Nordic West Office

It’s an issue that I mainly see different people in the big work events I’ve been to this fall. I’ll pick three: Slush (which inspired this post), the largest gathering of start-up founders and investors in the world. The Helsinki Security Forum, which gathers politicians, civil servants, researchers and some business leaders to discuss security - from military to cyber to societal resilience. The Nordic Business Forum, which gathers a wider range of people from business, but in contrast to Slush, mainly from established ones. I learned lots from all three, and I got to meet friends and acquaintances at all three. However, I really cannot think of any overlap between these three crowds. Surely there must have been someone else who went to all three? (Ok, I know of perhaps two others). I get it, different lanes so different people, but if we want to solve larger challenges, this is a problem. Roughly, if there is a security related challenge, we need the infectious energy and ingenuity of Slush, the inspired business leadership acumen from NBF and technology agnostic problem analysis and end user views from Helsinki Security Forum attendees. Yes, certainly people that stereotypically would go to one of these three events can meet others in private (not taking the day or two to be at the events), but the worlds should collide more. Fortunately, I can say that this year the ideas from these ‘different worlds’ at least touched each other: one might say that NBF dipped its toes into the Helsinki Security Forum world by hosting a stage set on Geopolitics. Core SLUSH wasn’t defence focused, but dual-use companies (such as Distance Technologies and Iceye) were there and active; most dual-useish stuff seemed to be at side-events. Helsinki Security Forum included a panel on technologies for European security and competitiveness (collab between FIIA, Nokia and VTT), and one on “The Age of AI Agents: Implications for safety and security.” So, the topics are mixing more and more, now we just need the people to mix more and more. Finally, walking around SLUSH, I realized that one of the few places where people from these ‘different lanes' collide on a weekly daily basis is at Miltton, through events and especially in client work. I admit it’s been a revelation during the past eight months at Nordic West Office (largest owner is Miltton) to see how we can combine insights from all of these worlds, to the benefit of our clients. For those moving through these different worlds, perhaps we should meet more often? Perhaps we need another event, the “Slushcurity Business Jam”, where select participants from all three above events - and others- meet up at Miltton House to synthesise thoughts - to benefit all. Who is with me? Who else needs to be there?

🌐 The rapid global changes are increasingly challenging for companies — what do boardrooms need?   Anne Horttanainen (FVCA - Pääomasijoittajat), Charly Salonius-Pasternak (Nordic West Office), Inka Mero (Voima Ventures), and Klaus Ilmonen (Hannes Snellman) explore how dual-use companies must make positioning decisions that transcend business — they are geopolitical.   📰 Read the full article to understand how strategic positioning is shaping the future of businesses. Link in comments. 👇 💬 The conversation continues at our Slush warm-up event, “Growth Companies in the Defence Sector – Strategy & Tactics,” co-hosted with Nordic West Office, the Finnish Venture Capital Association, Pillsbury, and Digital Defence Ecosystem.   #PreSlush #HS_Defence

🧭 How to navigate the strategic markets of the defence sector? The wrong investor, the wrong market entry, the wrong partner – any of these can get you permanently locked out, as trust and alignment now determine the future of your company’s dual-use innovation.   Anne Horttanainen (FVCA - Pääomasijoittajat), Charly Salonius-Pasternak (Nordic West Office), Inka Mero (Voima Ventures), and Klaus Ilmonen (Hannes Snellman) break down how companies should navigate regional fragmentation while scaling globally in order to reach their full potential.    📰 Full insights in the article – link in comments. 👇   💬 The conversation continues at our Slush warm-up event, “Growth Companies in the Defence Sector – Strategy & Tactics,” co-hosted with Nordic West Office, the Finnish Venture Capital Association, Pillsbury, and Digital Defence Ecosystem.   #PreSlush #HS_Defence

Charly Salonius-Pasternak, CEO of Nordic West Office, dives deep into the shifting geopolitical landscape in his new book Tuntematon tulevaisuus (“The Unknown Future”). Read the full interview to learn: • What surprised Charly most in these conversations • What’s on the minds of Finnish and European CEOs • How scenario planning helps companies prepare for the unknown • What’s coming in the updated Global Scenarios Program (2026) Link in comments.

⏱️ The defence sector is not only demanding faster innovation, but it also requires a completely different playbook for companies that want to succeed in both commercial and defence markets. Anne Horttanainen (FVCA - Pääomasijoittajat), Charly Salonius-Pasternak (Nordic West Office), Inka Mero (Voima Ventures), and Klaus Ilmonen (Hannes Snellman) discuss why “move fast and break things” is not the best approach for dual-use tech – and share what approach should be adopted instead. 📰 Read our article to understand why success in defence & dual-use innovation requires both the right timing and the right product. Link in comments. 💬 The conversation continues at our Slush warm-up event, “Growth Companies in the Defence Sector – Strategy & Tactics,” co-hosted with Nordic West Office, the Finnish Venture Capital Association, Pillsbury, and Digital Defence Ecosystem. #PreSlush #HS_Defence

Autumn is in full swing at Nordic West Office! Our new team has had a lively start, with Charly Salonius-Pasternak now leading the office. So, what are Charly’s reflections after the first six months in the role? “It is hardly possible to imagine a more challenging and meaningful time to work with companies as they navigate this era of geopolitical uncertainty. Almost every conversation with business leaders touches on the reality that volatility is now expected. What has become apparent in 2025 is that the structures upholding international security and business have themselves become unstable. Colleagues who’ve been at Nordic West Office for longer say they can see a shift: management teams and boards are clearly more invested in understanding how geopolitics could impact their business, and demanding briefings and sessions that largely skip the theoretical in favor of addressing company specific strategic and operational questions. There’s a clear call to prepare – or at least increase resilience – for futures that one would rather not imagine. At the same time, scenarios reveal opportunities and potential upsides. We’ve tried to deliver on both fronts, to international as well as Finnish companies over the past six months. It has been fascinating to see how different companies from large international tech firms to smaller family-owned businesses use scenario-based strategic planning and think about building resilience. In this geopolitical environment, six months feels like six years – a kind of time travel. In any case, the team at Nordic West Office has spent that time – six months with me, more than six years in total – helping companies visualize the future: always serious about the work, but never too serious to lose curiosity and lightness along the way.”