January 29, 2025 by Naomi Moriyama

I met Ulla Maaria Koivula at “House by an Architect: Human–nature relationships”, a project dedicated to praising wood architecture, interior design for small spaces and contemporary art, one of the exhibitions at the 2022 Fiskars Village Art & Design Biennale. The show concept resonated with me and I went to see the buildings. Ulla-Maaria was a visionary producer of the UFO Mini-house, one of the architectures presented (and available for sleep-over and/or purchases). Over time, I’ve learned that she is a mega-successful serial IT entrepreneur of ventures including ThingLink and Field Studies Project. Thinking of leaders to interview and gain insights for Nikkei BP XWoman, Ulla-Maaria was a top candidate. I am super grateful that she accepted my request/invitation and spoke with me at length about her brilliant leadership, management, venture-building strategies and tactics. I had many “Ah Ha!” moments listening to her. I hope you find the article valuable.

「子を持つならCEOは別の人に」男性にも言う？ 3社経営の起業家

6社を起業し、現在3社を経営、3児の母でもある――。フィンランドの女性連続起業家が大切にしていることとは？

フィンランドと米国でIT（情報技術）企業や建築企業など、3社の経営を担うウラ・マアリア・コイヴラさんに、フィンランド在住の文筆家、森山奈保美さんがインタビューしました。