We gained industry and business expertise to establish a new type of cooperation entity

Kasve supported the establishment of Kuopio Health by acting as project manager of the establishment project and as temporary CEO in close cooperation with the University of Eastern Finland. The cooperative enables the regional and national development of the health, well-being and nutrition sector by offering a new model of cooperation.

We were aiming for a truly new kind of cooperation

 Being interviewed Director of Planning and Development Soili Makkonen and Professor of Medical Physics Jukka Jurvelin, University of Eastern Finland

The idea to establish Kuopio Health came from companies in the area. The region has long traditions in the development of the health, wellness and nutrition sector, and the companies very strongly hoped for a new type of convening entity that would enable more competent, challenging and goal-oriented cooperation between different operators. The University of Eastern Finland, the city of Kuopio and The Regional Council of Pohjois-Savo, as well as Savonia University of Applied Sciences, set out to take the idea forward. We thought it was important to get companies involved in joint development at the very beginning of the project.

Our level of ambition only increased along the way, and we set out to found an organization that would enable the combination of expertise in a new way. We started a joint project, which the university began to manage, and we soon ended up tendering the project managership of the project. We realized that we are building a new kind of cooperation model, and we also wanted to see a new kind of thinking and active cooperation in the spirit of partnership from the supplier.

Kasve had been involved from the beginning in planning the whole from the point of view of a company member, and their offer was superior in the competition: Kasve knows the industry and its business field, they understand the business perspective and they have competent staff. Also based on previous cooperation, we had great faith in Kasve’s know-how and ability to cooperate.

Kasve became the practical implementer of the project, and took care of the tasks of the project manager: coordinating the project and founding the cooperative. In addition, Kasve’s expert served as the cooperative’s temporary CEO before the current CEO Aki Gröhn started his job.

Our cooperation was very good and conversational

We felt that Kasve also perfectly understood the client’s point of view and they had genuine enthusiasm for the project and its goals. The new form of cooperation we applied for required more discussion than usual, also in the direction of the financier. We were able to go through things by talking and we moved the big whole forward in cooperation. As a university, we were responsible for the whole and its financing, and from Kasve we got comprehensive know-how and good people to lead the project. In our opinion, Kasve also understood our goal of a new kind of cooperation better than the other participants in the competition.

We are satisfied that the cooperative was established. Now it is up to the cooperative and its operators to decide which direction the operation will take. We hope that the same ambition from the initial stage was preserved: that we always reach a little higher and that Kuopio’s know-how and recognition in the health, nutrition and well-being sector can be raised.

Aki’s comment about the initial situation

Being Interviewed CEO Aki Gröhn

I started my job in September 2019, half a year after the founding of the cooperative. At that time, the basic concept of the operation was ready and the long project behind. Kasve had secured funding to start the operation and outlined the business plan, as well as managed the operational activities of the cooperative: moving member affairs forward and doing marketing. I got my hands on a good package, on the basis of which it was easy to continue.

from Kasve, Elias was a board member of the cooperative in the first year of operation and a key person in the preparation of the strategy and the transfer of information. He has been a good sparring player, and is still an important and active member of the cooperative.

Kasve’s expertise is at a very good level

Kasve has a high level of expertise: they know things extensively and have an understanding of how an ecosystem like ours works. At the same time, Kasve has deep expertise in certain areas such as regulation and quality management of medical devices, as well as expertise in business development and financing. I find their services to be of high quality.

As a member of Kuopio Health, Kasve is very active and gives its own contribution to the development of the ecosystem. I see that Kasve as a whole serves us, our members and their development goals.

Kuopio Health

The Kuopio Health cooperative is a strong facilitator and coordinator that brings different actors to the same table. Kuopio Health sees that future successes will be created in ecosystems and believes in the power of cooperation: at the core of the cooperative are companies and their development. Kuopio Health currently has 30 members, of which 25 are companies. The cooperative’s goal is to be a national and international operator with members beyond Kuopio, and it belongs to European networks that open up opportunities for the cooperative’s members to internationalize.

Read more about Kuopio Health: https://kuopiohealth.fi/en/front-page/