The current North American CEO, Ville Karkkolainen, will take the role of Chief Business Development Officer with Bladefence Group.
Ville Karkkolainen comments: “First, I’d like to thank our incredible staff for the journey so far. Without your uncompromising dedication and professionalism, we would not be here today.
It’s been an absolute privilege and honor to develop Bladefence over the past 11 years. First 6 years with our European organization and the past 5 years here in North America. As the first employee of the company, I feel a special connection with it and I’m happy to take on the role of Chief Business Development Officer with Bladefence Group.
During my time with the company, it has grown from an idea to a group of companies employing more than 100 professionals in two continents. We have just completed our ISO 9001 and ISO 45001 certifications and our North American organization is projected to grow by 50% during 2022. As we continue to see strong growth, I felt that this is the right time for me to focus on my strong suits in business development and pass the management responsibility on. With Joe’s extensive experience with wind energy and other top management positions, Bladefence North America is in good hands.
I will be working closely with Joe and Bladefence Group CEO Kimmo Kohtamäki to continue to build Bladefence as a market leading service provider.”
Bladefence Group CEO Kimmo Kohtamäki comments: “I’m excited to get Joe Baker onboard Bladefence North America. His experience and industry knowledge are a perfect match to our dynamic and growing company. Under Joe’s leadership, the operations both in USA and in Canada are looking to invest for expansion in this growing industry.
I want to thank Ville Karkkolainen for his great work in Bladefence, first in Europe and now in North America. And I’m sure that success continues as Ville takes the next step to Bladefence group level where he will continue to focus on our growth.
With these nominations, Bladefence companies are in the right path to becoming an industry leading service provider.”
Joe Baker comments: “My thanks to Kimmo Kohtamäki for the opportunity to lead the Bladefence North America team starting on May 1st and to build upon the strong foundation established here by Ville Karkkolainen and his staff since 2017. I’m very much looking forward to utilizing my wind energy experiences and other industry connections to exceed the performance expectations of the Bladefence Group and our customers. It’s a very exciting time to be in the Wind Energy service business in the USA and Canada and I can’t wait to get started.”
Joe Baker has hold multiple executive positions in industrial and wind energy companies, such as ABB and Acciona Wind Power. Most recently he has worked as a Regional Vice President with the G&W Electric Co. Joe holds a Master of Education from Boston College and B.A. from Gettysburg College.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/joebakerjr/
More information:
Kimmo Kohtamäki, CEO, Bladefence Group, kimmo.kohtamaki@bladefence.com
Joe Baker, President, Bladefence North America, joe.baker@bladefence.com
Ville Karkkolainen, Chief Business Development Officer, Bladefence Group, ville.karkkolainen@bladefence.com
