Finance Monthly CFO Awards 2017 Winners Edition

About Timo Pirskanen Timo is CFO and Deputy to the CEO of the Kotipizza Group, having joined them in early 2015 to take the company public and harmonize its accounting practices. “I was drawn to the Kotipizza Group by our mission that emphasizes responsibility. I bring it to life in my work, whether by communicating openly, ensuring compliance with regulation or eating our MSC- certified pizza.” From the start, Timo has strengthened the Kotipizza Group’s IR profile. In 2016, it was recognized as the best small listed company in Nasdaq OMX Helsinki by Sijoitus Invest. On Timo’s watch, the Group has boasted outstanding year-on-year year growth, profitability and share price development. Recently, Timo navigated an unprecedented accelerated book building process in which 63 % of the Kotipizza Group was sold in a single transaction. This raised significant interest in the market, and the company’s foreign ownership jumped from virtually nil to over 40 %, being currently 47 %. “For 28 subsequent months, the Kotipizza Group has seen double-digit growth. Next, we plan to increase the number of restaurants in existing chains, launch wholly new restaurant concepts and explore opportunities for M&A to support sustainable, robust growth. In the fast casual industry, we are dependent on customer preferences and market trends. This makes my job exciting: the need, as well as power, to make major decisions intuitively yet knowledgeably in ever-changing circumstances.” Financial leadership of tomorrow Timo takes a holistic approach to his work. At Kotipizza Group, he oversees not only accounting, financing, treasury and cash management, but also tax and legal matters, corporate governance and M&A, as well as major HR and IT initiatives. “A good CFO not only manages the day-to-day financial affairs of a company, but also contributes to overall strategic decision-making. This requires a deep understanding of all aspects of the business, including its strengths and pitfalls. Increasingly, CFOs must look beyond past numbers into the future and find the right tools for other functions to use. There can be no successful CEO without a good CFO.” Prior to his current role, Timo acted as Senior Vice President, IR at Rautaruukki Oyj, where he turned challenging IR performance around and restored fair valuation. For this, Timo was awarded the best Nordic IRO prize in the Nordic Markets 2013 study. Timo has a background in investment banking, venture capital advisory and auditing. He has previously worked in senior positions at e.g. Deutsche Bank and D. Carnegie AB, also in international settings. Timo holds a Master of Science degree in Economics, law and accounting from the Helsinki School of Business Administration. Pedantic yet creative, Timo is highly appreciated by his peers. During his career, he has developed a multidisciplinary vision of the financial landscape of a company. With this insight, he builds bridges between stakeholders and promotes financial leadership of tomorrow. Firm Profile Kotipizza Group specializes in franchising in the fast casual market. Its mission is to make the world a better place one pizza at a time. The Group’s flagship business Kotipizza, the largest pizza chain in the Nordics, was established in 1987. In recent years, the chain has been modernized successfully while generating strong growth. Today, the Group develops innovative new concepts, brands and products that embrace global food trends. In this, its teams draw on expertise in customer experience, digital solutions and marketing. Their newest creation is the Mexican-style restaurant chain Chalupa. Goods used in Kotipizza and Chalupa restaurants are sourced by Helsinki Foodstock, the Group’s supply and logistics arm. This makes the chains’ operations agile, cost- efficient and transparent. The Kotipizza Group’s success shows that responsible business is also good business. In 2016, its net sales rose to 66.6 MEUR with a comparable EBITDA of 6.73 MEUR. In the same year, the Kotipizza chain boasted net sales of 89.9 MEUR. Kotipizza Group is listed in the Nasdaq OMX Helsinki’s main list. The Group employs 47 people, alongside 300 franchisees and 1650 staff running the restaurants. CFO and Deputy to the CEO at Kotipizza Group Timo Pirskanen FINLAND Finance Monthly CFO Awards 2017 16 www.finance-monthly.com