Certia

What Certia does

Certia Oy is a Finnish limited company (osakeyhtiö) that provides outsourced financial management, HR, payroll, travel management, system, and automation services exclusively to Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences. Incorporated in 2010 after operating as a state agency from 2008, Certia is uniquely structured as a customer-owned shared services organization: its 11 university and 4 university-of-applied-science customers are simultaneously its shareholders, aligning the company's roadmap with the operational priorities of Finnish higher education and research institutions.

The company's core technology stack is built on SAP for financial management (including SAP Analytics Cloud for BI and a migration toward SAP Datasphere / SAP Business Data Cloud) and Mepco Pro for HR and payroll processing. Certia processes more than EUR 1.8 billion in financial flows annually and runs payroll for over 20,000 employees each month on behalf of its owner-customers. Layered on top of these systems are proprietary automation capabilities: RPA robots that handle approximately 80% of payment-run, vendor-master, and tax-registry tasks; AI-powered invoice routing used by over one-third of customers; eKuitti electronic receipts; and a low-code development environment for HR workflow applications. The company also operates Certia Events (formerly Aboa kongressi- ja tapahtumapalvelut Oy), acquired in March 2023 to serve the academic conference and event market.

Certia employs 220 finance, HR, payroll, and systems professionals across offices in Vaasa (headquarters), Joensuu, Tampere, Turku, Oulu, and Jyväskylä. Revenue is generated primarily through subscription-style recurring service contracts with each owner-customer, supplemented by managed-services engagements for system development and automation. Growth has come mainly through one-by-one asset transfers (liikkeenluovutukset) in which university staff and functions migrate to Certia, supplemented by the 2023 acquisition of Aboa Events. With the Finnish higher education sector as its sole market, Certia's expansion is bounded by the size of that vertical and by public-sector procurement dynamics.

Name

Certia

Legal name

Certia Oy

Website

https://certia.fi

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Certia Oy is a customer-owned Finnish shared services provider delivering outsourced financial management, HR, payroll, travel, and automation services to Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences, using SAP and Mepco Pro to process over EUR 1.8 billion annually and payroll for more than 20,000 employees.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education Shared Services

NAICS

Professional Employer Organizations (561330), Professional Employer Organizations (56133), Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services (54121), Offices of Certified Public Accountants (541211)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374)

akta.pro primary industry

Professional Employer Organization (PEO) / Co-Employment Services (BPACAHAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Onboarding, Offboarding & Employee Lifecycle Administration (BPACAHAL), Accounts Payable (Invoice Processing, 2/3-Way Match, Vendor Payments) (BPAAAGAA), General Ledger & Close (Journal Entries, Month-End Close, Reconciliations) (BPAAAGAC)

Keywords

• Financial administration services
• HR and payroll services
• Travel management services
• Robotic process automation
• Higher education shared services

Headquarters

HQ city

Vaasa

HQ country

Finland

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Taloushallinnon palvelut: Certia tuottaa taloushallinnon palveluita (kirjanpito, osto- ja myyntireskontra, matkahallinta) SAP-järjestelmällä yliopistoille ja ammattikorkeakouluille.
2. HR- ja palkkapalvelut: Kokonaisvaltainen palkanlaskentaprosessi Mepco Pro -järjestelmällä, mukaan lukien viranomaistilitykset. Maksetaan palkka yli 20 000 henkilölle kuukausittain.
3. Järjestelmäpalvelut ja -automaatiot: Ohjelmistorobotiikka, tekoälypohjaiset ratkaisut, low-code-kehitys sekä järjestelmien ylläpito ja kehitys korkeakouluille.
4. Tapahtumatuotanto (Certia Events): Aboa Events -tapahtumapalvelut, ostettu maaliskuussa 2023, tarjoaa kongressi- ja tapahtumapalveluita tiedeyhteisöille.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Certia provides shared financial administration, HR, payroll, travel management, system, and automation services exclusively to Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences. The company runs SAP-based financial management processing over 1.8 billion EUR annually and Mepco Pro-based HR/payroll processing for 20,000+ employees monthly, with RPA and AI-powered automation embedded across workflows.

Product overview

Certia provides a comprehensive suite of financial, HR, and administrative services specifically designed for Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences. The company operates as an in-house service organization owned by its customers. The service portfolio includes: HR and Payroll Services (using Mepco Pro), Financial Services (using SAP), Travel Management, System Services, System Automations (RPA), Data-Driven Management/Analytics, and Certia Events. The company processes over 1.8 billion EUR annually and serves 20,000+ employees monthly through payroll processing. All university customers are co-owners of Certia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Certia Events: Event production services for universities and higher education institutions, formerly known as Aboa kongressi- ja tapahtumapalvelut Oy.

Products and services

• HR and Payroll Services (HR- ja palkkapalvelut) Comprehensive HR and payroll processing services including full payroll calculation, authority payments, and HR system administration. Processed for 20,000+ employees monthly using Mepco Pro system. Target customers are Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences.
• Financial Services (Talouspalvelut) Financial management services including accounting, financial reporting, accounts payable and receivable, and financial system management using SAP. Processes over 1.8 billion EUR annually. Target customers are Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences.
• Travel Management Services (Matkahallinnon palvelut) Travel expense management including travel planning, expense reporting, and credit card transaction processing. Integrates with eKuitti for electronic receipts. Target customers are Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences.
• System Services (Järjestelmäpalvelut) System consulting and administration services for SAP and Mepco systems, including system configuration, user management, and technical support. Target customers are Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences.
• System Automations (Järjestelmäautomaatiot) Automation services including RPA (Robotic Process Automation) development and implementation. Automates repetitive tasks in finance, HR, and travel management. Includes process analysis workshops and robot development. Robots handle approximately 80% of assigned tasks. Target customers are Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences.
• Data-Driven Management Services (Tiedolla johtamisen palvelut) Analytics and reporting services using SAP BW, SAP Analytics Cloud, and SAP Datasphere. Includes data warehousing, reporting solutions, and data quality assurance for decision support. Target customers are Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences.
• Certia Events (Event Production) Event production services for academic conferences and events. Formerly Aboa Events, rebranded in 2025. Offers both in-person and virtual/hybrid event formats for the academic community.

Quantifiable outcome

• Kauttamme kulkee vuosittain yli 1,8 miljardia euroa
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability6 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Aboa kongressi- ja tapahtumapalvelut OycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 March 2023Certia osti Aboa kongressi- ja tapahtumapalvelut Oy:n koko osakekannan maaliskuussa 2023. Ostettavan yrityksen pääomistajat olivat myös Certian omistajia (mm. UTU Holding Oy). Aboa on yksi Suomen johtavista tiede- ja koulutusalan kongressi- ja tapahtumatoimistoista. Tavoitteena on kasvattaa Aboan liiketoiminta kymmenkertaiseksi.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Sikt: Norwegian state agency providing shared digital and administrative services to higher education and research institutions. Directly comparable to Certia as a publicly-owned shared services entity serving Nordic universities.
• DFØ (Direktoratet for økonomistyring): Norwegian Directorate for Financial Management — a public shared services provider for financial administration across government, with strong overlap to Certia's finance/HR shared service model for the public sector.

Broad incumbents

• Tietoevry: Large Nordic IT services and software provider with a public-sector and education practice. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering overlapping ERP, HR, and finance managed services in the same Finnish/Nordic market.
• CGI: Global IT consulting and systems integration firm with a strong Nordic public-sector footprint. Comparable as a broad incumbent that delivers outsourced application management and BPO services, including to education and government clients.
• Visma: Nordic business software and outsourcing group providing ERP, HR/payroll, and financial administration software and services to SMB and public sector. Comparable as a broader incumbent in finance, HR, and payroll software/SaaS in the Nordics.
• ADP: Global leader in payroll, HR, and employer-of-record services. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering HR/payroll outsourcing at scale, although operating at a much larger and more international scale than Certia.
• Insperity: US-listed Professional Employer Organization providing co-employment HR, payroll, and benefits administration to small/mid-sized employers. Comparable as a broad PEO incumbent in the co-employment/HR outsourcing category that Certia's model resembles.
• WNS Holdings: Global business process management company with a finance & accounting BPO practice. Comparable as a broad incumbent in finance/accounting outsourcing, serving global enterprises with similar back-office functions to Certia.
• Capgemini: Global consulting and BPO provider with a dedicated Business Services line covering finance, HR, and procurement outsourcing. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the same enterprise BPO category as Certia.
• Ellucian: US-based higher education technology specialist providing ERP, SIS, and analytics to universities globally. Comparable as a broad incumbent serving the same higher education customer segment as Certia, with overlapping finance and HR system capabilities.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/certiaoy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/certia-oy

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Certia