Finnair CEO Topi Manner will replace the long-serving CEO at the telco and software firm
Elisa CEO Veli-Matti Mattila has decided to step down and will be replaced by current Finnair CEO Topi Manner.
Mattila has been CEO since 2003 and has overseen the company’s evolution from a traditional telecommunications provider to a modern software and service firm. Under his leadership, Elisa has emerged as an industry pioneer, embracing innovation and setting standards in areas like virtualisation and 5G.
The incoming CEO, Topi Manner (pictured), currently at the helm of Finnair, has been chosen to lead Elisa. Manner, who also brings experience from his role as a member of Elisa’s Board of Directors, is set to commence his journey as CEO on or before 1 March 2024 – he also steps down from the seven-member board with immediate effect.
Manner took on the position of CEO at Finnair in January 2019, having previously held roles in the financial sector, including positions at Nordea Bank and Luminor, among other organisations. He successfully navigated the company through Covid and the closure of Russian airspace.
Transformative term
Before becoming CEO in 2003, Mattila was CEO of Oy LM Ericsson Ab from 1997 to 2003. He has held various positions in the Ericsson Group in Finland and the USA since 1986. His’s previous career also includes expert advisory tasks in Switzerland at Ascom Hasler.
He is also currently on the boards of Orion Oyj, Research Institute of the Finnish Economy (ETLA) and Finnish Business and Policy Forum (EVA), Service Sector Employers PALTA, Mannerheim Foundation, Helander Foundation, and Shed Foundation.
Although he was due to retire when he turned 60 in July 2021, Elisa’s board agreed to extend his tenure.
In a statement, the board of directors of Elisa expressed its gratitude to Mattila for his “long and exceptionally meritorious work” and for his successful steering of the company in the fast-developing digital world.
“Under Mattila’s leadership, Elisa has created a continuously evolving culture of excellence that is beyond comparison and has achieved results beneficial for Elisa’s customers, employees and owners, all enjoying the industry’s best shareholder value creation,” they said in the statement.
Learning culture
In an interview in 2019 Mattila said. “As CEO, I have certainly made mistakes. Maybe I haven’t always understood, especially in changes, all their effects on other people. Hopefully, over time, my understanding in this regard has grown.”
“I have to constantly update which direction the operating environment is going. Even though I have been the CEO of Elisa for 16 years, I learn how to be a CEO every day,” he added.
Mattila said it was essential that the company has common goals that the employees have a clear understanding of. “First are Elisa’s goals, then the goals of the units and teams, and only then the goals of the individual. This is the order of priority,” he said.
“We have emphasised the culture of learning, including learning from mistakes. Although finding the root causes can be painful, a mistake is usually a gift to us because we can learn from it,” he added.