Repe Harmanen, CEO, in the Financial Statements Release for 1 January–31 December 2025:
“I have now completed my first financial year as CEO of Netum. The year brought unpleasant surprises and disappointments, but also a significant number of positive changes and successes. As a whole, it was above all a year of change, during which we built capabilities for the future.
Revenue for the year, EUR 37.8 million, was in line with what we estimated to be possible in August. I am reasonably satisfied that we remained on track with the most probable scenario. Comparable EBITA of EUR 2.1 million (5.5%) was a defensive victory that also took several unpleasant decisions. I am still sorry that many Netum employees had to seek a new job outside the company. However, the company’s situation necessitated these measures, and they were taken at the right time. At the same time, we made sure that even difficult decisions were made humanely and responsibly, taking into account people’s different situations in life.
The most important external factors were the chronic stagnation of the Finnish economy and cuts to public finances. They are essential for the national economy, but they had a strong impact on us, as about 70% of our business is based on cooperation with the public sector.
Demand in the Finnish IT market remained weak during the year, and intensified price competition weighed on margins throughout the year. The same was reflected in us. The largest single factor was the transition of three very significant projects to continuity services and further development almost simultaneously at the beginning of the second half of the year. The successful completion of years of development work also meant that it proved extremely difficult to replace the turnover generated by them in this market.
By the end of the first half of the year, three significant large-scale projects were completed. It is not realistically possible to compensate for this effect in the market within six months. As a result, revenue for the fourth quarter decreased compared to the strong comparison period and amounted to EUR 8.9 million. We were able to partially fill the gap, but there is still work to be done. The comparable EBITA of EUR 0.3 million for the fourth quarter does not yet fully include the impact of the adjustment measures; their result will be more clearly visible in the second quarter of the year. However, sales developed very favourably during the remainder of the year and we secured more new deals in the fourth quarter than in the first half of the year in total. Our pricing and profitability improved significantly towards the end of the year, and this year continues this good development. The change from three significant projects and their strong impact on comparability is significant and affects the comparability of this year.
During the year, we made major changes to our organisation: we revised the Management Team, reorganised the sales team, rationalised our premises, streamlined our operations and started building One Netum. The aim of these changes was to 1) adapt to the changed situation and 2) lay the foundation for future growth. Looking at the sales pipeline, the market outlook is now better than before.
We have switched to reporting in line with international IFRS standards, thereby improving our comparability towards our shareholders. Most listed companies already report in accordance with IFRS, so the change makes it easier to interpret the state of companies.
The change in operating methods brought about by the completion of our significant customer projects has created new and more functional practices for us. I believe that the decisions we made will create an excellent basis for building a new One Netum. In line with our strategy, we are expanding our private sector customer base by leveraging our strong expertise in data, integration, artificial intelligence and complex systems. This year, we will focus on strengthening the foundation and improving predictability, maintaining a high level of quality in sales and customer work, and maintaining and developing the competence of our personnel. We are also investigating growth opportunities outside Finland.
The first half of the year still looks challenging, but there are no major structural changes in sight. The direction has been chosen and now we need patience and acumen to get things done. I believe we will continue to move towards new, inspiring adventures towards the end of the year.
I would like to thank all of our stakeholders, especially our customers and employees, for the discussions we have had during the year. Your openness has supported our work and made it possible to build One Netum. Let's move forward together!”