National Opera appoints a GD with a sharp eye for money matters

Päivi Kärkkäinen will take up new position in December

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On Thursday, the Board of the Foundation of the Finnish National Opera formally appointed Päivi Kärkkäinen as the new General Director of the Finnish National Opera.
      Kärkkäinen will resign from her present position as a programme director at the Finnish Broadcasting Company YLE in order to start her new work at the National Opera on December 1st.
      Sirkka Hämäläinen, the Chair of the Board of the Foundation of the Finnish National Opera, says that the next step is to find two suitable persons to work as the closest subordinates for the new General Director, namely the Artistic Director of the National Opera and the Artistic Director of the Finnish National Ballet.
      According to Hämäläinen, Päivi Kärkkäinen was chosen partly because she has considerable experience as a manager capable of pushing through changes, and as she is competent to manage the public image.
      ”At YLE she is famous for her strict management of finances”, notes Hämäläinen, in a none-too-veiled reference to the Opera's recent financial travails. Hämäläinen is herself the former governor of the Bank of Finland and was a Director of the European Central Bank until her retirement in 2003.
     
Päivi Kärkkäinen is only the second female director at the Finnish Opera. She nevertheless follows in ilustrious footsteps: the first was the Finnish soprano Aino Ackté, who was one of the founders of Kotimainen Ooppera, the predecessor to the Finnish National Opera.
      For the time being, Kärkkäinen is not willing to comment on her new job, while acknowledging that she is not an expert of opera.
      All the same, Kärkkäinen, 52, has all the credentials to be successful in her new post.
      The new General Director believes that she will manage the new job with the help of her usual methods: by looking into matters and by discussing with various groups.
      Kärkkäinen is not afraid of the lay-offs nor the savings involved in the strategic recovery plan of the Opera, as she has become used to making savings during her time at YLE.
     
Previously the Finnish National Opera did not have accurate budgets for each production, but from now on the role of such estimates is likely to take on greater importance.
      On Monday, Päivi Kärkkäinen was introduced to the personnel for the first time. After the meeting, all groups among the staff unanimously supported her appointment as the new General Director.
      This was doubtless a relief for all concerned, since in addition to financial woes, the establishment has suffered of late from rather inflamed relations between staff and management.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  General Music Director resigns from Finnish National Opera (15.2.2007)
  National Opera to reduce staff by 40; two-month layoff for all in summer 2007 (27.4.2006)
  Surprise candidate to lead Finnish National Opera (21.9.2007)
  General Director Erkki Korhonen resigns from Finnish National Opera (15.6.2007)
  Former Governor of Bank of Finland to head new Finnish National Opera Board (8.3.2007)

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