During a terrific eight years as the head of FRENDS Technology, a growing Finnish software company specialized in business process integration, Aino-Maija Fagerlund managed to both transform it from a business and organizational perspective and to shift its technology focus.

“One of the turning points was definitely in 2005, when I managed to convince our R&D department to build our own product on top of third-party technologies. It was a huge strategic decision for Frends”, explains Aino-Maija. Her decision to set this turning point led the business last year to a steady rise in customer and personnel satisfaction, and an overall growth of 50%, which is rather exceptional in the ICT field.

Aino-Maija is convinced that such examples can play a part in paving the way to entrepreneurship for other women, especially in a male-dominated sector such as ICT. Behind her success stands a clear vision of the qualities needed of an entrepreneur: “Before taking any steps towards becoming an entrepreneur, one must have an Idea and strong Belief in it, as well as a View of how it can be realized. Education and know-how will provide the required confidence – it’s very important that women acquire these qualifications.”

Besides her work as CEO for FRENDS Technology, Aino-Maija also serves as a board member of the Tekes Technology Program Fund, the main public funding organization for research, development and innovation in Finland, a responsibility which permits her to help other technological innovation-based businesses, as well as businesses led by other women

All these stories will be shared by Aino-Maija on September 29th, at our working breakfast in the European Parliament.