PROFILE / INTERNATIONAL CAREERS
INTERNATIONAL CAREER STORIES FROM PONSSE Where in the world has Ponsse sent its employees to work? Get to know five Ponsse career stories.
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MARKO TURUNEN AREA SERVICE MANAGER, EASTERN FINLAND / PONSSE PLC, MIKKELI, FINLAND
In his free time, Marko Turunen plays American football: he is a linebacker for the Mikkeli Bouncers.
Marko Turunen’s first role at Ponsse was as a summer employee in Mikkeli’s service centre back in 2005. After a few years with the company, Turunen mentioned to his supervisor that he would be interested in working abroad as well. “I got a phone call from a co-worker in 2013, and he asked if I would like to go for a threemonth-long trip to Brazil. That rather short trip turned into four years”, Marko says. The original purpose of the trip was to go to Brazil and train the locals on how Ponsse’s harvester heads peel eucalyptus better. During Marko’s trip to Brazil, a Full Service project was launched which Marko was asked to join. “Along with the new Full Service cus-
tomer, we established a new location in Brazil in Ipantiga. Almost immediately, close to a hundred local employees were hired. Most of my time was spent working in that project, as well as with other Full Service-related tasks,” shares Marko. He returned to Finland in 2017. “Working abroad taught me patience and perseverance. I also learned a new language. I learned how to look at the bigger perspective, and of course, the journey to Brazil taught me how things are done elsewhere. All of this is important in my current role.” “The best part about working at Ponsse is the great atmosphere and the fact that the company wants to develop constantly,” Turunen says.
PEKKA TERÄVÄ SPARE PARTS MANAGER / PONSSE S.A.S, PEYRET LE CHÂTEAU, FRANCE
”It is important to be open to a new culture, customs and people to be able to integrate.”
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It was in the late 90s in Finland that Pekka Terävä noticed a job posting in a newspaper. Quite quickly, he found himself working as a mechanic in France for Ponsse. Pekka was first to be hired to work for a year in France, but the trip grew longer and longer. Now over two decades have passed. Today Pekka works as a spare parts manager in central France, at Peyrat le Chateau. Pekka says that it is important to be open to a new culture, customs and people to be able to integrate. ”At the beginning, learning French was difficult. But I managed to learn a new language while working and living in France,” Pekka recalls and adds that the Finnish accent can still be recognised in his speech, but it’s not an issue he gets along well and is understood in French.
A big factor for staying in France was family. In France, Pekka met his wife and eventually their family grew bigger, with two boys. The older son is now an adult and works for Ponsse as well. “Every day is different in the role of a spare parts manager,” shares Pekka. He travels monthly between different Ponsse locations in France. Different events and partnerships also bring variety to his work. The Ponsse spirit is important to Pekka. People work together, and everyone can have an impact on their own work. ”Even though Ponsse is a big company these days, the family business feel is still there, as is the Ponsse spirit – those are the things I like most about this company,” notes Pekka.
