Pekka Ala-Pietilä appointed as Chair of Sitra’s Board of Directors

Sitra’s Supervisory Board confirmed the appointments of the members of the Board of Directors at its meeting on 25 November 2025. The new members will succeed Jorma Ollila, who is ending his term, President Tarja Halonen, and Susanna Huovinen, who moved from the Ministry of Finance to the position of Deputy Managing Director of the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities earlier in the autumn.

Pekka Ala-Pietilä, who has had a long career in technology companies, was elected as the Chairman of the Board. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sanoma and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the German software giant SAP SE. Ala-Pietilä has previously chaired the boards of Huhtamaki and Solidium, among others. He also served as Chairman of the European Commission’s high-level expert group on artificial intelligence. From 2017 to 2019, Ala-Pietilä was a member of Sitra’s international expert panel.

Ilona Lundström, Doctor of Administrative Sciences, will begin as a member of Sitra’s Board of Directors. She brings strong RDI (research, development, and innovation) expertise to Sitra’s Board. Ilona Lundström has two decades of experience working with state research and innovation policy. She has served, among other roles, as head of the Innovation and Business Funding Department at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, and as a director at Tekes. In addition to numerous board roles, Ilona Lundström currently holds the position of Executive in Residence at Aalto University.

The third new member of Sitra’s Board of Directors is Juha Majanen, Permanent State Secretary at the Ministry of Finance. He has held various positions at the Ministry of Finance since 2002, including Director of Administration and Development and Deputy Budget Director. Majanen holds a Master of Laws degree.

Continuing on Sitra’s Board are Minna Kivimäki, State Secretary for EU Affairs, Timo Jaatinen, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, Inka Mero, founder and CEO of the venture capital company Voima Ventures, and Keijo Hämäläinen, Rector of the University of Tampere. The two-year term begins on 1 January 2026. 

“Sitra’s Board of Directors will continue to have strong knowledge of innovation policy, the economy and society. The new composition creates excellent conditions for continuing Sitra’s renewed direction, which aims at Finland’s bold renewal, well-being and sustainable economic growth,” says Mika Lintilä, Member of Parliament (Centre Party), Chair of Sitra’s Supervisory Board. 

Sitra’s administration is the responsibility of the Supervisory Board, the Board of Directors, and the President of Sitra. According to the Sitra Act (717/1990), the Board of Directors is responsible for the administration of the Fund and the appropriate organisation of the Fund’s operations. The money for Sitra’s operations comes mainly from the investment markets. Sitra does not use tax money from the state budget.