MEDIA RELEASE HALLITUSPARTNERIT 2 NOV 2023
Brand ID was awarded the national Kultainen Nuija 2023 award for successful board operations – The board of directors is responsible for the company’s strategy and ensuring profitable ownership
– The board of directors is responsible for the company’s strategy and ensuring profitable ownership. The 2023 winner was found in Satakunta.
The Hallituspaikka event in Tampere, Finland, on November 1, 2023, focused on corporate board work. Alongside networking opportunities and speeches by board experts and companies, the event provided concrete examples of the importance of board work for the success of companies. At the end of the event, three companies that have achieved significant successes through their board work were invited to the stage. One of them was granted the Kultainen Nuija award.
Since 2011, Hallituspartnerit ry, in cooperation with its regional associations and partners, has annually awarded one Finnish SME for successful board operations. The success stories of the winning companies may vary, but they have one thing in common: success has been achieved through active board work and independent board members.
The 2023 winner Brand ID from Satakunta
The Kultainen Nuija 2023 finalists are very different companies, each recognised specialists in their respective fields. The competition was evenly matched.
The jury, consisting of Timo Ritakallio (chair) – OP Financial Group, Piia-Noora Kauppi – Odgers Berndtson, Miika Mäkitalo – HappyOrNot, and Riina Nevalainen – Kauppalehti, selected the top three companies, which included Brand ID from Pori, Pohjaset Oy from Tornio, and Tampereen Tiivisteteollisuus Oy from Tampere. Brand ID offers services related to industrial graphics, brand concept solutions, digital store solutions, and display and packaging products. Pohjaset Oy’s basic services include recycling process solutions, bioenergy solutions, industry logistics, and transport and terminal services. Tampereen Tiivisteteollisuus Oy from Tampere designs and supplies sealing solutions for all industries in the domestic and export markets.
The Kultainen Nuija award was given to Brand ID from Pori, owned by the Heljakka family. The award was presented by Miika Mäkitalo, member of the Kultainen Nuija jury and CEO of HappyOrNot Oy, together with Sami Somero, Chair of Hallituspartnerit ry.
The jury’s criteria for selecting the winner
The jury considered, among other things, the Board’s strategic work and how the Board supports the company’s management. A clear future plan and a strategy to achieve it were key. Brand ID’s Board had also introduced an important notion that decisions can only influence the future, so there is no point in dwelling on the past.
Brand ID has taken the bold decision to set up a manufacturing facility in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. The decision to expand to the US is one of the most significant decisions the company’s Board has taken in recent years; Brand ID decided to grow with its customers. Brand ID’s Board features a diverse range of skills and board members with different backgrounds. It includes both members involved in the operational activities of the company and independent members. The jury appreciated the fact that Brand ID has systematically sought out expertise from different fields for its Board. The competence and commitment to quality board work is reflected in the company’s day-to-day operations in many ways. The Board works according to clear annual plans and has created a structure for its meetings that supports decision-making. “Brand ID’s Board has a clear strategy, and all the processes required for good board work are in place,” says Timo Ritakallio, Chair of the Jury.
The board of directors plays an important role in the success of a company
Brand ID’s CEO Juha Heljakka was happy to be part of the Kultainen Nuija campaign: “I am particularly pleased that attention is being paid to board operations and that the importance of the board in the success and future of companies is recognised. The board’s job is to look after the company’s interests and future, and to support effective management.”
Juha Heljakka hopes that the work done by Hallituspartnerit will be a wake-up call, especially for those family businesses that only hold board meetings on paper. “Without genuine board work, the board does not really function at all. I bet there are still many such companies. I want to send a message that the board of directors must take a different role in the company than the executive management and remember that there is no substitute for the board’s work, even if the owners convene.”
According to Olli Kivelä, Chair of the Board at Brand ID, the Hallituspartnerit network does valuable work to increase the training and skills of board members and to promote the benefits that independent board members bring to companies. “It is important for SMEs to understand that ownership and board work are two different things. The board of directors is responsible for the company’s strategy and for ensuring profitable ownership and that the value of ownership increases. The Kultainen Nuija campaign focuses specifically on how well companies have made use of independent board members and their expertise – it is not a race between board members.”
According to Olli Kivelä, it is important to highlight the benefits and value of board members to SMEs and to raise the mental bar for everyone involved in board work. “We need to be able to add clear value to board meetings and to the success of the company.”
For more information, please contact:
Hallituspartnerit ry: Executive Director Mervi Sillanpää-Jaatinen, tel. +358 (0)500 233 342
BrandID Oy: Managing Director Juha Heljakka, tel. +358 (0)50 070 0105