Last week, it was reported that the state agency wanted to boost Estonia's competitiveness internationally. Supervisory board members and other spokespeople did not wish to comment on the matter at that point, however.

Shortly before 6 p.m., Friday, EIS issued a press release, which noted in one brief sentence at the end of the statement that the supervisory council had "recalled Aare Järvan from the management board," adding that "this is part of restructuring-related changes."

Potentially due to the timing of the press release or the information being at the end of the document, the personnel change went unnoticed by the rest of the Estonian media.

Järvan had been a board member responsible for financial services at EIS since September 2022. He is a former long-serving finance ministry secretary general, and his previous roles have included being an economic advisor to Andrus Ansip and Taavi Rõivas, when they were prime ministers of Estonia.

Küppar, replacing Järvan, had been head of marketing and business development at Omniva for five years, and her CV includes marketing, development, and client roles at Swedbank and at Saku brewers. She will start her new role on September 1.

EIS management board chair Ursel Velve said that Küppar will bring reinforcement to EIS in building a strong client-oriented organization.

"Through a more client-centered approach, we want to offer companies the most relevant services according to their growth and development needs, and we believe that Mari-Liis is the right person to lead this process," Velve said.

The EIS management board will continue with Velve as chair, joined by board members Sigrid Harjo and Liina Vahtras.

The EIS supervisory board consists of nine members, including economic affairs and communications ministry deputy secretary general Sandra Särav, who is vice chair, and former long-term Eesti Energia board chair Hando Sutter.
EISA was formed from the merger of Enterprise Estonia (EAS) and the state loan agency Kredex, in early 2022.

Its activities are in line with the long-term strategic goals of the Estonian economy and with the aim of making Estonia one of the most competitive countries worldwide, the organization says on its website.

Velve: Major changes in EIS operations and management on the horizon

Velve later told ERR that the foundation is carrying out, in cooperation with the supervisory board, an analysis of its services, with more detailed reforms likely in place by the end of the year, with a focus mainly on supporting exports and exporters.

One factor is the imminent reduction of EU funds. "The organization is changing. Whereas previously the responsibilities of board members were rather divided among funds coming from the EU, now the client and the Estonian businessperson have been brought to the forefront. This means the entire reorganization of the board is also taking place in terms of profiles and people," Velve noted.

"How exactly the organization will start to change, this can really only be communicated in the coming months," she went on.

Another future focus would be attracting investments to the country, Velve added.

Velve could not put a figure on how many EIS jobs might be lost as a result of the restructuring, noting that the merger of the formerly separate components of the organization still is not complete.

Further personnel changes are still to come, however, she confirmed.

EIS is also talking to the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications on how to proceed given decision-making volumes for state budget programs and new grants will fall by 5 percent next year. The European Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) is also set to come to an end, though in its place more structural funds and CO2 quota funds are to be used, the EIS announced.

The agency forecasts for the new year both an increase in the volume of loans and guarantees issued and a rise of nearly 17 percent in the volume of grant disbursements.

Discussions are ongoing about possibly removing the residential renovation aspects of EIS activities, Velve said, though no decisions have been made and, in her view, the EIS could continue offering renovation subsidies.

Minister: Dwindling resources prompting us to look at ways to make EIS work more efficiently

Minister of Economic Affairs and Industry Erkki Keldo (Reform) said changes can indeed be expected at EIS, though the ministry does not intend to take additional units under its control.

The plan is to make EIS more efficient and to find ways to use resources better, Keldo said

"We must rather look, within the framework of decreasing resources, at how we can work even better. During the time of the previous director, nearly 60–70 employees were laid off, because operating expenses have a limit, and we must look and be efficient in deciding which things can be done and which cannot. We are not taking anything further under the ministry," Keldo said.

Keldo also confirmed that EU funds will continue to be allocated to EIS, though the focus will rather be on how to better support companies and the development of innovation.

"In this sense, at the Enterprise and Innovation Foundation there are different subsidies and measures. As an implementing body, the distribution of EU funds will definitely continue. That is not the question; the question is rather about the ways in which support gets offered to business. Support seems like just giving money, but we would move more towards financial instruments and assistance through advice or strength. On the other hand, it would also support engagement with innovation," the minister said.

"The distribution or allocation of European funds must also be done more efficiently than before, but there are also state budget funds, for example, support for research and development," he added.

Editor's note: This article was updated to include comments to ERR from Ursel Velve and from Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications Erkki Keldo.

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