Working with WISE has shown me that meaningful progress is never achieved alone. In today’s economy, competitive advantage is built through dynamic, interconnected networks of collaboration rather than by individual players acting alone. A business ecosystem forms, evolves and scales over time. From this perspective, I see the WISE journey unfolding in three phases: building the foundation and awareness, forming consortia and launching projects, and executing, completing and sustaining impact.
Phase 1: Building the Foundation and Awareness
For me, the first phase focused on building the foundation and raising awareness. Ecosystems are created for different purposes. Veturi is a leading company ecosystem programme in which companies commit to solving major future challenges while strengthening Finland’s competence, competitiveness and R&D investment.
A work package roadmap guides the ecosystem towards its shared goals. After the launch of WISE, our focus was on raising awareness of the opportunities to solve challenges together. A key measure of this phase was ecosystem growth.
- During its first two years, WISE grew to 250 members, including 87 partners.
- Over the past six months, growth has continued at a slower pace, mainly through new partners.
- This is a natural development as the ecosystem has moved into its second phase.
Build the foundation, form the consortia, and execute – with the ambition to turn shared actions into impact that outlasts funding and timelines.
Eleonor Hedström, Director Next Business Lab & WISE Ecosystem Lead
Phase 2: Forming Consortia and Launching Projects
The second phase centres on forming consortia and launching projects. This is where we have focused our energy during the past year and a half.
The Veturi ecosystem programme includes three development project categories supported by funding services:
- Co-innovation projects: Fund collaboration between research organisations and companies on joint initiatives.
- Co-research projects: Generate new knowledge that can support future business opportunities or co-innovation projects.
- Single-company projects: Enable Finnish companies to apply for concept development funding under the Veturi umbrella.
The key measure for this phase is the number of co-innovation projects. As WISE approaches its midpoint, Business Finland has approved three co-innovation projects, and seven more are in progress. Alongside these, we also have several approved co-research and Veturi own projects.
Phase 3: Executing, Completing and Sustaining Impact
The third phase covers execution, completion and wrap-up. In the final phase, WISE will focus on commercialisation, impact evaluation and sustaining the network beyond public funding.
The final key milestone in 2028 will be the Final Ecosystem Seminar, where project insights and technological developments will be shared with the public, research institutes and industry partners.
Veturi’s core purpose is to address global challenges and build thriving business ecosystems. Yet the wrap-up phase is rarely the end. Partners often build on the trust developed during the Veturi years to pursue new opportunities, such as:
- new funding focused on a specific theme;
- EU funding opportunities;
- long-term commercial alliances;
- spin-offs and new consortia.
Today, our focus is on progressing the co-innovation pipeline and delivering the Midpoint events. At the same time, as ecosystem lead, I am looking ahead to visualise the final phase and the opportunities it may create.
– Eleonor Hedström
Director Next Business Lab & WISE Ecosystem Lead