Jarkko Jussila

Since founding Ciriot, Jarkko has taken on leadership roles in digital service design, scaling a digital health startup toward a successful acquisition, and driving the international expansion of a renewable energy company.

Jarkko leads a team of Japan market experts with deep experience in traditional Japanese industries and strong C-level networks. The firm has supported numerous European corporations and SMEs in entering the Japanese market and forming strategic partnerships with Japanese companies. His company, Ciriot also has hands-on experience managing Japan market activities in EU-based and Japan-EU bilateral projects.

In addition to supporting foreign companies to enter Japan, Jarkko and his team assist Japanese corporations and SMEs with their domestic and international growth initiatives. Ciriot also identifies promising startups for investment by publicly listed Japanese companies. In addition, Ciriot collaborates with regional business accelerators and universities across Japan, often partnering on proof-of-concept (PoC) projects for market validation.

Ciriot has strong access to a wide range of industries in Japan, including materials and chemicals manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, medical and healthcare, fashion and textiles, food, cosmetics, circular economy, and digital/software services. The firm also supports market expansion for branded products and e-commerce platform strategies.

Since 2020, Jarkko has served as a member of the EU-Japan Business Round Table. In this capacity, he engages in direct dialogue with senior Japanese government officials and representatives from the European Commission.