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Since 2021, Johan Forsberg has worked as Head of Customer Offerings—the largest area within SEB’s tech organisation, with around 1,000 developers. His journey at the bank began in 2006, when his interest in technology and finance led him to the bank’s trainee programme. Here, he shares his career path and tells us why SEB is an attractive tech employer.
In January 2006, Johan Forsberg joined SEB’s trainee programme, starting with a placement in the bank’s IT organisation. During his year as a trainee, Johan got to try several different roles, one of which was in Group CIO, which is responsible for the bank’s IT strategies and for planning and managing SEB’s development portfolio. After completing his trainee year, Johan continued working in this department. “My time as a trainee was intense, but I’m grateful for everything I learned during that period. I had the chance to intern at several departments and get to know the bank’s different business areas, which gave me insights that have helped me in all my roles since then,” says Johan.
During the most intense years of the financial crisis, a new Head of IT was appointed, and Johan took on the role as his Business Advisor, later gaining responsibility for strategic initiatives. In this position, he became involved in the sale of SEB’s offices in Germany—an extensive transformational project with significant tech challenges. “Since I had always been interested in working internationally, I joined the project and spent almost three years travelling between Stockholm and Frankfurt.” Following this, Johan took on his first management role as Head of IT International, where he led the IT function at SEB’s international offices—from Singapore to New York. This experience, along with his later work in Finance & Risk, prepared him for his current role as Head of Customer Offerings.
“With a focus on developer competence and with more than 1,200 employees in total, we are responsible for the application deliveries and the tech development teams that support the bank’s business divisions. This includes product-centred systems such as our account, payment, and loan systems, as well as services within trading and custody, and the systems used by our advisors at the bank offices.”
Johan explains that his engagement for the area, which is the largest within SEB’s tech department, comes from the importance of the work. “It is very motivating and rewarding when you feel like the work you do makes a real difference—it’s a clear responsibility, it’s needed, and it contributes to the development of the bank.”
The rapid pace of digital development affects every industry, and SEB is no exception. “There is so much happening right now, and the changes are coming quickly, which is exciting,” says Johan. “The migration to the cloud and AI are two of the biggest and most relevant transformations we are handling at the moment. Regarding the cloud, I believe in a gradual change with a well-thought-out plan, making moves where we see the most business benefit.
Johan also sees AI as a tremendous opportunity. “It’s important that we work with the evolution of AI, which has the potential to change the entire industry. At SEB, we have the right prerequisites to leverage this technology and have already made significant strides, such as implementing AI-based tools that our developers use. By using AI to support coding, we can revolutionise how developers work, which can have a very positive impact on the bank as a whole.”
“SEB has a clear vision and is facing many ambitious tech initiatives that will shape the future of the bank,” says Johan. “It’s an exciting time to be working here, with great opportunities for anyone eager to evolve. We offer a wide variety of initiatives, don’t just work with one technology or platform, and are often at the forefront compared to our competitors —something we should remind ourselves of more often. If you are curious about trying new technologies, there are few employers in Sweden that can offer the same breadth.”
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