The faster AI builds, the more important it becomes to know what is worth building.
I help business owners, executives, and boards clarify strategic direction, enter Nordic and European markets, and stress-test new service concepts using synthetic buyer personas and lightweight web prototypes before committing to heavy IT investments.
I am a business designer, Senior Lecturer at Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences, and executive advisor (M.Sc. Econ., Vocational Teacher). I have worked across digital business, internationalisation, and service design since 1999. I am not a software vendor or a traditional agency. I use AI agents and simulation to make business concepts visible, testable, and ready for informed decisions within weeks.
The most valuable conversations start without a sales pitch. Let us sit down for coffee in Helsinki or meet online. I will listen to your situation, help frame your strategic options, and tell you candidly how I would proceed in your shoes. If you do not need external support, I will tell you that openly as well.
- Senior Lecturer at Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences (service design, customer experience, and applied AI)
- Over 20 years of active committee service at the Helsinki Region Chamber of Commerce
- Member of the Council of Ethics in Advertising in Finland (MEN) since 2019
- Over 25 years of experience in digital business, international expansion, and executive coaching
When execution accelerates to hours, the greatest risk is building an efficient solution to the wrong problem.
When an AI agent can turn an idea into a working web service in minutes while human strategic reflection is still underway, a gap emerges between the speed of execution and the depth of human judgment.
Speed never fixes a poorly framed business problem. That is why my methodology combines two steps. First, we stress-test the value proposition, pricing, and buyer journey against synthetic buyer personas. Only when the concept survives critical scrutiny do we build a lightweight web prototype with real data to validate demand with actual customers.
Does AI Outpace Human Thinking?
“Defining the problem, weighing alternatives, making choices, and evaluating outcomes remain human responsibilities. When technical execution moves from idea to prototype in minutes, a flawed direction no longer slows down due to implementation friction — it scales just as fast as the right one.”
Read the article in Haaga-Helia eSignals Pro (2 Nov 2026, in Finnish) ↗See how synthetic buyer personas challenge a business concept
Select a scenario to see the friction points a synthetic buyer panel exposes before you commit capital to full development.
“Your presentation promises efficiency, but which budget line pays for this, and how do I see hard euro savings within six months without adding permanent IT overhead?”
“My team is already at full capacity. If onboarding requires two months of training and an ERP integration, this project will stall on day one.”
“Where is our customer data processed, and is it ever used to train external foundation models? Without clear EU data sovereignty, we cannot sign.”
Four situations where clients bring me to the table
I work with founders, CEOs, and boards when a company faces a significant strategic choice or market entry that requires objective evidence and rapid validation.
Concept Stress-Testing & Rapid AI Prototyping
When you have a new digital service or commercial concept on the table, we test its viability before you commit to a heavy software project. We model synthetic buyer personas, identify buyer friction, and build a working web prototype within weeks.
- Critical friction audit using synthetic buyer personas
- Clickable web prototype powered by real market data
- Clear executive recommendation to invest, pivot, or stop
Nordic & International Market Entry
International expansion succeeds when you select markets based on hard demand data and understand local buying committees. I help international companies enter Finland and the Nordics, and guide Finnish SMEs into European B2B markets.
- Evidence-based target market screening and selection
- Local buyer committee profiles and commercial positioning
- Actionable 90-day go-to-market execution roadmap
Executive, Owner & Board Sparring
When strategic options feel overwhelming, AI hype clouds judgment, or leadership teams pull in different directions, I serve as an independent sparring partner. I help separate symptoms from root causes and structure clear decisions.
- Structured decision matrix of options, risks, and returns
- Facilitated board or management team strategy workshop
- Pragmatic Human-in-the-Lead AI governance plan
Keynotes, Executive Lectures & Workshops
With over 20 years of speaking experience across Europe and Asia, I deliver keynotes and workshops that challenge audiences to think critically about AI agents, synthetic customers, and commercial strategy.
- Tailored keynote address grounded in current research
- Hands-on workshop for leadership or commercial teams
- Practical frameworks for combining AI speed with human judgment
How I work as a trusted advisor
Good advisory work rests on trust, candour, and placing the client’s long-term interest ahead of selling extra billable hours.
Listen First
I never walk into a meeting with a pre-packaged slide deck. A company’s real bottleneck may lie in market selection, pricing, channel conflict, or leadership overload. We always begin by understanding your context.
Frame the Options
Together we map out the realistic paths forward, including their commercial upside, costs, and risks. I respectfully challenge assumptions that do not hold up against market data.
Give a Candid Recommendation
Merely listing options does not help a busy executive. I always give you my honest, reasoned recommendation on what I would do in your position and where I would start.
You Own the Decision
You lead your company and choose the direction. If we decide to work together after our initial conversation, we agree on clear objectives and a fixed or day-based scope upfront.
Own Venture Lab
To teach and advise on AI-era service design credibly, I wanted to test how far a business designer can go in building live web platforms with AI agents and open data.
Why I build and operate live platforms
Operated under Pelkosen Koneisto Oy, these Finnish consumer and B2B platforms serve as my living laboratory. They test how open public statistics, synthetic user testing, 90-second decision calculators, and AI search discoverability perform in a real market.
A hard-earned lesson in AI trust
In August 2026, while fixing a technical bug on one of our sites, an autonomous coding agent invented an unauthorised 50% discount campaign and fictional partner companies on its own. That experience proved why strict human oversight and verified data boundaries are non-negotiable.
Muuttokettu (muuttokettu.fi)
A Finnish relocation decision-support platform combining Statistics Finland neighbourhood data, volume calculators, and verified moving companies without hidden fees or forced telemarketing traps.
Independent calculator for household finances, interest rates, and true credit costs.
Decision tool for Nordic tyres, braking distances, and local tyre services.
Plain-language comparison of electricity contracts, margins, and spot-price impacts.
Directory and yield calculator for second-hand markets and circular economy shops across Finland.
From the Viipuri machine shop and 1990s recession lessons to the digital forge
The name Pelkosen Paja (“Pelkonen’s Forge”) and our anvil emblem come directly from our family’s century-long engineering heritage. Having experienced industrial growth, wartime evacuation, and the painful lessons of Finland’s 1990s recession, we never sell empty consulting hype or risk-free illusions.
Viipuri 1896 & 1901 – Antti Pelkonen and the birth of the workshop
In March 1896, craftsman Antti Pelkonen received a permit from the Viipuri city magistrate to operate a sheet-metal and trading workshop. In 1901 he established A. Pelkosen Pelti- ja Rautasepänliike ja Ajokalupaja, which grew into a well-known Viipuri engineering workshop.
Wartime evacuation, wood-gas generators & Soteva 1939–1952 – Urho Pelkonen
During World War II, the workshop evacuated from Viipuri to Kouvola. Throughout the war years it manufactured wood-gas generators (“häkäpöntöt”) for vehicles, and after peace returned it built industrial deliverables for Soteva as part of Finland’s war reparations. Under engineer Urho Pelkonen, the company was incorporated in 1947 as A. Pelkonen Konepaja Oy.
Special steels & the hard lessons of the 1990s recession – Heikki Pelkonen
In Kuusankoski and Kouvola, the company grew into a demanding specialist supplier for the pulp, paper, and heavy engineering industries, working with stainless steel, acid-proof alloys, and aluminium. Under my father Heikki Pelkonen as Managing Director, the firm boldly explored new frontiers including underwater welding, until industrial restructuring and Finland’s severe early-1990s depression led to bankruptcy. That experience taught a permanent lesson about real business risk and responsibility.
The digital workshop 1999–2026 – Tommi Pelkonen
Pelkosen Paja continues this family tradition in the digital era. The same craftsman’s curiosity and pragmatism now guide how we stress-test business concepts upfront and put modern AI tools to work under human judgment.
Academic Work & Research
I hold a Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration (M.Sc. Econ.) from the Helsinki School of Economics (now Aalto University) and a professional teacher qualification (AmO). My primary role is Senior Lecturer at Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences.
I teach and research service design, customer experience, digital commerce, and applied AI. Over two decades of committee work at the Helsinki Region Chamber of Commerce and membership in the Council of Ethics in Advertising keep my work grounded in practical business governance.
Selected Publications (1998–2026)
Does AI Outpace Human Thinking? (Haaga-Helia eSignals Pro, 2026)
Research article on supervising agentic workflows, Human-in-the-Lead accountability, and the gap between execution speed and strategic reflection.
State of Commercialisation & International B2B Sales (2019–2026)
Studies on Finnish SME internationalisation, buyer personas, distribution channels, and digital go-to-market models.
New Media Industry Roles & Internationalisation (LTT Research, 1999)
Early academic research at the Helsinki School of Economics examining the structure and competence needs of Finland’s emerging digital service sector.
Digital Learning Material Production in Finland (Sitra Report 193, 1998)
Sitra research report on digital publishing and business models during the first wave of the commercial internet.
What colleagues and clients say
Selected LinkedIn recommendations from international clients, partners, and colleagues over the years.
“Tommi doesn't just process information at an amazing pace — he literally inhales business information, and exhales strategic insights. Finding the relevant angles easily and instantly, he can turn complex insights into actionable plans at once.”
“Tommi has an uncanny ability that's key in change leadership: to imagine possible futures and how to shape them. During our time at Proof Advisory, Tommi received excellent feedback from our clients for his thorough analysis and ability to drive needed change.”
“Tommi is a passionate change maker and commercialisation expert. His ability to crunch big amounts of information and data to most relevant drivers to develop business during changing landscapes, is phenomenal. He is a go-to-market guru.”
“I worked with Tommi in the Netherlands, primarily in Amsterdam and Maastricht with high profile clients like Vodafone. His enthusiasm when working with people, creating new ideas and solving problems is infectious. He is a great communicator and a pleasure to work with.”
“Tommi is a great guy to work with. His knowledge about eBusiness is very accurate and holistic. He outperformed in about all the projects I did with him. He combines vision and commercial attitude with in-depth knowledge of internet business. A combination which is rare.”
“I was learning all the time from Tommi. He is a source of information, a social connector and one of the top experts on the Digital Media industry in Finland. He coached me many times and still does.”
“I miss working with Tommi for multiple reasons: it was relaxing, because he was such a professional and ran the show. Everyone on board were relieved. He was deeply humane, never looked down on anyone. And he had a kind heart with a great laugh.”
”Tommilla on ilmiömäinen kyky jäsentää valtavista tietomääristä kirkkaita oivalluksia. Hän on kaupallistamisen ja kansainvälistymisen huippuasiantuntija, jolle ihmislähtöisyys on tärkeää. Kollegana Tommi on inspiroiva, avoin, auttavainen, kannustava ja empaattinen.”
Shall we sit down for a conversation?
If you are weighing a new service concept, planning a Nordic or European market entry, or looking for an executive speaker, send me a note.
Let us meet over coffee in Helsinki or connect online to discuss your situation calmly and see what makes the most sense next.
Send a direct message
I reply personally, usually within the same or next business day.