A strong start to the year: Our 2026 Kick‑Off at our Helsinki Office centered on one core insight: Understanding context, culture and communication isn’t a “soft skill”, but a strategic advantage. It’s the foundation of how we collaborate every day with our Nordic and Austrian partners and the lens through which we help companies navigate new opportunities.
What sounds simple becomes complex when we consider the message, the messenger, cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and context. This was perfectly highlighted by Daniel Stanzel during our networking event, sparking engaging discussions among participants.
With his strong background in cross-cultural communication, Daniel Stanzel, Partner at Kong Strategies shared valuable insights that were highly appreciated by our diverse audience.
Cosima Steiner, Austrian Commercial Counsellor at the Nordics, provided current insights into the economic and trade relations between Finland and Austria, along with upcoming activities for the year. Topics such as collaboration, optimism, creativity, startups, and industrial innovations were more than buzzwords—they reflected concrete developments and opportunities and were central to the conversations during the event.
In today’s global business environment, our participants agreed that successful long-term relationships are built on:
-Cultural understanding
-Shared ground for negotiation and insight-sharing
-Willingness to evolve
-Broad and active networking
-Trust
This is a good starting point to for building the year 2026 and beyond.
Thank you to everyone who joined us—and a special thanks to Daniel Stanzel!
