On November 17th and 18th, I had the joy of returning to the House of Impact (HoI) in Helsinki once again. Each time I walk through its doors, I feel a kind of grounded optimism, a sense that this international community is not only growing but maturing, strengthening, and deepening its collective purpose. This time, however, something felt different: HoI now has its own wings. The community, the conversations, and the shared intentions all felt more aligned, more confident, and more ready to build what comes next.
Warming Into the Gathering — Sauna Night at Kyrö
My HoI journey began with a tradition that feels uniquely Finnish and deeply connective: a sauna night at Kyrö Sauna Bar. I reconnected with old friends, met new ones, and caught up on the current pulse of impact, what people are experimenting with, struggling through, or dreaming about.
One of the memorable conversations was with someone who had been employee number 38 at Airbnb and later hired over 300 people in a single year. Curious about how he navigated that scale, I asked him what question he asked in interviews. His answer stayed with me: “The first interviews were always 15 minutes. I only look for two things — brain and heart — because those are the things I can’t change. Everything else can be learned.” He explained how he varied the intensity of the conversation to see whether candidates could keep up — a way to sense their clarity of thinking. Then to measure the heart he would simply ask: “If you had the chance to go back and apologize who would you go to?” He said the response to this question almost every time gave him is tells him a strong sense whether someone has done their inner work.
A Soft Start — CSP Breakfast
The next morning began gently, with a breakfast hosted by the Center for Sustainable Finance and Private Wealth (CSP) — a House of Impact side event(!). It was a beautifully soft and grounded way to ease into a full day of learning and exchange. We went through an exercise in exploring multi-capitals framework. I find the newly published systems map co-created by a coalition of players, including CSP, particularly compelling. It captures the interconnections that matter, and it invites more systemic, long-view thinking into how capital, institutions, and individuals can act.
Panels, Conversations, and the Beauty of Real-World Examples
By noon, I moved to the House itself and joined the official opening. What followed were inspiring panels, but one stood out for me above all:
“Cherishing the Incomplete: With a Family Business, a Family Office, and a Family Foundation — How Blended Can You Be?”
This conversation struck a deep chord. The presenting family shared, with sincerity and transparency, how their family business, family office, and family foundation collaborate with an explicit intention to move toward systemic impact. What I appreciated most was that this wasn’t theory — it was full of real, concrete examples:
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How the foundation brought planetary boundaries into their investment decision-making
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How working in the steel transition space expanded the horizons of both the business and the investment arm
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How each entity’s role was clarified rather than blurred:
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the family business creates economic value,
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the investment arm allocates capital for the future, and
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the foundation directs resources to public good
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It was an honest look at how difficult — and how rewarding — intentional collaboration can be when you recognize that each part of the system has a unique contribution to make. It reminded me how important it is to cherish the incomplete, to remain open, iterative, and humble when working across structures that were not originally designed to align.
Reimagining Prosperity — The Helsinki Edition
In the afternoon, I facilitated the Helsinki version of the “Reimagining Prosperity” workshop, a space where participants explore alternative futures and question the assumptions that hold us inside outdated definitions of success. As always, the conversations were rich, imaginative, and grounded in a desire to shift not only what we do but how we think.
Closing Reflections
Leaving the House of Impact, I felt grateful, for the conversations, the courage, the community, and the co-creation that happens when people show up with sincerity and curiosity.
Congratulations to Risto, Adela, and the entire TIO team for their vision and dedication in bringing together such an inspiring group of people. HoI continues to be a place where ideas breathe, collaborations emerge, and systemic change feels not only possible but already underway.
