ROI Finland program is all about spotting investment opportunities and selling them to the big boss. To properly prepare for a “go-ahead,” fix a session at the ROI Finland Labs.
As Reijo Mesimäki, the Managing Director of TNS Gallup, received the AmChampion of 2013 award last month, he said:
“I have seen plenty of decision-making power and expertise desert Finland over the years. Through AmCham, the business community is making the first real attempt to fight back.”
That is very much the mission of AmCham Finland. We are committed to making a difference in growing and developing the international business community. Or often, just holding onto it. In the current environment, the work has consisted of helping affiliates to “fight back” as resources have been pulled away from them. Success requires that we get our collective act together and empower and equip the 2900 country managers in Finland to make a solid case for the market.
The program for achieving this is called ROI Finland. It consists of business meetings but also opportunities for company-specific support in landing investments and leveraging public-private partnerships.
The latter are called ROI Finland Labs. The Labs are a service through which a foreign affiliate based in Finland can access public-private resources and get them tailored to the company’s needs.
Antti Oksanen, C.O.O. of AmCham, who runs the program, says the need is definitely there.
“It can be very difficult to identify the public instruments and services, which can help you to land an investment. Yet, they are there.”
“ROI Finland Labs exists to make the match.”
The lab is basically a workshop session. A foreign investor is guided through the nuts and bolts of seizing an investment opportunity in Finland. Any industry-specific issues are addressed throughout the process.
The heavy lifting is done by Helsinki Business Hub, with which AmCham Finland developed and launched the ROI Finland program in 2011.
The Helsinki Business Hub C.E.O. Micah Gland has his sleeves rolled up.
“We provide strategic advice, operational support, business intelligence and consultation. Big words, certainly, but the point is to help country managers to champion investments to Finland.”
“This is our full time job and we have years of experience of what works. We have a pretty good idea where to start with each company, so it gets what it needs,” he says.
