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| Per Heggenes | |
|---|---|
| Name | Per Heggenes |
| Birth date | 1958 |
| Birth place | Norway |
| Nationality | Norwegian |
| Occupation | Business executive |
| Known for | CEO of the IKEA Foundation |
Per Heggenes is a Norwegian business executive and philanthropist known for his leadership of the IKEA Foundation and roles within the Ingka Group and IKEA retail operations. He has overseen large-scale philanthropic initiatives and corporate strategy linking retail operations with charitable work, engaging with international organizations, multinational corporations, and civic institutions. His career intersects with figures and institutions across Scandinavia, Europe, and global development circles.
Heggenes was born in Norway and educated in Scandinavian institutions, with formative influences from Norwegian public life, Nordic social democracy, and European business education linked to institutions such as the University of Oslo, Norwegian School of Economics, BI Norwegian Business School, Stockholm School of Economics, and exchanges with programs connected to INSEAD, London Business School, HEC Paris, Columbia Business School, and Harvard Business School. His early professional network included connections with corporate leaders at Norsk Hydro, Equinor, Telenor, Aker Solutions, Yara International, and policymakers from Oslo City Council and the Norwegian Ministry of Trade and Industry.
Heggenes's career spans roles in retail management, corporate governance, and social investment, interacting with multinational retailers and foundations such as IKEA, Ingka Group, Inter IKEA Systems, The IKEA Foundation, H&M Foundation, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and Open Society Foundations. He has engaged with consulting firms and advisers including McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, Bain & Company, and PwC. His executive experience involved collaborations with corporate leaders from Walmart, Tesco, Carrefour, Aldi Süd, Lidl, IKEA Group, and logistics partners like DHL, UPS, and DB Schenker. He has interacted with regulatory and trade bodies including the European Commission, World Trade Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and United Nations agencies such as UNICEF, UNHCR, UNDP, and WHO.
As CEO of the IKEA Foundation, Heggenes led grantmaking and program strategy, partnering with humanitarian and development actors including UNHCR, UNICEF, Save the Children, Oxfam International, CARE International, World Vision International, Médecins Sans Frontières, and Norwegian Refugee Council. He managed philanthropic investments aligned with sustainable development goals and climate initiatives in collaboration with organizations like Greenpeace, WWF, The Nature Conservancy, Environmental Defense Fund, International Rescue Committee, and research institutions such as Stockholm Environment Institute, Chatham House, International Institute for Environment and Development, and Rockefeller University. Under his leadership, the foundation coordinated with corporate sustainability programs at IKEA Group, supply-chain partners including IKEA Supply AG, and municipal partners from Rotterdam, Barcelona, Copenhagen, and Gothenburg to scale projects in renewable energy, refugee response, and children's welfare.
Heggenes emphasized partnerships with multilateral institutions, NGOs, and philanthropic networks, engaging with entities such as United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations, GlobalGiving, GiveDirectly, The Global Fund, and regional development banks like the European Investment Bank and Nordic Development Fund. Program focus areas under his tenure included humanitarian shelter, climate adaptation, renewable energy access, and child protection, coordinated with research partners including University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, London School of Economics, Princeton University, Yale University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and think tanks like Center for Global Development, Brookings Institution, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and Council on Foreign Relations. He represented the foundation in dialogues with leaders from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's office, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, and philanthropic peers such as Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.
Heggenes’s public profile includes participation in global forums and summits such as the World Economic Forum, Clinton Global Initiative, Skoll World Forum, Oslo Freedom Forum, and engagements with cultural institutions like the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and Nordic philanthropic networks including Stavanger Forum and Trondheim Business Forum. Honors and recognitions have come from civic and industry bodies including awards associated with UNICEF, Nobel Peace Prize-related initiatives, and national commendations from Norwegian and Swedish institutions. He has collaborated with prominent individuals across business, politics, and civil society such as Ingvar Kamprad, Anders Dahlvig, Steve Howard, Paul Polman, Jacinda Ardern, Erna Solberg, Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron, Bill Gates, Christine Lagarde, Kristalina Georgieva, and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
Category:Norwegian businesspeople Category:Philanthropists