SSE Corporate Partner Pfizer has participated in the Executive Trainee Module (XTM) several times. XTM matches SSE master students with participating companies and gives the students the opportunity to work closely with an executive manager at the company.

Pfizer decided to participate as a way to increase the influx of younger employees at their company. The idea was to increase their diversity whilst also get an exchange of ideas and new impulses.

“We believe that it is very important to stay up to date and get different angles on things. One way to do that is through this partnership with SSE”, says Henrik Rommedahl, Sales Manager at Pfizer.

One of the intended learning outcomes of XTM is for the student to take responsibility and experience executive leadership. This is also reflected in SSE’s educational mission, FREE, which highlights the importance of self-awareness and empathetic leadership.

“Getting young students who bring their experiences from the academic world is very important and we have been able to give experiences back. It has been very rewarding and positive. The students we had fit in very well at the company and have been present at different meetings. They also held presentations and were very productive and very nice to work with. They have given a lot of positive energy to the company”, Henrik explains.

Oscar Lundquist, MSc student, participated in XTM at Pfizer and has a few key takeaways:

“When working in such a large global organisation, there are so many perspectives you have to keep in mind. Having the ability to listen and speak your mind without it feeling forced is probably the best thing I learned throughout the semester. And ask questions – the people you work with are very smart!”

Beneficial for both the company and the student

XTM offers both the participating company and the student the opportunity to learn and exchange perspectives. For Henrik Rommedahl at Pfizer the main benefit of participating was taking part in the skills the students possess through their education:

“The students contributed in a very concrete way and had a high level of competence that has broadened our own competence. They could actually go in and work on projects from day one. They contributed with their knowledge and their positive attitude. Our assessment of the students we worked with is that they simply have a high level of competence and are well prepared to enter the business world”, Henrik says.

Oscar Lundquist shared that sentiment and felt that his studies had prepared him for his participation:

”The combination of both experiencing what it was like to have a “full-time” job, while at the same time gathering thoughts and information to an academic case study was very enjoyable. You really understand how much value our studies bring to the table, and how we as students can contribute with a new perspective. To add on, I was also able to be part of large projects and have projects on my own, which tested my capability to deliver”.

If you are interested in participating as a company in the XTM module, please contact Program Manager Andreas Dahlberg at andreas.dahlberg@hhs.se

If you are interested in learning more about the SSE Corporate Partnership Program and its' benefits, please contact Partnership Manager Mikael Karlsson at mikael.karlsson@hhs.se