こんにちわ みんなさん!

My name is Jacob Eriksson and I’m a global trainee in R&D, Husqvarna Division. I am currently six weeks in to my third rotation in R&D in Kawagoe, Japan, located roughly 1h by train from central Tokyo.

Besides working as an engineer in ongoing projects, part of my assignment is to look for opportunities to improve cross-site collaboration between our R&D departments and how we work with knowledge management. This gives me an opportunity to assist in strategic and administrative work while also working on the nitty gritty details in form of engineering work. A good balance of micro and macro so to speak.

Being able to spend 6 months living and working in another country is an amazing opportunity that comes with the Husqvarna Group Global Trainee Program. My first weeks here in Japan has been nothing short of fantastic. My weeks have been packed with exploration, dinners with colleagues, important learnings and the occasional culture clash (some of them being synchronized exercise twice a day and pizza with corn and mayonnaise). To learn about the differences between the Japanese market compared to the other ones we operate in has been especially interesting. The terrain, ageing population and agricultural system gives the Japanese market its own set of unique challenges that we need to tackle.

To make a list of all the great experiences I have had here so far would take too long, but some of the favorites are: 20m Gundam statues, hundreds of years old temples, Tokyo motor show, cat cafés(!), hot springs,  meandering through a pulsating night time Tokyo and fantastic food.

My time so far in the Husqvarna Group Global Trainee Program has been full of awesome experiences together with my fellow trainees and coworkers. My personal development curve has been the steepest that I have experienced so far and the opportunities for challenges and growth is second to none. I can guarantee that if you join the trainee program you will get the opportunity to make your own set of awesome experiences while traveling the world and maximizing your personal development.

P.S A bonus is that when working in Japanese R&D you get a cool uniform D.S