NordHero: The Nordic startup challenging AWS cloud giants

A startup of less than 20 people from Jyväskylä in the heart of Finland is proving that size isn’t everything. NordHero, a group of guys specializing in AWS cloud services, is holding its ground against giants with 600 employees or more. Armed with expertise, agility, and Nordic values, they’re carving out their own niche as boldly as their name suggests.

A startup born of friendship

Their story began on a dark, rainy night back in 2007, NordHero founders Pekka Malmirae (CEO) and Janne Kuha (CTO) were driving home from a job in Helsinki, where they’d been building a project for their employer from the ground up – doing all those things that would technically go into creating a startup. “We were exhausted but inspired from having successfully made something from nothing,” Pekka recalls. “And that night we made a pact that one day, we’d start something of our own.” 

“So the idea was always there,” Janne adds. “But it took us 12 years to take the leap.”

With the launch of NordHero in late 2019, the two men faced an immediate challenge, the COVID outbreak. “I often joke with Pekka about what a great idea it was to launch a company just two months before a global pandemic,” Janne says. There first big gig was an in-person job in Helsinki, scheduled to start more or less on the day Finland went into lockdown. “They even closed the roads!” But more work gradually came in and the company eventually began to thrive, focusing first on their shared expertise before slowly building out the NordHero family of experts.

Despite its small size, NordHero has earned its seat at the big table, with AWS validating them as one of their data and analytics experts. “We’re the only company in Northern Europe with fewer than 600 people to hold this competency,” Janne says modestly.

So what’s their secret? 

They’re a team of seasoned professionals with an average of 17 years’ experience, and among them they hold nearly 50 technical AWS certificates and numerous accreditations. “Being small and agile is our strength,” Pekka explains. “We’re easy to work with and bring a high standard of expertise.” Their agility also allows them to partner with both startups and major enterprises, with the goal always of empowering in-house teams rather than replacing them. In fact, it turns out the ‘hero’ in the name is less about how they see themselves and more about their goal of making heroes of their customers. “We don’t just want to complete projects,” says Janne. “We want to build expertise from within.”

Nordic values at the core

If you ask what characterizes their business ethic, both say it’s the Nordic values and way of working. “We keep our promises and deliver,” says Pekka. “If something’s impossible, we’ll say so. But if we can do it, we’ll give it everything.”

This straightforward, can-do approach has earned them a stellar Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 95, far surpassing the Finnish IT sector average of around 40. The NordHero team was recently pitching to a major potential customer together with AWS representatives when their NPS score came up on a slide. Pekka mentioned that it was ‘quite good’ and was moving on to the next slide when an AWS guys stopped him, saying “Why are you so modest? That’s kind of extraordinary. And it is, considering that NPS is a third-party customer evaluation.

Data is the new oil

A typical NordHero project will be working with generative AI and data lakes. Data lakes are about bringing information together from different parts of the company, different systems, and different sources so that customers can make sense of it and benefit from it. “And that’s where the generative AI comes in,” says Pekka. “Because in today’s world, data is the new oil.” The team has worked on projects ranging from heart-rate analytics to processing real-time brainwaves, always aiming to turn data into actionable insights.

Happy birthday!

Today is NordHero’s fifth birthday. They even have cake. But can they still be considered a startup at aged five? They’re still growing and aim to have 20 employees by the end of 2025.

“I guess if you say you’re a startup, you’re a startup,” Pekka affirms. “It’s about the mentality.” 

Although Janne concedes that they’re reaching their limit. “Probably next year, we’ll have to start  being one of the big guys.” 

What are AWS Services?
Amazon Web Services (AWS) offers companies a range of cloud computing tools that make it easier for them to focus on their business goals without the need for expensive IT infrastructure. AWS tools help them:

• Store Data: securely save and access files in the cloud.
• Run Applications: host websites, apps, and online tools.
• Process Data: analyze large amounts of information quickly.
• Boost Security: protect systems from cyber threats.

Scale Easily: add more computing power as a business grows.