Hanken Ambassadors

Philip Aminoff

Philip Aminoff is a family business entrepreneur, Chairman of Helvar Merca and Helctron, Deputy Chairman of Veho. Philip is also the Chairman of the Finnish Family Firms Association and President of the German-Finnish Chamber of Commerce. Philip graduated from Hanken in Helsinki in 1986 and was appointed as Alumnus of the Year in 2009.

Marjo Berglund

Marjo Berglund is Chief Financial Officer at the University of Helsinki. She has worked in many industries, including plumbing, furniture (Lundia Group), IT, real estate, smart cards, hotel and restaurant and book publishing. Responsible investing has been close to her heart for over 10 years, and she has served as chairman of the board and board member of Finsif - Finland's Suistainable Investment Forum. She has held board positions in 14 different companies and is currently the chairman of one and a member of three boards, as well as a member of the asset management council of Svenska folkskolans vänner r.f. Marjo graduated in the nineties from Hanken with a major in finance and a minor in accounting, and she is a member of Hanken's External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Kurt Björklund

Kurt Björklund graduated from Hanken in 1993 with a major in economics and a minor in financing and investment. After two years at the consulting company BCG in Stockholm, he applied to join an MBA programme at INSEAD in France. For the past 27 years, Kurt has worked within the same company, which today is Permira. First 12 years in London, New York and Stockholm and the last 15 years in London as the company's CEO. Kurt was appointed Alumnus of the Year at Hanken in 2023.

Ann Brännback

Ann Brännback is a Senior Portfolio Manager at the pension company Varma and has worked in asset management for over 20 years. She graduated from Hanken in 2002 with a major in finance. Ann enjoys working with ESG issues as well as board work in foundations. She has completed the CEFA exam at Hanken and has also acted as a mentor for a Hanken student. Ann is a member of the investment committee of the Hanken board.

Henrik Ehrnrooth

Henrik Ehrnrooth is the former President and CEO at KONE. Currently Henrik acts as Chair of the Board at UPM-Kymmene. Henrik graduated in 1994 from Hanken and was appointed as Alumnus of the Year in 2015. Henrik is the Chairman om Hanken's donation committee.

Simone Falck

Simone Falck is a master's student at Hanken with business management and organization as her major. During her studies, Simone has worked in the clothing industry. As a co-founder at Barfàl, Simone works with the operational tasks. Barfàl is a clothing and accessories store that sells timeless, durable products made in Finland. Barfàl's goal is to increase interest in supporting domestic and think more about sustainability when buying clothes and jewelry, therefore the products are ecological and of high quality. In February 2022, Simone became the second recipient of the Fazer Scholarship, which is awarded every two years to a student with good study results who actively work for gender equality, sustainable development, or other social issues.

Mikael Frisk

Mikael Frisk has a long history in Human Resources in companies such as Nokia and Fortum. Today he balances his time between board work and various hobbies. Mikael is Chairman of the Hanken Support Foundation and is also active on the boards of four companies, three of which he chairs. During his studies, Mikael was active in the student union, as member of the board, chairman of the delegation, member of the board of Niord and chairman, and member of the boards of SEFE and SEFEK. He graduated in 1987 and has since then in various ways tried to stay as close to Hanken as possible. Mikael is passionate about leadership issues and has also acted as a mentor and coach.

Kristian Gerkman

Kristian Gerkman is Investment Director at The Society of Swedish Literature in Finland. Kristian graduated from Hanken in 1997 and is the Head of the investment committee at Hanken. 

Nella Ginman-Tjeder

Nella Ginman-Tjeder is Managing Director of Eira hospital. Nella has extensive and broad experience within strategic and operational management, as well as board work within many different fields. Prior to her current position, Nella worked as the Nordic Managing Director for the Swiss photo company Ifolor. She has previously worked as Country Manager of American Express, Director of Marketing Communications at Finpro as well as several years within Sanoma Group. Nella is also a board member of Atria Plc and Viking Malt. Nella graduated from Hanken in 1983 and is a member in Hanken’s External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Carl Haglund

Carl Haglund is the CEO of Veritas. Before his current position he has worked as Managing Director at Accenture with a focus on the financial sector. On top of that Carl is the Chairman of the Board for Finnish Business and Policy Forum, EVA, and ETLA Economic Research.  He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the listed companies Aktia and Enersense and the insurance company Pohjantähti. For ten years, Carl was involved in politics as a Minister, Member of Parliament and Member of the European Parliament. Carl graduated from Hanken in 2007 and is a member of Hanken’s donation committee.

Mats Hansson

Mats Hansson is the Chief Strategist at Nordea Wealth Management Investments. Mats graduated from Hanken with his Master’s Degree in 1995 and completed his PhD in 1999. Mats has since then had several different positions at the Department of Finance in 1994-2010, latest Professor 1998-2010. Mats was also visiting research fellow at Dartmouth College, Tuck School of Business in 2000. Since 2010 Mats has had several expert- and foreman positions at Nordea Wealth Management, mainly within strategic and tactical allocation. Mats is a member of Hanken’s External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Eleonor Hedström

Eleonor Hedström works as Director, Next Business Lab at Wärtsilä. Eleonor worked at Wärtsilä for over 15 years and has experience within innovation and implementation of new business initiatives at Wärtsilä. In her current role, Eleonor actively works with finding new cooperation opportunities with start-ups, universities, and established companies within the ecosystem of the energy sector to develop future innovations for Wärtsilä Energy. Eleonor graduated from Hanken in Vaasa in 2013 and is a member of Hanken’s External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Max Heino

Max Heino is a master’s student at Hanken and studies Finance as his major. During his studies, Max has worked with Investment Banking, Management Consulting and Private Equity. As the co-founder of the second-hand web store Mjuk, Max works with promoting sustainable consumption. Mjuk’s unique business idea enables the sales of quality second-hand furniture in an effortless and modern way. Mjuk takes care of everything from pick-up, treatment and photographing of the furniture, to storing, marketing and customer service. In February 2020, Max was the first recipient of the Fazer Award, which is awarded every two years to a student who has demonstrated good academic performance and highlights or actively works on issues such as equality, sustainable development, openness and transparency, responsibility and respect for the environment, healthy lifestyles or socially responsible working methods. On top of that, Max is acts as a member of the board at Hankinvest, which aims at helping Hanken students in forming and reaching their career goals.

Roger Holm

Roger Holm is President Marine Power & Executive Vice President at Wärtsilä and a Member of the Board at Hanken since 2018. Roger graduated from Hanken in 1997 in Vasa.

Anna Häggblom

Anna Häggblom is the founder and chairman of the board of the interior design and construction company AVEO. Anna graduated in 2006 from Hanken and was appointed as Alumna of the Year in 2014.

Nina Ingves

Nina Ingves has a long background in education, business counselling and entrepreneurship education, today she works with these themes at Hanken Business Lab in Vaasa. Nina is also an entrepreneur herself with a business that focuses on the well-being of people and organisations through e.g., Business & Life coaching.  With one foot in entrepreneurship and the other in the education sector, Nina finds nourishment for curiosity and lifelong learning. Nina's strategic approach and problem-solving attitude are constant companions regardless of the project, workplace and role. Nina graduated in 2004 from Hanken in Vaasa and was named Alumna of the Year in 2016.

Ole Johansson

Ole Johansson is a member of the board at Konecranes Oyj Abp and chairman of the board at ParkMan. Ole is also treasurer The Society of Swedish Literature in Finland. Ole graduated from Hanken in 1973 and was appointed as Alumnus of the Year in 2010.

Picture: Janne Rentola/SLS

Henrik von Knorring

Henrik von Knorring is CEO of the Life Annuity Institution Hereditas Ltd. Henrik graduated from Hanken in 1988 and has since then worked within the finance industry, specifically within assent management, in Helsinki, Stockholm and Copenhagen. Henrik is a member of the investment committee of the Hanken board since 2019. 

Petri Kokko

Petri Kokko is the Managing Director Client Solutions, Central Europe at Google. Prior to his current role, he has held multiple director roles in Germany. Before moving to Germany, Petri worked as Global Director for Learning and Development in Mountain View, California. Petri graduated from Hanken in 2001 and is since November 2021 a member of Hanken’s International Advisory Board.

Staffan Kurtén

Staffan Kurtén is co-founder of HRM Partners (1993). The company that continuously developed professional services (B2B) within change leadership, career coaching and outplacement, grew quickly into a market leader position within its business-niche in Finland. Staffan worked as entrepreneur/CEO in the company for twelve years and after that as chairman of the board. In February 2020 the company was acquired by Hanken&SSE Executive Education where the operations continue under the HRM Partners brand. During this time, Staffan was also active as European Chairman and Global Chairman at Arbora Global Career Partners. Today he is a member of the board at Hanken&SSE. Before founding HRM Partners, Staffan worked among other things as a recruitment consultant at MPS in Finland and in the Nordics. Staffan graduated from Hanken in 1978.

Janne Larma

Janne Larma is CEO for eQ since 2011. Janne graduated from Hanken in 1989 and has since then worked in the finance field in Finland. Janne is a Member of the Board at Hanken and a member of the investment committee.

Monika Liikamaa

Monika Liikamaa is the Co-CEO and Co-Founder of rising European fintech star Enfuce. Monika is a disruptive force in the payments industry and an unrelenting champion for social inclusion and the imperative need to combat climate change. Since co-founding Enfuce in 2016, Monika and her Co-CEO and Co-Founder Denise Johansson have taken their bold notion of what a fintech could be and secured game-changing funding rounds for female founders, expanded Enfuce’s products and services year over year, secured key cross-vertical partnerships to expand the power and potential of embedded payments, and have built a robust and talented team comprised of some of the smartest people in the business. Monika graduated from Hanken with her EMBA degree in 2015 and is a member of Hanken’s External Stakeholder Advisory Board. 

Christian Liljeström

Christian Liljeström is Partner, Head of Management Consulting at KPMG Oy Ab, and has been a member of both KPMG's Board of Directors and Management Team since 2007. Christian graduated from Hanken in 1991 with a major in finance, and also has a master’s degree in industrial finance. Christian is a member of Hanken's External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Ib Löfgrén

Ib Löfgrén is Managing Director & Partner at BCG, where she has worked for over 15 years. Ib is responsible for BCG's Transformation and Post Merger Integration (PMI) teams in the Nordics. Ib graduated from Hanken with her master's degree in 2008 and is a member of Hanken's External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Carl Nyberg

Carl Nyberg is Executive Vice President at Neste Oyj with responsibility for renewable product production and sustainability issues. He has been a member of the Group's management team since 2019. During his 20-year career at Neste, Carl has worked both abroad and in Finland in areas such as trading, purchasing and sales. Carl graduated from Hanken in 2004 and is a member of Hanken's External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Kristina Pentti-von Walzel

Kristina Pentti-von Walzel graduated from Hanken in 2002 with a major in entrepreneurship. After her studies, Kristina has engaged with Hanken in fundraising campaigns and as a member of the donation committee. Kristina is a member of several boards and has since 2015 been CEO and Chairman of the Board at Laponie, a company she has founded.

Rasmus Roiha

Rasmus Roiha is the Managing Director of the Finnish Software and eBusiness Association with solid experience in digital business. Rasmus graduated with his bachelor’s degree in 2008 from Hanken in Helsinki and has completed his EMBA diploma in 2011. In 1998, Rasmus started his first software company that grew into an international operator in the 2000s. He has been a serial software entrepreneur ever since. Today, Rasmus leads the association of 700 software and business companies and is an active promoter and opinion-leader in the field. Rasmus is also a partner and chairman of the board at IWA Ltd, a software company he founded back in 2009.  Rasmus has been chosen as the Influencer of the Year/Top 100 Influencers in the Finnish ICT industry every years since 2012. Rasmus is a member of Hanken’s External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Kaj Rönnlund

Kaj Rönnlund is a board professional and investor. Kaj graduated from Hanken in Vaasa in 1987 where he studied International Marketing and Finance. Kaj was appointed Alum of the Year 2024, and is also a member of Hanken's External Stakeholder Advisory Board and a member of the Council of the Hanken Support Foundation.

Johan Sandell

Johan Sandell has a long and exciting career at IBM within the IT&Services sector. He has worked with Nordic and global tasks for over 25+ years within the group in many different countries. His latest position was Managing Director for IBM in Finland. Johan graduated with his Master’s degree from Hanken in 1981 and is the Chairman of the Board at Hanken&SSE.

Dag Sandås

Dag Sandås has a long experience in global technology companies. He is a business angel and seed investor in start-up and scale-up companies. Dag graduated from Hanken in 1984 and was appointed as Alumnus of the Year in 2012.

Heidi Schauman

Heidi Schauman is Head of Research at Danske Bank. Before her current position, Heidi was the Chief Economist at Swedbank in Finland and has a long career in Economic Analytics, both within the public and private sector. Heidi has a PhD in Economics from Hanken from 2006 along with her Master's Degree from 2003. Heidi is a Member of the Board at Helsinki Graduate School of Economics, a joint unit of Hanken School of Economics, Aalto University and the University of Helsinki. Heidi was appointed Alumna of the Year in 2021.

Kristian Schrey

Kristian Schrey graduated from Hanken in Vaasa in 2011 with a major in Strategic Marketing Management and a minor in International Trade. Today, Kristian works as CEO at Viexpo, a company that helps Finnish companies seek growth through export and internationalisation. Kristian is a member of Hanken's External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Catharina Stackelberg

Catharina Stackelberg is Senior Vice President på Knowit. Catharina also currently holds board positions in companies such as Purmo Group, Korjaamo Oyj, Royal Unibrew, Alma Media Corporation and Harvia. Catharina graduated in 1993 from Hanken and was appointed as Alumna of the Year in 2013.

Mikael Still

Mikael Still is a Naval Architect from Southampton College of Technology and Economist from Hanken in Vaasa. During his career, Mikael has worked at Time Manager, Envirovac, Sanitec, Wärtsilä, Nautor, Wereco, KPMG, Ahola Transport and Norlic. Since Mikael established his own consulting company, VisionWorks, he has become a serial-entrepreneur (Plommonet, RomiSystems, A-zeta, Nooga). Mikael is a member of half a dozen boards, lectures at Hanken&SSE Executive Education courses, and is a pround Hanken Ambassador and mentor at Hanken. Mikael graduated in 1985 and was appointed Alumnus of the Year in 2018.

Annika Sucksdorff

Annika Sucksdorff is Chairman of the Board of the family enterprise Oy Victor Ek Ab and Nordic Head of Film at Netflix. She graduated from Hanken in 2003 and was appointed Alumna of the Year in 2017.

Joel Sunabacka

Joel Sunabacka is CEO of LokalTapiola in Ostrobothnia and graduated from Hanken in Vaasa in 2014. Joel was appointed Alumnus of the Year 2022.

Johanna Söderström

Johanna is Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer at Tyson Foods. Johanna’s career spans over two decades helping multinationals develop innovative people solutions across the globe. Before her current role she served as Chief HR Officer at Dow Chemical. She is also a Board member at Neste. Johanna graduated from Hanken in 1997 and a member of Hanken’s International Advisory Board.

Lisa Theman

Lisa is a Master's student at Hanken specialising in accounting with a focus on sustainability reporting. During her time at Hanken, Lisa has founded Lensor, a company that combines innovative satellite data and AI technology to increase profitability and sustainability in the agricultural industry. As founder and CEO of Lensor, Lisa is actively working in four different markets, collaborating with both farmers and partner companies to promote sustainable development. With Lensor, Lisa aims to reduce carbon emissions and optimise resource use in the agricultural industry. Through Lensor, she aims to support global farmers with a climate-smart application that contributes to a more sustainable future. In February 2024, Lisa received the Fazer Award for her commitment and efforts in the field.

Henrik Tötterman

Henrik Tötterman has 20 years experience as an international leader. Nowadays, Henrik works with clients as the President of LEADX3M LLC. On top of that, Henrik holds lectures at Harvard Extension School and is Professor at Hult International Business School in Boston. Henrik graduated from Hanken in 2002 with his Master’s degree and received his PhD in 2008. Henrik is a member of the EMBA Advisory Board and Hanken's International Advisory Board.

Hanna Westman

Hanna Westman is Chief Economist at Financial Stability Authority, which is the bank resolution and deposit guarantee authority in Finland. Previously, Hanna has worked in banking regulation at Nordea and the Bank of Finland, as well as a management consultant at Capgemini. Hanna graduated from Hanken with her master’s degree in 1998 and with her doctoral degree in 2009. Hanna is a member of Hanken’s External Stakeholder Advisory Board. 

Fredrik Wildtgrube

Fredrik Wildtgrube is Senior Vice President for Alliances & Airlines Partnerships at Finnair. Before this he has built a career at for instance Nokia and Microsoft. Fredrik graduated from Hanken in 2005 and is a member of Hanken’s External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Christoph Vitzthum

Christoph Vitzthum graduated from Hanken in 1994. After a long career at Wärtsilä, Christoph became president and CEO of Fazer Group. He has engaged with Hanken in many ways, e.g as a member of the fundraising campaign committee and in his role as CEO for Fazer, who is part of Hanken’s partner programme. Christoph is currently the chair of the Board of Hanken. Christoph was appointed as Alumnus of the Year in 2009.

Veronica Vitzthum Lindholm

Veronica Vitzthum Lindholm graduated from Hanken in 1993. Her previous employers include Fazer, The Walt Disney Company, Mondelez. Her latest employer was Finnkino, where she was the CEO for Finland and the Baltics. Currently Veronica is CEO at Indoor Group Oy as well as a member of the board at Nokian Renkaat and foundation of the Swedish Theatre in Helsinki. Veronica was appointed as Alumna of the Year in 2011 and is also a member of Hanken’s External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Lotta Vuoristo

Lotta Vuoristo is Chief People Officer of Rovio Entertainment, a global gaming company known for its Angry Birds brand. Prior to joining Rovio in 2022, she held various transformational positions across other global companies. Lotta holds a doctorate degree from Hanken from 2017, and a master’s degree in Economics from Hanken from 2007. She is a member of Hanken’s External Stakeholder Advisory Board.

Maria Östergård Käld

Maria Östergård Käld graduated from Hanken in Vaasa in 2004 and has worked within the finance industry for over 20 years. Currently, Maria works as Senior Advisor for Localtapiola Asset Management Ltd. She has even had different positions of trust within foundations and associations. Maria has through the years been an active mentor for many students in the mentorship programme and is currently a member of Hanken’s donation committee.