Stories from new Hansel employees

Hansel is an organisation that employs 75 experts. The company has a strong image as an employer – among those who know Hansel. We interviewed four of the most recent hires and asked them why they chose Hansel.

Responsible and inspiring duties

Hansel’s core competence includes central procurement, tendering processes, cooperation with suppliers, and contract management. Janne Valtavaara wanted to see the benefits of diversified tendering processes in the eyes of the customers. As a tendering consultant, he gets to better himself at the core of public procurement and, at the same time, develop successful procurement services: “Competitive tendering of acquisitions is becoming an increasingly streamlined process, and it makes sense to work on tendering with a new electronic tool, as I can focus on what is essential, the results.” (Read more about the adoption of the Hanki service, as reported by Kela.)

As a limited liability company, Hansel does not seek profits, which was bewildering for a financial management professional. Mikko Halonen had wanted to work in the public sector for a long time, and he was excited about the job of a controller that became vacant due to internal transfers: “Usually, businesses specifically want to maximise their profits. I wanted a chance to see how this completely opposite way of thinking is visible in the Finance Unit.”

Hani Olsson, who had worked on communication duties and taught to support sales with all marketing efforts, wondered about the same thing. However, the first steps have shown that the same laws apply at Hansel as well. “Many of my colleagues seem to have a business background in sectors I am familiar with, and especially the natural role of responsibility in business feels wonderful. It has been really easy to slip into the duties and the group of co-workers,” says Olsson.

Power to working days from change

Lasse Ahonen knew his colleagues from before because he returned to the digital team after working elsewhere for a couple of years. Thus he has gained some perspective on the interesting things he can work on as a Hansel employee. “Working practices had changed substantially while I was away. For example, remote work and the use of communal tools are a natural part of our daily lives these days.”

Hansel employees share excitement in the development of public procurement and pride in their work in a socially significant sector, on the box seat of the procurement industry. Topical development projects for digitalising acquisitions, for example, are visible in the role of every Hansel employee. Also, the organisational structure has been changed to match the increased need for developing procurement services among the customer base.

Exceptionally strong changes are being felt in the field of public procurement. In a survey on well-being at work in autumn 2016, Hansel employees chose change management as one of the most important areas of development, besides management and communications. On the basis of the survey, a good atmosphere at work and the social support offered by co-workers are one of Hansel’s strengths that helps a community in a transition.

Changes bring an enormous amount of energy to the daily lives of Hansel employees. There are few jobs where employees get to work with such a large group of stakeholders and to experience changes at the centre of things. The introduction of government procurement to citizens and the regional government reform will be in the headlines in spring 2017, as well.

Nowadays, I watch the evening news with a whole different intensity, Mikko sums up.