Paula Ylisassi
Verified Expert in Product Management
Product Manager
Oulu, Finland
Toptal member since October 12, 2021
Paula is an experienced digital age leader, bridging businesses, customer centricity, marketing, and technology. With her visionary and at the same time, hands-on approach and attitude, she can successfully lead a range of business and development themes. Her most vital abilities are future strategy and vision, innovation and new product development, growth, strategic marketing, and branding as a product leader.
Project Highlights
Expertise
- Agile Leadership
- Brand Building
- Business Development
- Business Strategy
- Customer Experience Management
- Management Consulting
- Marketing Strategy
- Product Leadership
Work Experience
Board Member
Three Empty Cases Oy
- Acted as marketing and branding expert to build new business lines, GTM strategy, and rebranding.
- Built an actively revised strategy to access new revenue streams.
- Supported the operational management in finding the right business partners, recruitment, and leadership.
Entrepreneur
Licence to Lead Oy
- Worked as a change lead for a finance company in Finland.
- Operated as chief growth officer for a software company.
- Managed to operate as a single entrepreneur for four years.
Chair of Board
Rajobit
- Worked as an independent board member since 12/2021.
- Supported the company in creating and enabling growth.
- Advised the company on strategic focus and decision-making.
- Managed the CEO directly, including target setting and advisory.
Board Member
Seidat Oy
- Acted as a board member to support the company merger.
- Assisted the management team in developing marketing and sales strategies, as well as customer-driven product development.
- Supported the team in leadership and acted as an advisor.
Board Member
Taitonetti Oy
- Designed, facilitated, and crystallized the company vision and strategy until successful exit.
- Professionalized and established board work as an independent board member.
- Brought in digital business, marketing, international, customer experience, branding, and business development expertise.
CEO
BeiZ
- Supported in creating an inspiring and focused pitch deck and story for VCs.
- Assisted in fundraising activities and discussions with VCs.
- Helped to crystallize product positioning and communication for fundraising.
- Created and crystallized the vision, strategy, and roadmap.
- Applied Scrum ceremonies and product management processes. Implemented continuous improvement practices, as well as customer insight and data-driven development.
- Initiated user acquisition and marketing activities, growth establishment, and proven business-market fit.
Senior Specialist Product Management | Program Director | Business Development Manager
OP
- Led the company's Agile product management, Agile PM training and coaching, and Agile PM community. Created a PM playbook for OP from discovery to delivery. Co-designed and co-delivered courses in design and product thinking at the OP Academy.
- Headed the launch of a new online banking site, Op.fi, and was accountable for the market launch. Actively changed the program management into an Agile setup and work method with data-driven decision-making.
- Established the remote digital development unit for the OP with an Agile and customer-centric operating model. Acted as a member of the site management team and oversaw digital sales-related activities.
Manager
Accenture
- Acted as a management consultant for a digital channel customer dialogue strategy.
- Managed a team of two consultants and led the project delivery and execution.
- Managed customer relationships and participated actively in RFI/RFP and business architecture decisions.
Global Marketing Director
Sulake
- Managed Habbo's global marketing and brand strategies, processes, and tools. Operated a model for global versus local marketing setup.
- Developed marketing KPIs and ROI metrics for Habbo Hotel.
- Oversaw new product business development and user acquisition through a mobile social media application called Bobba.
Sales and Marketing Manager
Wrigley
- Oversaw profit and loss responsibility for Finland as a commercial entity, reporting to the regional vice president. Held country manager responsibility, including product portfolio optimization and sales development.
- Developed and implemented a new operating model for Finland as a satellite market in cooperation with the local distributor.
- Ran regional brand and product management for Airwaves, Hubba Bubba, and Juicy Fruit, including participating in Wrigley's global marketing team. Managed pan-Nordic projects and strategies as well as regional marketing budget responsibility.
International Account Manager
BBDO Worldwide
- Codeveloped an international post-production network for a global FMCG client.
- Oversaw an above-the-line advertising project and account management.
- Cocreated positioning and branding strategies and launch plans.
Project History
New Online Banking Portal Market Launch
Led the launch of op.fi, an online banking service with approximately ten million monthly active users.
Op.fi is the online banking website for the biggest bank in Finland. My mission was to launch a new online banking portal for general consumers. I also re-designed the governance and operating model for the project to enable Agile implementation and successfully prompt decision-making based on real-time information and data.
Large-scale System Renewal / Enterprise-level Transformation and Change Leadership
- >85% — Of total nr of employees trust that the transformation succeeds
- 95% — Of all affected employees trained
A major system renewal involving hundreds of users and multiple stakeholder groups required strong change leadership to build organizational readiness, commitment, and change capabilities alongside the technical implementation.
• Acting as a change lead.
• Integrating business objectives and technology implementation into a single, coherent whole.
• Developing organizational change capabilities and ensuring stakeholder commitment at all levels.
• Defining and implementing modern operating models, metrics, and follow-up practices.
• Executing targeted initiatives (communication, training, readiness assessments, change agent network) to strengthen change readiness.
• Collaborating closely with leadership to ensure ownership, momentum, and sustainable results.
Strategic objectives, business processes, and technological renewal advanced in alignment — on schedule, and with strong commitment throughout the organization.
Product Management: Current State Analysis
The scope of the project was to clarify and create visibility into the state of product management and provide recommendations for development and areas of improvement. The client was a construction business SME (digital offering).
• 1-2-1 interviews.
• Meetings with the client.
• Material survey (roadmaps, marketing materials, competitor analyses, strategy documents).
• Current state analysis on product leadership.
• Recommendation on next steps.
Analysis and report consisting of key findings, positives, development areas, and gaps, as well as recommendations for next steps on product leadership.
Education
Futures Research in Futures Research
Turku School of Economics of the University of Turku - Turku, Finland
Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Marketing
University of Oulu - Oulu, Finland
Certifications
Certified Chair of Board
Chamber of Commerce
Certified Board Member
Chamber of Commerce
Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO)
Scrum Alliance
Skills
Tools
MURAL, Confluence, Jira
Paradigms
Agile Product Management, B2C, Agile, Agile Project Management, Key Performance Metrics, Scrum
Industry Expertise
Financial Services, Consumer Products, Venture Capital
Other
Marketing Strategy, Product Ownership, Agile Program Management, Business Development, Management Consulting, Digital, Product Leadership, Brand Building, Business Strategy, Marketing, Digital Marketing, Customer Experience Management, Change Leadership, Agile Leadership, Public Speaking, Strategy, Product Management, Business to Consumer (B2C), Growth, Management, Brand Positioning, Consulting, Branding, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Market Research, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Business, Digital Product Management, Team Leadership, New Business Development, Customer Insights, Innovation, Startup Consulting, Web Analytics, Product Strategy, Go-to-market (GTM) Strategy, Go-to-market Plans, Stakeholder Management, Sales, Feature Prioritization, Market Research & Analysis, B2B, Fintech, Startups, Gaming, User Research, User Engagement, Website Traffic, Project Management, Web & Mobile Applications, Microsoft Teams, Microsoft PowerPoint, Google Meet, Brand Development, Global Operations, General Management, P&L Management, Sales Management, Strategic Partnerships, Leadership, Marketing Mix, Product Portfolio Manager, Brand Management, Localization, Marketing Communications (MarCom), Product Positioning, Advertising, Production, Boards, Vision Development, Product Launch, Product Vision, Product Roadmaps, Roadmaps, Backlog Management, Futures & Options, Operating Models, Product Marketing, Launch Strategy, Data, Research, Manufacturing Product Manager, Seed Fundraising, Pitch Decks, App Growth, Mobile Apps, Mobile User Acquisition, Business Operations, FMCG, Minimum Viable Product (MVP), Product Growth, Edtech Design, Team Mentoring, Software Implementation, Startup Funding, Fundraising, Social Media, Vendor Selection, Professional Development, Documentation, Coaching, Digital Transformation, Stakeholder Engagement, Digital Strategy, Digital Marketing Strategy, Communication, eCommerce, Brand Strategy, Entrepreneurship, Interim Management, Board of Directors, Corporate Governance
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