The professional services industry is broken, but a Finnish startup believes it has the fix.
Agileday just announced a massive €6.4 million Series A funding round to cure the operational headaches that plague consultancy firms worldwide. By using artificial intelligence to bridge the gap between sales and project delivery, the company aims to put people back at the heart of business. This capital injection marks a pivotal moment for the Helsinki-based team as they prepare to take their solution global.
A Major Vote of Confidence from Top Investors
Securing funding in the current economic climate is no small feat. It requires a solid product and a vision that investors can believe in. Agileday has successfully raised €6.4 million in a round led by Newion, a venture capital firm known for backing high-growth B2B software companies.
The investment round also saw strong participation from other key players.
- Specialist VC joined the fold, bringing their expertise in scaling tech startups.
- Vendep Capital continued their support, doubling down on their belief in Agileday’s potential.
- Business Finland provided R&D funding to further technical innovation.
This diverse group of backers signals strong market confidence. Newion, based in Amsterdam, typically focuses on business software companies that have the potential to dominate their specific niche. Their involvement suggests that Agileday is not just another tool but a platform capable of reshaping how service businesses operate.
The fresh capital will be used primarily for two things. First, the company plans to aggressively expand its footprint across Europe and enter the competitive North American market. Second, they will pour resources into product development to enhance their AI capabilities.
Agileday founders team standing together modern office Helsinki startup funding
Solving the Chaos of Professional Services
To understand why this funding matters, you have to look at the problem Agileday solves. If you have ever worked in a large consultancy or agency, you know the struggle. Sales teams sell projects that the delivery teams do not have the skills to handle. Meanwhile, talented employees sit on the “bench” waiting for work because no one knows they are available.
The founders of Agileday lived through this chaos personally.
Jaakko Hartikainen, Mikko Virtanen, Jaakko Hallavo, and Hannu Kärkkäinen previously worked together at Tieto, one of the largest IT services companies in the Nordics. They saw firsthand how difficult it was to scale operations without losing track of their most valuable asset: their people.
Traditional methods involve disjointed spreadsheets and clunky legacy software. These old systems create silos. Sales data sits in one place, while project management happens in another. Financial forecasts are often just guesses based on outdated information.
Agileday was born out of frustration with this status quo. The founders realized that professional services firms needed a single operating system that connected everything. They built a platform that brings transparency to the chaos. It allows firm leaders to see who is available, what skills they have and how that matches the sales pipeline in real time.
How the AI Platform Powers Growth
The core of Agileday’s offering is what the industry calls Professional Services Automation, or PSA. However, the company argues that traditional PSA tools are too focused on control and administration rather than enabling employees.
Agileday flips this model.
It positions itself between the CRM and financial systems.
This strategic placement allows the data to flow freely. When a salesperson adds a potential deal to the pipeline, the AI immediately analyzes the requirements. It then looks at the company’s talent pool to see who has the right skills and availability to take on the work.
Here is how the platform drives efficiency:
- Automated Matching: The AI suggests the best team for a project based on skills and personal interests.
- Real-Time Forecasting: Finance teams get an accurate view of future revenue based on actual resource allocation.
- Talent Visibility: Employees can showcase their unique skills and certifications, ensuring they get placed on projects that help them grow.
- Reduced Admin Work: Automation handles the boring data entry, allowing consultants to focus on client work.
By automating these complex logistical puzzles, companies can operate faster. They stop losing revenue due to poor planning and start winning more business because they know exactly what they can deliver.
Expanding to the US and Beyond
The timing for this expansion is critical. The professional services sector is undergoing a massive shift. As remote work becomes permanent and projects become more complex, firms can no longer rely on hallway conversations to manage staffing. They need digital tools that work regardless of where employees are located.
Agileday already serves over 70 customers. Their client list ranges from fast-growing boutique consultancies to large publicly listed enterprises.
The move into the US market represents a huge opportunity.
North America is home to the largest concentration of professional services firms in the world. However, it is also a highly competitive market with established players like Salesforce and Workday. Agileday is betting that its “human-centric” approach will differentiate it from these corporate giants.
The company plans to hire significantly to support this growth. They are looking for talent in sales, customer success and engineering. This expansion is not just about selling software. It is about exporting a Nordic leadership philosophy that values transparency and employee well-being.
Putting People Before Process
Technology is often accused of making work feel more robotic. Agileday claims to do the opposite. Their philosophy is that if you treat employees like interchangeable cogs in a machine, they will burn out and leave.
Jaakko Hartikainen, co-founder and co-CEO, emphasizes this mission.
He stated that by unifying data with people’s skills and interests, they help companies grow while “creating the work-life people deserve.” This is a powerful message in an industry known for high turnover and burnout.
When employees feel that their skills are being utilized correctly and their professional interests are considered during project staffing, engagement goes up. Happy consultants deliver better work for clients. Better work leads to more referrals and revenue. It is a virtuous cycle that Agileday aims to facilitate through its technology.
The platform encourages a transparent culture. Instead of decisions being made behind closed doors by resource managers, the process is visible. Consultants can see upcoming projects and express interest in them. This agency gives workers a sense of control over their careers.
In a world where talent retention is the number one challenge for service firms, this approach could be the winning formula. The €6.4 million investment suggests that the smart money agrees.
Agileday is not just building software. They are building a new standard for how modern companies should treat their most valuable resources.
As the company scales up its operations in Europe and North America, the industry will be watching closely. If they succeed, they could force the legacy giants to rethink how they build software for the service economy.
