Hi Kia! Tell us about your role at Centi

My role at Centi combines client relations with helping our clients getting things done. I work closely with PE funds, their advisors and portfolio companies, running equity transactions across jurisdictions from kickoff to completion. The companies I work with span the Nordics, the UK and the US, so I'm often coordinating across all three during my workdays. Getting every document, signature and payment lined up on time across several transactions at once is the part I find most fun, especially when there's a lot to pull over the finish line.

Alongside my role in the Client Services team, I also work with marketing which may sound like a different job but really isn't. Blending the two means that I need to educate the market in addition to educating our existing clients. We’re introducing a new way of working, so making the messaging simple and clear is important.

What made you take the leap from Roschier?

It wasn’t an easy decision to move away from a role at a top tier law firm with clear career path and challenging work. However, the chance to run my own work and to help build something from scratch was hard to say no to. My role is broad, and I have real influence over how things get done, both in what I do day to day and in terms of Centi’s future. I get to shape my own role instead of stepping into a fixed one, and that was the deal breaker for me.

You supposedly love fashion, did years of law firm dress codes shape your style or make you rebel against it? What does the Kia uniform look like now?

Yes, I do, no hearsay in that. I think the law firm dress codes actually made me appreciate personal style more. And I have absolutely no hate towards law firm dress codes. Nothing beats a nicely tailored suit and a pair of good stilettos!

I wouldn't say I've completely rebelled against the law firm costume, though. I still love a polished look but rather mixing it with something unexpected and fun. My current uniform, at work at least, is probably a good pair of jeans or trousers, a basic top and some fun piece such as a funky bag, shoes or jewellery. However, sometimes I do love a good all-black outfit with big sunglasses, doing my best Victoria Beckham.

Even though I appreciate the lessons of learning how to dress for a board room, I am definitely more interested in what happens to my outfits when leaving it. So, to your question whether the dress codes shaped my style, I guess the law firm years didn't make me rebel but rather taught me where I like to bend the rules.

Isabel has already claimed "Tech(no) Enthusiast" on this blog. Make your case. Who takes the crown?

I definitely make a good competition like everyone here at Centi! My taste sits somewhere between house, tech-house and disco, basically anything with a good enough groove. I know my tracks and what genres I like, but I'm far more interested in how a track feels and whether it makes me dance. So Isabel can absolutely keep the techno crown. But I'll claim the crown for keeping the vibes and pulling 40k of two-step in one night.

As Centi's Finn, you handle our Finnish customers and, you have strong opinions on sauna. Let's do both. What does having a Finn on the team mean for our Finnish clients, and how often, how hot?

Having a Finn on the team means we get that Finnish clients tend to appreciate things that are straightforward, reliable and not complicated for the sake of it. Honestly, that's something I try to bring to every client relationship, whether they're in Finland, Sweden or the UK. Fewer bells and whistles, more getting things done. It just happens to come naturally when you're Finnish.

And the sauna? 80°C, and as often as possible. Sauna is one of those things where there's genuinely no such thing as too often!

Looking ahead, what are you most excited to work on at Centi over the next year?

Looking ahead, I'm excited about new cases and connecting with new deal teams, while taking care of my current clients and hearing what we can do even better to tailor the product to their case. I'm also looking forward to our broadening expansion into the US and UK, with lots of new things to grasp. Oh, and newest addition to the office is our onboarding bell, which we ring every time a new case goes live on the platform, so there's plenty ringing to look forward to!