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Prof. Örjan Sölvell

Prof. Örjan Sölvell is Professor of International Business at Stockholm School of Economics (SSE) and Senior Institute Associate at the Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness (ISC), Harvard Business School.

Dr Sölvell has been active at SSE for more than 25 years, and was Director for the Institute of International Business (IIB) between 1994-2002. Since 2004 he is the Dean for the MBA program at SSE, and Director for a new research institute - Center for Strategy and Competitiveness.

Dr Sölvell's academic background includes studies at the Stockholm School of Economics, George Washington University and the Harvard Business School. During 2003 Prof. Sölvell aced as ITPS Visiting Professor of Social and Economic Geography at Uppsala University, Centre for Research on Innovation and Industrial Dynamics, CIND.

Since the mid-1980s Dr Sölvell has worked closely with Professor Michael E. Porter at the Harvard Business School, studying international competitiveness and clusters in various nations and regions. In conjunction with this work, Professor Sölvell acted as a visiting scholar at Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo (1988/1989) and The Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness (ISC) at Harvard Business School (2001/2002). At ISC Sölvell created a new course together with Professor Porter, "Microeconomics of Competitiveness: Firms, Clusters and Economic Development" taught at HBS and some 40 universities around the world.

Dr Sölvell has published extensively in the areas of strategy, competition, competitiveness and clusters. For instance, the concept of clusters and the diamond model was launched in Sweden in 1991 through the book "Advantage Sweden" written together with Michael E. Porter and Ivo Zander (2nd edition 1993 and paperback edition 1999). Furthermore he also co-wrote "Microcompetitiveness of Wireless Valley" alongside Michael E. Porter and Ivo Zander. Prof. Sölvell was also a co-author of "Kluster.se". He is involved in policy work in Sweden, and is a member of the Board of Economic Advisors to the Invest in Sweden Agency (ISA).


Prof. Sölvell's current activities include:

- Cluster mapping of the EU. This study follows the methodology developed by Professor Michael E. Porter and is the first attempt to make a comprehensive statistical mapping of all clusters in Europe. A special report is carried out in cooperation with The Competitiveness Group in Barcelona focusing on the 10 new member states in the EU. The report on the 10 new EU members is expected for early 2006.

- Competitiveness in the Baltic Rim Region. A yearly "State of The Region Report" is published in cooperation with the Baltic Development Forum. Next report is foreseen for October 2005.

- Greenbook II. The Global Cluster Initiative Survey (GCIS, first carried out in 2003) is updated during spring 2005. The report will be finished by late 2006. First insights will be given at the Annual Conference in Hong Kong.

- Cluster Initiatives in Developing Countries. This study in carried out in cooperation with U.S AID in Washington D.C and the report is expected for Summer 2005.