Science Park. She also wrote her Master Thesis about Talent Recruitment in the park.

– What I like the most about Linköping Science Park is that it is a very dynamic place to work,  the people here truly make things happen! For example, when I was on the Student Board we brainstormed ideas about a Reversed Mentorship program, and now, this project is actually happening! To be seen and heard in that way as a student is very uplifting and motivating.

Lack of talent – A national issue

The project Switch to Sweden will go on for three years and aims to raise the number of qualified matches between international talent that lives in Sweden and Swedish companies. The lack of qualified talent is a national problem which is challenging Swedish industries who, without the right employees, will face a limited economic growth. 

– Every sector is going through a huge digital transformation which makes the need for competent talent grow every day, and right now the access to the skilled talent  doesn’t match the need. At the same time a lot of international talent has trouble finding the right match for them with Swedish companies. My aim with Switch to Sweden is to be the bridge between the talent and the companies.

A crash course of how Sweden works

The area of HR and talent attraction is quite new to Hela who has her background within marketing and communications which she studied and worked within in her homeland Colombia. The first time she came to live in Sweden was in 2016 to study Digital Strategy at Hyper Island.

– I had heard that the best copy writers and creatives came from Hyper Island so I wanted to know what the buzz was about. But what was supposed to be a class of Digital Strategy became a crash course on how Sweden works with learning and applying an entirely new way of working with a lot more self reflecting and self leadership. 

After the course at Hyper Island Hela went back to Colombia for two years but a Swedish boyfriend and interest in Swedish work culture drove her back. And after a while she decided to change her professional focus as well and applied to the Master Program of Business Administration at Linköping University, and that’s where she first came in contact with Linköping Science Park. 

– I am really looking forward to learning! This project and workplace is a great opportunity for me to develop both individually and together with the rest of the team!

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