Ilves Representation elected Risto Niklas-Salminen, a well-known merchant in Tampere, as CEO.
11.4. 12: 03 • Updated 11.4. 12:08
Ilves Edustus Oy has elected a new CEO. New CEO Risto Niklas-Salminen will take up the post in October.
Niklas-Salminen, 56, is a well-known merchant in Tampere. He has almost 30 years of experience as a trader at Intersport Koskikeskus with his wife Hannele Niklas-Salmisen with. They have said they will stop as merchants.
Niklas-Salminen holds an eMBA degree and a specialist degree in business administration. In addition to this, he has held numerous positions of trust over the years.
Niklas-Salminen has played football for Ilves himself. Ilves’ career as a player began in 1977, which eventually led all the way to the Representative Team Election in the 1980s.
– I started playing in Ilves Futis-Liiga, from where I progressed through the age teams to the representative team. I was a goalkeeper and at that time the representative team also played Mika Malinen and Vesa Holli. They were so hard gamblers that I ended up as a bench warmer myself, Niklas-Salminen says in a press release.
His career and wife were found at the business school
In a way, a career and a wife were also found through football. After high school, Niklas-Salminen still had a place to study until he heard that the football team of Tampere School of Economics needed a goalkeeper. At the business school, he then met Hannel, the wife of his future wife and children.
Niklas-Salminen was the Chairman of the Board of Ilves Jalkapallo Oy for a few years. The new wash came as a bit of a surprise.
– The lynx has always been a passion for me. I am surprised that I have ended up in this role, but I am also happy that I have been given this opportunity, Niklas-Salminen says.
It is important for Niklas-Salminen to create a culture of doing things together and winning together in the organization.
– One of the biggest factors in success is a successful customer experience. The players play their part on the field, but together with the employees we have to create a good atmosphere in Ratina and later also in Tammela football stadium.
Ilves Edustus Oy was founded in 2012 and manages the men’s football team of Ilves at the highest league level in Finland in the Veikkausliiga. The company’s turnover in 2020 was about 1.3 million and the result has been profitable.