O T A V A L A

Welcome to the home of Otavala Consulting. We are a Chicago based consulting firm and serve primarily Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York areas. We are also available for specific assignments nationwide or internationally.

We specialize in strategic management, human resources, organizational development, and business psychology. We focus primarily on helping higher education, professional services, tourism/hospitality industry, and behavioral health care. However, we can also help organizations in other business sectors, and work particularly well with the non-profit sector and general health care. Among many services that we offer are leadership coaching, strategic planning, teambuilding, conflict management training, and development of business ethics and corporate social responsibility programs. We have worked in many states including California, Colorado, Hawaii, New York, Florida, and Illinois, as well as internationally in Asia and Europe.

Business Model

The business model of Otavala is firmly rooted in the same principles we teach to others. In today's rapidly changing business environment, we aim to "help people at the world of work" by forming collaborative partnerships towards success. We aim not merely to be experts to address your challenges but to teach you the needed skills to resolve them on your own. We operate with integrity and honesty, and maintain the highest level of business ethics in everything we do. Our services are custom designed for our clients, and all recommended implementations are based on detailed analysis and assessment.

We also value diversity and community involvement, and support social entrepreneurship. As an intercultural firm, we understand the different points of views of people from different cultural backgrounds. We follow the seven guiding principles (seven stars of Otava) closely related to the commonly accepted principles for organizational development practitioners.

At Otavala Consulting, we are...

1. Values Based
2. Supported by Theory
3. Informed by Data
4. Open Systems Focused
5. Action Research Oriented
6. Process Focused
7. Client Centered

The name Otavala comes from Finnish language. Otava is the Finnish name for Ursa Major, or what is known as Big Dipper in English. In Finland, Otava is widely used as a cultural symbol as it is the most visible constellation in the Northern sky. The word ending -la (as in Otava -la) is used in Finnish to designate a place. Thus, Otavala is the place of the "Ursa Major." Commonly, Ursa Major is used to locate the North Star which is used for navigation. Therefore, Otava, or Ursa Major, can be seen as the true guiding principle and a source of guidance and wisdom, and Otavala as a place for direction, advice and consultation.

Otavala Consulting is a member of Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, Finnish-American Chamber of Commerce, Latin-American Chamber of Commerce, South Michigan Avenue Merchants Association, and Urban League of Chicago.  

The Lead Consultant at Otavala Consulting, Dr. Tomi Wahlstrom, is a professional member of:

growing your business

We are available to discuss your specific challenges and opportunities.

Please call us for a free no commitment initial consultation at 312-753-5727 anytime, or email us for more information at:

info@otavala.com

Download our recent press release here.

For more detailed description of us, download our white paper here.

Read about what we do in the below articles:

Hispanic Executive Quarterly

Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce

Chicago Condo Resource

Join our blog by our consultant Ryan Simmons at:

Manage Your Talent

Read about our work with the Finnish-American Chamber of Commerce at:

FACC Project

Download recent papers written by our consultants:

Locus of Control

Performance Management