Someone you would like to meet is standing nearby. How do you start a conversation and find common ground? And how do you turn that encounter into a connection that lasts beyond the event?
Small Talk – Big Opportunities combines natural conversation skills with a purposeful approach to attending events. You will learn ways to overcome the hesitation to approach someone, keep a conversation going and discover how the connection could benefit you both.
During the course, you will develop your own approach to what you do before, during and after an event. The aim is to help you attend your next event with greater confidence and know how to turn interesting conversations into further meetings and collaboration.
After the course, you will be able to:
• approach new people and introduce yourself more confidently
• start, sustain and end conversations, moving from small talk to professional topics
• recognise non-verbal cues and include others in the conversation
• prepare for an event with clear goals and identify people you want to meet
• find shared interests and opportunities for mutual benefit
• use your time effectively and make the most of unexpected encounters
• follow up with personalised messages and suggest concrete next steps.
WHO IS THIS COURSE FOR
This course is designed for specialists, entrepreneurs, sales and business development professionals, startup teams, leaders and anyone attending professional events.
It is particularly suitable for you if you:
• want to get more value from attending events
• find meeting new people intimidating or draining
• meet clients, partners, investors or potential employers
• want to turn chance encounters into opportunities for collaboration
• are attending a professional event for the first time or want to improve your approach.
The examples focus on Slush, but you can also apply the skills at trade fairs, client events, industry conferences and international seminars.
CONTENT AND FORMAT
The course combines conversation skills practice with practical tools for making your event participation more purposeful.
Meet people and converse with ease — Taru Uhrman
• Approaching someone new and introducing yourself naturally.
• Starting, sustaining and ending conversations.
• Asking good questions, listening and understanding non-verbal communication.
• Moving from small talk to professional topics.
• Introducing people to each other and including international guests and quieter participants.
• Practising introductions and conversation starters.
Make the most of your event — Jarkko Nissinen
• Clarifying your goals and identifying people you would like to meet before the event.
• Arranging meetings and preparing your introduction.
• Taking the initiative, finding common ground and creating mutual value.
• Managing your time, coordinating your team and making the most of unexpected encounters.
• Taking notes on conversations and following up personally the next day.
• Suggesting follow-up meetings and concrete next steps.
The course is delivered online and includes practical examples and interactive exercises. The duration is three hours, including a break.
Finnish-language session: Monday, 9 November 2026, 8:30–11:30.
English-language session: Wednesday, 11 November 2026, 8:30–11:30.
All times are local Finnish time.
Register for the English-language session on this page. Registration for the Finnish-language session is available on the Finnish-language course page.
TRAINERS AND COACHES
Taru Uhrman coaches executives, managers and professionals in workplace communication and interpersonal skills. Her areas of expertise include presentation skills, workplace communication, negotiation and meeting skills, as well as leadership and managerial communication. She also provides professional supervision for executives and managers and works as a workplace mediator.
Taru has over 20 years of coaching experience in both the private sector and public administration. She has helped professionals and executives across numerous organisations present with greater confidence and impact, and has guided organisations through change. Her presentation training clients in 2025–2026 have included Wärtsilä, the City of Helsinki, the Bank of Finland, the Prime Minister’s Office and Finnair. Clients value her inspiring, practical approach and her ability to encourage reflection and adapt her training to participants’ needs.
Jarkko has been networking at Slush for ten years, pitching business ideas, organising investor meetings and hosting sessions on Slush stages on several occasions. During this time, he has developed a distinctive approach to networking, which he has been teaching in his training sessions for several years.
Jarkko’s approach makes it easier to connect with new people and helps create natural, professionally valuable encounters for both parties. It can be applied at Slush and other networking events alike. In his training, Jarkko covers how to prepare for an event, how to engage with people during it and how to turn those connections into results afterwards.
The international networks Jarkko has built have been instrumental to his professional success and valuable to the growth companies and projects he has represented. He has also applied his networking expertise in the world of international politics.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Would you like to prepare your whole team for an upcoming event?
The course can also be tailored to your organisation. The content can focus on areas such as client interactions, international events or preparing for an event as a team.
For further information and company-specific training:
Milla Helander
milla.helander@hyplus.fi, +358 40 518 9395
