Jonas Akerman
Jonas has been a life-long entrepreneur. In 1992, he came to the United States to build a US presence for the Swedish leadership and development firm, BTS Group. During his twenty-four-year tenure, he grew BTS USA from just himself to over two hundred professionals, working with executives or leadership teams in over two hundred of the Global Fortune-500 companies. Today, BTS is publicly traded and employs over seven hundred professionals across the globe. After leaving BTS, he returned to his native Sweden to become the CEO of a housing development company with nearly one hundred employees and contractors.
“When Rich first sent me some of Jonathan’s research and shared his views on the need for more role-specific assessment and development materials, it was like a lightbulb went off.” Having spent much of his professional life growing small companies and developing leaders in large, global organizations, Jonas instinctively knew most business tools, simulations, and leadership development materials were not the right fit for executives growing small companies. He quickly came to realize how many leaders throughout the world are flying without a handbook, let alone a good set of tools to help them better prepare for their experiences. “I knew I wanted to be a part of this effort to support a large but neglected group of businesspeople.”
