 Svanberg was an expert in the Military Expedition Services Committee ("Militära expeditionstjänstkommittén") from 1942 to 1943.Svanberg was first administrative officer at the Royal Swedish Air Force Materiel Administration in 1943 and human resources manager at Scandinavian Airlines from 1946 to 1951.He was managing director of the Retail Employers' Organization ("Handelns arbetsgivarorganisation") from 1951 to 1956 and member of its national board from 1956.