Board of Directors
According to the Articles of Association, the Company’s Board of Directors shall comprise a minimum of four and a maximum of ten members, apart from those persons who, pursuant to law, may be appointed according to other arrangements.
The Board of Directors is the Company’s highest administrative body under the General Meeting. The Board is responsible, among other things, for establishing Swedish Match’s strategic direction, ensuring that the Company’s organization is appropriate for its purpose, monitoring the performance of the operations on an ongoing basis, and taking decisions regarding larger investments and divestments. The working procedures for the Board of Directors are established annually at the statutory Board meeting.
The Board of Directors 2023
The extraordinary General Meeting of Swedish Match AB (publ) on January 16, 2023, elected Stefano Volpetti, Charles Bendotti and Lars Dahlgren are elected as new members of the Board of Directors together with existing members of the Board of Directors Conny Karlsson and Charles A. Blixt. Conny Karlsson serves as Chairman of the Board.
Employee representatives on the Board are, Patrik Engelbrektsson, Pär-Ola Olausson and Dragan Popovic, with Niclas Bengtsson, Niclas Ed and Matthias Eklund as deputies.
Conny Karlsson
Chairman of the Board of Directors since 2007. Board member since 2006. M.Sc. in Economics and Business, Stockholm School of Economics.
Previous positions: Chief Executive Officer, Duni AB; Marketing Director, Procter & Gamble UK; Marketing Director and Regional Director, Procter & Gamble Scandinavia; Marketing Director, Procter & Gamble E&SO.
Charles Bendotti
Board member since January 16, 2023. Master’s degree in International Relations, Economy, and Law from the Graduate Institute of International & Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland, and an Executive MBA from HEC Paris.
Current position: Senior Vice President, People & Culture, Philip Morris International (PMI).
Previous positions: Senior Vice President, Human Resources, PMI; Vice President, Human Resources Asia, PMI; Vice President, Human Resources Latin America & Canada Region, PMI; Managing Director, Ecuador & Bolivia, PMI; 2000 until 2006, various cross-functional roles in Marketing & Sales and Business Development in different markets of the Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa, and Latin America & Canada Regions, PMI; Business Analyst, PMI.
Charles A. Blixt
Board member since 2015. Jur. Dr. and B.A University of Illinois.
Previous positions: Interim General Counsel, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc; Executive Vice President and General Counsel, Reynolds American Inc.
Lars Dahlgren
Board member since January 16, 2023. M.Sc. in Business and Economics, Stockholm School of Economics, Sweden.
Current position: President, Smoke-free Products (SFP) Oral Products & CEO Swedish Match, Philip Morris International (PMI).
Previous positions: Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Swedish Match AB; Vice President, Group Finance, Swedish Match AB; Finance Director, Swedish Match Philippines; Financial analyst, SBC Warburg.
Stefano Volpetti
Board member since January 16, 2023. Degree in Business Administration from Luiss University in Rome.
Current position: President, Smoke-free Inhaled Products and Chief Consumer Officer, Philip Morris International (PMI).
Previous positions: President, Smoke-Free Products Category & Chief Consumer Officer, PMI; Chief Consumer Officer, PMI; Chief Marketing Officer, Luxottica Eyewear; various positions within Procter & Gamble.