GomSpace Group AB proposes two new candidates for Board of Directors

GomSpace Group AB Nomination Committee proposes two new candidates for the Board of Directors to be elected at the upcoming Annual General Meeting on May 31.

Today, the members of the Nomination Committee are Stefan Gardefjord, appointed by Longbus Holding and Henrik Kølle, appointed by Peter Hargreaves, whereas Stefan Gardefjord is appointed as chairman.

The committee aims to ensure that the composition of the board of directors is optimally aligned to the company’s operations, stage of development, and other conditions in general, by leveraging the board members’ combined expertise and experience.

The committee has assessed how the current board composition meets the requirements that will be placed on the board of directors as a result of the company’s current position and future direction, and whether any additional skills should possibly be added to the board of directors.

The committee's opinion is that the work of the board has been well-functioning, but that the collective skillset can be further strengthened by bringing on additional expertise from the global space industry and information technology sector, as well as expertise within field of finance, whereas Stefan Gardefjord (left in picture) and Henrik Kølle (right in picture) is nominated to be elected for the Board of Directors.

Stefan Gardefjord, born 1958, graduated at the upper secondary school of business. Since more than 10 years, he is CEO of SSC (Swedish Space Corporation) and has held numerous senior management positions in the information technology industry, including CEO of Logica Sweden. Mr. Gardefjord is a former chairman of the Swedish IT and Telecom Employers Association, a former member of the board of the Swedish Confederation of Swedish Enterprise and is currently a non-executive director of the publicly listed BTS Group (Nasdaq OMX Nordic), and a non-executive director of Knowit Plc (Nasdaq OMX Nordic). Mr. Gardefjord is also currently a board member, and former chairman, of SAI – Swedish AerospaceIndustries – the trade organisation and interest association for the civil aviation and space industry in Sweden. Mr. Gardefjord is independent of the company and its executive management and in relation to the company’s major shareholders. Mr. Gardefjord has no shares in GomSpace.

“Never before has it been so obvious that space-based capabilities are crucial for critical societal functions and our modern way of life on this planet. The convergence of information technology and space applications will continue to drive sustainability, innovation, economic growth, and competitiveness across industries for decades to come. After more than 35 years in the fields of information technology and space I am excited to join the board of GomSpace and I look forward to contributing the best I can to the company’s continued growth and development”, Stefan Gardefjord comments.

Henrik Kølle, born 1965, holds a master’s degree in finance from Copenhagen Business School. He has a background from leading and founding positions, such as 8 years as investor, chairman and member of the board of directors in the very successful Danish start-up Endomondo which became one of the world’s leading fitness trackers and was successfully sold to Under Armour. He carried out a MBO (management buyout) of DanDental (Plandent) from Siemens and held the position as CEO for 7 years until a fully exit to Finish Planmeca. Further, he is the founder of 5thplanetgames, a company he listed as the first Nordic mobile game company to be listed. He is also the co-founder and CEO for Tandlægen.dk, a leading chain of dental clinics with a turnover of more than 1 bio. SEK. Mr. Kølle has great experience as an engaged investor in IT companies and companies with strong growth potential, as well as many years of experience of board work in several companies. The nomination committee expects that Mr. Kølle will add valuable skills to the board of directors thus contributing to the future development of the company. Mr. Kølle is independent of the company and its executive management and in relation to the company’s major shareholders. Mr. Kølle holds 377,580 shares in GomSpace directly and 540,401 shares in GomSpace indirectly through a holding company.

Henrik Kølle comments: "GomSpace is an incredibly exciting company that, based on a foundation of very strong competencies, is set to unlock its potential in the coming years. The industry and market are accelerating and GomSpace possesses some truly unique competencies that give the products a cutting edge. At the same time, I welcome the new CEO, Carsten Drachmann. I am fully convinced that the company's unique competences, products, the recent capital injection and now a strong sales-oriented international CEO, will bring GomSpace to a whole new level in the coming years".

Chairman of the Board, Jukka Pertola, is also looking forward to expanding the knowledge and competences within the board of directors. As previously announced, Mr. Pertola expects to step down from the board this year: “As earlier announced, the growing focus on good corporate governance is casting a critical view on how many board positions one should have. To address these worries, I have decided to reduce the number of my positions. In GomSpace the plan is to secure a smooth transition of the board responsibilities and enable me to step down after due time.

Fortunately, we have now recognized two exceptionally strong board member candidates for GomSpace, namely Stefan Gardefjord and Henrik Kølle. Stefan has comprehensive C-level management and board experience of technology companies, thereof more than 10 years as CEO of Swedish Space Corporation. Henrik Kølle has great experience and success in startup companies within IT and technology, and many years of experience of board work in both publicly listed and private companies. When elected, they both will strengthen the board and be the best choice for ensuring the further development of GomSpace.”

Appointment of new members for the nomination committee will be initiated after the AGM.

Read more about the Nomination Committee here: https://gomspace.com/nomination-committee.aspx

Find the relevant documents and information regarding the Annual General Meeting here: https://gomspace.com/general-meetings.aspx
 

For more information, please contact:
Carsten Drachmann (CEO)
Tel: +45 40 63 40 36
E-mail: cdra @ gomspace.com

About GomSpace Group AB
The company’s business operations are mainly conducted through the wholly-owned Danish subsidiary, GomSpace A/S, with operational office in Aalborg, Denmark. GomSpace is a space company with a mission to be engaged in the global market for space systems and services by introducing new products, i.e. components, platforms and systems based on innovation within professional nanosatellites. The company is listed on the Nasdaq First North Premier exchange under the ticker GOMX. FNCA Sweden AB is the Company’s Certified Adviser. For more information, please visit our website on www.gomspace.com.