Blueprint for cities and regions as launch pads for digital transformation
Espoo, an established high-tech hot-spot
The city of Espoo is today regarded as one of the high-tech hot-spots of Europe. The city was long heavily dependent on a limited number of technology flagship companies: Espoo was synonymous to Nokia. Hence, when Nokia’s situation became tougher, Espoo had to face a major challenge: how to cope with a massive wave high-skilled unemployed technologies experts. This crisis was turned into new opportunities by Espoo, by creating a vibrant start-up ecosystem. For example, Slush, Europe's leading startup event, originates from Aalto University of Technology. Today, Espoo is entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship is Espoo. © Tero Sivula/Shutterstock.com The city of Espoo is regarded as one of The crisis of Nokia brought new Despite the Nokia crisis, the city of Espoo the high-tech hot-spots of Europe. The opportunities in Espoo. The city of Espoo managed to preserve its technology- city benefits from strong innovative along with the national government, driven prosperity. Over the past 10 years roots deeply linked with the history of Nokia and education providers have the vibrant start-up community in Espoo Aalto University of Technology and the therefore developed collaborative has been extremely active and highly presence of the headquarters of large strategies to ease Nokia’s strain and to contributed to the digital transformation companies such as Nokia and OUTOTEC turn it into Finland’s gain. process of local traditional companies. Corporation.
Key initiatives
From a Nokia dependency … employees on how to meet those The phenomenal success of Nokia and requirements. The success of the the rapidity of its decline act as powerful Nokia played a major role in the digital initiative is illustrated by the high reminders of the negative impacts and economy of Espoo. In its glory days, the number of former Nokia employees who knock-on effects likely to result from a Finnish multinational ICT-company found new career paths and employment digital disruption. employed more than 23,000 workers in opportunities thanks to the program. Finland. Over the past decade, the series The Nokia case and the new of layoffs at Nokia and the acquisition of … to a vibrant local ecosystem opportunities which resulted from the Nokia’s mobile phone business by generation of a surplus of highly skilled Microsoft have left the city of Espoo with Foreign tech companies struggling to ICT professionals serves as a prime a surplus of tech workers. Out of the find highly skilled developers and evidence of the benefits arising from approximately 100,000 ICT-workers in engineers moved to Espoo to benefit creation of a digital ecosystem in Espoo. Finland, about 14,000 ICT professionals from the skills of Nokia employees who (14%) have been affected by the mass had been made redundant. Leading layoffs with a large majority of Espoo global companies such as Google, The Startup Sauna, a student residents. Microsoft and most recently the Chinese operated accelerator tech company Huawei and the Russian In 2011, Nokia launched the “Bridge Yandex have engaged direct investments The Startup Sauna located at the Aalto programme” which aimed to provide in Finland. University campus in Otaniemiis is a new career opportunities to its laid-off prime evidence of the engagement of The abundance of tech workers in the employees. The Bridge programme led to students in the digital transformation city also spurred an innovation and the creation of about 1,000 business process of local businesses. The entrepreneurship spirit which has the start-ups by former Nokia workers who accelerator is totally operated by capacity to culminate in an unparalleled benefitted from the entrepreneurship students and was awarded the prize burst of digital transformation in Espoo. programs and the investments made by of best accelerator run by students of Nokia to (re)train its former labour force. As a result an increasing number of the world in 2014. traditional businesses in Espoo are The engagement of the city of Espoo was University students benefits from the engaging in a digital transformation reflected by the creation of the “Task support from coaches who represent process. This digital shift of part of the force for the structural change in the some of the most successful serial traditional businesses in Espoo Metropolitan area”. This network-based entrepreneurs, investors and industry completely rejuvenated the local collaboration model gathered experts in Finland. The creation of economic fabric. companies, educational institutions and this accelerator not only acts as a career planning services. The city of Espoo is increasingly prime evidence of the commitment of The aim of this collaborative action was involving local tech companies and students in the digital ecosystem but to survey the skill and recruitment students to develop innovative digital it is also a guarantee of the continuity requirements of companies in the solutions to tackle local societal or of the digital transformation process metropolitan area in order to provide environmental challenges. by future generations. advices and trainings to Nokia’s laid off
Strategic Policy Forum on Digital Entrepreneurship www.digitallytransformyourregion.eu