We ‘Deep Dive’ with Kim Gunnelius, Managing Director, Finland, Verne, who tells us more about life inside and outside the office.
What would you describe as your most memorable achievement in the data centre industry?
Back in 2019 when I was at Ficolo (now the Finnish arm of Verne), we were shortlisted for the M&A of the Year category at the Data Economy Finvest Global Awards, for our acquisition of Fujitsu’s data centre in Helsinki. Even though we didn’t win, this recognition was a really memorable moment for me. We were up against companies many times larger than our own – including Digital Realty, who ultimately won for its acquisition of Interxion.
Being selected as a finalist felt like a validation of the work we were doing, and highlighted how even a smaller player can compete and stand out in the data centre industry. For us to be shortlisted alongside such companies was a great achievement.
What first made you think of a career in technology/data centres?
I started in the tech industry as a product engineer and then as a product manager. That was my area of expertise. In terms of my move to the data centre industry, I would say it wasn’t exactly planned. I knew some people were starting up a company and I was able to raise funds for that – I was excited to get on board with the start-up. This became Ficolo which then led to my current role at Verne. I’m glad the path led me to where I am, working in a dynamic and evolving field at a company that has had sustainable tech in mind long before it became a global priority.
What style of management philosophy do you employ in your current position?
My management philosophy is to empower people by giving them the space and responsibility they need to excel in their roles. I had a great manager myself when I was at Tellabs many years ago. They were very focused on people and helping them succeed so that’s definitely something I try to emulate. But when it comes to management, I don’t think it’s best to follow just one approach. I’ve picked up lots of different ideas from various management books, such as former GE CEO, Jack Welch’s, as well as the people I’ve worked with.
What do you think is the current hot talking point within the data centre space?
Availability of power is definitely top of the agenda. It’s such a hot topic in the data centre space that it’s even entered public consciousness, with some people protesting the building of new data centres altogether. This is more of an issue in metro locations, for example in countries like Ireland, where the data centre industry is vying for power from a rather limited power grid. It stands to reason that people are questioning how best to allocate limited energy resources, especially given ongoing global climate concerns. So, it’s no surprise that sustainability is also a hot topic in the data centre industry. Access to green power – such as hydroelectric and geothermal resources in Iceland, and wind in Finland – is an increasingly important consideration for data centre operators and end-users.
How do you deal with stress and unwind outside the office?
I lead a very active lifestyle outside of the office – so lots of different sports and boating too. If I’m really stressed, I’ll do some meditation.
What do you currently identify as the major areas of investment in your industry?
It’s got to be data centres for AI. The capacity requirements for AI are huge. There’s a lot of investment into building and designing data centres that can handle AI compute, but we also need to think about sustainability.
AI and Machine Learning are particularly energy-intensive, and that means higher carbon emissions. We need more investment in sustainable data centre solutions to ensure this focus on AI compute doesn’t adversely affect the environment.
One simple solution is to locate this energy-intensive compute in locations with ready access to renewable energy and temperate climates that allow free air cooling – for example, data centres in the Nordics. Most AI applications are not latency sensitive so this solution won’t negatively impact business. There are also cost savings associated with moving AI compute to locations like the Nordics because of increased energy efficiency and access to renewables.
What are the region-specific challenges you encounter in your role?
The main challenge in Finland is that it’s not a central location in the data centre market. It’s evolving into a regional hub, but it’s not quite there yet. There’s also the latency challenge, which can be important for certain industries. But in reality, only about 10% of applications are truly latency-sensitive.
So, the majority of applications can be located in Finland and other non-metro locations. As I said, AI is typically not latency-sensitive and that’s a big area of focus for many businesses across industries at the moment. There are also other benefits to Finland. For example, heat reuse is compulsory across the whole EU, but the local government here offers tax incentives for this, which really helps. It’s also easy to implement here because there are existing district heating grids which data centres can utilise.
What changes to your job role have you seen in the last year and how do you see these developing in the coming months?
Over the last year, my focus at Verne has been to help finalise the integration of all three of our locations – London, Iceland and Finland – so that operations are centralised, and everyone has access to the same systems. Now, with Ardian’s support, we are moving forward with our growth plans. That will be my main priority in the coming months – preparing for growth; both in terms of expanding the business and increasing our headcount. We’ve had a lot of new hires to the senior management team recently – including Matti Tella, our new Technical Director here in Finland. So, we’re already well on our way to where we want to be.
