In 1998, Mr. Kjær was appointed founding Chief Executive Officer of NBIM, which was established by the Norwegian government to manage its sovereign wealth fund, and foreign exchange reserves. 

In 2008, Mr. Kjær was appointed a Knight Class 1 of the Royal Order of St. Olav by His Majesty King Harald of Norway for his management of the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund, his contribution to the Norwegian economy and the future financing of its pensions.

Currently, he is the Executive Chairman of Sector Asset Management and a Professor II in Finance & Sustainability at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences. Additionally, he chairs the Supervisory board of APG Asset Management, an asset manager owned by the largest pension fund in Europe (ABP), is a member of the Investment and Risk Advisory Panel of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the Advisory Investment Committee of the Central Bank of Thailand, and the Investment Committee of the newly established Irish Sovereign Wealth Fund. 

Kjær holds a master’s degree in economics and a degree in political science from the University of Oslo. He attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.