Category Type: Careers

Our team is growing! Welcome, Kimmo Soini.

Kimmo has a strong change management profile with fifteen years’ experience on large companies’ executive boards (VR, Finnair), and is very interested in HRD and coaching. He has comprehensive experience of the aviation and rail business and especially from fleet lifecycle management and overhaul.

To get to know our new team member a bit more, we asked him a couple of questions.

What was it about VALOR that motivated you to join our team?

I’ve worked with VALOR before as a customer, and I liked how they worked. The innovations they introduced especially impressed me.

What kind of projects and challenges inspire you most right now?

I’m very interested in out-of-the-box thinking and implementing new ways of working. People and HRD also interest me deeply. I’m quite ambitious in target setting.

Happy to have you with us, Kimmo!

We have three new additions to our team – welcome Jaakko Ruth, Robert Kokkola & Tommi Salmi!

Jaakko joined VALOR in October 2022 as an analyst. He previously worked as an M&A consultant at PwC.

Robert and Tommi joined VALOR in October 2022 as trainees. Previously, Robert worked in retail supply chain optimization and robotic process automation consulting. Tommi, then again, worked at Visma Solutions as a software developer trainee. 

Even though the first days are always hectic, we got a chance to ask a couple of questions from our new team members.

What’s been your first impression of your new colleagues?

Jaakko: They’re really smart professionals who are at the same time very pleasant company. The one-on-one discussions arranged with every VALOR professional have been great for getting to know one person better at a time.

Robert: They’re pleasant people – it’s delightful being in a group that takes their work seriously but don’t take themselves too seriously.

Tommi: Already in my first work week, I’ve been impressed by how much competence there is at VALOR. Also, the one-on-one meetings I’ve had with my colleagues have been an excellent way to get to know them better – and learn something new from their areas of expertise.   

Why did you choose VALOR?

Jaakko: VALOR is an agile player that plays a significant role in projects that will have a great effect on major industries. I felt VALOR would provide me the purpose, development track and working environment I wanted. This view has even strengthened during my first days here.

Robert: Both the consulting and investment banking industries are very interesting, so it’s a great opportunity to get acquainted with a small company that does both.

Tommi: VALOR has strong competences in energy markets and urban development projects, which have both already been interests of mine for a long time. I’d also heard about positive experiences from VALOR employees. 

We are excited to welcome three new team members to VALOR!

Mikko Puumanen and Ville Vuola joined VALOR as trainees in September 2022. Previously, Mikko worked in the accounting consulting industry and in the in-house credit risk management team of a manufacturing company. Ville, then again, finished his master’s studies at the University of Amsterdam and gained valuable work experience in the field of finance.

Eric Hardy also joined VALOR in September 2022 as an analyst. Prior to VALOR, Eric completed internships in financial advisory, equipment financing and incubator firms.

To learn a little about our new team members, we asked them a couple of questions.

What are your expectations of your new position at VALOR?

Mikko: I’m very much looking forward to getting to know everyone in the team and beginning to work on different projects. I hope I will be able to work in as many projects as possible and to learn from my colleagues.

Ville: I’m excited to get to work with companies operating in different industries, and to learn from my colleagues. Furthermore, I am excited about getting to know my new colleagues better.

Eric: I’m eager to learn and add value to the clients and VALOR. I’m also looking forward to working on infrastructure projects at such an interesting time.

How do you like to relax after the workday?

Mikko: After a long workday, I usually work out at the gym or go for a long walk or jog to recover from the day’s workload. Meeting friends and family during the weekend is also a great way to relax.

Ville: The best way for me to relax after work is to take exercise and prepare a nice dinner.

Eric: As an Englishman, I do enjoy a good cup of tea while cooking something nice. I also enjoy watching stand-up comedy and having a few beers with friends after a good day at work.

An internship at VALOR gives you an excellent opportunity to kickstart your future career by working on projects in strategy, growth, and business development, operational improvement, and process design and M&A.

As we are currently looking for new interns to join our team, we wanted to ask our part-time analysts, who also started out as interns at VALOR, how they felt about their internship.

We are now looking for analyst trainees to join our teams in both management consulting and investment banking. An ideal candidate for an internship is a master’s level student with a strong academic background, good analytical and social skills, good knowledge of both Finnish and English, and most importantly, the motivation and drive for professional development.

An internship at VALOR gives you an excellent opportunity to kick-start your future career through working on projects in strategy, growth, and business development, operational improvement and process design and M&A.

What we offer

• The opportunity to quickly build on your core consulting skills, from data analysis and synthesis to client communication
• Full involvement in the entire life cycle of a project with a dedicated role
• Day-to-day work in an informal, inclusive, and fun environment
• Flexible working mode
• Competitive compensation and benefits
• Mentoring and coaching

The internship is a full-time position lasting 3-5 months. However, the timing and duration of the internship is planned so that it fulfills both your interests and ours. An internship is an excellent steppingstone to a full-time position at VALOR.

How to apply

Send your application to Hanna Raunio, hanna.raunio@valor.fi by Sept 18th, 2022. Please indicate your preference between management consulting and investment banking in the email subject line.

Please include and combine the following documents into one PDF-document:

• Cover letter
• Curriculum vitae
• University grade transcript
• Matriculation examination certificate

For more information about our firm, our people, and the internship contact Johan Matinmikko (+358 40 725 0506) or other VALOR employees.

We are happy to announce two additions to our team!

Martin Plukka joined VALOR as a trainee in August 2022. Previously he worked at Cesim Oy developing business simulations. In the fall, Martin will start studying in the master’s program in Finance at Aalto University. Martin has worked in analytical positions ranging from business management simulations to a research paper.

Marko Helistekangas joined VALOR as a management consultant in August 2022. Before this, he worked as a global consultant at McKinsey & Company and as a strategy analyst at RELEX Solutions. Marko is by nature a generalist, and he has wide experience of different assignments from a variety of industries in many markets around the world.

We had an opportunity to chat a little with our new team members.

What are you most excited about your new position at VALOR?

Marko: I’m most excited about getting to know my new colleagues and working with them. I’m also very much looking forward to completing my first VALOR project with the client’s management team. The project is about post-merger integration in a stock listed company. I’m also happy that VALOR values a sustainable balance between work and leisure.

Martin: I’m excited to start working with the team and learning from experienced colleagues. I hope I get to see multiple industries and the whole life cycle of the projects.

What was your favorite moment this summer?

Martin: My favorite moment this summer was graduating from Mercer University. It was a great feeling to finish one chapter and continue the journey in Finland and get back to my family and friends.

Marko: Visiting a summer cottage in Kuusamo with my cousins. During the day, we built the terrace, and during the evening we relaxed by fishing, picking cloudberries and using the sauna.

We are pleased to announce that Akseli Sutinen has been promoted to Associate, Sonja Korhonen to Senior Associate, Tuomas Suomi to Manager and Klaus Klemetti to Vice President, IB. They all bring an incredible wealth of experience and knowledge to our team.

Congratulations for the promotions!

We are excited to announce two additions to our team!

Nelli joined VALOR as an Office and Communications Coordinator in June 2022. She came to VALOR from Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund. At Sitra, Nelli worked as a Project Coordinator in both the Updating Democracy and Democracy and Participation teams. Nelli makes sure the office runs smoothly and coordinates VALOR’s communications.

In the spring of 2020, Nelli graduated as a Bachelor of Science in Economics and Business Administration from Aalto University’s English BScBA program.

Valeriya joined VALOR in June 2022. Previously, she worked as a sales assistant trainee at Neste and a quality engineer trainee at Konecranes. Valeriya will continue her Industrial Engineering and Management master’s studies at Aalto University in the fall.

Valeriya has experience in coordinating customer management activities, data analysis and the development of quality management processes. Valeriya has a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering and Management from Aalto University, with a minor in systems sciences.

What was your first impression of VALOR?

Nelli: My first impression was the people. I immediately got the impression that even though everyone was proud in their work and took it seriously, people at VALOR were kind to each other and down to earth. I’ve had a warm welcome here, which has been a great start to my VALOR journey.

Valeriya: At the company’s weekly meeting, which I attended on the first day of my internship, I was impressed with VALOR’s flat organizational structure. My first impression deepened once I had an opportunity to have one on one meetings with all VALOR employees, including other trainees and the founders of the company.

What do you hope to gain from your new position?

Valeriya: I wish to explore various industries, put my theoretical knowledge into practice, improve my skills and obtain new ones while working on challenging tasks. I’m also looking forward to getting to know new people and learning from experienced colleagues.

Nelli: Obviously, I’m looking forward to gaining more independent coordinating experience, but I’m also excited to bring some more lightness and joy to the office through fun activities and events, which are a part of my role at VALOR.

Summer is finally here. What is your favorite summer activity?

Valeriya: Summer is the time when I get active in the field of sports! In addition to my year-round daily hobby of walking, I start cycling, swimming, playing tennis and trying out at least one new activity. Luckily this summer, I don’t have to come up with one myself, as VALOR will take care of this for me in the form of hunger games (i.e., archery tag).

Nelli: For me, summer is the best time of the year! I’m excited about many summer activities, but maybe my favorite thing to do is to pick a place on the Finnish map and go there for a spontaneous summer trip. Trips are best unplanned, and Finnish summer is gorgeous—no matter where you go in Finland.  

We are excited to announce three additions to our team.

Akseli joined VALOR Partners in May as an associate. Previously, he worked as a management consultant at Capgemini Invent and as an expert in financial crime prevention at Nordea Bank. As a consultant, Akseli is inspired to work with strategic business problems that have a real impact on clients’ competitive market position.

Our new analyst trainees Pekka and Ilari joined VALOR in May. Pekka has experience in digital assets, credit evaluation, due diligence, start-ups, and politics. Pekka likes to see financial and analytical matters in a larger societal and historical context, utilizing two of his major interests. He holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from Aalto University and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in finance. Ilari has experience of strategy work, business intelligence, and financial modeling. He is eager to combine his analytical skills with his human-centered attitude to bring value to clients. Ilari’s expertise lies in finding new perspectives and cooperation with various stakeholders.  In the fall, Ilari will continue his Industrial Engineering and Management master’s studies at Aalto University.

What do you hope to gain from your new position?

A: Developing my expertise in business and corporate strategy and becoming a better consultant day by day. In addition, connecting with the VALOR team and becoming a part of it myself is something I’m going to greatly enjoy in the coming weeks.

P: I hope to learn lots about various industries and to make practical use of the theoretical frameworks learnt at school. I’m also looking forward to getting to know the smart people of the VALOR team and many of our stakeholders.

I: I hope to provide value for VALOR’s clients. Meanwhile, I wish to learn as much as possible from the projects I will be working on and the colleagues I’m working with.

What has been the most rewarding part of your new job so far?

A: Very smart people! I’ve already learnt a lot, thanks to colleagues sharing their expertise with me in various topics and providing feedback.

P: Definitely taking a proper deep dive into a surprisingly fascinating industry I knew nothing about before but can call myself basically an expert on now. I guess that’s what makes the art of consulting such a great option for an eternally curious mind like mine.

I: I felt really welcome when I started. I was quickly onboarded to the team and felt like I could contribute from day one.

We are excited to announce three additions to our team.

Joni joined VALOR in March 2022. Joni has over a decade of experience in the banking and insurance industries. Most recently, he worked as an advisor to the Bank of Finland, where he led the work in understanding the impact of digitalization on the financial services landscape, such as changes in business models, value chains and the rise of financial technology companies.

Oskar joined VALOR in February 2022 as analyst trainee. He has previous experience from internships at MB Funds and CapMan, as well as the Faculty of Economics at Aalto. Next fall, Oskar will continue his studies at Aalto by starting his master’s degree.

Pyry joined VALOR in March 2022 as an analyst trainee after spending a university exchange semester in Vienna. Previously, he has worked as network development trainee for Neste. Pyry will continue his Industrial Engineering and Management master studies at Aalto University in autumn.

We asked our new team members to characterize VALOR and to tell us the most valuable advice they have received so far from their new colleagues.

How would you describe VALOR in three words?

Joni: Dynamic, driven and professional

Pyry: Inspirational, collaborative and efficient

Oskar: Agile, customer-oriented and motivated

What are your expectations for the spring of 2022?

Joni: I’m looking forward to getting to know our customers and all the people at VALOR, as well as getting involved in interesting projects.

Pyry: Helping our customers by making valuable contribution to our projects. In addition, I’m surrounded by clever minds so I’m really looking forward to learning by working with them.

Oskar: Definitely looking forward to learning a lot from my brilliant and experienced colleagues. I’m also hoping to develop my professional skills by working on a wide variety of challenging projects.

What has been the best advice or tip you have received from one of your new colleagues so far?

Joni: Take care of the customer relationship and the quality of work, the rest will follow.

Pyry: At VALOR, we are a united team solving business problems. Be active, communicate a lot and don’t hesitate to ask.

Oskar: Be curious and ask questions. Everyone at VALOR is happy to help you out and support your professional growth.