Ollila, Jorma Jaakko (1950– )

Finnish business executive, who transformed Nokia into one of the world's leading manufacturers of mobile phones. In 2000 Ollila was reported to be Finland's highest paid executive, earning $12.6 million.

Ollila joined Nokia in 1985, holding a series of senior management positions, including running the group's loss-making mobile phone division, before he was appointed group chief executive in 1992. Nokia at that time was a conglomerate, its activities encompassing rubber, paper, and, latterly, electronics. Ollila decided to focus the company activity on telecommunications, with the main emphasis on cellular technology, and to divest its non-core operations. Nokia was the first manufacturer to launch mobile phones for all major digital systems in 1994. By 2000 it was selling nearly 130 million mobile phones and had taken 32% of global market share. That year Ollila formed an alliance with competitors US Motorola and Swedish Ericsson to allow safe credit card payments over mobile phones, and launched a $500 million fund to invest in start-ups creating the technology for the mobile Internet.

Ollila was born in Seinajoki. He received a master's degree in political science from the University of Helsinki in 1976, a master's in economics from the London School of Economics in 1978, and a master of science degree in engineering from the Helsinki University of Technology in 1981.

He started his career at Citibank in London as an account manager in 1978–80, and then transferred to Citibank Helsinki in 1980–82, becoming a director in 1983.

Ollila was awarded a PhD in Political Science by the University of Helsinki in 1995 and a DSc in technology by the Helsinki University of Technology in 1998. He is a director of Ford Motor Company, UPM-Kymme and NKF Holding NV, and a member of the European Round Table of Industrialists and the Confederation of Finnish Industry and Employers.