3 minute read
Making things buzz
2020 will be lodged in our memories and will go down in history as the year of the pandemic. After a good start for the year, everything changed all at once in March. The world went into lockdown at a record speed, and the economy started stalling straight away. Luckily, we did not know at the time how long these exceptional times would last. Of course, it is also regrettable – because many companies would have made different decisions, had it been evident from the beginning that Covid-19 would keep hold of us for over a year. Thus, last year was marked not only by the acute crisis but also by the shortness of the planning horizons. Many of our members have told that the future turned instantly fuzzy – there were no prospects to base plans on.
In the big picture, the Turku Chamber of Commerce’s year was very similar to that of many of our members. The start of the year was good, and activities had been started in earnest. We launched three new committees, and a record number of events had been planned. In March, out of nowhere, the pandemic hit, and the lockdown emptied our offices and moved all activities to digital platforms. The much talked-off digital leap was done in a week and without preparations. Activities were planned a month or two at a time. Surely in May we will get to hold face-to-face events... Everything will be back to normal in the autumn...After Christmas, normal activities will resume... Maybe in the spring when the vaccinations have been received... 2021 has begun, and we work effortlessly in the digital sphere and keep waiting for the time when we get to that anticipated new normal.
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And what about 2021? What will we remember about this year? What will be written in history books?
The pandemic has brought good new developments and activities, which will help us when we finally begin that new normal. The digital leap has been leapt and organisations are raring to go. New ways of operating and business opportunities have been searched and found. Companies have had to think about what is essential and important.
In 2021, the Turku Chamber of Commerce members are keen to work together to achieve new growth. In practice, this means that we will make a positive structural change again. Towards the end of the previous decade, new growth first started in Southwest Finland. We were ready to pounce when there were the tiniest of signs of economic growth in the air. Now, it is time to achieve the same again.
The Turku Chamber of Commerce wants to play its part in enabling that growth by offering companies help and support, information and advice as well as opportunities to network with other parties. We have honed our member events – this year we will provide many briefings, meetings with influential people as well as networking opportunities. Our training has also taken a digital leap and, together with the advice services, it offers our members an abundance of information and knowledge for day-to-day use. Our advocacy work will continue with the familiar themes of promoting expertise in Southwest Finland, improving the accessibility of the area and developing the regulatory environment.
Together we will make sure to seize the post-Covid economic growth here in Southwest Finland. We have good manufacturing operations, plenty of export industry, strong tourism capability and a versatile service sector. Let us be ready to strike when society starts to open up again, and Covid-19 shows signs of abating. Together we will make 2021 buzz.
Kaisa Leiwo
Managing Director, Turku Chamber of Commerce
