Simo Ratilainen appointed CEO of Ihmeitätekevä Ikoni – “Growth is best when it is profitable”

Simo Ratilainen takes the lead in Ikoni’s next stage of growth.

Simo Ratilainen has been appointed CEO of Ihmeitätekevä Ikoni Oy as of 1 October 2026. The company’s current CEO, Jarkko Kemppainen, will continue at Ikoni as COO. Ratilainen will focus on strengthening the company’s commercial operations and sales. He will also become a shareholder in the company.

Ratilainen’s expertise lies in commercial leadership, sales and profitable growth. Throughout his career, he has combined the development of commercial operations with a strong focus on results. He was particularly attracted by Ikoni’s strong technology expertise and the opportunity to help lead the company into its next stage of growth.

“Ikoni is a partner that connects technology with the customer’s business and turns it into tangible value. The opportunity to develop this further together with a skilled team was something I wanted to take on,” Ratilainen says.

Jarkko Kemppainen is one of Ikoni’s founders. According to him, the company has reached a strong position with its current team. Growth has so far relied largely on existing networks, customer relationships and opportunities generated through the HTGP Group. In the next phase, the company will take a more active approach to new customer acquisition and build a more systematic sales process.

“We have recognised for some time that the next step in growth requires stronger commercial capabilities. Now we want to make a clear investment in this area,” Kemppainen says.

Ratilainen’s previous experience is well aligned with Ikoni’s goals. In his view, good sales start with a clear understanding of three things: who you want to create value for, what problems you solve and why the customer should choose Ikoni.

“After that, you need a clear offering, active sales and shared metrics. Growth is best when it is profitable,” Ratilainen says.

For his first year, Ratilainen has set specific goals: a clear direction, a broader customer base and an effective commercial engine.

“My goal is also to make our strong technical expertise more clearly visible as value for the customer.”

“Simo focuses on the customers, I focus on the solutions.” According to Jarkko Kemppainen, their roles complement each other well.

Ratilainen and Kemppainen say they will work closely together. Ratilainen will focus especially on customers, sales and commercial leadership, while Kemppainen will be responsible for solution development, delivery and the company’s operations.

“Our roles complement each other well. My strengths are in technology, solutions and delivery, while Simo’s strengths are in commercial leadership and sales,” Kemppainen says.

Ihmeitätekevä Ikoni develops software and data platforms for customers’ business needs. The company is part of the HTGP Group and has offices in Helsinki and Oulu.