Hello CEO: Tomas Frimmel, Microsoft

What do you consider to be the main priorities for the next parliamentary term (2022-2026)?

- Security is a hot topic and protecting your business from cyberattacks has never been more important in today's world. Every day at Microsoft, we receive over 24 trillion security signals that our thousands of security experts around the world analyze to protect our customers' data. As a global company, we also see it as our duty to offer our cybersecurity expertise to governments and countries, such as with our support efforts in Ukraine. Access to good cybersecurity is also a cornerstone of the digitalization journeys of organizations in both the private and public sectors. It is a topic I hope will be prioritized even more in the coming mandate period", says Tomas Frimmel and continues:

- Sustainability from both a social and an ecological point of view must continue to take center stage in the coming mandate period. We need to harness the power of technology to help us make the necessary climate transition. It can offer us more precise ways to measure carbon emissions and energy consumption, as well as new technological solutions to help both streamline and optimize operations. Due to an ageing population, we also need to use innovation and smart technologies to meet our needs in welfare and other areas of society.

- In the tech sector, we need 70,000 new colleagues by 2024. The way forward is increased investment from our politicians combined with the efforts already being made in the industry - so as not to hamper Sweden's ongoing digital development. As a company, we have over the years implemented, and continue to implement, many initiatives aimed at getting more people to choose a career in tech, including targeting training resources to those who are newly arrived in order to facilitate their entry into the labor market. Synergies between business, the public sector and non-profit actors will help us address the looming skills shortage.

What are the two most important messages you would like to send to our policymakers ahead of the autumn elections?

- The current government's goal is for Sweden to become the best in the world at exploiting the opportunities of digitalization. Regardless of who will govern the country in the coming years, my hope is that this goal will be maintained but also concretized through clear assignments and actions. The discussions in recent years about how and when cloud services can be used in the public sector have unfortunately slowed down Sweden's digitization journey. We rank 33rd out of 33 in the OECD Digital Government Index and are far behind many countries when it comes to digital transformation in the public sector. This is worrying as we are lagging behind in areas such as welfare, healthcare, education, security and other important societal functions. To continue building a Sweden at the forefront of a smart and connected society, we need to take advantage of the opportunities offered by new technologies and secure cloud services.

- Since 2014, the European Commission has conducted the DESI (Digital Economy and Society Index) report among EU countries. Historically, Sweden has had a podium position, but in the last two years Sweden has dropped to fourth place. We cannot rely on old merits but must continue to work on driving development forward where we create an optimal ecosystem that promotes innovation.

- Sweden is globally considered a leading player when it comes to startups in Greentech, Foodtech and Healthtech and Life Science, let us manage and further develop that position. Developments in the tech industry are moving at breakneck speed and it is important that we have platforms for dialog where we in the industry can share how new technology works and its impact on social development.

What are your expectations for TechSverige ahead of the election campaign?

- TechSverige has an extremely important role to play in conveying the industry's knowledge, analysis and future needs to decision-makers and politicians. In tech, where development is moving at an enormous pace, this is absolutely essential if we are to contribute to Sweden's development together. We know that digitization and tech are not easy to get on the agenda of politicians, let alone in an election campaign. TechSverige can make a difference by concretizing what technology and innovation can contribute to society and highlighting how regulation affects the ecosystem so that it can be designed in the best way for social development.

What can the tech industry do together to bring our most important issues into the political debate?

- We need increased synergies to work together to make more people realize that the advance of digitalization around the world will continue regardless of what we do in Sweden. Instead, it is up to us whether we want to take the lead or fall behind. One such example of synergy can be found in TechSweden's report Sustainable Tech & Tech for the Climate. There we participate with the 24/7 Matching Solution, a solution developed by Microsoft together with Vattenfall that makes it possible to match renewable energy production with demand 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

- In Sweden, we also need to become better at exploiting the benefits of digitization in welfare, where we are moving from a bureaucratic system focus to democratic ownership. An important part of this is working to ensure that individuals can own their data to facilitate sharing in areas such as health and social care.

- As an industry, we also need to work together to increase knowledge about technology and its impact and use in society. We need to share foresight and trends, and we need to be responsive to the problems that politicians and other decision-makers want technology to solve for them and society.

In the report "A tech agenda for Sweden", TechSverige has gathered input for politics ahead of the election campaign and the next parliamentary term. Which of the ten areas identified in the report do you think is the most important for our decision-makers to focus on?

- In order for Sweden to be a leading technology nation and also to be the best in the world at exploiting the opportunities of digitization, digitization as a whole must be given a greater place in the political decisions that are made. The ten areas identified in the report are all important, and by prioritizing strong leadership, determination and drive, we can advance our positions across the board.