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Petra Söderling is the Founder and Chairman of the Board of Mobile Brain Bank, encouraging out-of-job mobile professionals to turn into entrepreneurs. Petra tells IM a bit about her project and what we can expect in the near future.

What is innovation management to you?

Ideas without execution is not innovation. Generating and massaging ideas will get you only so far, but they will not serve anyone unless they are conceptualized, demonstrated and eventually turned into products and services. Innovation Management guides this process.

What’s the most satisfying part of your job?

Mobile Brain Bank is all about linking mobile developers and other R&D professionals to new customers. This way their talent will have a purpose, fulfilling customer demand in a form of a mobile application, web service, or a full blown solution with IT back end and mobile front end.

And the most frustrating parts?

The developer pool for Mobile Brain Bank comes largely from people who have been let go from large companies, such as Nokia. It is always a joy when some of these people form their own startup and begin to develop through Mobile Brain Bank, but not everyone are cut to be entrepreneurs. It is disappointing to see people lose their jobs.

What’s your next big challenge?

Mobile Brain Bank is launching our online service during Q3 2011. The service allows for customers to post their mobile application or service needs, and for developers to bid for these projects online. I am very excited about this opportunity to help both the clients and the developers.

About Petra Söderling

Petra Söderling is the Founder and Chairman of the Board of Mobile Brain Bank. Founded in 2009 as a non-profit, Mobile Brain Bank encourages out-of-job mobile professionals to turn into entrepreneurs. In 2011 she is taking Mobile Brain Bank into a new level, launching an online software broker service for developers and their customers.

Ms. Söderling joined Nokia year 2000, and has worked in various R&D positions for mobile services and open standards, research collaboration and open innovation since. Currently she runs Open Source activities at Nokia’s Symbian Smartphones unit.

Ms. Söderling holds a BBA from Helsinki Business Polytechnic, and an MBA at Aalto University (2012).

A keen spectator and commentator of environment, technology and innovation, she shares her thoughts at her blog.