Aalto Leaders' Insight, vol 9

A A LTO U N I V E R S I T Y E X E C U T I V E E D U C AT I O N

H OW TO P R E D I C T T H E F U T U R E How can we gain a grip on the future when everything is wavering?

Four experts recommend tools for taking hold of a future of unknowns. Pages 31– 43.

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D i versity and I nc lu si o n Why is everybody talking about D & I? C r eati vity How to create an office that helps learning and sparks inspiration.

T ran s ition Hybrid work is an opportunity to reimagine how we work.

Experience Participants and Aalto EE partners share their experiences.

“If a profit-seeking com­pany ignores the power and significance of diversity and inclusion, they might as well leave money on the table.”

Yacine Samb Racial Equity Lead for Europe, Middle East and Africa at Google page 67

Sanna Kannisto Approach of winter, 2018

5G – myths, facts and the next industrial revolution With new technology, visionaries often draw sci-fi-like pictures of the future, while skeptics doubt the omnipotence of technology. The public debate on new mobile generations follows the same logic – which of these 5G myths have you encountered?

5G is just a 4G add-on.

No. 5G works both with and without 4G. It is a new network, and the customer needs a 5G device to use it. Also, stand-alone 5G network is being introduced, first as private network solutions for business customers. A good example of the visions that have already been realized is the project we have carried out together with Nokia and Sandvik, where a smart mining machine moves autonomously in a tunnel network using 5G. 5G stops at walls and will require a base station in every lamppost.

No. 5G is being built on different frequencies with different roles. The most widely used 5G frequency so far, 3.5GHz, is close to higher 4G frequencies. It has a range of over a kilometer and penetration capabilities similar to 4G. So, it does not stop at water vapor or walls, nor does it require a huge number of base stations. The very short-range, high-speed 5G on 26 GHz will not be the most wide-spread technology.

5G will serve only the big cities.

We at Telia have already started building 5G at 700 MHz also in rural areas. The range is over ten kilometers, as much as with low 4G frequencies. The flip side is speeds that don’t

quite rise to gigabyte levels, but hundreds of megabits per second anyway.

5G is a waste of energy.

Well, not really. 5G is more efficient than previous mobile generations: it consumes less energy per bit. Electricity consumption will increase, but that is based on the growth of data used by customers. The same growth would be realized in 4G in a more energywasting way. At the same time, digitally convenient services replace products and activities that would carry a heavier burden in the physical world.

5G is revolutionizing our future.

Yes. 5G is a so-called transformational technology; it will take societies to the next industrial stage. Solutions in areas like health care, transport and finance will be designed on top of new network technology. It will bring not only speed and capacity, but also completely new kinds of services that revolutionize our daily lives and the way our societies work.

JANNE KOISTINEN 5G Program Leader Telia Finland

Aalto Leaders’ Insight is published and curated by Aalto University Executive Education.

This magazine is a library of insights.The four long-form articles – we call them Books – focus on different aspects of leadership, talent management and transformation.

Aalto University Executive Education offers high-quality executive education (Aalto EE), professional development services for specialists and managers (Aalto PRO), and creative solutions covering the entire entrepreneurship lifecycle (Aalto ENT). Aalto University brings to our offering a multidisciplinary approach, together with innovative learning methods; this provides a unique combination of practical expertise with latest research.

Vol 9 CONTENTS S TA R T

LO N G - F O R M

NEWS, COLUMNS AND INSIGHTS PAG E S 1 0 – 3 0

BOOK 1 F U T U R E O F E V E RY H I N G

News, columns and insights 9–30

Four experts recommend tools for taking hold of a future of unkowns.

Pages 31–43

What would you like to learn next?

11–13

BOOK 2 S P A C E E X P L O R AT I O N

My View: "Leadership is not a solo sport" 14–16

Leaders need to ensure physical spaces are attractive workplaces for both clients and colleagues. pages 45–64

Aalto EE’s new Leadership Framework 17–19 Better leadership in Tanzania 20-21 Figures: Aalto University 22 Column by Mika Videman 26 New in science and research 25–

BOOK 3 D, E , I

Why is everybody in business talking about diversity and inclusion?

Pages 65–80 BOOK 4 OFFSITE + ONSITE = HYBRID

“Nobody knows how this will work out, but that’s exactly what makes it interesting”, says Riikka Rannikko, Managing Partner at Hannes Snellman.

Pages 81–91

Column by Mikko Laukkanen 29 Mind-blowing books 30

45

65

I M PAC T & E X P E R I E N C E PAG E S 9 2 – 1 1 1

Participants and Aalto EE partners share their experiences on the programs 92–107 Figures: Aalto University Executive Education Impact in Numbers 108–111

“All working-aged people can benefit from updating, complementing, and expanding their skills.”

Aalto University’s new website for Lifewide Learning guides and helps recognize your learning needs. Page 11

“Without commitment to the inclusion of diverse people, organizations will lose valuable talent at a high speed.”

Professor Rebecca Piekkari, Aalto University Page 79

— A A LT O L E A D E R S ’ I N S I G H T ONLINE STREAM 113

93

“The program’s coaches are experts in their fields and know all the ins and outs.When the lecturer has an attitude that sees discussion and even challenging as enriching and deepening the theme at hand, it makes for an excellent learning experience.”

Kirsi Laine-Hendolin, Administrative Director at the City of Helsinki, who took part in the EMBA program. Page 93

Global Leader Graduate Diploma in Management

Global Leader is a comprehensive general management training program, which is flexible according to your personal development needs and time frame. The program develops strategic thinking, strengthens business skills, and builds professional confidence.

Global Leader consists of six study modules: four core modules and two electives. You can complete the entire six-module program or choose topics that interest you most from modules in financial decision-making, strategy, marketing, leading change, or selfleadership.

Read more and check the program schedule at aaltoee.com/globalleader.

F O R E W O R D

Space is more than a place

PHOTO VILLE VARUMO

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he articles in this issue discuss our future – unpredictability, hybrid work, the meaning of spaces, the importance of diversity and inclusion.

Many things are in flux. But not all the things are in flux. After experiencing the COVID-19 emergency, we have suddenly become much more aware of the spaces that surround us.

I claim that we have started caring about spaces in a different way.

At home, the space around us needs to be versatile and enjoyable also in times of sudden lock-down. At the office, the space needs to not only be safe but also attractive, and superior as the preferred place to work from instead of contributing remotely.

One of the articles in this issue was inspired by our new premises in an old historical building – a project that makes me personally very proud. An architectural icon meets hightech. Post-war design connects with contemporary art. In these crossroads, so many good things happen.

Creating a space for learning is more than organizing technical facilities.

Philosopher Gaston Bachelard put it aptly: “If I were asked to name the chief benefit of the house, I should say: the house shelters day-dreaming, the house protects the dreamer, the house allows one to dream in peace”.

Space is more than a place. It is very much about psychological safety.

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I think in essence this is what we have intended to do in our current premises. It is your role to assess. You are very welcome to visit us both online and on-site. ◆ Pekka Mattila, Editor-in-Chief Group Managing Director, Aalto University Executive Education Professor of Practice, Aalto University

Read Aalto Leaders’ Insight online and order monthly highlights to your e-mail! aaltoee.com/insight

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S TA RT NEWS, COLUMNS & INSIGHTS

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W H AT WO U L D YO U L I K E TO L E A R N N E X T ?

Whether you are planning to change jobs, looking for new challenges or striving to take on new responsibilities and opportunities, Aalto University’s new website for Lifewide Learning guides and helps recognize your learning needs.

WHERE? The website for Lifewide Learning (LWL) is designed to bring together all the Lifewide Learning offering in one place – you can find it at: lifewidelearning. aalto.fi. The website includes a tool that recommends suitable courses based on the search criteria.

Leena Koskinen, Advisor, LWL, Aalto University ”The course offering is available on the website, which includes a

tool that helps choose a suitable course. We also offer personal guidance, so you can request further information and tips for building your learning path.The offering covers the main fields of Aalto University – technology, business and art – as well as multidisciplinary studies.”

W H AT ?

On the LWL website, you can find the programs and courses of Aalto Open University and Aalto EE as well as the Aalto Univol 9

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versity offering included in the FITech network.Also Aalto University Summer School courses will be on offer. Lifewide Learning solutions range from individual courses to programs and degrees. The key competence areas of Aalto University include ICT and digitalization, materials and sustainable use of natural resources, arts and design, and global business dynamics. The focus is on three multidisciplinary themes: advanced energy solutions, health and wellbeing, >

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LEARN MORE: lifewidelearning.aalto.fi

INTEREST* Career change Career development Communication skills Competitive advantage Competitiveness Digitalization General knowledge Growth Innovation Internationalization Language skills Managing people and teams Productivity Professional confidence Quality Responsibility Self-leadership Sustainability Teamwork and networks Transformation Work-life balance

* The LWL website search tool helps filter the offering according to your own interests.

All working-aged people can benefit from updating, complementing, and expanding their skills. and human-centered living environments.

Leena Koskinen: ”The offering is extensive: economics, service design, digital photojournalism, leadership training, technology… Students can delve into a field one course at a time, as they want to update their expertise for their current position or are looking to change jobs. Also the multidisciplinary studies are worth a browse. The courses are either free of charge or offered at a reasonable fee of EUR 15 per credit or at market price. The offering is at its most extensive at the beginning of each term. New courses will be displayed on the website as they become available, e.g. the Future of Work program and multidisciplinary programs on sustainability.”

WHY? The changing nature of work requires professionals to continuously update their expertise.

Former methods and completed degrees are no longer enough.

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All working-aged people can benefit from updating, complementing, and expanding their skills. Learning is the future of work.

Leena Koskinen: ”Sometimes the changing world of work requires fast moves, which means training and updating one’s skills. Updated expertise give rises to more interesting work opportunities. It’s important to note that the idea is not necessarily to complete a whole new degree or extensive amount of studies – even a small investment can sometimes make a difference. More information packages will be offered gradually for instance in the form of podcasts and videos. It’s a big opportunity for anyone: receiving the latest researched information in a concise packet.”

WHO CAN JOIN? Anyone. Whether you are striving for a career transition in your current organization or looking to head in a new direction, you can complete study modules even without being enrolled in an educational institution.

Leena Koskinen: ”Some of the offering is designed for anyone without a particular educational background.

Browse through the selection and get in touch about suitable courses.”

A A LTO E E A N D LW L Continuing education does not mean having to complete a whole new degree – update your expertise through individual modules.

Aalto University Executive Education is a leading provider of continuing education, which has implemented the idea of Lifewide Learning (LWL) from the very beginning. According to Pekka Mattila, managing director of Aalto EE, the fact that all LWL content is now available in one and the same place makes finding the right solution for each person more convenient.

Modules and programs are suitable for different work and life situations and available in a range of lengths.

“We offer opportunities for supplementary education without the need for a huge one-off commitment. Instead of extensive degrees, we offer modular structures: modules can be completed individually with the possibility to continue or supplement the degree on a low threshold.

This makes an exclusive university more inclusive.”

The new service is based on two major trends: digitalization and changes in the world of work. We are all aware that skills need to be updated throughout one’s career, and now a share of this learning can be completed digitally.

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Participants no longer need to keep travelling to Helsinki to take part in programs, which results in increasingly international groups. “Digital participation makes us increasingly accessible and boosts learning, as it results in more diverse and enriched groups.

The offering caters for a range of learning styles. The website also helps learners who are not familiar with the degree structures of Aalto University or Aalto EE or related jargon. The aim is to be clear and relevant both for professionals from different fields and those who have never attended university or finished their degree. The search tool helps find both hands-on programs and theoretical approaches.

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L E A D E R S H I P I S N OT A S O LO S P O RT Päivi Castrén, Senior Advisor at Aalto EE, is an experienced leader and management coach. She encourages directors to listen and be available also in tough situations.

“Whether leaders decide to hide or make themselves available to listen to worries, emotions, and questions, including ones without an answer for the time being, makes a crucial difference.”

You have spoken a great deal about the importance of leaders who listen. Why? “What good are teams if the directors solve and make all the decisions? A leader who says “of

course this is how it goes” will not be able to develop activities.

Listening is a leader’s key communication skill. An organization having a formal feedback process is not enough; it needs a

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culture where giving feedback and sharing personal views and experiences is a natural part of the work community’s daily life.

It’s related to trust and transparency in the organization. Listen-

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ing is important in order to recognize different perspectives and possible confusions for instance relating to goals, and to find new ideas and better insight – the director does not have all the wisdom. It’s about psychological security; an atmosphere of believing that everyone is doing their best and feels valued.”

How much is leadership about leading emotions? ”Can emotions be led? You can influence them, but I wouldn’t say you can lead them as such. All leadership is about leading change and development, and emotions are always involved in change. It’s about how you encounter those emotions. Let’s take a practical example: An organization receives bad news.

Does management decide to hide and evade any negative emotion, sadness, even anger? Or does it make itself available to listen to worries, emotions, and questions, including ones without an answer for the time being?”

Another example: Management has been preparing a bigger change for months before communicating it to the rest of the organization. Rather than fixating on perfect bullet points on the PowerPoint presentation at the information event, it’s more important for management to be able to explain in its own words what the change is

“It’s about psychological security; an atmosphere of believing that everyone is doing their best and feels valued.”

all about and what the aims are.

If you do not own and internalize it yourself, there is no way of expecting the audience to assume ownership. Does it evoke a sense of a shared challenge or situation? Listening plays a role in this, too. The rest of the organization will be hearing the big news for the first time and won’t come up with all relevant questions straightaway.You need to reserve time for listening, questions, and dialogue also later down the line when people have had time to digest the news.”

Resilience is a popular topic these days. How do you be­ come more resilient without turning hard?

“Resilience means perseverance, toughness, durability, and endurance, not just flexibility. It does not mean a wrong kind of hardness, where in a tough corner you say: “no sweat, we’ve been vol 9

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here before, now just onwards and upwards”, or you’ll only delude at least yourself. In other words, resilience does not mean being a tough cookie who never startles.”

But how can you stay sensitive, decisive, and functional in a tough spot?

Knowing that challenges can be overcome comes with experience. It creates an ability to differentiate between what you can impact and what cannot be solved. It’s understanding that asking for help does not equal weakness, and you can receive support when you need it. Resilience is about tolerating uncertainty, getting over things, and not losing faith when there are problems along the way and not all goes as planned.

Resilience is the sum of many parts, involving personal experiences all the way from childhood. It is also an organizational characteristic: whether people choose to become victims or believe in their abilities to move on supported by the work environment. Even if the issue is out of their control, are they able to adapt and begin to jointly think up solutions and the way forward – i.e., is the culture problem-centered or solution-centered? Also organizational resilience is influenced by the past: the culture cannot turn into something totally different in a moment of crisis. How things >

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What have you come to real­ ize about leadership recently?

“These days, leadership is not a solo performance. It happens in

INFO: Päivi Castrén is a leader and HR professional with more than 30 years of international experience in people management including leadership development and development of all aspects of people strategy and operations.

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achieving strategic and operational goals.Although leadership skills have come a long way in organizations as far as personnel management is concerned, it still tends to get forgotten and clumped into a separate area when drawing up the strategy, business plans, and performance metrics.

Many organizations aim to reduce or eliminate traditional hierarchy and divide accountability into smaller units. It is of course a good thing but heightens the importance of a common goal and clear values that steer operations – the heart of the company.”

Have you found some leader­ ship idea to be wrong?

“I’m not sure wrong is the right word but misunderstood at least.

This, too, relates to low hierarchy. It is good to give more responsibility and authority to units and individuals within the organization in the sense of empowerment. But unfortunately, I’ve noticed that at the same time, interest and caring tend to decrease and these more independent units become distant. It starts to lead to so-called laissezfaire leadership and leadership culture. Leadership is not just about who you report to and decision-making steps, but about enabling success. Good leadership and management work are resources for an organization.” ◆

RATILAINEN

How to build healthy, func­ tioning communities when the organization faces a tough spot?

“Getting through and surviving difficult situations and times depend on how things have been done in the past. It’s easier to build on a situation where, based on past experiences, people trust that decisions and plans have been carefully considered and promises kept. If, on the other hand, there is doubt, one-way communication and an unhealthy atmosphere, it’s harder to suddenly build a healthy, functioning community in a tough situation, such as a reorganization or merger with implications on personnel. If that’s the first time you start to ask questions and listen, building trust and faith in the future requires more work.

The foundation for a strong organizational culture is built in so-called good times.

It is important to be sincere and genuine even in a difficult situation. The message and action contradicting each other harbors sarcasm and dilutes even good intentions.”

interaction with the team and staff. Without underestimating the role of a clever strategy: directors need to know the organization they lead and the people whose work, innovation, and expertise is instrumental in

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have been done in the past creates the foundation.”

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AN EFFECTIVE LEADER L E AV E S A N I M P R I N T Aalto EE’s new Leadership Framework encapsulates Aalto EE’s approach to leadership development.This article presents the framework and its underlying views on leadership and organizations.

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he starting point for Aalto EE’s new Leadership Framework is that leadership should always be seen in its context. The purpose and strategic direction of the organization lie at the heart of it all. Even the

best leader will not succeed without the structures and collective abilities of the organization supporting that success. On the other hand, excellent leadership is a prerequisite for a successful organization. The focus vol 9

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of the framework’s different areas depends on the situation and context. The main thing is that the leader and organization head in the same direction.

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>

EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP I S A C O M B I N AT I O N O F T H R E E F A C TO R S

Sometimes the expectations placed on leaders do not seem human-scaled. The focus is on their executive leadership and renewal skills on the one hand, and cognitive skills and thinking on the other. They are expected to demonstrate macro and micromanagement, complex thinking and straightforward decisionmaking, strategic understanding, and people management.

A more comprehensive leadership approach ties all these elements together without forgetting that even the best leader operates within a certain context. Good leadership builds organizational capabilities, whereas even the best leaders will be waving their hands in the air if the organization’s structures and other collective factors fail to support success.

A leader needs to make a practical contribution to ensure the organization succeeds in implementing the chosen direction, also in situations when a quick turnaround is necessary. Excellent leaders make a long-lasting imprint on the organization’s performance, culture, and strategic goals.

The knowledge, skills, and competencies of an effective leader boil down to three simple points: 1. Sensemaking and Interpreting. This describes the way we

make sense of the complex world around us – our mental models and thoughts – also our delusions.The key skill of a leader is to break down information and use it as an aid for decisionmaking. At best, leaders are able to grasp and hold two opposing ideas at the same time. Leaders are also interpreters: they express matters to subordinates and other networks. They understand that we always see the world through a certain lens. We all have subconscious thought models.The leader’s task is to ask: What is happening? What will happen? Which beliefs will influence the events? It is necessary to understand and accept that the answers will never be perfect.

Yet this imperfection must never paralyze decision-making.

Also “managing” is part of leadership: matters need to be addressed, corrected, and promoted. Difficult discussions need to happen.

In this sense, 2. Adapting and Aligning is one leadership skill.

Adapting activities to the surrounding reality as it is interpreted: the company strategy, context, and events on both a micro and macro level. One of the opposing models needs to be chosen – or blended into a synergistic combination: Which measures support the organization? How to steer operations in the right direction? How to align a team’s activities to sup-

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port the company’s goals? On an individual level, it means that leaders who are aware of their operating style and ways of making sense of the world can use that knowledge to adapt to the situation.

The third leadership skill is 3.

Renewing and Growing. This means both the leader’s personal renewal and the leader’s impact on organizational renewal and growth. It may require strongly and consciously challenging both the leader’s own and the organization’s mindset.

Adapting and Aligning involve continual development, whereas Renewing and Growing refer to a leader’s ability to respond to sporadic, surprising changes in the operating environment. It can mean dramatic changes to the way the leader is used to doing things.

S I X F A C TO R S HELP EXAMINE T H E C A PA B I L I T I E S O F A N O R G A N I Z AT I O N

By strengthening the knowledge, skills and individual capabilities listed here, leaders can become more effective and leave their mark – on the team, organization, and surrounding society. It is important to pay attention to the leader’s operating context, though. Leadership never takes place in a vacuum; the organizational and wider context exist along the perim-

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eters of leadership: collective capabilities and, most importantly, the strategic direction.

Even the most skilled leader is unable to leave a positive imprint without structures and frameworks that support leadership.

The collective capabilities, knowledge, and skills of the organization set the conditions for a leader’s activities.

The three personal leadership factors are surrounded by six collective organizational factors, which partly overlap.

DESIGN refers to different ways of framing the organization and its business and operating methods. Organizational design creates structures, processes, roles, and e.g. rewarding systems.

It sets the framework for the work of individual leaders: how they are rewarded or reward others, how much responsibility they have, how self-directing they are expected to be.

CULTURE appears as a collection of manifested organizational values and norms. An organization’s culture or numerous microcultures often resemble their leaders. People are usually the children of their cultures.

When it comes to the compatibility of values and culture, the same is true for individual leaders within an organization.

RESILIENCE is a term that organizational scholars originally borrowed from psychology.

It is much more than flexibility.

Even the most skilled leader is unable to leave a positive imprint without structures and frameworks that support leadership.

The collective capabilities, knowledge, and skills of the organization set the conditions for the leader’s activities.

In an organization, resilience means collective persistence. In a resilient organization, the direction and goal are clear and decision-making consistent even in moments of crisis.

The classic meaning of LEARNING refers to an organization collectively collecting and sharing information. Learning primarily refers to people, but on an organizational level, learning also takes place in systems and documents that share collective organizational information.

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nals and use them to create new business. It also refers to an organization’s ability for highquality decision-making on where growth is sought and how to go about it in an effective and profitable way.

And finally: AGILITY. At the risk of the term being somewhat overused, it describes an organization’s situational awareness in a unique way. Agility is the ability to change direction and thought patterns quickly, if need be, and react to what goes on in the surrounding world.Agility is of course also part of culture, and organizational design and structures enable it.

These six collective organizational factors are raw materials or the platform that connect the implementation of a company’s strategic direction with the knowledge and skills of an individual leader. They glue the abilities of an individual leader to the goal of the organization.

Whether leadership focuses on the skills of an individual leader or the organization’s strategic direction depends on the chosen perspective. Leaders develop their personal expertise – and the organization its abilities.

The main thing is for the direction to be the same: after all, what meaning does a leader’s imprint ultimately have if it doesn’t lead anywhere? ◆

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Saara Bange

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BETTER LEADERSHIP I N TA N Z A N I A Executive Education program helps Tanzanian leaders develop their potential.

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alto University Executive Education (Aalto EE) has for the past four years cooperated with the UONGOZI Institute, an independent agency established by the Government of Tanzania in 2010 to strengthen leadership that fosters sustainable development in the African country. Finland has supported the Institute from the very beginning. This includes core support to the Institute’s basic operations as well as lead-

ership training programs, such as the one run in cooperation with Aalto EE, Postgraduate Diploma in Leadership (PDG).

The PDG program, which is now in its fifth year, has proven highly popular. The total number of graduates so far is 128.

The participants have ranged from public sector officials to leaders of non-governmental organizations, faith-based organizations, and private companies, representing a comprehen-

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sive cross-section of Tanzanian upper management.

The program aims to develop leadership competencies in three areas: making strategic choices, leading people and other resources, and excelling in personal leadership qualities.

“We have brought them the latest information and theoretical understanding on leadership, organizations, and finance. This is something they have valued, and it seems that they have also

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The PDG program, which is now in its fifth year, has proven highly popular. The total number of Tanzanian graduates so far is 128.

made the most of it, which is very gratifying”, says Senior Solutions Director Kirsi Gyldén from Aalto EE who was Program Director for the first two years.

One good sign of the program’s success is the move towards self-paying participants – 93 at the time of writing. “This is how development cooperation is supposed to work. Public funding gradually diminishes and the beneficiary evolves into an independent operator, capable of securing its funding from the market”, says Gyldén.

The one-year program consists of ten modules, including Strategy Formulation and Implementation, Financial Skills, Human Resource Management, Ethical Leadership, and Leading Change.The program takes into account the special features of Tanzanian culture and the operating environment, using local

expertise and Aalto EE instructors in the facilitation of the program modules.

Kadari Singo, former Head of Executive Education and now Chief Executive Officer of the UONGOZI Institute, has worked with Aalto EE from the beginning of the partnership.

“The UONGOZI Institute has an important role to play towards leadership in Tanzania and the African region. To build a country’s leadership, it is important to learn from other countries. Our partnership with Aalto EE provides access to inter-

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nationally recognized experts with broad perspectives and new ways of thinking.These experts have helped leaders become agents of change through enhanced understanding of strategy development and innovative processes and systems for better results.”

Gyldén believes that the program has made a significant impact. “I think that an education program like this can be more influential than direct monetary support.”

Based on the program’s evaluation reports, it is evident that the PGD program has impacted leaders in areas of strategic communication, personal leadership and emotional intelligence, and resource management. Several leaders are also reported to have been awarded senior positions after completing the program. ◆

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Annamari Typpö

S T A R T / UNSRETEW N A/ SL FC E N F I G AS R : ITA TAIOC TU CNFEII VL &E R ? R SEI ST EY A R C H

A A LTO U N I V E R S I T Y – W H E R E M U LT I D I S C I P L I N A RY S C I E N C E A N D A RT M E E T T E C H N O L O G Y A N D B U S I N E S S

12,000 400 1,100 full-time degree students

professors

employed doctoral candidates

100,000 alumni

6 schools in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, and with over 300 years of combined history: School of Business

of which around

School of Arts, Design and Architecture

18,000

School of Science School of Chemical Engineering

are Aalto University Executive Education Ltd’s alumni

Over

School of Electrical Engineering School of Engineering

100

bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs.

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A H OY, A A LTO E E ALUMNI!

M O R E S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y P RO G R A M S – N OW W I T H B E R K E L E Y Sustainability is a competitive advantage socially, environmentally, and economically now more than ever. Aalto EE and UC Berkeley Executive Education have signed an agreement to cooperate in the Strategic Sustainability program.This program gives companies a platform to assess their value chain and ensure that their business models have sustainability at the core.

Aalto University’s focused studies on complex sustainability challenges like climate change, loss of biodiversity, and global inequality call for ground-breaking and societally impactful research. Sustainability is a core value of UC Berkeley, and the University has been named as one of the greenest in the world. UC Berkeley intends to be a leader in environmental issues and to promote action and awareness

through education and research initiatives.

Aalto PRO has been running the training program Competitive Advantage from CSR for years. The program enables the participants to turn responsible business into a strategic tool for improving their company’s competitive edge.

One of the participants is Secretary General of Global Compact Finland (until 31.8.2021), Lenita Toivakka. The UN Global Compact is the world’s largest corporate social responsibility initiative.

“The benefits of CSR are incontestable. New business opportunities can be found even in very traditional fields.

Utilizing production waste is a good example”, Toivakka remarks.“Responsible business is not a trend. CSR will be – or perhaps already is – a prerequisite to doing business.” vol 9

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Aalto EE has more than 15,000 alumni around the world. We are extremely proud of our alumni and want to keep them updated on Aalto EE’s latest news, events, and programs, and make sure that all of them make the most of our excellent content and development opportunities. To keep in touch with everyone, we need email addresses. Although we realize you need to update your new email address to many different places, we would really appreciate being high on that list, so we can reach you.

U P D AT E Y O U R C O N TA C T I N F O R M AT I O N

Has your contact information changed? Have you not received email from us for a while? Fill in the form and send us your new contact details. https://www.aaltoee.fi/ alumnitoiminta https://www.aaltoee.com/ alumni-activities

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Aalto University Executive Education and aSSIST will start cooperating on the Shaping the Future program in the fall of 2021.The program is targeted at CEOs and C-level executives who are working with both domestic and international companies in Korea, and who want to develop their strategic capabili-

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ties and thrive in technological transformation.The target group also includes Korean alumni of Aalto Executive MBA.The program offers a brilliant opportunity to update one’s studies and to discuss strategic and future related themes with a peer group.

The program will be implemented within a 10-week period and the number of participants in each group is limited to app.

20 individuals.The plan is to start several groups each year from spring 2022 onward.

Head of Thought Leadership

NEW NORDIC P RO G R A M HELPS SCALEUP C O M PA N I E S Aalto University Developing Entrepreneurship (Aalto ENT), BI Norwegian Business School, and Nordea Startup & Growth have launched a Nordic scaleup program that aims to help fastestgrowing companies grow internationally.

In the Nordic countries, earlystage entrepreneurs receive a wide range of support, which has enabled many companies to expand internationally. Often, however, companies are unable to reach their full potential and after a fast start, their growth slows down significantly or even stops.

The new GlobalScaleX growth program tackles this challenge.

The program is aimed for Nordic scale-up companies with a turnover of at least two million euros, which employ at least ten people and have grown by at least 20% in the previous 1–3 years.

According to Minna Wick-

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and Design, Raija Kuokkanen from Aalto EE says that Aalto EE is truly proud of the long-term partnership with aSSIST. “This new program combines both up-to-date academic knowledge and the need to discuss current business trends and phenomena shaping the world with peers.

Special emphasis is given on application through facilitated discussion sessions. The program is a great example of the unique collaboration and co-creation since 1995 between Aalto EE and aSSIST. ”

holm, Business Area Director at Aalto ENT, GlobalScaleX brings together two leading universities, Aalto University and BI Norwegian Business School. “By combining our knowledge, capabilities, and experience, we can support the next Nordic unicorn’s growth story and create success in the whole of the Nordics. Nordea Startup and Growth brings to the consortium the much-needed experience in financing growth and helping companies to scale their business.”

“With help from experts, mentors, entrepreneurs, and investors, this program enables companies to achieve growth at an accelerated pace which may be difficult to achieve elsewhere”, says Professor Per Ingvar Olsen at BI Norwegian Business School.

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WO O D F OA M CHALLENGES PLASTIC [AI]

A COMPUTER GAME TO T R E AT D E P R E S S I O N [ N E U RO S C I E N C E ]

A research group headed by Aalto University Professor Matias Palva is developing a computer game that could help in the treatment of depression alongside therapy and drug treatment.

The game looks and feels like a modern action video game, where the player solves challenges in a fantasy city. Un-

The computer game could help in the treatment of depression alongside therapy and drug treatment.

like pure entertainment games, however, a complicated network of features lies beneath its surface, which together produce a therapeutic effect.

A new bio-based material could replace substances such as Styrofoam and bubble wrap. Artificial intelligence is being used in the development of the material.

For example, a mixture of the compounds lignin, wood fibre, and laponite can produce a foam that resists shock and humidity and can be used to replace plastic. Lignin is a binder of wood fibres and when made into a dried foam it is hard, water-resistant, and even conducts electricity.

The most extraordinary feature of the foam is that it is edible. The method can produce foam from carrot, lingonberry, cranberry, or beetroot powder, and this can in turn be processed into an edible form resembling potato crisps.

N E W F E RT I L I Z E R F RO M B I O WA S T E [CLEAN TECHNOLOGIES]

Finnish researchers have developed a new fertilizer, named Putretti, from ash, biowaste and municipal sludge with an estimated climate impact of just one-tenth of similar fertilisers made artificially. Intended initially for forests and woods, the fertiliser provides a way to

boost growth while also sinking carbon into vast forested lands.

The production of Putretti could begin on a larger scale in two years’ time, and within five years it could be spread in forests across the Finnish region. vol 9

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How to Enable Sustainable Growth

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rowth is generally desired – at least when profitable and sustainable – but there are many barriers to overcome and enablers to capture to be successful, especially in these unpredictable times. In this column, I will share five points that help you get a good start on your Growth journey.

1. Prioritization of numerous ongoing business initiatives is one of the key enablers for growth, and it needs to be done ruthlessly. It is not easy to kill some of your dear and important projects, but it is essential. If you try to accomplish all your ongoing or planned projects, you are likely to fail part of them as well as tire out your key talents.

This prioritization should be done together at a higher level to ensure the needed alignment and commitment.

2. Collaborate.You don’t have to invent everything yourself or have all the needed capabilities in-house. Understanding and deciding which capabilities you should have in-house and which you can acquire through your network ecosystem can make a big difference.

You can partner with big and small companies to drive innovation, growth, and efficiency. Driving and fostering a true collaboration culture actively can make you much more agile. Utilizing an extended talent ecosystem is a smart and essential thing to do in today’s environment where the best talents may no longer be willing to commit to permanent positions in one company only. a alto leade r s’ i n si g h t

3. One of the key enablers for growth is active re-allocation of resources inside the company.

Think whether some of the more established businesses in your company could borrow some of their key talents for other growth initiatives, at least on a temporary basis? Could this also provide great personal growth opportunities for your people?

Sometimes dismantling existing organization structures or recycling leadership positions can release innovation inside the company and drive the needed renewal for growth.

4. Having risk-friendly and growth-supporting incentive mechanisms across the company is vital.

Quite often leaders are measured only for improving their profitability in the short term, which leads to avoiding adequate risk-taking or lack of patience to see if a new idea really carries out. If growth incentives are not executed throughout the organization, the desired results may be limited.

5. Finally and not surprisingly, engaging and inclusive leadership is the fundamental factor for any company seeking successful sustainable growth or even surviving today’s battle for talents in the longer term. Engaging leadership builds and fosters genuine trust and creativity within a company, which then fuels growth. ◆

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MIKA VIDEMAN is Entrepreneur & Manager at Videman Renewal Oy and Senior Advisor at Aalto University Executive Education.

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Lasse Mitronen, Professor of Practice, and Mikko Hänninen, Assistant Professor, study global marketplaces.

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s a consumer, you no longer need to go to a shop, instead, the shop will come to you. As digital platforms, stores amass a vast amount of data from their customers, which they analyze to enhance the customer experience. Once customers are happy with an online purchase, they begin to trust the seller and will likely frequent the shop again.

For example,Amazon and Ali­ baba have revolutionized competition and the rules of traditional trade. Information management and artificial intelligence make shopping more and more addictive, but an astute customer can also reap the benefits of online shopping.

While traditional commerce

consists of a single sale, the revenue generation model of ecommerce consists of selling goods, payment processing, advertizing space for the media, and value-added services such as Amazon’s digital content. They are all based on data economy in one way or another.

An online store collects an ever-increasing amount of information from its customers, which it must analyze reliably.

On the other hand, the customer’s trust must also be able to be maintained. Each click a consumer makes while surfing the internet is tracked and analyzed by a digital robot. Its learning algorithms then turn data into a marketing tool.The more data available, the more reliable vol 9

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the predictions of consumer behavior are. Machine learning and automation are used to screen the collected data. Digital giants like Alibaba, Alphabet, Amazon, and Facebook make the best workable models for predicting consumer behavior. They have hired the best IT specialists in the world for the job.

“The excellence of e-commerce is justified by the fact that it removes trade barriers and makes shopping easier. But we should remember that algorithms work well and correctly only as long as their purpose is also for good from an ethical point of view”, says Mikko Hänninen, Assistant Professor of Commerce at the University of Nottingham, UK.

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TINY ORIGAMI C O N T RO L L E D B Y L I G H T [NANOTECHNOLOGY]

Molecular machines are the incredibly small and powerful pieces of biology that power our bodies and most of the natural world. Despite being essential to all life on earth and having huge potential for revolutionizing

The DNA hinge closes when light shines on it.

nanotechnology, we humans are way off in being able to replicate them ourselves because we lack

the ability to control structures that are so small.To develop this level of control, a team of chemists and bioengineers has made synthetic nanostructures that change shape on command.

The team of researchers from Aalto University and Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel has been able to make a hinge-like structure that opens and closes in a way that’s very simple to control.

A A LTO PAT E N T A P P L I C AT I O N S R E AC H F R E S H RECORD

”The motivation for adopting wearable tech in the workplace is straightforward: efficient and healthy employees are a more valuable resource for the company than unwell and ineffective workers. Wearable tech has a lot of promise: it can make work more efficient, improve the mental and physical wellbeing of employees, and reduce workplace accidents.”

Annamari Vänskä, Adjunct Professor of Fashion Research at Aalto University, in Aalto University Magazine.

Recent data from the Finnish Patent and Registration Office reveals that Aalto University was, with its 52 applications, the country’s fourthmost active patent applicant in 2020. Only Nokia’s business divisions and VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland filed more applications than the University. “Patents are applied for especially in the various technological fields as well as in biomaterials, physics, neuroscience, information technology, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and information networks”, says Janne Laine,Vice President for Innovation at Aalto University.

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Patent applications from Aalto University have increased fivefold since 2012.

One recent innovation is the bolometer, a nanoscale measuring device. These graphene-based devices are small enough to fit inside bacteria.

The quantum technology firm IQM, a commercial spin-off from Aalto University’s and VTT’s shared ecosystem, is utilizing these devices in its effort to build Finland’s first true quantum computer.

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What is the softe r side of an MBA?

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ust about everyone involved in MBAs talk about the program’s soft and hard sides.

But is the binary distinction appropriate or useful?

The first distinction we need to make is between hard vs. soft skills and hard vs. soft topics. A staple of executive training and development is to talk about hard and soft skills. This terminology was originally used by the United States military to distinguish between “hard skills” related to operating machinery and “soft skills” that had to do with leading and motivating troops.

Today “soft skills” typically refer to skills such as leadership, critical thinking, and public speaking that are not linked to a particular job but are vital in general. In the context of MBA, hard skills can refer to learning a subject-specific task, while soft skills would refer to everything else.

Sometimes, MBA participants use the distinction between hard and soft topics to distinguish between topics deemed to be more objective and quantitative (“hard”) such as finance and accounting, and those perceived as being more subjective and qualitative (“soft”) such as marketing and management. This categorization does not reflect the nature of these disciplines. It is impossible to sufficiently explain the finance phenomenon of meme stocks and the “stonk market” without going quite deep into internet cultures and consumer psychology.

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mance are considered as hard. However, in a welldesigned MBA curriculum, all subjects should have both hard and soft elements.

When we at Aalto EE design the curricula for our MBA and EMBA programs, we frame the learning goals around knowledge, skills, and attitudes. There is a temptation to focus on the first two, considered as hard, but when I talk with our MBA and EMBA alumni, the message is that those hard-to-measure attitudinal changes are of utmost value.

I would be doing a disservice to our participants by focusing too much on what I can measure. As the quote most often attributed to Albert Einstein or William Bruce Cameron states, “Not everything that can be counted counts. Not everything that counts can be counted.”

People use the terms “hard” and “soft” in the executive education context to refer to different things – make sure you and the person you are talking to are on the same page. The terms may help to distinguish between various types of content and approaches, and as such may help to design a well-rounded program. Just avoid taking too binary an approach and remember that there is almost always lots of overlap and shades of gray between any two categories. ◆

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DR. MIKKO LAUKKANEN is the Academic Director at Aalto EE. He is also a Researcher at the Aalto University School of Business and frequently lectures in Aalto EE’s programs around the world.

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MUST READ We asked Aalto University staff to share some reading tips.

What has gripped them lately and why?

ANU VÄNSKÄ Aalto EE Executive Director, Asia Pacific

David Shambaugh: Where Great Powers Meet America and China in Southeast Asia (2021) Kishore Mahbubani: Has China Won? The Chinese Challenge to American Primacy (2020) ”Stationed in Singapore, I find myself recommending two publications that both deal with the competition between the United States and China – a topical theme all over the world, not least here in Southeast Asia. American author David Shambaugh’s brand-new book Where Great Powers Meet and Kshore Mahbubani’s Has China Won published last year differ from each other a great deal and at times offer contrasting views. Both have received plenty of attention and the two balance each other out.”

EIJA SALMI Aalto University Secretary General of Cumulus Network, Head of International Affairs at the School of Arts, Design and Architecture.

René Spitz: Designing Design Education, Whitebook on the Future of Design Education (iF Design Foundation) The book documents the findings of five years of scientific research and in-depth, intercontinental exchange with over 250 design experts from 25 countries. The forewords were written by Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, and design icon Dieter Rams. The author is professor of design science and communication management at the Rheinische Fachhochschule in Co­logne, Germany. The book cover is adorned with the following statement: “Design means: another solution is possible.”

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”This is a hot topic around the world right now. The publication is the result of a collaboration between Cumulus Association and iF Design Foundation. " PETRI SUOMALA Aalto University Vice President, Education

Giovanni Schiuma: The Value of Arts for Business.

Cambridge University Press (2011). ”The book builds a conceptual bridge to the way art and art-based initiatives can be linked to an organization’s success and performance management. Instead of offering clear-cut answers, the publication invites readers to think about the connection between business and artistic and creative practice.”

BOOK 1 [ SCENARIOS ]

FUTURE OF E V E RY T H I N G How can we gain a grip on the future when everything is wavering? Journalist Annukka Oksanen talked to four experts, who recommend tools for taking hold of a future of unknowns.

Words: Annukka Oksanen Illustrations: Rune Fisker

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hat changes when cars no longer need a combustion engine? What are people searching or escaping when they relocate? Who should you be letting into your company’s data warehouse? What can we learn from the great toilet paper grab of 2020?

It is difficult to see the important from the unimportant when charging full speed ahead. And when reaching some sort of future vision at the end of a bout of strategy work, life can throw its surprises, like the horrors of a pandemic. What does it all mean for business?

It means more for some sectors than for others.

But everyone needs to get onboard the fact that the pandemic won’t be the last uncertainty of its kind.

Volcanic eruptions, unrest, cargo ships blocking channels, and pandemics will be cropping up to disrupt the painstakingly drawn charts of strategy teams also in the future. In other words, interruptions must not be brushed off without an analysis.

The type and duration of the changes brought on by the virus are not yet known.

For one thing, risk awareness will increase, which can lead to far-reaching changes in day-today business. The way companies are already organizing their value chains is one concrete example. Companies with a strong local presence are already bringing their subcontractor chains closer to home and their main market with the risk of cargo traffic coming to a halt looming in the background. Meanwhile global companies may start ditching their huge global production centers in favor of several regional microstructures instead. This way they can serve various market areas through their own local systems in the event of closing borders.

Regional changes are just one example of all the current buzz. How can we gain a grip on the future when everything is wavering?

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U R B A N I Z AT I O N O R O F F TO T H E C O U N T RY S I D E – WHICH ONE WINS? M I K KO L A U K K A N E N Academic Director at Aalto EE

When two or more rivers converge, the flowing bodies of water merge into a single, downstream channel. In geography, this is known as confluence.

Like rivers, trends can collide and continue their journey together.Two confluent streams can be stronger than a single flowing body, but also turn into muddy water. Merging trends, too, can result in murky vision.

“Colliding trends change each other”, says Mikko Laukkanen, Academic Director at Aalto University Executive Education.

It is Laukkanen’s job to envision how Aalto EE programs will best serve participants as well as to steer organizational leaders to recognize what matters in times of change.

He mentions housing and the current Finnish summer cottage boom as an example. Remote working during Covid times has changed people’s daily lives; many relocated to their summer cottages to work or started to consider a bigger home. And as the period of remote working got longer, we began to want more from our home offices.

“There are two distinct trends at play. On the

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Begin by thinking about the changes that will strengthen and stay.

Then ask what you can influence yourself.

“You could invite a consultant over to announce the current trends every day if you wish. Sustainability is said to be a trend.

It sure is, but you cannot build on observation alone.”

one hand, people want more space. At the same time, apartment prices in the city center rose. It’s likely that once the pandemic is over, we will be keen to make use of the services on offer outside our homes. It’s hard to believe we’d all want to live in the middle of nowhere and stay there when we no longer have to. I’m pretty certain we’ll want to be going to cafés, terraces, and concerts.”

Relocating to a quieter area and urbanization are polar opposites, yet both trends are real.

It begs to question:Which matters more? Which trend has more effect?

“Urbanization is more or less a law of nature, which is sure to continue in one form or another.

Wanting an extra room won’t be reversing this major trend, but it will have an effect. Developments within cities could change. As a business leader I could think that without Covid, the urbanization trend would have been stronger last year. In other words, I can say I believe in that major trend”, Laukkanen highlights.

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Urbanization is a megatrend on a global scale with new metropolises and even megapolises continuously springing up in Asia and Africa. The smaller stream has an impact but does not steer the larger river into an entirely new channel.

Also, trends have different timespans, meaning they cannot necessarily be bundled together. Often a certain trend starts to run the show.

Laukkanen continues the thread of thought.

Cocooning at home and an appreciation of gardening and leisure time have been on a rise all over the world. In Finland, the trend is known as the Nurmijärvi phenomenon, named after the small rural municipality just outside capital city Helsinki. The media is awash with stories about people escaping the rat race. Home cultivation is gaining popularity. Overseas travel is diminishing.

“There will be a big bubble after Covid, but perhaps we’ll start to experience “flight shame” also in Finland one day.”

Remote working is likely to be more popular in five years than in pre-Covid times, but there are only so many online meetings we can take.

“Where will all this lead? We want time together – a chance to meet people at work. But how will our time together change?” Laukkanen continues with his answer: “As we value our time together more than before, also our expectations will be raised.”

Returning to the office is not what is so interesting, but the way our time together at work will change. Management coaching will not happen over zoom in the future either because it would be tedious.

“But if you are getting clients or colleagues together at a conference venue, the content needs to change. It cannot be something you could just as well arrange over zoom.”

Live get-togethers will be a new luxury. Having to travel to a meeting is expensive, rare, time-consuming, and causes carbon emissions. We want more from live meetings than to stare at a flip chart at an airport hotel like in pre-Covid times. We

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want more both from the content and the location.

“If I was running a conference hotel next to Frankfurt airport, I’d be worried.”

Similar chains of thought can be applied to any industry. Begin by thinking about the changes that will strengthen and stay. Then ask what you can influence yourself.

“You could invite a consultant over to announce the current trends every day if you wish.

Sustainability is said to be a trend. It sure is, but you cannot build on observation alone.”

What is sustainability exactly, and what does it mean to different people and your own stakeholders? You need to land into it if it were, taking time to wonder and look around in peace.

Next, you need to dig around and figure out how the rising sustainability trend will affect your own operations. It requires an in-depth understanding of both your operations and the trend.

The director’s next step is to take these observations and build a convincing whole.

With everyone staring at the same market data on sustainability, the data alone will not create

“What are the connected trends, what effect do they have on each other and development, and what happens when they collide?

How does the collision affect the functioning of the market and consumer behavior, and what could be the long-term impact?”

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General knowledge is a key competence for grasping what is connected and what is not.

competitive advantage. But knowing how to digest the data and adjust it to your own business will.

“The question that matters is what it will affect.”

Laukkanen mentions digitalization as another example. For many, it meant adopting a new interface and integrating their former business along with its former principles into it. This rings true for instance in the media and banking sectors.

“They dive into a new technology without thinking about what it will change.Then the new interface changes the customer’s relationship to the product itself.”

For a long time, banks were offering the same or slightly more limited services online than at the branch. Developing online services in line with the principles of digitalization took them years.

“What are the connected trends, what effect do they have on each other and development, and what happens when they collide? How does the collision affect the functioning of the market and consumer behavior, and what could be the longterm impact?” These are some of the questions Laukkanen raises when coaching leaders.

“It takes quite a bit of work to find the answers.”

According to Laukkanen, Finns understand the reasons for their success “fairly badly”.

“There’s no time or interest to think about why the world is the way it is. Instead of sticking to

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A positive outlook that seeks potential instead of threats is vital. It means looking beyond core competences.

one’s bubble, it’s important to try and figure why others think the way they do.”

Laukkanen mentions that sometimes people wonder why they should be interested in the first place. ”You need to be interested in everything!

It’s the only way to improve your perspective and general knowledge.”

According to Laukkanen, general knowledge is a key competence for grasping what is connected and what is not.

“Many Brits working in the City of London have a degree in art history or literature, whereas their Finnish counterparts have studied finance.

Finance is easy enough to learn on the job, but it’s harder to catch up on general knowledge. It creates a rather boring worldview.”

As a ‘nation of engineers’, Finns tend to default to recruiting engineers and finance graduates.

All respect to them, but homogeneity always brings its risks. In other parts of the world, recruiters have been interested in people educated in humanities and social sciences or with some other background for a long time.

“Otherwise people’s world equals the latest book they read at the airport.They are gullible to however that book presents the world. It’s a biggie that stems from a lack of sophistication. A good general understanding puts things into perspective.”

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T I KTO K T E E N S A R E T H E M I D D L E - AG E D C U S TO M E R S O F THE FUTURE A N T T I - J U S S I TA H V A N A I N E N M a n a g e r, I n n o v a t i o n P o l i c y a t t h e F i n n i s h Forest Industries Federation

Traditional, accounting-based strategy work involves a business analyzing its own operations, environment, and competition with a timespan of a few years. Strategic foresight, on the other hand, is about glimpsing into the world beyond the horizon, with a lengthier timespan and broader perspective.

Antti-Jussi Tahvanainen is the Innovation Policy Manager at the Finnish Forest Industries Federation, a visiting lecturer at Aalto EE, and an executive consultant. He believes the two methods complement each other.

Strategic foresight means taking an active grip on the future. It allows a company to exert more influence than traditional strategic planning.

“Instead of the classic notion of trying to adapt to the future, we take it into our own hands and aim to shape it into what we want.”

Sounds somewhat grandiose. Maybe an example could help: the automotive industry is case in point of a sector where strategic foresight can help outline fundamental changes.

The core competence of the automotive indus-

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try has traditionally revolved around the internal combustion engine. Rivals sought to stand out through quality and to some degree through design, but mainly through their combustion engine technology.

Now the car sector is turning electric. “It has meant ditching their entire core competence”, Tahvanainen describes.

“Suddenly it’s all about A.I., radar technology, and the digital side. It is no surprise that completely new competition is entering the market.”

Tesla is the mega celeb among newcomers, but by no means alone; there’s Rivian, Revel, Hyliion, Polestar… New electric car brands are jumping on the bandwagon at an accelerating pace.

At the same time, autonomous vehicles, driverless cars, are advancing leaps and bounds.

“Social and psychological innovations are

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emerging. According to statistic, autonomous control is safer than human control.Yet it will take plenty of planning to make people calm and confident.”

In other words, strategic foresight involves questioning everything.Whether your core competence will still be relevant 10–15 years from now is a tough question to face. It is why Tahvanainen believes that a positive outlook that seeks potential instead of threats is vital. It means looking beyond core competences.

“For many companies, going beyond what they know best is a tough “make it or break it” issue.”

To make things even harder on yourself, try to figure out what your future customers will be like.

How will generation Z act at a car dealer in the future – the same people who mock today’s al-

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“Does it make sense to develop family cars anymore? Will these people still want to get around, or are the digi natives happy with a pair of virtual glasses to take in the Sydney New Year’s fireworks?”

most middle-aged millennials for their skinny jeans and side partings?

Tahvanainen’s reply is reassuring.

“Humans are the most predictable – studies show that the values of different generations are pretty stable.”

Our basic values and outlook on life tend to stay the same, but behaviors can change a great deal.

In other words: to envision the future ten years from now with 45-year-olds as your target market for selling cars, look at today’s 35-year-olds no matter how different they seem from your current customers. Then start analyzing how they might behave in a decade.

Education comes as a given for generation X, while it is not as important to millennials. They are also less family-oriented than previous generations. How will this value shift reflect in their consumer behavior? How about the younger generations, who are more social and used to sharing their lives on social media?

“Does it make sense to develop family cars anymore? Will these people still want to get around, or are the digi natives happy with a pair of virtual glasses to take in the Sydney New Year’s fireworks?” Tahvanainen lists.

“I always begin with individuals. Together they create the market.”

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The time scope for strategic foresight depends on the sector. Foresight must always be adjusted to the planning cycle.

The automotive sector has been planning for the future three car models, i.e., fifteen years ahead, which has given enough time to adjust the production and value chain.

Another way strategic insight differs from traditional strategic planning is by who is involved.

Tahvanainen is all for including people from outside the box right from the start, such as customers of customers.

“It’s hard to create something new in a vacuum or old, familiar setup. It takes cross-pollination.

New things are born when values and ideas from the outside collide with our own.”

Strategic foresight requires a more creative and active attitude than the traditional strategy process.

The further into the future you set your sights, the more proactive you need to be, as there is less relevant data available than when analyzing the immediate future.

“It’s no rocket science, although you do need specific tools for the creative process and forwarddriving discussions. Leadership has a bigger, more responsible role than in a planning-based system.”

A bigger change transforms our notion of reality and factors that define operations.

“Trying to figure out unknown unknowns is a major endeavor.”

Creativity is not fiction; strategic foresight is strictly based on facts.

“It is not about creating a fantasy world. There is no place for assumptions. Generational profiling, for instance, is based on thousands upon thousands of cross-continental interviews. Even the most creative tools based on human understanding are data-driven.”

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C O M PA N Y B O U N DA R I E S D I S S O LV E I N A DATA E C O N O M Y TUA HUOMO Executive Vice President, Sust ainable P r o d u c t s a n d M a t e r i a l s , V T T Te c h n i c a l Re s e a rc h C e n t re o f F i n l a n d

Where company boundaries could once be drawn around its HQ and plot of land, they now float amorphously in cyberspace. It creates completely new partnership potential.

Understanding, managing, and integrating their own data are increasingly important competitive factors for companies. Without an in-depth understanding of their own data, companies are unable to determine how digitally independent they are. What data should we keep to ourselves and what would be useful to share? What are the company’s data resources?

Data can be seen as raw material that constantly receives new uses and we learn to increasingly refine. This brings added value.

Companies need to keep critical data linked to its own processes to themselves. Shared data benefits both the company and others.

Tua Huomo, Executive Vice President at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, formulates the notion into a question: “On industry level, what data can be combined

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into shared data warehouses or platforms? This could create competitive advantage and leverage data across the value chain.”

Data sharing and aggregation play a key role in the data economy. The pan-European Gaia-X network seeks to construct the European data market of the future. Finland’s share of the effort is coordinated by Sitra.

Gaia-X aims to make use of European company data in an improved capacity, creating completely new business opportunities in the process. For instance, managing the flow of raw materials in the textile industry through data can offer novel, sometimes surprising possibilities. Gaia-X seeks to define data sharing standards and infrastructure established on a European value base.

“Data is already moving between companies, and shared data platforms and collaboration will open up even more potential. Companies have already been working hard to grasp how data is moving through their own value chains. It is part of the evolution. At some point, people will realize this could bring totally new business potential that perhaps utilizes the data of the entire industry segment.”

The reason data economy is linked to sustainable development is that through data, circular economy can be streamlined further.

“In sustainable production, process optimization utilizes for instance A.I. Once a product is distributed, it needs to be as durable as possible. When it

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“On industry level, what data can be combined into shared data warehouses or platforms?

This could create competitive advantage and leverage data across the value chain.”

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”Take quantum technology for example. No one knows what possibilities it will bring.

The main thing is for companies to start thinking what it could mean and enable in their field.

Then why not experiment.

It’s how innovation is born.”

is no longer used, it needs to be recyclable.”

Data economy is a cornerstone for European success. It is why corporations, states, and the EU are interested in investing in it.

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“In practice, it means channeling research funding, so it can be utilized by companies. Knowing that funding and investments are underway, it makes perfect sense to take hold of this wave of renewal” Huomo mentions.

She refers to the EU’s recent industry strategy that seeks to strengthen Europe’s digital competitiveness. Also national pandemic recovery funds are channeled into innovation and research.

According to Huomo, you should simply “start doing and experimenting”, when it comes to digitalization.

“Take quantum technology for example. No one knows what possibilities it will bring. The main thing is for companies to start thinking what it could mean and enable in their field.Then why not experiment. It’s how innovation is born.”

“New things rarely emerge from scratch – in-

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stead foresight, using information in different combinations, and experimentation play a key role.”

Development projects often requiring huge amounts of resources and information from different fields is enough reason for public agents to be proactive.The quest of VTT and Finnish company IQM to build a 50-qubit quantum computer is a good example.The Finnish government is funding the initiative with EUR 21 million, and the device is developed in partnership by several actors. Although perhaps small on a global scale, the initiative does offer unique opportunities for Finnish companies.

“Building the device requires plenty of crossdisciplinary expertise, which could lead to several globally successful companies.”

Using quantum technology profitably in business will still take some time, but Huomo believes companies should already be getting acquainted and even patenting related technology. To make a start, they should think about what challenges quantum technology could solve.

“Quantum technology can solve complex challenges that current computing capacity is unable to address. I believe there are as many ways to use it as there are businesses.”

Customers know how to specify their needs more and more precisely. They should not be bundled categorically into, say, luxury consumers and misers, as the same consumer can fall into both depending on the product and situation.

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C U S TO M E R S O U T S M A RT C O M PA N I E S P E K K A M AT T I L A Group Managing Director at Aalto EE & Professor of Practice at Aalto University

Companies are eager to profile their average customers through market analysis to develop products and sales strategies. But do average customers actually exist?

At least there are less and less of them.

“The bell curve of normal distribution has swung upside down, with more and more people streaming towards the ends of the customer curve”, describes Pekka Mattila, Group Managing Director at Aalto EE and Professor of Practice at Aalto University.

“Average Finns eat margarine and drink lowfat milk. But when looking at real behavior, they consume cream and butter at weekends but stay away from fatty foods during the week. It’s dangerous to rely on the average because behavior breaks down behind it.”

Customers know how to specify their needs more and more precisely. They should not be bundled categorically into, say, luxury consumers and misers, as the same consumer can fall into both depending on the product and situation.

“These types of consumers are easily seen as blind fools, but companies operate the same way:

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Instead of the average customer, Mattila recommends companies to pay increasing attention to the extremes: super customers on the one hand and those who have abandoned the product on the other.

they think about where to invest and where to save.”

Behavior that seems contradictory is smart.

Consumers are aware which purchases make sense and which do not.

“The sale of cheap chainsaws is based on this. If you want to fell a single tree on your plot of land, why buy an expensive, durable saw. But you may be ready to invest in something important to you.”

According to Mattila, companies need to listen to customers more attentively because they teach valuable lessons. It is particularly rewarding in these exceptional times when consumers and companies may have changed their behavior.

Mattila believes volatile times pose a danger to anyone taking their customers for granted. On the other hand, they offer a chance to snap up more customers.

“The pattern has changed. It’s essential to discover which changes are here to stay. Did, for instance, the great toilet paper rush of spring 2020 change consumer behavior permanently in many households? And where does that change lead? If you have a hundred toilet paper rolls stashed at home, you won’t be needing to nip to the local shop or kiosk for that pricy emergency roll, but

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wait for an offer and stock up then. How does this affect companies selling toilet paper?”

At first glance, toilet paper may sound like a joke, but it does lead to bigger questions.

“How does our attitude towards the shop space change? Do we still like to hang out there, or will it transform into a type of click and collect point?

Or is it a provider of experiences? A sous vide course at 10 am every Tuesday – just think about the items customers would be buying to take home with them.”

Instead of the average customer, Mattila recommends companies to pay increasing attention to the extremes: super customers on the one hand and those who have abandoned the product on the other.

“These customers may know more about the product or service than the manufacturer. Allknowing customers can be a threat to product developers, but used properly, the insights of extreme users can be very useful.”

“Are professionals humble and willing enough to listen to their fans and super customers? It’s a similar scenario to thirty keen amateurs advising a professional musician”, Mattila illustrates.

It is even more important to listen to the fans of the entire category – people who are also buying the products of other companies.

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”Rather than checking who is buying lawnmowers from us and who from the firm next door, our eyes should be on those who are passionate about mowing.”

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“Rather than checking who is buying lawnmowers from us and who from the firm next door, our eyes should be on those who are passionate about mowing.”

It is easy to find buffs online, where there is a crowd for every topic under the moon.

According to Mattila, a business could politely ask to join a group if it behaves honestly and well.

The situation is socially charged, and by no means should you use a bot to terrorize it. You need to accept that fans may be interested in something totally different in the product than the manufacturer. It calls for tact.

“Analyzing can involve large amounts of data, but communication, marketing, and product development require craftmanship.”

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How about those disappointed customers – what can we learn from them?

Customer and sales executives tend to play golf with their best customers. Mattila believes it is more important to spend time with customers with whom there are communication problems, bumps in the road, or difficulties reaching a deal. Or why not play a round of golf to heal customer relationships that withered or broke completely.Therein lie the problem areas of the product or service.

“Experimenting and disappointed customers rarely leave feedback. Why should they waste more time when they already wasted their money? That’s why it is worth paying attention to people who bothered to leave a comment.They have a great deal to say.” ◆

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Y L O TO I N U T N O IV F E V R I SI E W T P

A

A

D O W E H AV E A N Y AG E N C Y OV E R O U R C O N T E X T ?

When reading the thoughts of Mikko Laukkanen, Pekka Mattila,Tua Huomo and AnttiJussi Tahvanainen, I became optimistic.They all brought human beings into the picture, not just as consumers, but as individuals that have something to say, writes Ulla-Maija Uusitalo.

I have pondered lately the light subject of free will.

Do we have free will in the first place? What about situations where some outside force – say, a pandemic, for example – poses upon us strong structural constraints? We have all, both as individuals and as part of organizations and communities, felt at times helpless and powerless in the face of the virus. We all have wondered about the future: what does it hold, do I have any say in how it unfolds. Do we have any agency over our context?

When doing my PhD research, I dwelled - a bit too deeply, I must admit – on this question of agency and, eventually, the possible role of humans and humanity in the centuries to come. Postmodernism had attacked humanity, had shredded it to piles of semantic rubbish, leaving us dissolved in the sea of non-existence (as said, I was quite deep into the topic). The Grand Dame of sociology, Margaret Archer, rose to defend agency and the human subject. She brought forth the notion of human reflexivity as our powerful ability to navigate our way in this world, make choices and deliberate on constraints and enablers presented to us.

Archer defines reflexivity as the regular exercise of the mental ability of people, to consider themselves in relation to their social contexts and vice versa. It is the means through which we make our way through the world. It manifests in our “internal conversations”, where we mull things over, weigh the pros and cons, and create narratives.

Archer argues that this reflexive ability is becoming more and more important, as the pace of change just keeps accelerating. Following this train

of thought, I feel this ability is crucial to taking “the agency orientation” also towards the future.

As Antti-Jussi Tahvanainen comments, when discussing the tools of strategic foresight, we can take a proactive stance towards the future, and see it something we can shape with our actions.

Strategic foresight and the scenarios that follow create narratives about our possible futures. As sense-making beings, these narratives are crucial to us humans. They provide an anchor to our thoughts, bring structure to our inner conversation, and enable sense-making. They also make the possible future much more accessible as stories can at best be inclusive, allowing for multiple and diverse interpretations.

When reading the interviews of Mikko Laukkanen, Pekka Mattila, Tua Huomo and Antti-Jussi Tahvanainen in this magazine, I became happy and optimistic. They all brought human beings into the picture. Not just as users or consumers, but as individuals that have something to say. And – most importantly - that what they have to say is important. We should not restrict ourselves to intellectual laziness, and just listen to those who think like us, but rather be especially curious about those who do not think like us. As Pekka Mattila says, we should also (maybe especially) spend time with those customers who are unhappy. Because they might have important things to say.

Reflexivity, emotions, imagination, and embodied experience are what makes us human. Let us nurture, celebrate and respect these invaluable superpowers when shaping the future.

Dr. Ulla-Maija Uusitalo is Ph.D, Executive Consultant in strategy development.

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BOOK 2 [ C R E AT I V I T Y ]

S PAC E E X P LO R AT I O N “Experience is the ultimate luxury product”, declares Elina Koivisto, who has researched customer experience. This article explores how space and art impact learning and inspiration.

Words: Reetta Räty Images: Tuomas Uusheimo

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Aalto University Töölö is a building along Helsinki’s Runeberginkatu street designed by architect duo Woldemar Baeckman and Hugo Harmia. Refurbishment of the functionalist-style building was completed in 2020. Now mainly used by Aalto University Executive Education, the spaces include more than 300 works of art. Pekka Mattila, Managing Director of Aalto EE, describes the interior and artworks in the captions of this article.

1. Pekka Mattila: “The building was completed in the 1950s after the wars, the lobby paying homage to the wartimes. The ends of the coatracks are in the shape of coffins, while the lines of the floor and ceiling depict air defense. The lobby features Kristiina Riska’s artworks inevitable progress I and II, their rough forms bringing contrast to the space that is otherwise finetuned to the smallest detail. The works appear unfinished when viewed from a distance, but up close, one notices the refined quality and incredible craftsmanship.”

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W H AT K I N D O F S PAC E F E E D S C R E AT I V I T Y ?

The pandemic has not diminished the importance of the physical space – quite the opposite. Now is the time to consider: what kind of space tunes the brain into a state of creativity?

‘A

of the environment for learning and creativity is the Broaden and Build theory.

Put simply: when we experience positive emotions, our brain capacity is richer and more creative. Experiencing positive emotions promotes dopamine and serotonin production in the brain.

Dopamine is a so-called pleasure hormone and supports creative thinking.

This is demonstrated by a study: When a person listens to music in major and looks at a photograph, they can see more nuances and details than when listening to music in minor.

Major tunes are marked by positive feelings, a broad approach to matters, reaching a creative state and being able to use one’s capacity on a wide scale. Once negative emotions take over, thinking becomes narrow, as the brain is focused on fear or a threatening situation.

s leaders, we have an enormous responsibility in being able to create physical spaces, which clients and colleagues alike find attractive as workplaces”, says Aalto EE’s Managing Director Pekka Mattila.

When the pandemic turned remote work into an everyday reality, the importance of the physical space did not dwindle – quite the contrary: they ccording to Ph.D. Candidate Saara Bange, were now faced with increased pressure. research around the theory seeks to identify “If the office is unwelcoming or inhuman, the which circumstances help people function crealess likely it will attract people”, Mattila notes. tively and, on the other hand, the ones resulting Building a sense of communality calls for more in a narrower outlook. than technically functional spaces.The space needs Fears in today’s world are not caused by beasts, to be attractive and designed for the purpose it is but other humans. used for.

“These days, we are mostly afraid At their best, workplaces are desti“Stress is often, of other people and their reactions. nations. at its core, social Stress is often, at its core, social ”Spatiality still matters: physicality stress”, says Saara stress”, Bange says. and the bodily aspect are still very A person under stress does not Bange.

A person much with us. We continue to sense think creatively. Uncertainty can under stress does arise in situations where some memspace by looking, touching and smelling – with our entire body”, not think creatively. bers of a team work on-site while Mattila points out. others work remotely. In a remote Now that an alternative has been established for environment, we are exposed to just a fraction of the office, organizations must provide attractive each other.This enables speculation and doubts, as physical spaces, which support the kind of work we are forced to come up with our own version and functions worth carrying out on-site. of what we cannot see or sense in a situation.

One framework for examining the significance The feeling of belonging may be harder to

A

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reach in different locations and several groups.

“A person experiencing social stress often focuses on just one thing, i.e. the source of the stress”, Bange explains. Once a person feels like they are a part of the group, feels seen, cognitive capacity expands, creativity increases and problem-solving becomes easier.

Rather than arguing that positive emotions

should replace negative emotions, the premise of the Broaden and Build theory is that positive emotions build resources to cope with negative emotions.

The message of the Broaden and Build theory is not promoting forced positivity at the workplace, let alone the notion that remote and on-site work cannot be successfully combined. Rather, it contends that we can include our knowledge of human behavior in the design of physical spaces and the organization of hybrid work.

When a person is uncertain and forced to guess the state of mind of others, the lizard brain takes over while the feeling, sensible orbitofrontal cortex is placed on hold. Thinking becomes narrower, and fear eats up creative space.

At its best, the physical space of a workplace can be filled with stimuli, and it is pleasant and inspiring. It can push one towards a creative space where the person uses their full potential and taps into their creativity.

“This can be compared to a child playing: even a child can reach a flow state, playing with complete focus for hours, inventing and experimenting. Adults also learn through experimentation and exploration”, Saara Bange says.

“It is worth considering if art, for example, supports people in reaching a creative state characterized by wondering, exploring and trying out things and ideas together with others.” ◆

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E

lina Koivisto defended her doctoral dissertation at Aalto University School of Business on a September Friday in 2018, when her friends, family and colleagues assembled in hall H-326 along Helsinki’s Runeberginkatu street. The building known as Chydenia was completed in 1923 as a lyceum for girls before the Helsinki School of Economics took over in the late 1960s. The School of Economics has now relocated to Otaniemi, Espoo, but Chydenia is still devoted to studies, now serving as the premises for the Institute for Adult Education.

Chydenia breathes tradition, yet the event kicked off unconventionally. Before the doctoral candidate and opponent opened their mouths, drummers Jukka-Pekka Heikkilä and Tommi Ullgrén walked through the space with the sound of their instruments echoing in the air.

What brought this on?

“To make a point, I wanted to start the event with a short session of drumming”, Koivisto explained during her introductory lecture. She had shared her idea with just a few people beforehand.

Her dissertation focused on the power and role of multisensory experiences, and she wanted her public examination to include the same notions.

She listened to the performance outside the hall together with her dissertation supervisor and opponent. She was nervous, her ”legs like spaghetti”, but the feeling soon eased off when she realized the drumming had the desired effect.

“The space felt electric, people were responsive, they had just experienced the topic of my dissertation in a concrete way.”

The audience reported that the performance had sunk in.

When the speeches began, Koivisto explained that the drumming had its origins for instance in the indigenous Sámi and native American cultures. It was traditionally used in events as a vehicle for healing, consciousness expansion, and community building.

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“Today, it was used to capture your attention.To calm your nerves and engage your senses. To get you ready to listen, and I hope, to leave a permanent mark on your memory”, Koivisto highlighted.

The intention of the performance was to demonstrate two familiar concepts from marketing research in practice: experience and value. Koivisto discussed their relationship in her dissertation on customer experience. She wanted to find out which bodily and physical experiences continue to be significant in a digitalized world.

At the time, no one knew about the upcoming pandemic or that in just a few years, the mantra on everybody’s lips would be what Koivisto had already noticed in her research in pre-Covid times: that you can do all sorts of things virtually, but it’s not the same. The physical space matters. A drummer who enters a space can be heard, seen, sensed, felt, experienced; you can travel along in time and place, feel connected to others, share a moment.

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2. PM: ”This space is dedicated to breaks and groupwork. The guiding thought behind the design was to go against expectations that a large educational building should look like an institute. The interior needs to be a little twisted, and here contemporary art merges with antique rugs. The work of art at the end of the corridor is With Tailwind by Eero Hiironen. When light hits it in a certain way, it creates a moonpath.

3. PM: ”Here we have restaurant Ruotsalo.

The spaces were named after artists. The pictured artwork is Heräämisen värit ja muodot

by Panu Ruotsalo.”

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When we follow a live performance, we become part of it.

T

he physical space is a key part of the customer experience. A special or surprising space leaves a lasting, holistic impression.

“Experience is the ultimate luxury product”, says Elina Koivisto.

Koivisto collected the data for her dissertation at startup event Slush, international fashion trade shows, and marketing events by Louis Vuitton. She describes how an expertly constructed space creates an experience by tantalizing all the senses. It’s why a physical space outshines a virtual one: it involves more senses and thus more ways to produce experiences.

Let’s take Finnish startup event Slush as an example, which is held in Helsinki every November.

Autumn in the north is slushy, wet and dark, begging to wonder why Slush customers – full-on digital natives – would want to leave their screens

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and head to faraway Helsinki.

Yet Slush is organized in November of all months, at a convention center of all places, as a very physical experience. ”Slush is like a cross between a techno party and space station, pyrotechnics in a dark hall. And when it comes to Slush, it’s exactly the setting and space that people talk about”, Koivisto mentions.

It is no coincidence of course; the whole idea behind the event is to provide an experience and leave a mark. According to Koivisto, the setting can also tune minds to a new frequency. ”The environment and context give clues that something extraordinary is taking place here. We know that if you attend an industry conference, it has a certain look and you behave in a certain way.

But when we arrive at an industry conference that looks like a techno party, we wake up and become tuned to behave in another way. It has the potential to create new types of interaction and thoughts.”

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Koivisto noticed that many of the interviews she carried out on Slush mentioned ”serendipity”, a fortunate coincidence with far-reaching consequences. It could mean bumping into an investor in the sauna, or that slightly strangely dressed attendee turning out to be a sought-after American CEO. Koivisto does not believe these encounters are merely happy accidents. The space and vibe enable the encounters.

There is a lot of talk today about how creativity and innovation are not a one-person show.

They take multidisciplinary encounters, openminded combinations, and letting go of strictly defined dogmas.When thinking about a space, ask which type of encounters it enables and fosters, and how.

Returning to the drummers at the public examination – wouldn’t it seem a natural thing for attendants at the event to bring it up with people they didn’t know from before? It could lead to

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4. PM: ”The space is called Osipow according to Paul Osipow’s work of art Paradise View II that hangs on the wall. This is the most conventional teaching facility in the building. Some lecturers prefer amphitheater-style spaces, others think they are old-fashioned. I find the space interesting pedagogically speaking – it puts everyone in the spotlight for the whole time without losing their grip. The ceiling lights were manufactured in the shape of a coffin according to an old model found in storage.”

5. PM: ”Brass and copper are among the building’s original materials. The building was constructed during the post-war period of scarcity.

The same choices are respected today.”

6. PM: “Original finger paneling is found in certain areas of the building. It was chosen as a theme that is repeated in several structures, such as table legs and phone booths. It is an aesthetic and ecological solution that respects the past.”

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talking, discovering shared contacts and interests, and chatting away.The world is full of ideas, innovation, partnerships, and relationships that began in this way. A coincidence?

Nah – a deliberate surprise element.

W

hile we’ve repeated our need for physical spaces and encounters in recent years, we’ve also reiterated remote work being here to stay. ‘Online’ is part of life. It’s also part of ‘offline’ in a way.

Elina Koivisto witnessed how people attending a Louis Vuitton event were given a chance to experience the manufacturing process of the megaexpensive luxury bags firsthand as well as strut down the catwalk.

And what is the first thing on people’s minds today when given access to such an exclusive physical experience?

To take and share photos and video content of course. And then shoot some more.

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A single Louis Vuitton event garnered close to 23,000 shares on Instagram.

Word is passed on, ‘offline’ and ‘online’ overlap.

In Koivisto’s words: “The LV brand and its story came alive during the event.There, the customers were able to connect with the brand and likeminded people through social media, becoming part of the brand story.”

In this case, we could ask whether both the physical and digital space are needed as separate entities. Koivisto believes there is a clear need for both. She explains it from a perspective of value creation.

“Current marketing theory equates value with experiences.Value is defined as something that is co-created in interaction between humans. And this is important: the customer is always a coproducer of value.”

Physical events and spaces are “platforms for this experiential value co-creation – and that is what still keeps them relevant”. In a sense they are mul-

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tisensory places that enable ”the co-creation of knowledge and meaning”. The physical does not replace the digital or vice versa – they are in mutual interaction.

The pandemic further accelerated the debate over the relationship between the physical and digital, yet it has been going on for decades. Koskinen thinks back to the 80s when a certain Philips executive assessed that the end of mass events was just a matter of time. After all, we can now watch concerts and sports events from the comforts of our homes thanks to state-of-theart home theater systems. Why bother going out anymore?

Well, we now know from experience what it feels like to not be going out. We have become acutely aware of what it’s like to be a receiver of an event rather than attending and becoming become part of it. Interaction and experience are different depending on whether an event is held online or offline.

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7. PM: ”The lighting in Tapiola hall is an original complete artwork, a series of lamps that covers the entire ceiling. The hall was named after a largescale work of art by Marjatta Tapiola shown in the next picture.”

8. PM: ”The building faces the busy Rune­ berginkatu street. The interior design paid attention to the way the building appears from the outside. All of the artworks that are visible from the street are illuminated around the clock. We want the landmark building in the Töölö district to be a warm and pleasant experience to passers-by.”

9. PM: ”Minotaur and the Skull by Marjatta Tapiola opens up to viewers in different ways.

Some take a while before noticing the skull and minotaur’s head. That is exactly the charm behind many of her works: people view them in their own way and there is always room for new discoveries. The works of art beckon to pause and discuss what each person sees.”

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The history of recorded music is brief; in essence, music has always been performed live, from one human to another. These days recorded and live music coexist side by side without anyone suggesting we should choose one or the other.

Could the same apply to teaching and learning?

We are used to attending school, university, courses, and training live. Now education will partly continue remotely. It is about finding the right combination that makes the most of a range of methods. It means that the offered physical encounters need to be of the highest possible quality.

How to make the most of our time together?

According to Elina Koivisto, getting to use as many senses as possible is a hallmark of a good encounter. We know that people learn in a variety of ways, so it makes sense to offer a number of options. One option could be a physical space, where time together enables shared moments of insight. Educational scholars have found remote

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studies to reduce opportunities of this type, which impairs learning among some students. To put it in reverse, it makes sense to provide opportunities for shared moments of insight in order to boost learning.

A space is an enabler that opens doors to encounters and free thinking.

Do you remember a moment when all the pieces seemed to come together? What enabled it?

Or: Are you facing a problem or change that requires exceptional amounts of new thinking and creativity? What type of space or environment would best support the work involved?

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n addition to the afore-mentioned Chydenia building, also the former School of Economics main building is located along Runeberginkatu street. It is now called Aalto University Töölö and houses the new premises of Aalto University Executive Education.

The School of Economics relocated to the Ot-

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aniemi campus in Espoo, which it shares with the other Aalto schools. The reason for the big move was to facilitate multidisciplinary collaboration among students, researchers, and their partners under one roof. No one thought to suggest they should exchange ideas and innovation over Zoom or Teams it seems.

The functionalist-style Aalto University Töölö building was completed in 1950. An extensive refurbishment was carried out before Aalto EE and its staff, furniture, and collection of about 300 works of art moved in. Most of the artworks are personal acquisitions by Aalto EE’s managing director Pekka Mattila.

As you may see from the photos, the building is a far cry from a stuffy institute or teaching facility.

The moment you step in the lobby, you know you have arrived in an exceptional space.

Visitors are greeted by Kristina Riska’s largescale ceramic artwork that stands on a tall brass pedestal. The atmosphere can be characterized as a blend of festive, elegant, and functional. Colors are warm, rugs of a high quality, lighting restored to its former glory. The interior can be described as very Scandinavian, yet it’s more than that.

“We have deliberately sought contrasting elements”, says Pekka Mattila. New and old, orna-

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10. PM: ”The classroom to the left is Cris after Cris af Enehielm’s artwork on the wall.

In Between by Maiju Salmenkivi on the right is one of the most psychedelic works in the building.”

11. PM: ”The back wall of the classroom features two poses by Jenni Hiltunen.

Several of her striking female figures hang on the walls of the building.”

mental and rugged, art representing a range of periods and styles.Works by EGS, Janne Räisänen, Maiju Salmenkivi, Samuli Sarparanta, Jenni Hiltunen and others hang from the walls.

The way Mattila talks about the new spaces echoes Elina Koivisto’s description of a strong customer experience. Mattila mentions that the space should be a “holistic experience” and “a unique place like no other”.

Why should an educational institution, too, be an experience?

The answer is pretty straightforward. Teaching is not a one-way process; it nudges people in a certain direction, poses meaningful questions, shakes up familiar thought patterns, and encour-

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ages mutual dialogue. It’s why also the setting needs to be “thought-provoking”. Art, on the other hand, can be a catalyst for discussion or selfreflection. It can be disturbing, rebellious, intense, inspiring, irritating… Whatever the case, it doesn’t suggest things should stay the same.

It is why the displayed art and artefacts do not have to please everybody or be chosen primarily for their aesthetic beauty.

When the recently refurbished building was first completed, Finland was just getting over World War II. The grim times are evident in the building; some of the ceiling lights and the ends of the lobby are in the shape of a coffin. Mattila mentions that also some of the artworks have the potential to kindle gloomy thoughts. Many of the works are reminders of the reality that exists beyond leadership lessons and strategies. Some works can spark irritation on the lines of: ”I hate that guy on the wall staring at me”.

It’s not dangerous or bad – quite the contrary.

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“Sometimes a feeling of disgust can be just as effective as liking something”, says Mattila.

Art invites to think afresh and learn about ourselves. “Many of the works of art here spark a reaction: pretty interesting, but not what I’d want at home.”

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t Aalto EE, art is everywhere – there’s more than in many galleries in fact. Mattila feels that in some cases, art can offer an escape from intense learning and discussions. It beckons to simply pause and stare at something totally different than what goes on at a course. Gazing around in this sense offers a door into another world. A possibility for a moment’s escape is important when pursuing creativity or new associations, also when on the agenda for business management.

Aalto EE programs bring people together from different countries, sectors, and organizations. Before getting to know each other and grouping, everyone searches for their place. Art can be an

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easy and safe way to break the ice: people gathered around a work of art may start to talk about it, look out for things in common, and compare thoughts.

Art has many uses in learning and co-creation, but above all: it has value in itself.

Mattila brought the first works of art into his office soon after taking up his current position in 2011. He reminisces Koska meitä käsketään by Hannu Väisänen being the very first one.

“It was a way of marking my territory, a sign of new times.”

It turned out to be just the beginning.

Now, art hangs on the walls from meeting rooms to conference facilities, corridors to restrooms. It doesn’t need to serve a purpose at all.

Its existence is enough.

“The way I see art is that something dies if you start to explain it away.”

Mattila thinks that rationalizing art is a pretty Lutheran notion. According to him, justifying art for instance by coming up with health claims is a slippery slope.

“Art has a more sacred role than that. Unfortunately people in arts and culture are forced to create excel sheets on the benefits and impact of art to accompany their grant applications for instance.”

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alto University is one of the world’s leading art universities, so the corridors being filled with vast quantities of art seems only fitting. Science and art converging on the level of ideas, people, disciplines, and institutions is a basic principle for the university. It makes perfect sense that the same goes for physical spaces.

Mattila encouraging business and organizational executives to invest in art comes as no surprise.

“There’s power on top, hopefully also taste”, he says.

One model for investing in art is the so-called Percent for Art principle and its various forms.

According to the principle, at least one percent of

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construction costs are spent on art. It’s an established international practice that during the 2000s expanded to also include other ways of designing and combining art with construction projects. Almost all of the 20 biggest cities in Finland implement the principle. However, levels of commitment vary and there’s room for improvement.

Pekka Mattila notes that in distributing funds, designer hooks or expensive sofas should not be thought of as art. Art does not need to be useful in the sense that it provides a place to sit or hang your coat.

Pekka Mattila points out that the idea for the new Aalto EE premises was to steer away from an overly retro feel. The intention was to create a meeting point for old and new, be it in art or teaching.The renovation and move involved carefully charting out ways for the spaces to both honor traditions and the past and evoke a sense of curiosity about the future and what lies around the corner.

Also in these spaces,‘online’ and ‘offline’ interact rather than being alternatives. The most glaring example of a hybrid model is a program arranged in part remotely and in part face-to-face, with the possibility of a professor giving a lecture during a face-to-face segment from the other side of the ocean – remotely of course. After all, who would fly thousands of kilometers just for an hour’s lecture?

The intersection of old and new is symbolic also in the sense that many of the participants in programs organized in the building combine the past and present in their work. Retro is not enough at the workplace. Creativity is a must, whether changing the course of traditional business or taking a new turn in one’s personal career.

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he bond between art and science is old.They can be thought of as different viewpoints to the same reality.

When Elina Koivisto, who had researched customer experience, was ending her speech at her

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12 12. PM: ”The multiuse space is for instance where the management team and board convene. The idea was for radical artist EGS to be forced or allowed inside a room that evokes formal power of the business world. When Color Blind World I is viewed closely, continents may appear and the work begins to open up through its name.”

13.PM: ”The beauty of Singing Ray by Hannu Väisänen is in its pointillism, which appears simple from afar but is incredibly complex.”

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public examination in Chydenia in the fall of 2018, she quoted Frenchman Jaques Attali. Attali is an economist, writer, and visionary with a prolific role in French politics for decades He is also renowned for his love of classical music.

There was no knowledge of a looming pandemic at the time, yet the themes she raised touched on the discourse on exiting the pandemic.

“The world is meant to be confronted in its natural state, in flesh”, were Koivisto’s closing words.

“As Jaques Attali writes: For twenty-five centuries, Western knowledge has tried to look upon the world. It has failed to understand that the world is not for the beholding. It is for hearing. It is not legible, but audible. Our science has always desired to monitor, measure, abstract, and castrate meaning, forgetting that life is full of noise and that death alone is silent: work noise, noise of man, and noise of beast. Noise bought, sold, or prohibited. Nothing essential happens in the absence of noise.”

Today, Elina Koivisto is a marketing director at a Norwegian-Swedish digital electricity company.

Koivisto and her team are in charge of the company’s brand work, which naturally involves thinking up holistic experiences, sound included.

“Right now we are creating a sound brand for ourselves. It’s one of the dimensions of creating customer experience.”

The company Tibber has operations in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands.

Work in an international company means you don’t always see colleagues in real life. However, people keep their cameras switched on and focus on the way they interact and communicate during remote meetings. Remote work may run smoothly and be the new norm, but Koivisto still appreciates live encounters and the spaces where they take place.

“I would just like to be here ... and now. Because that, experiencing and being in the present, is the most valuable thing for humans.” ◆

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14 14. PM: ”The restrooms depict a design ideology of everything needing to be better than at home. Even these spaces can offer an uplifting experience and moment of me-time, with plenty of space, privacy, and careful consideration. The intriguing mirror was partly made from old chalkboards.”

15. PM: ”We wanted to transform the former room of the principal and dean into a space for group and teamwork that can be modified a great deal. Huulet by Aapo Huhta brings contrast to the historical space that oozes a sense of power. The task of art is to evoke experiences, which do not always have to be positive."

16. PM: ”The old chamber where management teams and other important configurations would convene is still partly in its original state. The lamps are by Paavo Tynell. Two artworks by Sampsa Sarparanta break up the bastion of authority."

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“GENERIC INTERIORS ARE OUT” Spaces provide the best support for learning and creativity when designed together with users, says Saija Hollmén,Vice Dean for Art and Creative Practices at Aalto University School of Art and Design.

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pretty usual scenario: to the outsider, the new spaces of a company, organization or public instance look bright, spacious, and impressive. There may not be much cozy factor yet, but even the scent exudes purity, fresh materials, and a new era.

But then the users arrive on the scene: employees, students, residents, service users. They begin to grumble. Where do you hang your coat? Why is it so hard to go upstairs when I need to get there many times a day? How can I block the direct light that floods my workspace? Why do I have to sit right next to the shared microwave with the constant traffic of people and annoying clinking sound?

Everything was supposed to be better than before, yet there’s no end to questions and downright complaints.

Are people really so ungrateful: a brand-new space, but everyone moans? What is it all about?

Architect Saija Hollmén is familiar with the situation. Right now, she is discussing wishes and suggestions with students and staff for improving the way the spaces at her own workplace should be arranged.

At the School of Art and Design, architecture studies take place in a building called Väre. Located in the Otaniemi district of Espoo, Väre is part of the larger

“The original thought was to have everyone all over the place, which could lead to something. But no one could find each other, and it simply didn’t work. In essence, humans are creatures trying to find their place in the world.”

Aalto University campus building, including the School of Business and shopping center A bloc.

“To innovate, the mind has to flow freely. You need to be in a space where nothing threatens you – you

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Hollmén talks about participatory design. People need to feel they can influence their place of living, study, and work. The space needs to address each need and feel inviting. At the moment, Väre centers around an idea of nesting. Each user group is able to influence how its designated nest looks and the way they work and study there. “A functional space is never ready.

You need to always be awake and ready for change.”

The question is not one of comfortability or aesthetics – whether someone likes a particular wall color or not – but of the space serving its purpose, and thus creativity. When people feel they belong, are welcome and it’s their place, they can focus on what matters – be it thinking, working with their hands, or both. A space that feels both physically and mentally safe creates room for something new.

The order is clear: start with primary needs and inspiration follows.

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are comfortable right there. The buzz we call creativity is unlikely to arise in a generic space where no one feels they belong.”

It is an issue of both small, practical matters and a broader sense of belonging and being valued. The typical discussion in information work is whether people should have their own desks or roam around the office in various spots. The architect reminds of people’s universal need to mark their territory. “Quite a few would like that pot plant, child’s photo, set of folders and coffee cup on the side of their table. Of course, a decision could be made to only have shared spaces and everyone cleaning up before they leave. But users have a basic need: to get attached and mark their area.”

Naturally, people and jobs vary, requiring different levels of privacy. Generic, impersonal spaces affect some people’s work and sense of comfort more than others. For some, having a designated work area is of no relevance at all, while for others it becomes a near existential question: ‘Do I exist in this place, is this for me?’. “It is a no-brainer that you cannot work on something that requires concentration in an open, noisy space”, says Hollmén. No wonder open-plan offices are now revamped into multi-purpose spaces and people are encouraged to work remotely from home when needing to concentrate. Of course homes are not necessarily quiet places, which is another reason designers need to understand the differing needs, backgrounds, and situations of users.

SAIJA HOLLMÉN is Professor of Practice in Humanitarian Architecture and Vice Dean for Art and Creative Practices at Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture. She co-founded and is academically responsible for the interdisciplinary Aalto WiT (World in Transition) LAB, which focuses on global sustainability and humanitarian challenges.

Hollmén is also a co-founder of Hollmén Reuter Sandman Architects as well as Ukumbi, an NGO providing architectural services for communities in need.

Saija Hollmén gives some examples of differing needs related to tasks and professions.

The iconic image of the studio of an artist working with materials is one type: a space that is not too clearly defined, where you do not need to worry about making a mess, and where heavy objects and various materials can be worked, broken up and moved around.

A media artist, graphic artist or other creative working with digital tools is likely to need a well-ventilated, dust-free space with a clear wall for hanging test prints.

An architect will additionally need table space for constructing and examining scale models.

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A writer may prefer working in a café where people come and go, without ownership of a space.

Physical spaces play a practical role but also affect creativity.

“A space that isn’t a hindrance but an enabler can lead to creativity flourishing in many different ways.”

What could this mean in practice?

“If as a physical being your workspace allows you to breathe freely, doesn’t hinder your means of expression, and allows you to realize your unique creativity, you have it pretty good.”

Saija Hollmén’s doctoral dissertation and teaching focus on humanitarian architecture. She is a cofounder of NGO Ukumbi ry and has worked in African countries. Ukumbi ry offers architectural services for communities in need. Engaging the community has played a key role also in these design and construction processes. “The biggest mis-

RO L E O F A RT A N D C R E AT I V I T Y

“The meaning of art is to engage us in the quest of the essence of humanity, to connect us with our deepest experiences of what it means to be human.”

Art as such is not useful in the utilitarian meaning of the word. For an artist, art is purposeless (Wilson, 2019). The meaning of art is to engage us in the quest of the essence of humanity, to connect us with our deepest experiences of what it means to be human.

The arts take us out of our heads and into our bodies, hearts, and souls in ways that allow us to connect more deeply with self and others (Lawrence, 2012:471). Art is the expression of our cultures, connecting us with the trajectories of time across communities and individual aspirations.

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take is to dictate how things should be done. That’s just repeating the mistakes of past decades”, she describes.

According to Saija Hollmén, universal architecture does not even exist, but all design needs to be adapted to the local environment and culture. It is vital to outline and understand the local context, the groundwork relating to designing and the environment playing a crucial role.

She talks about a space that users can and want to take over. How to create a sense it was designed together, and they feel welcome and at home? In any case, the architect takes a backseat once the building is taken into use. Although getting people to verbalize their wishes for a space is not always an easy feat, it is necessary for achieving the right goals.

“I see architecture as a way to open and close opportunities. It can enable activities – or have the opposite effect.”

Creativity, however, is not a prisoner of art (Bertram, 2019). Creativity is a human capacity, possessed by us all. A child is capable of divergent thinking, and learns by questioning and wonder: we tend to lose some of that capacity as we enter the systematic machineries of education and societal pressure. Nonetheless, creativity remains a quality that we all have, more prominent in some than in others. It is a quality, which can be cultivated, learned, and furthered in every individual and community. Creativity is an attitude, like a skin that cannot be taken off once adopted (Bertram, 2019).

Saija Hollmén: Excerpt from the report LEARNING OBJECTIVES and CONDITIONS for Creative Thinking at Aalto University. Drawn up to support strategy work at Aalto University, also included in Hollmén’s doctoral dissertation.

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BOOK 3 [ EQUITY ]

G I V E M E D, GIVE ME I, GIVE ME DEI

Diversity and inclusion are sought after by companies and TV shows alike. Why have businesses now turned to D and I? Words: Reetta Räty Photos: Jussi Ratilainen

When completing the EMBA program, Yacine Samb was working as Google’s Product Marketing Manager for Northern Europe. In summer 2021, she was appointed as Google’s Racial Equity Lead for Europe, Middle East and Africa. “Especially younger generations have entirely new requirements for trans­ parency and equity”, she says.

“They know how to demand equity and make value-based decisions when seeking a job. If a company is not successful in DI matters, they cannot attract the best talent.”

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he business world is buzzing with something football and other team sports consider an everyday reality: diversity and inclusion. There is no such thing as a successful football team where all team members have the same strengths and skills, temperament and way of playing and dealing with situations on the field. It is a given that a football team consists of different professionals and roles (diversity) – just like it is obvious that a team that does not work together (inclusion) does not succeed, even despite brilliant individual performances.When football headhunters look for talent, they comb through all countries, language groups, ethnicities and social classes. Even then, some talent will be overlooked. However, everyone knows that a headhunter does not choose only rightback defenders for a team, even if they happen to be one themselves and thus identify their particular skills the best.

The same themes have now made their way into organizations.

Diversity: Does the team have diversity?

Inclusion: Can we work in a way that enables everyone to shine?

In the 2021 European Football Championship, diversity could be seen and heard both on- and off-field.Volkswagen, one of the competition’s main sponsors, had chosen diversity as its primary message. “We drive diversity” was written on the side of a small car, which transported the football to the field at the start of the game. Advertisements on the outskirts of the field glowed in rainbow colors, and on the campaign videos more than 120 employees of the Volkswagen Group and its brands are celebrating their outing as lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, non-binary or queer.

Elke Heitmüller is the Head of Diversity Management at Volkswagen. In their press release, she says: “Football is a wonderful way to get the message across that uniformity is detrimental to innovation and doesn’t have good results.” In football, every person is being placed in the optimum position according to their capabilities. “You can learn that from sport.”

Advertisement campaigns have a way of simplifying matters, and life at the workplace does not always resemble a European Football Championship game. For one, there is no cheering audience.

This is why we need to take a deeper dive into the world of diversity and inclusion (DI) and ask: why is diversity such a hot topic, and what kind of competitive edge does it really offer?

And why are we always told that a culture with diversity, and especially inclusion, are difficult to reach?

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iversity refers to differences between people: gender, race, age, place of residence, temperament, functional capacity, educational background, social class and so on. Inclusivity is about whether different people are equally involved in shared activities. The programs, policies and strategies related to diversity and inclusion at organizations are often referred to as DI or DEI, meaning diversity and inclusion, or diversity, equity and inclusion.

“If a profit-seeking company ignores the power and significance of diversity and inclusion, they might as well leave money on the table”, says Yacine Samb, who works as Google’s Racial Equity Lead for Europe, Middle East and Africa. “Right now I see companies that have realized the importance of DI, and then there are those that don’t yet recognize how

“Football is a wonderful way to get the message across that uniformity is detrimental to innovation and doesn’t have good results.”

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DI can increase a company’s problem-solving abilities, knowledge, innovativeness, ability to adjust to market changes and attract new employees.”

The factors listed by Samb are, in fact, at the core of the issue: diverse teams are innovative with a wide range of knowledge and viewpoints. The qualities attached to diverse work communities are also those classified as future work skills: problem-solving, creativity, innovativeness, sensitive leadership, a culture of continuous learning…

In terms of recruitment, it boils down to two things.

The potential pool: potential recruits should be screened throughout the population and not be narrowed down to just men, economists, Caucasians or extroverts, for example.

Employer branding: especially millennials and generation Z appreciate diversity, and they assess company values when choosing an employer, products and services.

According to Yacine Samb, both are directly tied to a company’s success.

“If an international company doesn’t have knowledge of different areas, cultures and ethnic backgrounds, customers won’t find their services appealing. Diversity leads to an understanding of what types of services and products are needed.”

Google has over 100,000 employees in 170 cities.The company lists publicly the share of women among its employees (32%), along with the share of women in leadership positions (28%).

Statistics on ethnic backgrounds are not compiled or shared everywhere (it is illegal in Finland, for example), but U.S. numbers can be found in Google’s Diversity Report:White 50%, Asian 42%, Latinx 6.4%, Black 4.4%. Google has set public

goals to increase the share of underrepresented groups in the company. Recruiters are trained in these goals through inclusive hiring steps and similar programs.

In practice, increasing diversity can include, for example, changing English proficiency requirements for internships to a “preferred” rather than “required” qualification in places like Brazil to open up more pathways for underrepresented people to apply.

“Even at Google, we compete for the best workers”, Yacine Samb notes. “Especially younger generations have entirely new requirements for transparency and equity. They know how to demand equity and make valuebased decisions when seeking a job. If a company is not successful in DI matters, they cannot attract the best talent.”

Changing English proficiency requirements for internships to a “preferred” rather than “required” opens up more pathways for underrepresented people to apply.

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n recent years, large companies have hired DI managers and departments. People in charge of DI matters are also being included in management teams. For example, Nokia named DEI a business priority in 2019, and with the Global Head of Inclusion & Diversity Anneli Karlstedt taking the lead, the company surveyed the salaries of the entire staff to find unfounded pay gaps between men and women (and found them – nearly everyone with a lower salary was a woman).

Cities, schools, TV channels and sports clubs also have employees dedicated to DI work.

Rebecca Piekkari works as Marcus Wallenberg Professor of International Business at Aalto University. She is also the Chair of the Diversity and Equality group at the School of Business.

Why are DI issues such a hot topic right now?

There are several forces at play in society pre-

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“Right now I see companies that have realized the importance of DI, and then there are those that don’t yet recognize how DI can increase a company’s problem-solving abilities, knowledge, innovativeness, ability to adjust to market changes and attract new employees”, says Yacine Samb.

We typically recruit people who are similar to us, which results in less diversity, says Rebecca Piekkari. She works as Marcus Wallenberg Professor of International Business at Aalto University.

She is also the Chair of the Diversity and Equality group at the School of Business.

venting diversity, but similarly, also opposing forces that counteract them. Piekkari mentions the shift within society’s value system as an example.

This shift requires increased attention towards issues of diversity. “We are seeing a new kind of value system for the customer and employee experience, investors and our entire society. Companies are judged on how systematically they look after their social responsibility and diversity. The company’s brand as an employer or producer and supplier of services is partly based on this.”

Companies have also started to perceive diversity and inclusion as a competitive edge. Professor

Piekkari points out, however, that measuring diversity benefits in money is not altogether simple.

A company’s success hangs on such a wide range of factors.

This, on the other hand, is simple: a diverse staff is a question of equity. The world has become more international, and standard and one-sizefits-all models have been replaced by uniqueness and differences.What else is there to it – surely the current atmosphere and market mechanism already guide management to hire the best, regardless of their background?

Unfortunately, this is not the case. In fact, it is

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quite the contrary.

Rebecca Piekkari explains why diversity and inclusion do not happen on their own.

“It stems from a human desire to join likeminded individuals. We typically recruit people who are similar to us, which results in less diversity. If we want to increase diversity, we need to work for it and be prepared to step outside our comfort zone.”

Piekkari says that people’s tendency to favor their kind is often unconscious.This is why many get defensive if someone points out that bias or preferences are guiding their actions. “It may be interpreted as blame, but it serves as an important reminder: everyone should be aware of personal biases and the mechanisms influencing their actions.”

She describes a project with the objective of finding out why headhunters’ shortlists did not include women or representatives of minority groups. The results revealed that recruiters’ networks were limited, centering on men from a majority background.

This is how power builds up. “When a woman is selected as CEO, she immediately begins to receive board invitations, even though her experience and skillset are exactly the same as the week before the appointment. In other words, a glass ceiling has been broken.”

Recruiters must know how to require diversity in shortlists.

Women and minorities are there if there is a will to find them.This has been recognized in the media’s so-called 50/50 initiatives. When editorial teams have decided to invite an equal number of women and men as experts, sports broadcasts as well as economic discussions have begun to feature women, refuting the previous statement “there aren’t any”. Clear objectives and measuring

performance are important tools. The British Broadcasting Company BBC has launched goals to monitor how their staff is shaped in terms of gender, ethnic background and functional capacity. In addition to this so-called 50:20:12 model – referring to the proportion of women, black and minority ethnic, and disabled people in the organization – the company’s focus is on the finergrained aspects of company culture and accountability. Diversity can, at least in part, be measured in numbers, but these should be accompanied by qualitative inclusion-related goals.

Quantity is often easier to reach than quality.

Professor Piekkari has described the challenges of inclusion as follows: “Inclusion is a lengthy process. It happens when individuals become insiders and are allowed to retain their uniqueness within teams. In other words, inclusion means creating more comfort for more people. Diverse individuals bring unique qualities to the workplace. But in practice, it is often difficult to integrate these diverse individuals precisely because of their uniqueness. Inclusion may require changes in organizational practices, norms and structures, or individuals may have to adjust their professional identity.”* ”Such changes mean that inclusion may be achieved at a cost.”

According to Piekkari, the widespread belief in research is that the benefits of diversity are slim if there is no inclusion involved.

“Different employees working for a company without inclusion will not stay. For example, construction company Skanska noticed that female recruits left after a couple of years because they did not find the culture to be inclusive enough.”

Skanska began to take systematic measures to remedy the situation.

“Inclusion happens when individuals become insiders and are allowed to retain their uniqueness within teams.”

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Professor Rebecca Piekkari says that people’s tendency to favor their kind is often unconscious. This is why many get defensive if someone points out that bias or preferences are guiding their actions. “It may be interpreted as blame, but it serves as an important reminder: everyone should be aware of personal biases and the mechanisms influencing their actions.”

*

Source: Adamson, M., Kelan, E., Lewis, P., Śliwa, M., & Rumens, N.(2021).

Introduction: Critically interrogating inclusion in organisations.

Organization, 28(2) 211–227.

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iversity is high on Yacine Samb’s agenda, both in her work and civilian life. She was born in West Africa’s Ivory Coast, and she has both Finnish and Senegalese citizenship. “I have found myself an African in Europe and vice versa”, she explains. On social media, she describes herself with the hashtag #voicefordiversity.

Samb says that her approach to the subject of DI is both personal and business-related.

Her personal motivation comes from her own experiences with discriminatory behavior and racism. Samb moved to Finland before reaching school age. On the street, she would be yelled, even spat at.

The recent Black Lives Matter movement has touched her personally and brought back memories of her traumatic experiences.

Over the past few years, DI themes in the U.S. have focused on the ethnic backgrounds of employees. Google has made a commitment to double the number of Black Googlers in non-leadership roles in the U.S. and double the number of Black directors across EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) by 2023.

In addition to anti-racist activities and thinking, diversity plays a very special role in Samb’s work.

Diversity is vital for Google, Samb states. The company has seven consumer products with over a billion users, e.g. Chrome, Gmail and YouTube in addition to the search engine. These users do not form a homogenous group. Samb mentions an example: phone cameras are often optimized for white skin.This defines the “normal” or “usual”, i.e. starting point for how the world is viewed.

At the same time, bad or discriminatory products and services are being made for some.

The same phenomenon applies when cars are

only tested by men, home appliances are only developed by right-handed people and city services are only designed by wage earners who have a higher education.

What does it mean, then, when Google says it is creating “a more racially inclusive Android camera”?

In spring 2021, Google announced that it’s working to re-work the algorithms and tweak the training data that power the Pixel camera in order to more accurately capture people of color. They said they wanted the camera to better light people with darker skin and more accurately represent skin tone.

Also, silhouettes of people with wavy or curly hair will stand out more sharply from the background. According to Wired magazine, Google has set up a diverse inclusion champion group of 2,000+ people who regularly provide feedback throughout each stage of product development.

It also created a new training module for new starters in technical roles on inclusive product design.

The camera demonstrates in practice how product designers may assume users to be like themselves.

With Google, it also comes down to a question of how a massive corporation wields its power and on whose terms.

“Taking an ‘add diversity and stir’ approach, while business continues as usual, will not spur leaps in your firm’s effectiveness or financial performance.”

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C

onsulting firm McKinsey published a report called Why Diversity Matters back in 2015.

The report stated that “companies in the top quartile for gender or racial and ethnic diversity are more likely to have financial returns above their national industry medians, and companies in the bottom quartile in these dimensions are statistically less likely to achieve above-average re-

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New innovations require cognitive diversity and different ways of approaching the world. Professor Rebecca Piekkari says that similar educational backgrounds tend to have a homogenous, standardizing effect. It is not enough to have only Finnish and Indian male engineers working for a company.

turns”. The result has been quoted actively, even though the report points out that “correlation does not equal causation”.

Since then, the DI discussion has reached new tones and depth. Organizational success is influenced by such a wide group of factors that increasing diversity is no guarantee. In addition to numbers, more attention has been paid to the quality and structures of working. Numerical goals are all well and good and should be monitored, but they are not enough.

Leading diversity requires good implementa-

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tion, and this has often been defined as inclusion.

Professor Robin J. Ely and Emeritus Professor David A. Thomas from Harvard Business School wrote an article for the Harvard Business Review in December 2020, stating the following: “Increasing the numbers of traditionally underrepresented people in your workforce does not automatically produce benefits.Taking an ‘add diversity and stir’ approach, while business continues as usual, will not spur leaps in your firm’s effectiveness or financial performance.”

Researchers point out that to fully benefit from increased racial and gender diversity, organizations must adopt a learning orientation and be willing to change the corporate culture and power structure. They summarize their action plan with four points: “Four actions are key for leaders: building trust and creating a workplace where people feel free to express themselves; actively combating bias and

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systems of oppression; embracing a variety of styles and voices inside the organization; and using employees’ identity-related knowledge and experiences to learn how best to accomplish the firm’s core work.”

The article echoes the discussion from recent years highlighting companies’ social significance and responsibility as one of the metrics, and in part, enablers of success. Business leaders must embrace a broader vision of success that encompasses learning, innovation, creativity, flexibility, equity and human dignity, professors Ely and Thomas state on HBR. It is also worth noting that not all areas of diversity are easily measurable. Studies indicate that in addition to external characteristics, the benefits of diversity have to do with people’s different qualities. For example, the board of directors can improve its quality of work if the group includes different values, attitudes, skills and ways of working. The same mechanism applies to external characteristics: it is bad for business to hire only employees similar to oneself.

All the experts interviewed for this article agree that DI work involves a learning curve, and this too comes with a price: no quick wins, but much to learn. One key success factor is being able to critically examine your actions and identify personal biases and deep-rooted views.

Yacine Samb speaks of a three-step model everyone can use to move from acknowledgement to action*.

own role and instead externalize or downplay the issue, progress is not possible.”

“Education is hugely important. I collect all kinds of information, all the way from diversity business metrics to studies on stereotypes against Asians, Islamophobia, racism… DI work requires that we understand history and context.”

“Action. Promoting diversity needs to be a part of daily routines: making sure you don’t take part in all-male panels or arrange gaming events that only attract boys, putting effort and resources into only promoting platforms that uphold diversity.”

At Google, the work on diversity has been summed up in one sentence: “We are listening, learning and taking action.”

“We are listening, learning and taking action.” – Google

Acknowledge Education Action “First, one must acknowledge the point of DI work. Discussions about personal privileges and biases are a must. If you cannot acknowledge your

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Y

acine Samb used to do competitive gymnastics. She grew up in a world that hardly had role models who looked like her.

“I admired the work of Martti Ahtisaari and Nelson Mandela.”

Now she looks upon the success of Simone Biles, often recognized as the world’s best gymnast, and realizes how important and inspiring it would have been to witness something similar when growing up. Biles was born in the U.S. and also holds Belizean citizenship through her adoptive mother.

“People need role models and someone to look up to as an inspiration”, Samb notes. She recalls being delighted when an acquaintance revealed they had shown her Instagram photos to their daughter. “I love being able to set an example for this daughter, as someone who looks like her.”

At the same time, Barack and Michelle Obama and Kamala * In Finnish, Harris are role models in the eyes the so called 3Ts of countless children and adoles- model: Tiedostaminen, Tieto, Toiminta. cents, demonstrating that people

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N E W R E S E A RC H : C O M PA N I E S W I T H LG B T- F R I E N D LY P O L I C I E S P E R F O R M B E T T E R

LGBT-friendly corporate policies enhance firm performance, according to new research from the School of Business and the University of Vaasa.

Pride flags. LGBT or GLBT is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender.

The research conducted by Assistant Professor Jukka Sihvonen, at the School of Business, and his co-authors from the University of Vaasa - Veda Fatmy, John Kihn, and Sami Vähämaa, examined the association between LGBT-friendly corporate policies and firm performance using data on 657 publicly traded US firms over the period 2003–2016, and found that LGBT-friendly policies may create value for the firm.

More specifically, the researchers found strong evidence that more LGBT-friendly firms have higher profitability and higher stock market valuations.

“Our empirical findings demonstrate that LGBTfriendly corporate policies pay off, and the documented positive relationship between LGBT friendliness and firm performance can be considered economically significant”, says Sihvonen.

like them belong in the White House as well as elsewhere.

In the field of diversity, the theme of role models is referred to as representation.

Shadia Rask, Research Manager at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare and Doctor of Philosophy in Public Health, has described representation though her own experience: “For me, representation means that different people are visible and represented in the media and decision-making, for example. Representation involves relatability and becoming visible.

Especially in childhood and youth, we build our identities and follow the example of people who

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But why does LGBT friendliness influence firm performance? According to the researchers, there are various potential reasons why.

“Previous studies have documented that LGBTfriendly firms are associated with greater employee commitment, improved job satisfaction, increased employee productivity, and more altruistic workplace behavior”, says Sihvonen.

Furthermore, the researchers also express that LGBT-friendly policies may improve competitiveness in the job market by fostering the firm’s ability to attract, recruit and retain talented employees. Ultimately, on a broader scale, these findings can be considered to support the view that socially progressive corporate policies and diversity management are worthwhile, and should be considered across the board.

This paper was originally published in Accounting and Finance.

remind us of ourselves. It is hugely damaging if we cannot find anyone to relate to or if we can only find them in narrow and stereotypical roles.”

(The Finnish Film Foundation blog, spring 2021) In companies, themes of representation are related to recruitment as well as career paths.

Is company X for people like me? Would I be welcomed and appreciated as a colleague?

Is it possible for everyone to advance into leadership positions in the company? Does the management team provide diverse role models and have an understanding of different life situations?

Can a CEO take parental leave, be non-binary or use a wheelchair?

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Do organizations only see potential in certain types of people? Is the digital transition being carried out on boomer or generation Z’s terms? Are structural barriers, which block certain people’s career paths from the start, identified?

Diversity is not a question of management tolerating, enduring or recognizing minorities – management should also consist of people from minority groups.

Y

acine Samb says that progress is not possible before everyone in the organization understands why diversity is a goal. As the simple leadership lesson goes: always start with why.

Something that is considered a nice bonus or a fleeting trend will not lead to permanent change.

Samb believes that in a business context, the work should be motivated by strategic benefits.

“I consider management to have a crucial responsibility in the change process. Everything starts with the personal path, being ready for selfreflection, doing your homework and educating yourself. There is plenty of information out there”, she points out. According to Samb, diversity should be managed like other business metrics. You need to set objectives and tools for change, and follow-up measures for the objectives.

“This isn’t a performative issue, where you purchase a training in diversity vocabulary and read a few articles.”

The entire organization does not change overnight. According to Samb, management needs to figure out what the most burning house on their property is and start from there.

Rebecca Piekkari points out that large international organizations move at a different pace in different parts of the organization.

“Multinational corporations have differences between levels, business areas and local organiza-

tions. Countries operate in different stages and may highlight various aspects in leading diversity”, Piekkari says. This is why diversity objectives and metrics need to be based on the situation in each part of an organization.

Seeking diversity is not just the responsibility of organizations – they do not operate in a vacuum, but as part of society at large. For example, strict gender roles, educational and social politics, stereotypical attitudes towards different professions and racist biases can prevent diversity.Work against discrimination cannot be limited to the workplace, and companies cannot decide on, say, parental leave legislation in different countries on their own. On the other hand, companies can influence attitudes towards an employee taking paternity leave, and whether coding is a boys-only activity.

Critical consumers know how to demand more than performative pride or BLM campaigns from companies.

T

he Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2018 (GTCI) report focused on diversity.Alain Dehaze, Chief Executive Officer of The Adecco Group, wrote in the report that today’s world economy stands out for its complexity, uncertainty, and breathtaking pace of technological change. “Keeping abreast of developments requires extraordinary understanding and agility. Both can be enhanced by greater diversity and inclusion.”

The Adecco Group is the world’s second largest Human Resources provider and temporary staffing firm, and a Fortune Global 500 company. They provide the GTCI report with INSEAD and Tata Communications.

In the GTCI report, Dehaze describes the change in diversity issues within companies: “Previously, diversity principally signified com-

Cognitively diverse teams outperform their counterparts comprising ‘only’ the highly gifted by significant margins.

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F I N L A N D FA I L S TO R E C O G N I Z E E V E RYO N E ’ S TA L E N T

“Without commitment to the inclusion of diverse people, organizations will lose valuable talent at a high speed”, says professor Rebecca Piekkari from Aalto University.

Aalto University researches diversity from countless angles, but the theme is also linked to the university’s own activities. Aalto University is among the ten most international universities in continental Europe. Approximately half of the university’s academic staff and post doc scholars and 49 per cent of doctorate students hail from abroad. A total of 17 per cent of all of the students come from outside Finland. “As a creative organization, it pays a vital impact, as we seek to attract the best students and professors”, Rebecca Piekkari explains. She emphasizes that not only is internationality a tool for improved learning and research results, but a value in itself.

Aalto University is located in the city of Espoo next to the country’s capital Helsinki, many of its personnel being local residents. The city strives for inclusion and equality as it serves its residents. By no means is it an easy feat: for instance, people without Finnish as their native language form a diverse group. “Diversity efforts include offering services for non-Finnish residents and daring to recruit people who do not fully master the country’s official languages Finnish or Swedish”, says Piekkari.

Cities are keen to attract so-called top talent from all over the world. Where talk previously centered on the appeal of cities, the ability for them to retain talent has now become a priority.

Piekkari has seen firsthand how even highly edu-

pliance — achieving the numbers and demonstrating good corporate citizenship.Then it began to be promoted as a tool to match the different strata of societies in which companies operated to better understand and predict stakeholders’ needs.

Eventually, diversity has come to be understood as an essential enhancer of corporate productivity and performance.

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cated non-Finnish employees may find it difficult to find work in the country. “It poses a huge problem.

We have plenty of talent, but it is not put to effective use. Without commitment to the inclusion of diverse people, organizations will lose this valuable talent at a high speed.”

The uniformity of Finnish leadership has also emerged in diversity studies. For example, the FINDIX 2020 report compiled information on the diversity of executive management and boards of companies on the main list of Nasdaq Helsinki. The report found that a majority of the directors were Finnish males who had a qualification in business administration and economics and were born in the 1960s. The trend applied to both management teams and boards. According to the authors of the report, corporate responsibility consultants Suvi Halttula and Susanna Saikkonen, promoting diversity requires systematic long-term work and a shift in attitudes: “The low number of international managers in Finland is often explained with the country’s peripheral location or the lower level of salaries and board compensations. However, there are many international professionals living permanently in Finland for whom it is difficult to find employment. Naturally, advancing to the executive level is nearly impossible if highly educated international experts cannot even make it to the interviews for lower-level jobs.”

Recruiting the best talent is essential. But the evidence shows that diversity can actually trump talent. Cognitively diverse teams regularly outperform their counterparts comprising ‘only’ the highly gifted by significant margins. While the former may have the edge in routine tasks and ‘business-as-usual’ situations, examples show diverse groups’ superiority when it comes to com-

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A A LTO U N I V E R S I T Y PERSPECTIVE: R E S E A RC H O N D I

W H AT I S D & W H AT I S I

differences between individuals

Research on diversity and inclusion is truly multidisciplinary. At Aalto University, many research groups study diversity and inclusion.

To name just a few: • At the School of Business, we explore social exclusion of more mature entrepreneurs and language diversity in multinational corporations.

• At the School of Arts, Design and Architecture, our colleagues problematize the traditional gender categories of women and men in fashion studies. They also work at the crossroads of disability studies and contemporary art education to advance social justice.

• In the fields of science and technology, researchers are worried that people don’t get exposed to diverse viewpoints because social media becomes so quickly very polarized and selective. These researchers also study how interpersonal understanding can be enhanced by synchronizing brain activity between people.

DIVERSITY refers to differences between individuals, such as demographic (e.g. gender, age, ethnic background, sexual orientation, nationality), experiential (e.g. family situation, phase of life, work experience) and cognitive (factors that stem from e.g. education) differences.

no one is left outside INCLUSION means that people can feel respected and welcome as members of an organization, team or community. It also means that no one is left outside because of e.g. opinion, skin color, gender or native language. By fostering and advancing inclusion and diversity, organizations can find new perspectives on their work and decision-making, which in turn has a positive effect on the organization and its operations.

S O U R C E : A A LTO U N I V E R S I T Y

S O U R C E : R E B E C CA P I E K KA R I , A A LTO U N I V E R S I T Y

W H Y D I V E R S I O N A N D I N C L U S I O N M AT T E R +53%

+6%

+ 9 pp.

+ 1 9 pp.

ROE in Fortune 500 companies with at least three female directors

Net profit margin at companies in which 30% of leadership roles are filled by women

EBIT at companies with above-average diversity in their leadership teams

Innovation at companies with aboveaverage diversity in their leadership teams

+14%

Increase in stocks of inclusive companies during the financial crisis of 2007–2009 – during the same period, S&P index was –35% S O U R C E : P E T E R S O N I N S T I T U T E , C ATA LYS T, B O S TO N C O N S U LT I N G G R O U P

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plex problem solving and innovation in conditions of ambiguity.”

Key words here are, and they are worth repeating: Cognitively diverse teams outperform their counterparts comprising ‘only’ the highly gifted by significant margins.

In practice, this means that new innovations, for example, often require cognitive diversity and different ways of approaching the world. Professor Rebecca Piekkari says that similar educational backgrounds tend to have a homogenous, standardizing effect. In other words, it is not enough to have only Finnish and Indian male engineers working for a company.

The GTCI report describes Tata Communications’ own Winning Mix program, which seeks to increase the share of women in the company. In 2014, Tata had a workforce of only 17% women across all core business units. The company embarked on a new program to improve its position, with a target of 30%/70% female/male employees.

This is the generally accepted tipping point at which gender rebalancing can take on its own positive momentum.

Although each organization must carry out DI work from their own premises, the model used by Tata Communications has practical applications drawing from many general principles on increasing diversity. These include numerical goals and their follow-up measures, the removal of unconscious biases, making strategic benefits of diversity visible, recruiting people from minority groups and supporting their career development, increasing understanding of minority representatives’ experiences, education and increasing knowledge throughout the organization. In practice, the work at Tata Communications can look like this: when someone hands in

their notice, an external party conducts thorough exit interviews and tries to determine if there are aspects about the culture causing women, in particular, to leave the company.

I

n fall 2019, Yacine Samb was finalizing her EMBA degree at Aalto University Executive Education’s program. In an interview for Aalto Leaders’ Insight, she described the EMBA as a personal project of growth, an investment in herself and her future. According to Samb, the program provided tools for reflecting on whether she was on the journey she wanted to be on. What is my own purpose in work and life in general, she would ask.

When completing the program, Samb was working as Google’s Product Marketing Manager for Northern Europe. In summer 2021, she was appointed as Google’s Racial Equity Lead for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

If the new job has something, it’s purpose. It comes with great responsibility and content that is very personal.

“I see this as a journey towards the bigger picture that worries me about the world.

In the same way as I previously spoke about the digital transformation, I now speak about themes of diversity and consider who needs the most support for feeling included in the workplace.”

Samb says she loves waking up to a job with a purpose.

News of police violence, xenophobia and unequal consequences of the coronavirus move her and bring up emotions. But the question for her is: Can I help to solve this problem? How? Samb describes her feelings towards her current job with both humility and passion: “I’m uncomfortably excited.” ◆

Cognitively diverse teams outperform their counterparts comprising ‘only’ the highly gifted by significant margins.

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Y L O TO I N U T N O IV F E V R I SI E W T

A

P

A

I S TA L E N T M A N AG E M E N T TO O E XC L U S I V E TO B E I N C L U S I V E ?

Does exclusivity exclude diversity and ignore inclusion? Can we pursue impactful talent management in the organization while still being inclusive and cherishing diversity? Yes, we can, writes Riitta Lumme-Tuomala.

While diversity has no exact academic definition, we can presumably agree that the concept, or philosophy if you want, is crucial for any well-functioning organization, company, sports team, or the universe for that matter.

There are numerous studies, research, and empirical evidence pointing to that direction. McKinsey & Company reported in 2020 that the business case for D& I is stronger than ever; diverse companies are likely to outperform industry peers on profitability while the lack of diversity can be seen in e.g. decreasing profits and deteriorating company image and difficulties in recruiting talent. (Dixon-Fyle, Dolan, Hunt, & Prince, 2020).

We understand diversity in diverse ways. “Difference” is in the core of how ever you want to decipher diversity. Different is different, it does not equal “wrong”. Our biases, which are numerous, and it is impossible for any average person to recognize them all, can actually lead us to consider different as wrong and alien. And we act accordingly.

When recruiting and considering candidates for new challenging positions and talent pools, we look for cultural fit and alignment with current ways of working in the organization, and consequently advertently and unconsciously sacrifice e.g. cognitive diversity. Which in turn is the only source of innovation and novel ways to do things. This is just natural as stated in the Aalto Leaders’ Insight long form article on diversity; we recruit individuals like ourselves and herd with people similar to us. Diversity has a price, no one says it is easy, and only leads to

inclusion if we really work hard against our biases and prejudices and give examples of D&I every day.

Talent management can be defined as “right people in the right place at the right time”. We must find a way to first recognize and, apologies for the strong word, fight our own biases to really concentrate on the “right”. Right does not mean similar to what has been and right can vary from position to position and from one period to another. All this only has a genuine impact if we ensure that we actively value differences and use them constructively in the organization to achieve our strategic goals and pursue the mission of the organization.

The constructive recognition and usage of different strengths and competences is – Talent Management! As Elke Heitmüller, the head of Diversity Management at Volkswagen states in the article of this issue: “In football, every person is being placed in the optimum position according to their capabilities. You can learn that from sport.”

So, inclusion does not exclude exclusive talent management. When employees understand what is expected from them in terms of strategic goals of the whole organization, and it is understood that different strengths are needed in different positions at different times, we get to use and master our own strengths, we have a chance to understand why different opportunities are given to people at different times. Why do we comprehend and accept choosing the best and most suitable right wing to a football team but do not appreciate the equivalent choices and appointments in an organization?

Dr. Riitta Lumme-Tuomala is Head of Growth, Director, Talent Management at Aalto EE.

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BOOK 4 [ NEW NORMAL ]

ONSITE + OFFSITE = HYBRID The pandemic catapulted our work into the future.

Journalist Annukka Oksanen chatted with researchers and workers about the transition into a hybrid era. Could this be an opportunity to create something completely new?

Photography Touko Hujanen

T

he Stockholm office of Finnish law firm Hannes Snellman is located along Kungsträdgårdsgatan in the heart of the city, looking onto the plush Art Nouveau-style NK department store. The pandemic changed the outlook of the law firm’s employees, too.

When lawyer and partner Pontus Ewerlöf and the Dispute Resolution team under his charge revert their eyes from their laptops to gaze through the window, they may catch sight of a lakeside, snow-covered northern fells, or a residential neighborhood.

At Hannes Snellman, hybrid work – or multi-local work, as it is also called – is the name of the game. Although technology that combines onsite and offsite work has been around for quite some time now, it took a pandemic to separate work from a specific place.

Our ideas of remote working and use of related technology caught up by 5–10 years within a single year.

The pandemic catapulted our work into the future.

But now for the big question: Are we trying to get by in the new reality with our old ways?

“People have always been under the illusion that the biggest change in world history is happening right now.

D

uring the Covid year, the transformation was fierce and the circumstances exceptional.The beginning left most of us out of breath and confused. There were major questions in the air: In the future, can I decide whether to work remotely myself?

How do I lead a team that’s partly at the office, partly at home? How can I ensure their wellbeing if I don’t see them?

And above all: What will happen to the team’s joint afternoon coffees?

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The last question is maybe the easiest to answer; perhaps nothing. At Hannes Snellman, Pontus Ewerlöf and his team have enjoyed hybrid coffees together nearly every day.

Hybrid work has become shrouded in the wildest visions and talk about “a change in the world order during the post-industrial era”, explains Eero Vaara, Professor of Organizations and Impact at the University of Oxford.

Sure, remote work transforms the world of work, but there’s no reason to get too carried away.

“People have always been under the illusion that the biggest change in world history is happening right now.

A share of work will change, but a share will not. The trend that is now escalating has been simmering for a long time”, says Vaara, who also heads the Future of Work research project and is Visiting Distinguished Professor at Aalto University.

A point to keep in mind is that the change is affecting expert and office work. Plenty of work remains that cannot be done remotely. Let’s take an example from Finland: The Quality of Work Life Survey from 2018 found that 57 per cent of Finnish salary earners worked in fields where remote working was not possible. The labor market is becoming divided: a share of work will continue to be linked to time and place also in the future.

A

ri Loukkola, Head of Customer Relationship Group at Senaattikiinteistöt, has noticed how opinions and predictions on hybrid work abound. Tensions naturally rise when things at work change.

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“But extensive research data doesn’t exist yet. It will be available later.”

Loukkola’s tasks include maintaining and developing customer relationships and property assets as well as reforming government work methods. Both are crucial when it comes to separating work from place.

According to Loukkola, so far remote and hybrid work have typically been adopted by transferring former operating models and meetings online.

Workspaces and tools have changed, but the tumult has only just begun.

We’ll be getting somewhere when the context and ways of working are in sync. Hybrid work is a whole lot more than recalculating the size of the office space and perfecting the meeting technology.

It entails understanding changes in power relations and dynamics at the workplace. In the hybrid world, contacts are maintained through multiple channels, meaning there are fewer routine meetings with everyone present.

This may result in hidden conflicts.

“These conflicts can escalate when not confronted as before. A supervisor may not notice disagreements down the line”,Vaara notes.

“Leaders need to be sensitive and careful listeners and think on the lines of empathy, smoothness and coordination”, Loukkola adds.

Hybrid is not a blend of old and new but the creation of something completely new.

D

octoral candidate Nora Rosen­ dahl echoes the notions.

“Hey – let’s take the best bits from the office and the best bits of remote work, put them together, and off we go”, Rosendahl describes the transition into hybrid work tongue in cheek. She

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is CEO at coaching company Hintsa Performance.

It is of course not how it works. Instead of being a blend of old and new, hybrid means creating something totally new.

“It’s a bit like enjoying both soccer and chess, deciding to join them up, and thinking it will work. But that’s not how it goes – you create a whole new sport in the process.”

You’d first need a few rounds of soccer chess or chess soccer to see what surprises ensue from putting the two together. A new sport needs new rules.

“So far, we don’t know the effects of combining office and remote work. It’s why hybrid work needs to be seen as an experimentation”, says Rosendahl.

“We need to ask questions, try things out, develop. How do we work together, what challenges do we face, what new, perhaps surprising working methods emerge?”

A successful transition into hybrid work is a shared experience of the organization rather than dictated by management.

Professor Eero Vaara mentions that because people and networks are different, a general rule of “do this” is not the way ahead.

“But it is important to make some agreements. The question to ask is what type of model ensures a smooth working process.”

Hybrid work is part of a phenomenon that changes the nature of organizations. Boundaries become blurred and companies increasingly networked.

Power becomes decentralized but will not disappear even when former structures dismantle. From a leadership

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Managing Partner Riikka Rannikko is based at Hannes Snellman Helsinki office. She plans to travel less after the pandemic. Rannikko predicts that travelling will center on new customer relations. Trust is built face-to-face. It’s easier to discuss sensitive topics with everyone present.

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perspective, the challenge is to stay clear on how and where power manifests itself. Eero Vaara says that a large share of expert work has already given up the “director and subordinates” thinking.

“As a principle, everyone needs to drive issues and agree together. Similarly, it is everyone’s job to look out for each other. I have never been a fan of self-management, but it is a clear trend”, says Vaara.

Remote work requires determining one’s workload and dedication in a different way than at the office. Nora Rosendahl mentions that situations with plenty of options and openness can be a burden to many. The rules were clear before: in pre-Covid times, we were at the office, during Covid we are at home. Now for the first time anything is possible, and people need to consider how to handle the responsibility that comes with all the openness and freedom.

“It’s about defining new operating models. They impact both company profit and people’s wellbeing and coping skills. Done well, it could instantly reform the culture and working methods. That’s the big thing – not whether or not we are at the office”, accentuates Rosendahl.

L

et’s pour the tea and coffee and chew on all this for a moment.

Who’s turn was it to bring the cookies?

Hannes Snellman is a law firm that employs 350 people. Hybrid work is one of its focus areas this year. There’s plenty to consider.

“Nobody knows how this will work out, but that’s exactly what makes it interesting”, says Riikka Rannikko,

”Wishes and thoughts are far-ranging.

Some want clear rules on how many days a week to be at the office, while others are after as much freedom as possible.” vol 9

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Managing Partner at Hannes Snellman in Helsinki.

Helsinki-based Rannikko and Stock­holm-based Ewerlöf have combined onsite and offsite meetings for a long time.

Now trips between the two cities will be less frequent; Ewerlöf estimates that instead of the two monthly trips to Helsinki, one will suffice in the future.

There is no point in travelling just for a few hours, but with a continued need for live meetings, the fewer trips will be longer. It also enhances work efficiency and reduces the carbon footprint. Rannikko predicts that travelling will center on new customer relations. Trust is built face-to-face. It’s easier to discuss sensitive topics with everyone present.

“As a group, we then need to discuss how it would feel if some would take part remotely.”

In formal and informal meetings alike, Rannikko believes there is one thing that counts above all: “Whether people feel safe and included. If the answer is yes, things are good.”

At Hannes Snellman, surveys have been carried out to find out employee wishes for hybrid work.

“Wishes and thoughts are far-ranging. Some wish for clear rules on how many days a week they need to be at the office, while others are after as much freedom as possible”, says Rannikko. “It’s useful to seek different views, so everyone is aware of the spectrum that needs to be reconciled.”

Rannikko explains that job descriptions expanded and changed during the pandemic also at her workplace.

Many have gained a much more multidimensional view of the law firm’s

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operations, which will be useful also in the future.

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common concern about remote work is the lack of communality.

How has this been considered at the law firm, in addition to the virtual coffee times of course?

Rannikko got into the habit of writing a weekly letter at the start of the pandemic in March 2020.

The themes have ranged from May Day festivities to a remote Christmas party and celebrating deals.The weekly letter has become a replacement to chats at the office. Rannikko has a feeling it has also lowered the threshold for employees to get in touch with her.

Pontus Ewerlöf has missed walking around the office and “those 5–10-minute meetings” leaning against a colleague’s partition or sitting on the sofa.

He is planning on working one or two days a week from home in the future.

Leadership must adapt to a changing operating environment. It takes humility.

“Directors who are rushing around may forget about leadership during hybrid work. That’s when people end up sitting alone in their homes or cottages” Ewerlöf says.

“The most important thing is not to forget about anyone and having oneon-one sessions with everyone.”

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hat share of work will be remote in the future?

The answer depends on the company and industry. A need for less office space or change of location is clear.

Directors are busy calculating percentages and drawing up scenarios.

”New premises, new ways.

An organizational reform will not necessarily happen without revamping the workspace.”

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For instance:The 300,000 employees of Japanese telecom company NTT can choose (at least in theory) in which of the 3,300 offices around the world they want to work. NTT makes use of the global network of office provider IWG. Also workspaces are changing, and it is not simply a question of rethinking the number of required tables and chairs.

“New premises, new ways. An organizational reform won’t necessarily happen without revamping the workspace”, Ari Loukkola highlights.

The Finnish government is developing an ecosystem of multi-local work, which could involve people from different departments working in government offices scattered around the country.The buildings will become coworking spaces. Silos will soon be a thing of the past, at least when it comes to physical spaces.

What type of physical space will be needed in the future? Directors should think carefully from both a strategic and cost-related perspective about how their premises are used and needed.

“Face-to-face work needs to clearly provide added value for the organization and individuals. Why do we turn up at the office is a valid question in many areas.

Encounters are needed in order to engage, ensure strategic execution, and experience a sense of safety and belonging. Cooperation, ideation, coordination, wellbeing, and coping – good reasons for a day at the office?

One totally valid reason to turn up at the workplace is a lack of space and peace to work at home.

“Organizations need to think about meeting points. Employees not turning into hermits impacts productivity”, describes Loukkola.

“Work is a relationship, and it’s not good to be alone in a relationship.”

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anaging Partner Riikka Rannikko lists her upcoming meet­

ings: Three-person management team All Helsinki and Stockholm group leaders All Helsinki group leaders Helsinki partners Mergers & Acquisitions team Young lawyers’ breakfast Senior lawyers’ breakfast Entire Helsinki office Helsinki and Stockholm offices Hannes Day Hannes Academy Client meetings The list is not that out of the ordinary; the lives of managers and directors are filled with meetings. Smoothly running meetings are an essential part of office work that need separate attention during the hybrid era.

“Client meetings are the easiest to figure – they go according to what the client wants.”

Otherwise Rannikko paints a varied picture of offsite, onsite and hybrid. It comes as a bit of a surprise to hear her say that usually the management team works fine remotely.

“We know each other well enough for it to work. But we do need to meet up a few times a year. All management team work requires sitting down together and digging deeper at times.”

According to Rannikko, it is worth

“Also personnel taking part in meetings from the office do so from their own computers.

It creates an equal footing.”

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experimenting to find a suitable format for meetings. Arranging remote mass meetings for the entire personnel is straightforward, also if some take part from the office. It makes the speaker’s life easier to see their audience and get at least some sort of a reaction. An audience of three hundred will obviously not result in a lively discussion, whether live or remote.

“Instead it’s important to make sure they can return to the themes in group meetings later on”, says Rannikko.

Medium-sized meetings are the trickiest – ones that should in principle spark conversation, but which the hybrid format tames down. You need to be careful not to create a sense of inequality.

To address the problem, Rannikko and partners planned that also personnel taking part from the office would do so from their own computers. It creates an equal footing.

It is paramount that hybrid meetings have joint rules and practices that people also follow.

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werlöf ’s Stockholm team has fifteen members. Some of them take part in morning meetings from the office, others from elsewhere.

“If four or five participate from the office, we switch on the big screen. I lead meetings both from the office and from home.”

The current practice is still forming and is prone to change.

Ewerlöf has a more nuanced view of onsite and offsite work than the average employee – he has after all gained a sharper insight at hybrid expert and court hearings.

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“Trials became hybrid astonishingly quickly at the start of the pandemic.”

Stockholm is one of the global hubs of arbitration; resolving disputes between multinational companies as an alternative to litigation.

Experts are no longer flown in from the other side of the world for the sake of a hearing that lasts a couple of hours.

However, Ewerlöf does not see litigation or arbitration becoming completely virtual – lengthy cross-examinations would pose a problem if done virtually.

“As long as preparing and hearing the expert take the same format. If the hearing is remote, also the preparation should be.”

Testifying is completely different when physically present at court than virtually.

“A witness blushing, scratching their ear and being nervous become highlighted on camera, as he or she is the only person you see. In the courtroom, you see the whole setting.”

While the situation is still new, the hybrid format accentuates a need to examine human reactions and keep making assessments. According to Ewerlöf, the hardest part of hybrid hearings is not seeing the entire courtroom and the witness not getting to sense the atmosphere.

“It’s a bit like watching soccer on the television compared to being in the audience.The atmosphere isn’t the same.”

Trials became hybrid astonishingly quickly at the start of the pandemic.

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aina Tenhunen heads the Tech and Innovation team at Hannes Snellman. Together with her team, she seeks and tests new applications for the company. In addition to IT security and functionality, the key question for

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adopting new tools is what added value they can bring for the organization.

The answer is not easy when it comes to a hybrid model. New technology must never be an end in itself.

Tenhunen has noticed that heading into new times means letting go of past ways. The number of tools cannot be on a constant rise.

“Communication is always the challenging part – making sure everyone is on the same page.”

Sometimes the multiple messaging channels leave even Tenhunen frustrated.This hotchpotch is a problem of our times: email, Slack, Teams, Zoom, WhatsApp groups, OneNote…

“Major frustration: I can’t take it, too many channels. Maybe in the end only a few will remain in use”, she speculates. One lesson has been to clearly agree on the channels that are used.

Whether cameras should be on or off is another point to agree on. Some don’t like them, others do.

“Having a camera switched on all day is more draining than being physically present. The camera puts you in the spotlight for the whole time”, she says.

Hybrid leadership means agreeing on technical practices of this type on the one hand and listening carefully on the other.

Tenhunen’s own leadership has transformed during remote work. She now has more joint meetings and regular get-togethers with each team member than before.

“Suitable methods for virtual discussions and catch-ups have been discussed both with the whole team and each member. Different methods and combinations suit different people.”

The team has talked about spending certain days at the office. Many have missed the opportunity to bounce smaller issues off each other.

“In a virtual world, you have to think more about what share of a meeting should be dedicated to work-related matters only, and how much time can be spent chatting on topics that don’t necessarily relate to the subject of the meeting.”

“It is likely that common rules are agreed upon surprisingly quickly. Current concerns may turn out just as unfounded as the worry over people starting to slack when working from home.”

weekends. But we know it is not good for performance or wellbeing”, says Rosendahl.

For Rosendahl, one of the key questions is how to support supervisors and guide them in rewarding recovery. It’s a theme she has brought up regularly with Hintsa’s clients lately.

“Traditionally, we reward performance. But how could the organization also reward recovery? Hey, it’s great that you’ll be taking a four-week vacation, enjoy a long weekend, or take the Friday off following a tough project. How could these be rewarded alongside performance?”

Loukkola from Senaatti-kiinteistöt skipped his vacation in the Covid spring when travel was out of the question.

“It was a mistake.Take your vacations and long weekends. On the whole, the transition into leisure time should be marked with whole new rituals now that there are no commutes.” ◆

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hen Hannes Snellman established his law firm back in 1909, the office was open for two hours a day. The office is still not open 24/7, yet for a long time, work has been carried out beyond official office hours.

One of the question marks of hybrid work is how to draw a line between work and leisure time. Nora Rosendahl from Hintsa Performance would include wellbeing as part of people strategy and leadership of the hybrid era.

This is where middle management is needed.

“Immediate supervisors have become vital. It is their job to stay in contact with people, figure if they seem stressed, tired or up to the game, and find out how they can be supported, helped, or given more tasks.”

The mood matters – it reflects strongly on company operations.

“The myth of a good employee is that they are hard-working, willing to make sacrifices, answer emails well into the night, and ready to work at the

Law student Juuso Lumilahti wouldn’t want to only work remotely.

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Law student Juuso Lumilahti says he misses being at the office. However, he insists on holding on to working where it makes sense rather than where it should be done.

G E N Z – W H AT D O P E O P L E T H I N K A B O U T H Y B R I D W O R K W H E N I T ’ S A L L T H E Y K N OW ?

“I tend to get strength and energy from people, but a screen takes it away”, says young law student Juuso Lumilahti. His sights are not set on becoming a full-time office rat, though. “I insist on holding on to working where it makes sense rather than where it ‘should’ be done.”

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oung people joining the workforce just before and during the Covid time have missed out on established office routines and interaction. And if they have popped into the office, they have probably been met with a deserted space and the hum of airconditioning taking care of the soundtrack. Sitting down over a cup of coffee together – those golden opportunities to hear what’s really going on – is a rare treat nowadays. Will newbies even know what to miss? ”Heck it was fun to sit around the same table with my colleagues in the summer of 2020. I think many come to the office thinking they may bump into so and so at the coffee machine”, reminisces Juuso Lumilahti, student at the Faculty of Law at the Univer-

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sity of Helsinki. He is a Knowledge Management trainee at Hannes Snellman and works in the Tech and Innovation team.

With his thesis almost finished, Lumilahti is headed towards working full-time. ”As a young lawyer, I’m a little nervous about what flexibility actually means in hybrid work.

Flexible for whom and where? I don’t completely buy into it. I insist on holding on to working where it makes sense rather where it should be done.”

New generations seem to be entering working life, and they won’t bother to turn up just to show their faces. Yet Lumilahti misses being at the office. After all, colleagues are the spice of working life.

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The hybrid model may slow down getting to know one’s company and colleagues, but on the other hand, digital natives instinctively dive into remote technology. You won’t be likely to catch them complaining about an app’s particular features. They simply take them into use.

Lumilahti had the chance to try out a shadowing concept developed during a hackathon event, which is designed to give people at the law firm a better idea about what their colleagues actually do.

Managing Partner Riikka Rannikko shadowed Lumilahti for the course of one of his working days, and Lumilahti did the same to Rannikko: he tagged along at management team meetings, at a client meeting, and for the rest of Rannikko’s working day. The two then had an in-depth discussion. ”Remote work adds a new angle. It was a great two-day miniature mentoring session from a role model for sure. It gave a chance to think whether it was the direction I want to take. I asked Riikka why she has stayed at the company. Her answer was because she has always been treated so well there”.

Rannikko has been at Hannes Snellman for 22 years now, which sounds great to Lumilahti. Among the first age groups of generation Z, Lumilahti steers away from the thought of a higher threshold for approaching someone in a different position.

“You can ask anyone what they have on their desk and whether they could do with some help.”

He feels that hybrid work has dismantled some of the hierarchy. Where remote work was generally seen as a privilege of seniors warranting merit, it is now open to anyone. ”A couple of years ago, I would have raised my eyebrows if I’d overheard a trainee asking whether they can work from their summer cottage for a couple of weeks.”

However, Lumilahti wouldn’t want to only work remotely. ”No one has gotten used to the format changing from live to TV mode. It leaves at least a part of the brain running on empty. I tend to get strength and energy from other people, but a screen takes it away.”

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“As a young lawyer, I’m a little nervous about what flexibility actually means in hybrid work.

Flexible for whom and where?”

I n the 2040s, Lumilahti will have a career of roughly twenty years behind him, the equivalent of today’s directors who began in the 1990s. Lumilahti may still remember the “awful Covid year” and subsequent talk about hybrid work as a bunch of nostalgic hype.

Around the 2050s, the thought of working at the office may sound just as bizarre as what generation X reminiscing on work in the 1990s sounds like to millennials. Thanks boomers, we’ve already heard about there not being any smartphones!

We may soon be swaying as avatars in virtual reality, but one thing is likely to stay the same.

When Lumilahti wrote the weekly letter on behalf of the Managing Partner during the shadowing day, he chose to write about the significance of collaboration: ”We want to be surrounded by groups of people and be attached to them and their members. Maybe the Covid year will make us appreciate our colleagues even more. How can a community hold on to its members, and the members hold on to their community? Taking care of the community may officially fall under personnel management, but in my view, it is up to every employee. Let’s treat each other well and say hi to those we know and don’t know along the corridors at the office. I believe it will create a virtuous circle that makes people want to stay”, Lumilahti sums up his thoughts in the letter.

Like straight from the pen of future employees: expertly self-managing team members who won’t forget their turn to bring the cookies.

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I M PA C T & EXPERIENCE PA RT I C I PA N T S , FA C U LT Y & A A LTO E E ALUMNI

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PHOTO JUSSI RATILAINEN

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As Finnair began to shift from reorgani­ zation to a period of growth, Eija Hakakari, Finnair’s Senior Vice President (People & Culture), felt that new situation demanded new type of leadership.

Kirsti Laine-Hendolin is taking part in an EMBA program tailored for the City of Helsinki.

“Process Management and HR are my favorite modules. The first lay the structure and book of rules, while the second was established on the thought of personnel being our most valuable asset, which brings results and achieves goals.”

Bigge st takeaway: I lead people, not the organization “EMBA made me a better leader. I’ve realized that it’s not the organization that makes things happen, but the people. I have become more of a people leader”, says Kirsti Laine-Hendolin, Administrative Director at the City of Helsinki, who took part in the EMBA program.

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he beginning was pretty overwhelming with so much to learn and take onboard.

Topics of the EMBA program tailored for the City of Helsinki include responsible decision-making, network management, systemic thinking, change management, and advancing innovation. Then there’s digital revolution, strategic and business development, and customer relationship management. Lectures, reading material, group work. According to Kirsti Laine-Hendo­ lin, Administrative Director in charge of Culture and Leisure at the City of Helsinki, she was at pains at the start of the two-year program with the amount of information she needed to absorb in each area.The initial shock eased off as the studies progressed. “Gradually I made peace: I didn’t have to completely master it all, it was enough to keep learning and stay curious about people and new ways of thinking. I caught hold of learning and began to enjoy it.”

The group and well-organized program helped in coming to terms with the workload. All of the group members work for the city, but in different parts of the organization without knowing each other from before. The group formed a bond quickly and intensely.

“We bonded in a very natural way: there is openness, trust and compassion, and we spur each other on. The team spirit has been excellent, and we have noticed that we face similar challenges.”

Despite the differing roles, the shared context – the City of Helsinki and the special features and routines in leadership – made it easier to share experiences.

“The content was richer than I expected. I’ve been really excited about studying. The program has enhanced my commitment to my organization and employer, making me even more passionate about turning Helsinki into a better place for its residents and employees.”

The City of Helsinki employs more than 30,000 people, and Helsinki has over 653,000 residents. a alto leade r s’ i n si g h t

“We bonded in a very natural way: there is openness, trust and compassion, and we spur each other on.”

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he EMBA programs include a personal development process that involves examining the participant’s leadership growth. Kirsti LaineHendolin says she has become a better leader for her subordinates as the program has progressed.

“The process has increased my sensibility for each situation. It has given me a better grasp of decision-making situations, which not only involve the matter at hand, but the background, framework, and workload of everyone included. I have come to see the meaning of compassion and really understanding people, which is invaluable.”

“The biggest takeaway from the program is that instead of leading an organization, I lead people.”

A key element is the quality of interaction between a supervisor and subordinates and the whole team.

“The quality of interaction is a crucial insight that I’ve made a part of my own leadership”, Kirsti Laine-Hendolin states.

She feels that she has gained a new balance as a leader: alongside her existing goal-oriented focus on content and structure, she has gained a deeper understanding of leading people and interaction.

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he City of Helsinki is currently renewing its strategy.The EMBA group believes the joint program helps them in implementing the strategy in practice. The organization’s collective leadership expertise has grown, leaders are committed, and they have gained new insight for realizing the strategy.

Kirsti Laine-Hendolin mentions that she has been a little naïve about implementing changes in the past: if a matter has been noted and decided, it will take root. Now she has an in-depth knowledge about the logic and three-stage cycle behind change. It begins with knowing and under­ standing the change, then action based on the knowledge and understanding – and finally the habit and experience about the new operating method.

The administrative director had the chance to put theory into practice already during the EMBA program, as she led the organizational change at her own workplace.The entire process took place remotely.“The program gave me excellent practical lessons and food for thought on change: customer-orientation, engagement, understanding the arc of change…”

The best part was that the organizational change went well, and people have been satisfied with it.

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he group’s program began before the pandemic, the shift into remote studies being fast but smooth. “We were involved in creating something totally new. The Teams chat group became a place to reflect and comment – something that wouldn’t have happened in the classroom. Hopefully it will remain in use also in the future.”

Laine-Hendolin says she has “huge appreciation for the program’s coaches”.

“They are experts in their own fields and know all the ins and outs. When the lecturer has an attitude that sees discussion and even challenging as enriching and deepening the theme at hand, it makes for an excellent learning experience.” ◆ vol 9

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THE CITY OF HELSINKI EXECUTIVE MBA (EMBA) The program aims to support the realization of the urban strategy and joint goals by strengthening strategic and goal-oriented leadership of business operations, customer relationships and services e.g. using latest technology as well as to promote economic and people leadership and resilience.

The focus is on the participants’ leadership development and promotion of strategic, critical, and innovative thinking in a constantly changing, complex, international, networked operating environment.

“The program gave me excellent practical lessons and food for thought on change: customer-orientation, engagement, understanding the arc of change.”

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Elina Pirinen (left), Tatu Tulokas and Jonna Puirava.

Leade r ship training stre ngthe ns organi zati onal culture Mehiläinen and Aalto EE joined forces to offer a nationwide leadership training program.

The program, applauded for its versatile and holistic approach, aims to improve financial literacy as well as self-awareness, empathy and the ability to give feedback.

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ehiläinen, a well-known private provider of health care and social services in Finland, has been in a strong growth mode in the past years. At the end of 2019, Mehiläinen had over 18,000 hired employees. In addition, it employed over 3,800 private practitioners. Due to the strong growth, Mehiläinen’s company culture needed reinforcing.

There was also a clear need to harmonize the ways of working across the organization and to develop the leadership culture and hands-on leadership skills.

To this end, Mehiläinen teamed up with Aalto a alto leade r s’ i n si g h t

EE in a nationwide leadership training program in early 2019.

“Leading growth is not easy. Growth brings along new people and new situations you haven’t come across before, and you have to deal with it all while also taking care of your day-to-day work. All data from our organization and elsewhere indicates that leadership has a major impact on innovation, organizational climate, and productivity, and so investing in an extensive training program was quite an easy decision to make”, says Mehi­läinen’s Chief Human Resources Officer Tatu Tulokas.

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The goal of the training program was to ensure that leadership at Mehiläinen is consistent and competent and based on company values and strategy.

“In particular, we wanted to improve performance management, knowledge-based management, and change delivery.We also wanted to make sure that despite the numerous mergers and acquisitions, all employees and clients are offered a consistent, high-quality experience”, says HRD Specialist Elina Pirinen.

Jonna Puirava, who works as a development manager at Mehiläinen’s laboratory services, participated in the program’s pilot group. For her, the best takeaways from the program had to do with self-leadership and workplace wellbeing.

The program taught Puirava to better plan her work as well as identify things that require immediate attention and those that can be delegated.

She also appreciated the possibility to network with colleagues and gain a better understanding of Mehiläinen’s other business functions and the company’s internal affairs in general.

“As an example, we had a chance to create a brand new questionnaire template for recruitment interviews. It was great to get to have a say on things that you think are important, knowing that the improvements will be useful for many others, too.”

The program participants have also created other tools, manuals, and guidelines for managers and supervisors.

“During the program, we had the opportunity to discuss weaknesses and development needs in leadership and workplace orientation and identified areas that the HR department and other support functions have since taken forward,” Puirava says.

The results of this work are reflected in employee satisfaction. The overall satisfaction rating of Mehiläinen’s employees increased in 2020.

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THE MEHILÄINEN EXECUTIVE EDUC ATION The program aims at strengthening and developing the leadership role of people in various management positions. By 2021, about 700 Mehiläinen leaders have participated in the one year program that still continues. Themes include latest knowledge in megatrends, such as changing consumer behavior and digitalization.

plagued by the pandemic. The result is undoubtedly due to improved leadership skills,” says Pirinen.

According to the survey, Mehiläinen’s employees see the management as an empowering factor in their work.The managers’ employee experience has also improved significantly.

“I think they see the decision to invest in the training program as a sign of being valued,” Tulokas says.

The impact of leadership on both job satisfaction and customer satisfaction is considerable.

“The participants have had hands-on training on managing performance, giving feedback, and coaching. When people know what’s expected of them, their job satisfaction improves.That, in turn, has an impact on customer satisfaction. Customers sense when employees are happy”, Pirinen says. ◆

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“The best takeaways from the program had to do with self-leadership and workplace wellbeing.” a alto leade r s’ i n si g h t

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Teleste is a Finnish technology company founded in 1954. The company provides different technolo­ gical solutions for the needs of broadband network operators, public transportation, and public authorities.

Today, the company has a presence in over 30 countries and operates globally.

Pictured here, Tuomas Vanne and Jukka Rinnevaara.

Inve sti ng i n leade r ship Finnish technology company Teleste and Aalto University Executive Education (Aalto EE) teamed up for Teleste Leader, a program that defined and applied leadership practices for Teleste.

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uomas Vanne, the Senior Vice President in charge of human resources at Teleste, says that having the leadership program customized for the company is important. “We did not want an off-the-shelf program, but something that would work for us.”

The first steps of Teleste Leader took place in 2019, when the management team sat down to define leadership at Teleste: what it currently is and what it should be to ensure business growth and employee well-being. The company partnered with Aalto University Executive Education in the process.

According to Vanne, it was necessary to define leadership according to the company’s values.“We wanted the change to support our overall business success while providing our managers with a a alto leade r s’ i n si g h t

readiness to make a positive impact on the employee experience.”

The work was structured around the principles of psychological safety, a concept of high performing teams and feedback from employee leadership focus groups globally. “Working with Aalto EE provided us with a good combination of an academic framework and practical experience.”

“We want to develop continuously as a company,” says Jukka Rinnevaara, CEO of Teleste. “Good leadership is what creates conditions for employee engagement, motivation and satisfaction, and this allows us to also serve our customers better.”

Based on the newly designed leadership principles,Teleste and Aalto EE created the structure and content of a company-wide program to implement the principles. Covering 130 employees in mana-

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gerial positions across Teleste’s operating countries in Europe and the United States, the training included lectures, sessions in small groups, assignments such as creating videos and a Leadership Forum, which featured a vote for the best video.

One attendee of the program, who also participated in outlining the leadership principles, was Jukka Saari, who works as Head of RSM SW development and leads the software development of the company’s public transport information systems.

“The program was a positive experience and very interactive. Besides the more traditional style of training, it included work in small groups and assignments,” Saari says. “This engaged people instead of simply making them listen passively.”

Michal Grzelczak, Managing Director of Teleste Networks Sp. z o.o. Poland, was another participant in the program and its preparatory work.

He found the training to be an excellent opportunity to connect with colleagues from different countries and find perspectives for his work as a country director and co-worker.

He also found the decision to divide the groups into small units and over a longer timespan to be successful, allowing for intense collaboration.

“In a remote environment, you can invite as many attendees as you wish, but a large group would have sacrificed the agenda”, Grzelczak points out. “Working in smaller groups was ideal and allowed us to have honest discussions.”

For Grzelczak, the most important aspect of the training was being able to explore and compare his understanding of the lessons with his colleagues. He has had several discussions with others on the training since its completion.

“The impact in the weeks after the training was very strong”, says Grzelczak. “This was not a key to open all doors, but rather a tool for creating your own key”, Grzelczak remarks.

While measuring leadership is no simple task, Teleste carries out regular surveys to monitor emvol 9

Teleste carries out regular surveys to monitor employee engagement.

ployee engagement. Results of the latest survey have already indicated that satisfaction towards management and leadership at Teleste has improved in all areas.

“We can see a clear improvement, compared to 2019, even despite the pandemic and quite a challenging business environment”, V anne says.

As the company’s CEO points out, these areas rarely feature radical changes, but rather progress over time. “There may even be setbacks and conditions which are beyond our control, but survey results indicate that we have taken a clear step in the right direction”, says Rinnevaara.

In addition to quality leadership, Teleste wants to provide a company culture with as little hierarchy as possible.

Grzelczak hails the openness of the culture at Teleste. “There are necessary managerial structures in place, but I have found that the flow of information is very open and quite different than in many Polish companies. Teleste Leader is an example of this.”

Because the training fell on exceptional times, it provided an additional, yet valuable flavor, Teleste’s CEO notes. “Everyone had to take a digital leap simultaneously, and although we did not know it in the planning stage, the program gave us insights into leadership practices that work in a virtual environment.”

Most importantly, the company now has a platform for continuing the work on leadership in the future. “We won’t be returning to the way things were before the pandemic, but we now have tools for a new way of working”, the CEO concludes. ◆

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a We ll-planne d, holi sti c c hange journey Companies should perceive the Aalto EMBA as a strategic change management tool, say EMBA participants Lauri Toivonen and Markus Sillanpää, who participated the program together.

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OK’s marketing unit is the same size as a medium-large Finnish company – and the group’s brands impact the lives of every Finn on a daily basis. During recent years, SOK’s marketing has accomplished a 180-degree transformation. For example, investment management, talent management, and the role of marketing in leading business have completely transformed.

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Lauri Toivonen and SVP Marketing Markus Sillanpää obtained while participating in the Aalto EMBA together in 2019–2020.

Sillanpää and Toivonen assert that companies should see the Aalto EMBA as a strategic change management tool.

“You naturally have to carefully consider who you send to the program: they must be able to impact decision-making and budgets – and have the ability to implement change. If your organi-

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Markus Sillanpää and Lauri Toivonen affirm that they are pleased to recommend the Aalto EMBA program.

“It was a marvelous experience. We’ll miss Saturday mornings at Aalto EE. Mind-blowing revelations in a group setting, new excellent friends – it is hard to imagine where else you could experience such a growth journey at this age”, Toivonen ponders.

“I enrolled in the Aalto EMBA to become a better leader. At that time I had no idea it would also make me a better person. The program is a big investment for the participant and employer alike, but the payback is huge”, Sillanpää says.

zation wishes to achieve significant transformation, your best bet is to send more than one person at a time to the program”, Sillanpää underlines.

Sillanpää and Toivonen opted for the Aalto EMBA after comparing degree programs both in Finland and abroad.

“The global transformation of the trade sector is causing immensely challenging and interesting problems. We compete in a global field, so having top international names as instructors was pivotal to us. Aalto EMBA met this criterion and the program’s content seemed extremely high in quality,” says Toivonen. “In addition, the program’s modularity allowed a deeper dive into certain topics and the structure enabled combining studies with the hectic schedule of a busy leader.”

Strategic thinking, finance, leadership and the changing field of HR were topics that Sillanpää and Toivonen found especially relevant. Both feel vol 9

that the program’s most powerful experience was the Personal and Organizational Leadership module.

“It was just outstanding, Aalto EE succeeded brilliantly. If you wish to grow into a better leader and person – and you are ready to work hard – the Aalto EMBA ensures you have every chance for success”, Sillanpää notes.

“The program as a whole is an immensely wellplanned holistic change journey. It completely changes the way you think about yourself as a person and a leader, and consequently the way in which you lead the ecosystem around you. Your personal operating system is updated to a new level”, Toivonen emphasizes.

Participating in the program together helped accelerate change at SOK. ”Aalto EMBA gave us the tools to raise the level of ambition in all our goals. The teaching was business relevant throughout the program: the methods supported leadership in everyday work and the training was designed to help you directly implement all the lessons learned”, says Sillanpää.

They both think that participating together and thoroughly reflecting on everything from SOK’s perspective heightened the impact of the program. ◆

“Aalto EMBA gave us the tools to raise the level of ambition in all our goals.”

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Lifewide learning is a pre requisite for busine ss succe ss Competencies, skills and knowledge that are beneficial throughout one’s career need to be constantly updated. Anu Saarelainen and Ismo Laukkanen from ABB explain how collaboration with Aalto EE helps ABB facilitate the lifewide learning of its personnel.

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t ABB, offering development opportunities to personnel and monitoring competence and potential is seen as an integral part of business management. The thirtieth ABB Manager program arranged by Aalto EE is ongoing. The customized program was created in 2000. Its structure has not changed much throughout the years, but the content is continually updated to answer ABB’s varying needs.

“ABB Manager is meant for leaders working in our different management teams and people rising to that level. The program is an esteemed and a alto leade r s’ i n si g h t

much awaited opportunity internally. Over 550 ABB leaders have already participated in it”, explains Country HR Manager Anu Saarelainen.

“Expedition projects in which participants seek solutions for challenges presented by our business are central to these customized programs”, Ismo Laukkanen, Head of Learning and Development at ABB says.

Saarelainen points out that both customized and open-enrollment programs bring networking benefits to individuals and ABB alike: “When we send an individual to Aalto MBA or

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ABB is one of Aalto EE’s largest corporate customers. The collaboration ensures the continuous competence development of ABB’s personnel.

ABB TRAINING

to learn the ins and outs of data-analytics, our employee partakes in professional dialogue with people from other industries and networks in an academic context. In our customized programs, internal networking is naturally always a benefit in a company as large as ours.”

Enabling lifewide learning is seen as a prerequisite for business success at ABB. Recently the focus of competence development has shifted from individual skills to the proficiency of teams, the organization, and ecosystems.

“Competence development has always had a stronghold on our company’s agenda, but the accelerating change of work life has raised the bar in terms of how agile and fast learning must be”, Saarelainen ponders.

Laukkanen and Saarelainen emphasize that the speed of change has increased every year. The amount of new information is staggering, and a company needs to be able to cherry-pick relevant information for new business development.

“We also need our entire personnel to be agile learners, and resilient. Our collaboration with Aalto EE and Aalto University also helps ensure that our staff has this kind of learning capability”, Laukkanen remarks.

A partner that knows ABB well can support it strategically in research, development work and training. vol 9

Annually a group of around 20 managers from ABB in Finland participate in an extensive five module program over a period of nine months focusing on topics of leadership, strategy, financial management and customer management. The objective of the program is to provide a solid foundation for participants aspiring to take on further responsibilities in general management roles. The program is continuously finetuned to meet the latest needs of ABB.

“We value our cooperation with Aalto EE and Aalto University. It gives us a strong academic perspective, world-class training, and the very latest scientific knowledge”, Saarelainen affirms.

“In 2021 three themes will be highlighted in our collaboration: leading hybrid work and wellbeing at work, further developing diversity and inclusion, and creating business opportunities around Green Electrification, which combines digitalization and sustainable development”, Laukkanen concludes. ◆

“Cooperation with Aalto EE gives us a strong academic perspective, world-class training and the very latest scientific knowledge.”

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“We had strategy work ongoing at Kekkilä-BVB during the Global Leader program, and I was able to bring quite a few new perspectives to our conversations thanks to my studies”, says Nina Kinnunen.

“Global Leader was such a great experience, I have been giving serious thought to continuing studies in the Aalto EMBA program.”

“Online learning had its pe rks as we ll”

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ekkilä-BVB’s Sustainability, Brand and Communications Director Nina Kinnunen decided to participate in Aalto EE’s Global Leader program in 2020 to refresh her skills and ensure that she is at the cutting edge in development areas that Kekkilä-BVB is focusing on. “Networking and gaining insights from other participants were also on my wish list. For me, Aalto EE was an easy choice. It has a great brand and it’s known for its first-rate executive education”, she says.

Kinnunen says she enjoyed both the in-class and online learning experiences.

“I remember for example attending the Financial Decision-Making module from the comfort of my own living room and our professor Khaled Soufani from Cambridge University was a alto leade r s’ i n si g h t

also working from home.The casual surroundings somehow made asking questions and interaction even easier than in a class setting.”

“All our group discussions gave valuable insights. Everyone had extensive work experience and we had an open, sharing atmosphere. I obtained so many new ideas while we swapped stories, both of successful ventures and failures.”

Kinnunen was especially pleased with the Strategic Foresight module.“It gave me concrete tools for driving innovations forward at Kekkilä-BVB. The workshop held by Professor Eeva Vilkkumaa was an amazing journey. She used fascinating mathematical modeling to predict the future. I would never have guessed that spending a Saturday studying could be so invigorating.”◆

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Päivi Sihvonen affirms that her new skills have been highly beneficial at work.

“The Leading Sales program helped sharpen Vileda Professional’s sales material – just as promised. Now, we communicate the benefits we create for our customers concretely in euros and saved time when we speak about efficiency and quality.”

Favorite part of the prog ram: a g roup assignme nt

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ileda Professional is known as a developer, manufacturer, and marketer of leading-edge cleaning solutions for professional users. Commercial Manager Päivi Sihvonen has worked for the company for nearly two decades. Sihvonen participated in Aalto EE’s Leading Sales program in spring 2020.

As Aalto EE was already familiar to Sihvonen, she knew to expect high-quality coaching.

Sihvonen says the program gave her excellent tools for advancing value-based sales.

“I liked how practical the coaching was. In addition to theory, we had a lot of exercises. The program offered an all-round, hands-on picture of value-based sales. Creating customer value models was particularly eye-opening.”

The program started in March 2020 and it had vol 9

to be promptly transformed into an online program. “My skepticism towards online teaching turned out to be completely uncalled for.The program was excellent, and the entire experience was unequivocally positive”, Sihvonen notes. “We had marvelous discussions and we learned a great deal from one another as well.”

Sihvonen’s favorite part of the program was a group assignment during which participants created value propositions for their own organizations.

“I got immensely valuable feedback during this group work. Our instructor had wide-ranging expertise regarding different companies and their value propositions. He was able to reflect on our value proposition and share great insights about what works in his experience." ◆

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“The expectations for the training program were high, as this is a huge investment by the City.

Training has exceeded expectations and, as a bonus, it has proven to be a good strategy practice. Overall, this has been one of the best learning experiences in my whole life”, Jukka Mäkelä says.

Back to School with the colleague s As a part of developing resident-oriented management, the City of Espoo has implemented a tailored EMBA program together with Aalto EE. According to Mayor Jukka Mäkelä, the two-year training program has provided a great way to improve the implementation of the City’s strategy.The residents are the major beneficiaries of the outcome.

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he Mayor of Espoo, Jukka Mäkelä, is sitting in the premises of Aalto EE on Mechelininkatu, Helsinki. Mäkelä has become familiar with the place, since he has been going through the two-year EMBA training program tailored for the leaders of the City of Espoo together with 24 other executives of Espoo.

The City has invested significantly in education: a alto leade r s’ i n si g h t

after the first year of classes, 50 other leaders of Espoo have started the training. “The growing City of Espoo is facing greater challenges than ever before. Over the past 60 years, the population has increased tenfold, so the organization of services and the construction of infrastructure in a sustainable manner are big challenges”, Mäkelä sums up.

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Both leadership and competence must be in good shape so that challenges can be addressed properly; especially concerning an organization with 14,000 employees. This is the case with Espoo, which is carrying out the City’s new strategy: The Espoo Story.

The training program counts as one part of the City’s leadership development. According to Mäkelä, it is essential that the tools and practices for management and strategy are the same throughout the City’s organization. “We consider education a long-term investment. All our executives go through the program and share their knowledge with the managerial level that consists of approximately 1,000 persons”, Mäkelä says.

Fitting the demanding Aalto EMBA training program into the calendar of a big city leader is not a simple task. Mäkelä admits that flexibility was required, particularly from his family, since he has been studying on weekends as well.

However, the investment has paid off. Studying has not fatigued him—rather, it has given him energy. Mäkelä says that he has been recovering better after work by studying than by watching TV. At the same time, the Mayor has had the opportunity to plan and work on the new strategy of the City – The Espoo Story – and to implement it in cooperation with the branch managers and profit center leaders.

The program trainers have given answers to several puzzling questions and infused the managers with confidence to carry on with the strategy. “It is very important that we work together on the strategy. This training has been an excellent strategy practice. Each project has been designed from the perspective of Espoo. It has made operating easier. The managers have put their work hours and spare time into this, so it is important that all the training projects are applied to real situations.”

So far it has resulted in approximately 500 pages of strategy work. The advantage of the tailored vol 9

“It is important that all the training projects are applied to real situations.”

program, in addition to the skills acquired in the program, is that the employees in the same organization learn from one another.

“It has been great that through the training I have gotten the opportunity to think about the strategy package systematically and together with the unit directors.”

The residents of Espoo are at the heart of the City’s strategy. The strategy is based on the idea of a city as a service, so the core of the strategy is the residents. Mäkelä believes that the residents will benefit most from the managers’ training, both from the perspective of service development and sustainability. “The added value of such investment must benefit the residents.The education we have received from this training program enables us to serve the residents better”, Mäkelä says. ◆ Tiia Lappalainen

AALTO EXECUTIVE MB A FOR THE CITY OF ESPOO As a part of developing resident-oriented management, the City of Espoo has implemented a tailored Executive MBA program together with Aalto EE. The aim of the program has been to strengthen strategic thinking and to develop goal-oriented and effective management as well to support individual growth as a leader. The fourth cohort will start their studies in the program.

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A A L TI O M P EA EC TI M &P AECXTP EI R N I ENNU CMEB E R S

A A LTO U N I V E R S I T Y IN THE RANKINGS Financial Times Executive Education Ranking 2020 – Combined

No

42

in the world

The Financial Times ranks the top 50 executive education providers annually.

Globally, executive education is offered by around 4,000 institutions.

Financial Times Executive MBA Ranking 2020

No

88

in the world

Over 3,000 EMBA programs are currently being offered around the world, with only the top 100 making it onto the Financial Times’ annual ranking

QS Global Executive MBA Ranking 2020

No

62

in the world

QS Quacquarelli Symonds is the world’s leading provider of services, analytics, and insight to the global higher education sector. QS Global EMBA 2020 ranking includes 161 programs, 20 of which are joint EMBA programs.

Financial Times Executive Education Ranking 2020 – Customized Programs

No

36

Times Higher Education Young University Rankings 2021

No

28

in the world

in the world

Financial Times Executive MBA Ranking 2020

The Times Higher Education Young University Rankings list the world’s best universities that are aged 50 years or under. The 2021 ranking includes 475 institutions.

No

88

Financial Times European Business School Rankings 2020

in the world

Aalto EMBA program participants’ overall satisfaction #14 globally #7 in Europe #1 in the Nordics Top for student gender balance, with an equal split between men and women (in 2019) Over 3,000 EMBA programs are currently being offered around the world, with only the top 100 making it onto the Financial Times’ annual ranking

Financial Times Executive Education Ranking 2020 – Open Programs

No

61

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in Europe

The European Business Schools Ranking 2020 lists the top 90 business schools in Europe.

ShanghaiRanking Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2021 Business Administration

No

24

in the world

in the world

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No

The annual ShanghaiRankings evaluate universities in 54 subjects across the natural sciences, engineering, as well as life, medical and social sciences.

In total, over 4,000 universities were evaluated in 2021

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A A L TI O M P EA EC TI M &P AE CX TP EI RN I ENNUCME B E R S

A A LTO E E I N 2 0 2 0 NUMBER OF MBA/EMBA G R A D U AT E S :

A RO U N D

7,000 326 PA RT I C I PA N T S A N N U A L LY

60

A P P R OX I M AT E LY C U S TO M I Z E D P RO G R A M S WERE COMPLETED IN 2020,

75%

OF WHICH WERE DELIVERED ONLINE

N AT I O N A L I T I E S O F M B A A N D E M B A G R A D U AT E S China 5 Egypt 2 Finland 89 Germany 1 Hungary 1

Iceland 1 India 5 Indonesia 6 Iran 1 Italy 1

Japan 1 Singapore 1 Slovakia 1 South Africa 2 Spain 3

Taiwan 40 Venezuela 1 Korea 132 Poland 33

H I S TO RY O F A A LTO J O KO ®

The leading executive education program in Finland Turned 50 in 2020 More than 2,500 participants have completed the program over 50 years The 100th delivery took place in 2020

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P RO V E N I M PAC T A N D S U P E R I O R EXPERIENCE – I N S H O RT A N D LO N G T E R M

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M U LT I - D I S C I P L I N A RY FAC U LT Y, L AT E S T K N OW L E D G E

S U P P O RT I N G O RG A N I Z AT I O N S I N BUILDING EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP PIPELINES AND FOSTERING S T R AT E G I C R E N E WA L EQUIPPING INDIVIDUALS WITH SKILLS, COMPETENCES, S E L F - AWA R E N E S S A N D S E N S E O F AC H I E V E M E N T

CLIENTELE

Your learning experience with us will not only gain competitive advantage to you and your company, but also have a wider impact on society.

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A A LTO L E A D E R S ’ I N S I G H T Vol 9: Fall 2021 Editor-in-Chief Pekka Mattila Executive Producer Riitta Lumme-Tuomala

Editor Reetta Räty Columnists Mikko Laukkanen Mika Videman

Producer Anu Haapala

Contributors Otso Alasko Saara Bange Rune Fisker Touko Hujanen Tiia Lappalainen Annukka Oksanen Jussi Ratilainen Annika Rautakoura Reetta Räty Joanna Sinclair Annamari Typpö

Creative Director Jarkko Hyppönen Translations Rebecca Watson Annika Rautakoura

Concept Räty-Salovaara-Blåfield Ateljee Hyppönen Publisher Aalto University Executive Education Ltd Runeberginkatu 14–16, 00100 Helsinki, Finland tel. +358 10 837 3700, www.aaltoee.com Aalto University Executive Education Pte Ltd 36 Armenian Street, Unit 01–08 & 02–08, Singapore 179934, Singapore tel. +65 6339 7338, www.aaltoee.sg Printed by Grano Oy, Helsinki, ISSN 2342-3986 Address Register aaltoleadersinsight@aaltoee.fi

SHARE INSIGHTS AND FIND MORE ONLINE

A A LTO LEADERS’ INSIGHT ONLINE STREAM: Rune Fisker is a Danish illustrator who creates imagery for tech and editorial clients while also running his own animation company. His clients include Apple, Nike, Sony, BBC, Google, Adobe, The New Yorker, Wired, The Atlantic and Die Zeit.

W W W. A A LTO E E . C O M / B LO G Aalto University Executive Education hosts and curates a stream of varied content online.

At www.aaltoee.com/blog you can find articles – i.e. the long-form Books from this magazine, easy to forward and share digitally – videos, podcasts, columns and blog posts by Aalto EE and Aalto University faculty, alumni and other guest writers invited to share their insights with the Aalto EE community.

E X A M P L E S F RO M T H E D I G I TA L C O N T E N T : Annukka Oksanen is a Copenhagen-based journalist and writer specialized in economics and politics. She has previously worked for e.g. Helsingin Sanomat and The Financial Times.

Redefining Purpose after Times of Crisis When crisis hits, it’s natural to feel that your job is insignificant. According to Derin Kent, assistant professor of organization studies at Warwick Business School and a visiting researcher at the Aalto University School of Business, a little bit of creativity and a strong organizational vision help.

“Many of us have unanswered callings, something that we have always wanted to do but have put on hold.

A crisis gives us an opportunity to reflect on those choices and re-explore them.”

Jussi Ratilainen is a photographer, director and human behaviour enthusiast. At the age of 14, Jussi started capturing rock concerts and this paved the way to developing his signature style of dramatic photos.

After starting his professional career in 2012, he has photographed thousands of people around the globe.

C O N N E C T W I T H A A LTO E E ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Find Aalto University Executive Education on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn for more content and updated Aalto EE news: www.facebook.com/aaltoee https://www.instagram.com/aaltoee/ www.twitter.com/aaltoee (@aaltoee) www.linkedin.com/company/aalto-university-executive-education

Flexible EMBA Are you ready to start your EMBA journey now?

We offer you the opportunity of starting your studies by completing elective modules before your Executive MBA program officially starts.

This way, you can get a feeling for studying and can complete some of the required modules before the official start of your program, and you will also gain some flexibility in tailoring your EMBA study plan and schedule. There are several modules available monthly that you can choose from. The completed modules and study credits will be included in your EMBA degree.

Read more at aaltoee.com/pathway-to-emba and contact our EMBA team.

We will help you with any questions you may have on starting your studies and finding the best solution for you.

PROGRAMS FOR DEVELOPING SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS

Corporate social responsibility is a strategic tool

Making choices that build a sustainable future is vital to both society and businesses. Organizations and companies need to operate in an ecologically, socially, and economically sustainable manner to be profitable, competitive, dynamic, and prosperous in the long term.

Sustainable development concerns the entire organization and its stakeholders. Sustainability has to be understood as an integral part of all actions and business activities.

What does sustainability mean in your organization, and how does your journey towards a more responsible business continue?

PROGRAMS

VASTUULLISUUS JA LIIKETOIMINTA STRATEGIC SUSTAINABILITY FOR BUSINESS

VASTUULLISUUSVIESTINTÄ JA -MARKKINOINTI

KASVUMAHDOLLISUUKSIA KIERTOTALOUDESTA

TOIMITUSKETJUN VASTUULLISUUS

Read more at aaltopro.fi/sustainability

Aalto Leaders’ Insight – the magazine by Aalto University Executive Education.

Library of insights: Experts talk about the relevance and hardships of diversity and inclusion. Getting back to office is an opportunity to change the way we work and live. And finally, let’s take a look at the future: What can we learn from the great toilet paper grab of 2020?