Swedish HR Association

What Swedish HR Association does

Sveriges HR Förening (the Swedish HR Association) is a Stockholm-based non-profit membership association (ideell förening) founded in 1921 that serves as the national professional body for HR practitioners in Sweden. It has built a community of 4,000+ active members organized across 40+ local networks and operates approximately 30 events per year, anchored by the flagship HR-dagarna conference. Its current Secretary General is Petra Schedin Stergel, and administrative headquarters are co-located with Wise Group at Linnégatan 87 in Stockholm.

The association's core product surface spans professional networking, knowledge dissemination, and recognition. Content and programming include the HR People magazine, a podcast series, a webinar platform (Webinar Play), and the annual HR-dagarna conference, alongside the legacy Kerstin Hesselgren Award and co-stewardship of the Recruitment Awards. Strategic partnerships with the Centre for Global Human Resource Management (CGHRM) at the University of Gothenburg, IDG, RewardSmarter, Sveriges Kommunikatörer, and Sveriges Företagshälsor extend its research, benchmarking, and content capabilities.

The business model is a traditional professional association construct. Revenue is generated through individual membership fees, paid event tickets (most prominently HR-dagarna), advertising and sponsorship across HR People and digital channels, and partnership contributions. The organization reinvests proceeds into member services, networks, events, and advocacy, consistent with its non-profit status. There is no disclosed evidence of equity funding, AI/ML-driven product features, or monetization of proprietary data assets beyond the salary survey collaboration with RewardSmarter.

Name

Swedish HR Association

Legal name

Sveriges HR Förening

Website

https://hrforeningen.se

Company type

Private

Founded year

1921

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Swedish HR Association is a Stockholm-based non-profit founded in 1921 that serves 4,000+ HR professionals across Sweden through 40+ local networks, 30+ annual events (including the HR-dagarna conference), and content products such as HR People magazine, podcasts, and webinars.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Stockholm

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership fees: Annual membership fees provide core revenue, with different tiers for professionals and students
2. Event tickets and conferences: Revenue from HR-dagarna and other events including partner sponsorships
3. Advertising and partnerships: Sponsorships and advertising opportunities reaching 4000+ HR professionals across Sweden

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Swedish HR Association is a non-profit professional membership association (ideell förening) founded in 1921 and headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. It sells individual memberships to HR professionals and delivers member benefits including the HR-dagarna annual conference, HR People Magazine, podcasts, member networks (nätverk), webinars, and industry reports. Revenue comes primarily from membership fees, event tickets, and advertising/sponsorship.

Product overview

Swedish HR Association (Sveriges HR Förening) is a professional membership organization for HR practitioners in Sweden, founded in 1921, offering a comprehensive ecosystem of products and services. The core offerings include the annual HR-dagarna conference, the HR People Magazine (provided free to members), multiple podcast series (Jämställdhet för tillväxt, Karriärpodden, Ledarskapssnack, Fråga forskaren), competence development programs (webinars, training, HR Lunch Talk), over 40 professional networks across Sweden, and research publications including the Årets HR-bok award. The organization serves over 4,000 members from both public and private sectors, hosting 30+ events annually and maintaining presence across 300+ locations throughout Sweden.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HR-dagarna: Annual HR conference held in October at Södra Teatern, Stockholm. Features keynote speakers, panel discussions, and Deep Dive Sessions.
• HR People
• HR Lunch Talk

Quantifiable outcome

• 4k+ satisfied members
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• CGHRM (Centrum för Global HRM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Centrum för Global HRM at University of Gothenburg focusing on the Cranet survey, with two joint reports released in 2024. The partnership strengthens proximity to HR research.
• IDG (Inner Development Goals)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to create understanding for inner development needed to achieve UN global goals and HR's important role in this. IDG provides a framework for skills and behaviors needed for sustainable development.
• RewardSmarterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual salary survey collaboration with RewardSmarter, a specialist in Compensation & Benefits with 20 years of industry experience.
• Recruitment AwardsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHR-föreningen presents the HR Manager of the Year award at the Recruitment Awards gala, recognizing outstanding HR leadership achievements.
• Sveriges KommunikatörerminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the professional organization for communication experts to learn from each other and demonstrate the strength of collaboration between HR and Communication functions.
• Sveriges FöretagshälsorminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to learn from each other and demonstrate the strength of collaboration between HR and occupational health services.
• ESK (Sveriges Executive Search Konsulter)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to strengthen knowledge about Executive Search and promote increased collaboration between HR and other functions in organizational contexts.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development): UK's chartered professional body for HR and people development with 150,000+ members. Closest European equivalent in terms of offering a comprehensive HR membership ecosystem with events, publications, and accreditation, but at much greater scale and broader geographic reach.
• WorldatWork: US-based global non-profit focused on compensation, benefits, and total rewards with HR professional membership. Adjacent peer in the HR professional association space but specialising in compensation/rewards content, partially overlapping with HR-föreningen's RewardSmarter partnership work.
• SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management): World's largest HR professional membership association with 300,000+ members in the US and global footprint. Closest global analogue in terms of membership association model, content offerings, and certification authority, though significantly larger in scale.

Regional players

• Dansk HR (Danish HR Association): Denmark's HR professional membership association offering events, networks, and professional development. Highly comparable Nordic peer with the same non-profit membership association model and similar scale of operation.
• HRPA (Human Resources Professionals Association of Ontario): Canadian HR professional association regulating and serving HR practitioners with membership, events, and content. Comparable membership association model with similar scope of member services and professional development offerings.
• AHRI (Australian HR Institute): Australia's national HR professional association providing member services, events, and certification. Comparable in offering a national membership body with events and HR capability development, though operating in a different geography.
• HENRY ry (Finnish Association for HR Management): Finnish HR management association serving HR professionals with member services, events, and certification. Closest Nordic peer with similar professional association structure and target audience of HR practitioners.
• HR Norge (Norwegian HR Association): Norway's national HR professional association serving HR practitioners with membership, networking, and competence development. Most directly comparable Nordic peer given shared language, regulatory environment, and association-based business model.

Direct peers

• DGFP (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Personalführung): Germany's leading HR association offering events, publications, and member services to HR professionals. Comparable in mission and model — a national membership association for HR practitioners — though operating at substantially larger scale.

Others

• EAPM (European Association for People Management): European umbrella body for national HR associations. Comparable as an enabling/ecosystem organisation connecting national HR associations including Nordic ones; not a direct competitor but thematically related and a potential partnership counterpart.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/hrforeningen
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hrforeningen
• Instagraminstagram.com/hrforeningen
• Xx.com/svhrforening

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Swedish HR Association