Jorma Ollila
Executive Chairman
Jorma Ollila
Executive Chairman
Growing up in post-war western Finland, I was fascinated by the gleaming new industrial machinery dotting the rural farmland. It promised a new tomorrow that the whole country seemed to be rushing towards, my humble and oft-moving family included. The constants in my life, then as now, were a love for tennis, birds—and math.
Numbers opened much broader horizons. They revealed truths hidden behind all manner of fallacy. No matter how seemingly impenetrable a problem was, clear numbers let me grasp the situation and advance the right solution.
My penchant for math led to a passion for problem solving that significantly influenced my time at Nokia, including 14 years as CEO. Nokia was essentially my university for the advancement of innovation. I pushed a concerted effort to multiply R&D efforts in business units, while growing the Nokia Research Center into a communications technology powerhouse. Developing a world class patent portfolio was pivotal, especially after Nokia lost a major patent battle against then-key-competitor, Motorola.
My commitment to innovation has continued following my departure from Nokia. I served nine years as Chairman of Royal Dutch Shell, an innovation leader with a solid patent portfolio in the oil and gas industry, which is known for strengths other than innovation.
Today, my main interest lies with my Executive Chairman role with Xinova. Connecting large-scale industrial problems to a community of problem solvers is deeply gratifying. I also hold Board commitments and investments in numerous industrial companies and tech start-ups, respectively.
Once I’ve devoted appropriate attention to our eight grandchildren–a terrific source of joy– I still remain a keen ornithologist and avid tennis player.