Deep tech talent can be drawn to Finland by work they cannot do elsewhere

Finland does not need to be the world’s most attractive country for every highly skilled professional.

Finnish companies need to create some of the world’s most compelling opportunities for the particular specialists they need.

An international expert may not move to Finland because of Finland. But they may move here for work they cannot do elsewhere.

In a recent opinion piece (19.09.2026) in Helsingin Sanomat, Mikko Järveläinen rightly argued that Finland should not overestimate its appeal to international talent. Clean nature, safety and reliable public services are not enough on their own when competing with Amsterdam, Zürich, London and other international talent hubs.

We agree. But the work itself deserves more attention in this discussion.

Conclusion from our International Tech Talent Report 2025 on what can Finland offer.

Specialists choose more than a location

This is particularly clear in deep tech.

In quantum technology, space technology, biotechnology and new energy solutions, specialists are not simply choosing between cities. They are also choosing between technologies, research environments, teams and problems to solve.

For a quantum physicist, the deciding factor may be access to quantum infrastructure, opportunities to publish research or the chance to tackle problems that only a handful of organisations worldwide can offer. For a space engineer, it may be the opportunity to build technology that will actually reach orbit.

We have seen this in practice through our work with Finnish deep tech companies.

When competing globally for exceptionally scarce expertise, generic promises about innovation or Finnish quality of life are not enough. Companies need to answer a much more concrete question: what can I build, learn and change here?

Answering that question is central to employer branding in deep tech. For more on this topic, see “Employer branding for deep tech” in Communicate Magazine, featuring our Partner and Head of Employer Branding, Vivi Brooke’s opinion piece.

A reason to come and reasons to stay

None of this means that Finland’s appeal as a country is unimportant. Quite the opposite.

In our research among international technology professionals over the past few years, nearly 70% of respondents already living in Finland saw themselves still here in five years. Finland’s strengths, including quality of life, safety and work–life balance, may therefore be significant reasons to stay.

But we do not need to persuade every specialist to move to Finland for the rest of their life.

For a deep tech company, having the right person’s contribution for more than five years can coincide with a decisive period of growth, product development or international expansion.

Rather than asking only how to make everyone stay in Finland, we should also ask how to bring the right people here when their expertise is needed.

The national debate about attractiveness too often overlooks companies’ own ability to make opportunities in Finland exceptionally compelling to a global audience.

Talent is part of the investment decision

This matters for Finland’s investment ambitions, too.

If we want to attract research, product development and high-value investment alongside data centres, talent cannot be a question we address only after an investment decision. Access to talent is one of the conditions for that decision.

A company will not establish a major research or development centre in Finland unless it believes it can find and attract the people needed to build it.

The discussion about Finland’s competitiveness must therefore extend beyond capital, energy, research infrastructure and taxation. It must also address our ability to build companies and working environments that the world’s best specialists want to join.

Finland does not need to beat Amsterdam, London or Zürich in everyone’s eyes.

We need to give the right people a compelling reason to choose the opportunity here — and actively communicate those opportunities to them.

This article develops the argument presented in a response submitted to Helsingin Sanomat.

Read our recommendations for attracting and hiring international tech talent: