Espoo Mayor’s Innovation Competition 2023 launched

3.4.2023 12.34Updated: 16.6.2023 7.10

The City of Espoo’s Mayor’s Innovation Competition is now open. Companies in addition to city employees can submit their competition application between 3 April and 24 May 2023. 

The competition is open to all City of Espoo employees and work teams together with their partners as well as Espoo-based companies. The home municipality of the company must be Espoo. 

The competition seeks innovations and ideas on how we can improve the services we provide for Espoo residents and develop our practices in keeping with the Espoo Story. 

We are paying particular attention on innovations that prioritise customers and city residents − either as recipients of improved services or even as cooperation partners in the development work. The purpose of the competition is to highlight the continuous, innovative development work that is being carried out in Espoo. 

Finalists to be selected by Excellence Finland 

The City of Espoo is organising the competition in cooperation with Excellence Finland. A panel of experts from Excellence Finland will evaluate the applications and select the finalists from among them. Later, the City of Espoo’s own competition jury will evaluate the applications that have made it to the final. 

Applications will also automatically take part in Excellence Finland’s national Quality Innovation Award competition, and the winners of the award will also compete in an international competition. 

Series, prizes and evaluation criteria 

The 2023 competition is seeking resident and customer-oriented innovations under two series: 

  1. Innovations series. New innovations that have already proven to solve challenges efficiently or productively. 
  2. Potential innovations series. New innovations that are still in the development phase and have the potential to solve challenges effectively or productively. 

The winner of the Innovation series, or winners if first place is shared between several innovations, will each be awarded with €5,000. The winner(s) of the Potential Innovations series will be rewarded with €3,000. In addition, honorary mentions worth €500 each will be distributed in both series at the jury’s discretion. 

Application evaluation criteria 

Application form and instructions 

Competition application form(external link, opens in a new window)  
Instructions for completing the form  

Read the instructions carefully. You can fill in the form in several parts. Save the incomplete form using the ‘Save and continue later’ button at the bottom of the form. The system will ask for your e-mail address to send a link to continue completing the form later.  

2023 competition schedule 

​​​​​​Competition is open: 3 April–24 May 2023   

  • Information session as a Teams webinar(external link, opens in a new window): 12 April 2023 at 15:00–16:00 (In Finnish; the webinar will provide concrete application tips. If you have difficulties joining the webinar, please contact Susanna Kilappa, susanna.kilappa@espoo.fi, tel. +358 50 5446044
  • Information session as a Teams webinar(external link, opens in a new window): 25 April 2023 at 10:00–11:00 (In Finnish; in the webinar we will advise and assist with general application drafting matters.)
  • Excellence Finland will evaluate the applications by 15 June 2023.  
  • All participants will receive a notification on whether or not their proposal has made it to the final: 22 June 2023 
  • The finalists will give a brief presentation on their innovation to the city management in the autumn. 
  • After that the City of Espoo’s competition jury will convene.  
  • A proposal of the winners and honorary mentions will be presented to the Mayor and after that to the city's Management Group.  
  • The award ceremony will be held in 26 October. 
  • The winners of Excellence Finland’s national Quality Innovation Award will be announced at the end of the year.  

The Mayor’s Innovation Competition has been organised in cooperation with Excellence Finland since 2012. 

Additional information 

www.excellencefinland.fi(external link, opens in a new window) 

  • Innovation work
  • Work for Espoo