Rolf Skår

Rolf Skår (13 May 1941 – 24 May 2023) was a Norwegian engineer and entrepreneur. He was a co-founder of the computer manufacturing company Norsk Data in 1967, and took over as chief executive officer (CEO) of the company from 1978 to 1989. He was later CEO of the Royal Norwegian Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, chaired the Norwegian Polytechnic Society, and was CEO of the Norwegian Space Centre from 1998 to 2006. For his contributions to information technology and space activity, Skår was knighted as in the First Class of the Order of St. Olav in 2010.

Early life and education Born on the island of Karmøy on 13 May 1941, Skår was the son of farmer and fisherman Lars Martin Skår and Magnhild Ytreland. In 1966, Skår graduated in cybernetics During his studies he had several periods abroad. In the summer of 1963 he went to Switzerland to work for an electrical products manufacturer. The following year he took part in the CERN Summer Student Programme working with digital technology and during the summer 1965 he worked for NATO Saclant in La Spezia, Italy. His diploma involved software development on the minicomputer SAM at the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment, while serving his mandatory military duty there. After the military duty, he was assigned as researcher at the institute, working on the institute's next computer project called SAM-2. Skår was CEO of the company from 1978 to 1989. the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, and the International Academy of Aeronautics.

Personal life Skår married Aslaug Signy Nisi, a librarian and preschool teacher, in 1965.