News

Tysvar Announces New Chief Executive Officer, New Client:

Terje Mikalsen named CEO; Relationship created with Prediktor AS

St. Paul, Minnesota, June 4 – Tysvar Founder and Chair Lois Quam announced the firm has chosen Terje Mikalsen to be the new Chief Executive Officer.  “There are few business people in the world with Terje’s track record of success,” said Quam.  “His vision and global business experience will position Tysvar for continued growth both in Norway and here in the United States.”  Tysvar announced last November that Quam would relinquish her equity stake in the firm and install a new CEO to manage day-to-day operations.  Mr. Mikalsen will assume his new role effective immediately. 

Mr. Mikalsen is regarded as one of Norway’s most successful technology investors and entrepreneurs.  He was educated as an engineer at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and headed the development of the world’s first computerized radar system for collision avoidance at sea.  In 1967, he co-founded Norsk Data, which manufactured the world’s first 32-bit minicomputer, and has been an active owner and board member in several other technology, health care and alternative energy companies including Hafslund Nycomed, Tandberg and Energos.  From 1993 to 2000 he was on the Board of Norwegian Cruise Lines, serving most of that time as Chairman.        

Putting into practice his belief that business and entrepreneurship can help alleviate poverty, Mr. Mikalsen has served since 2007 as part-time CEO of a small telecom company in Uganda that imports and refurbishes used mobile phones and distributes them as payphones to the country’s budding entrepreneurs. 

He was elected as a life-time member of the Norwegian Technical Science Academy in 1993, given the Golden Mouse Award by Computerworld in 1996 and awarded Entrepreneur of the Year in 1999.  He has been a member of the Norwegian Prime Minister’s Industrial Advisory Committee under three different governments and served on the Board of SND, now part of Innovation Norway, the national business development organization. 

New Business

Along with the appointment of Mr. Mikalsen, Tysvar also announced that an agreement was reached with Prediktor AS, a Norwegian manufacturer of software solutions that make manufacturing and production processes more efficient.  The corner stone of Prediktor’s solutions is the proprietary real-time APIS software, currently being used in a range of industries, including solar, maritime, food, feed, oil and gas.  Tysvar will oversee Prediktor’s United States subsidiary with a particular focus on North American distribution and the formation of strategic relationships.  “Prediktor’s comprehensive system for on-line content monitoring of production processes will greatly benefit the food and feed industry here in the United States,” said Mr. Mikalsen.  

Prediktor AS joins a growing list of clients for Tysvar, including Hybrid Energy AS, a Norwegian manufacturer of environmentally friendly industrial heat pumps, and AquaFence, which manufactures transportable flood protection barriers that can be rapidly deployed when there is a recognized danger of flooding.  AquaFence was used successfully in March 2010 by the City of Fargo, North Dakota to fight the Red River floods. 

Tysvar is a privately-held strategic advisory firm focused on emerging business opportunities in clean technology and health care.  We provide support to the people and organizations developing the health care and clean technology solutions for the 21st century global economy.  Our goal is to help create a healthier, more sustainable world for the next generation. 

Media Contact: Bob Hussey (612) 281-8741 or bob@bobhussey.com