Sofigate grows into a EUR 100 million company with IT management services – now turnover is increased fivefold through business technology transformation
Sofigate, which specialises in business technology transformation, grew to a size of EUR 100 million in turnover in 2020. The next phase of the company’s growth strategy has now begun. By 2025, Sofigate wants to be a EUR 500 million company that combines continuous business development, change management and modern technology platforms. Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, former Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Nokia, will take over as the new growth accelerator and chairman of Sofigate’s board of directors.
Like many other companies, Sofigate lived through multiple different periods during 2020. The year started well, but there was a temporary slowdown due to the Covid-19 crisis as the company’s priority was to ensure its employees’ wellbeing. Towards the end of the year, demand started to accelerate sharply, with turnover reaching EUR 98 million. Sofigate now has a total of 600 employees in Finland, Sweden and Denmark.
Sofigate was founded as an IT service company in 2003, but over the years has evolved into an expert in business technology transformation.
One factor in accelerating the company’s growth has been the digital transformation of business operations. The company has responded to these needs with its own development curve. Another driver of growth has been the lack of a partner in the market that would combine transformation capabilities with modern, business-driven technology.
“Technology projects are change projects. If you underestimate the need for change management, things are bound to go badly. Things will also go wrong if the technological know-how isn’t in order. Customers don’t have time to look for experts in both areas – they want them in the same package. This is the niche we have successfully occupied,” says Sami Karkkila, who has been CEO of Sofigate since 2014.
Into a EUR 500 million company through consulting continuous business transformation
By 2025, Sofigate wants to have an annual turnover of EUR 500 million and to be the most modern business technology transformation company in the Nordic countries, combining the best technologies, people and change management models.
When Karkkila took over as CEO, the company’s turnover was EUR 20 million. In six years, the company has grown fivefold – and is aiming to do the same again. As Karkkila sees it, the traditional strategy consulting market has broken down, and the industry is now being dominated by consulting the continuous change in business operations.
“Business operations need the help of technology in changing. In technology projects, looking backwards and solving yesterday’s problems doesn’t help – it is vital to genuinely serve business needs. In turn, business leaders must stop getting bogged down with the formalities of steering groups and participate in the planning of projects,” Karkkila says.
An important part of business transformation is improving the efficiency of work and services through automation. Sofigate has been a pioneer in service management and service automation for ten years. This is why ServiceNow, the world’s leading business automation platform company, chose Sofigate as its best partner in Europe in 2020. Service management now accounts for half of the company’s turnover, and the centre of expertise is the largest in the Nordic countries.
In addition to commercial services, Sofigate and its customer companies have created a Business Technology Standard, an open-source management framework for the digitalisation of business operations. It has more than 10,000 users globally. The model is based on best management practices for large Nordic companies and organisations. It is maintained by a developer community that includes companies such as Kone, Saab, Neste and UPM.
Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo appointed as the new chair of the board
Growth to the next level requires a new vision for leadership. For this reason, Sofigate invited Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo to be the chair of its board of directors. He has extensive experience both in board work and in helping technology companies succeed internationally.
“In order to grow, we need to do better at two things: our recognition in Sweden is still too low, and we need to be able to build significantly better networks for business management in the Nordic countries as well. Against this backdrop, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo is just the right person to chair our board of directors,” says Karkkila.
Kallasvuo’s sees plenty of demand for Sofigate’s business idea.
“I chose Sofigate because I believe in the company’s growth story. Market and customer needs are undergoing a drastic transformation, and Sofigate is able to respond to this with its services. Sofigate is a clear pioneer in the market in the way it combines continuous business development, change management and the best technologies in the world, both in the Nordic countries and beyond,” says Kallasvuo.
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