Pertti Siekkinen, Specialist, Change Management

Management coach

Pertti Siekkinen, Specialist, Change Management at Senate Properties, works to create better work environments for state administration. In his opinion, the development of interaction between people is key for change, along with the development of each employee’s skills.

What does your job involve?

I support our customers’ change management. It’s important to pay attention to the aspects that matter the most in terms of change. Each employee processes the change through discussions, and you must know how to lead these discussions.

Senate Properties’ projects are not only about modifying facilities, but also about developing digital solutions and new ways of working. These are strongly interdependent. The discussion has already moved on from the pros and cons of activity-based environments to what types of facilities best serve various types of organisations, which takes us to the purpose of the organisation. After all, activity-based environments are only one of many tools for better work.

What are the targets of your team’s work?

In a good work environment, people enjoy their work and are productive – which is our goal.

The major change usually only begins once people move to the new facilities. For this reason, special attention must be paid to management after the move. The development of interaction between people is key for change, along with the development of each employee’s skills.

What opportunities does the future offer your work?

Boundaries between organisations are disappearing, even in state administration. For citizens, this means better and easier availability of services. When services are provided comprehensively, customers do not even need to know which authorities are providing the services they need, such as getting a new passport or filing for divorce.

In terms of facilities, this means that state services will increasingly be provided in shared facilities around the country. The state will have fewer facilities than today, which brings cost savings. On the other hand, by combining facilities we will be able to maintain a larger number of service points.

At the same time, state employees will be able to work in shared facilities according to need. In the Helsinki metropolitan area, this means that an employee living in Tuusula, for example, will not always need to commute all the way to Helsinki, as they will be able to choose a location closer to their home instead.

Three principles that guide your work?

Openness. In changes related to work environments, information and presentations alone are not enough. Participation and discussion are needed as well. Things must be planned and done together, which means that all perspectives, including critical ones, must be heard, understood and considered.
Development. You must be able to focus on the future while also understanding the realities of daily life. Development means changing things and doing them differently from before. When building a property, we must be able to plan twenty years ahead to make sure it will be functional even in the future.
Appreciation. In addition to each member’s intelligence and expertise, the success of a team or a workplace community depends on each member being able to feel they are accepted as they are. Ways of thinking cannot be changed by giving orders or ready models or perspectives. People must be heard and understood, and things must be discussed.

CV

Education: Master of Education

Previous employers: CEO of Humap Software. Has carried out research into e-learning, among other topics, at the Information Technology Research Institute of the University of Jyväskylä.

Our specialists

Riikka Manninen, Workplace Adviser

Thinking about the future is an integral part of my job, as work environment solutions are intended to be functional for decades. For this reason, our projects combine comparing various options with predicting the effects of technological development and seeking solutions linked to mitigating climate change. In addition to customer projects, my work includes internal development work, such as further developing Senate’s Sesam into an even better co-working space.

Anne Sundqvist, Specialist, National Facility and Workplace Concepts

The development of work environments always focuses on people. In cooperation with a multidisciplinary network of partners, I produce customer-focused and activity-based concepts for the central government, with the goal of renewing the customer’s operations and facilities. The key aspects of my work include comprehensive examination and design thinking, as well as making use of data. The most important aspect is to develop concepts based on the needs of the users of the service or facility. I’m responsible for ensuring that the people related to the change can participate in the development work in many ways and that they are heard.

Anne Korpi, Specialist, Indoor Climate

Indoor conditions at the workplace are likely to be appropriate if they require no attention. However, the users of our facilities report cold indoor temperatures in the winter, draughts caused by air conditioning and stuffy indoor air. In my work, I develop practices and measures to ensure good indoor air quality and the effective management of indoor conditions at government workplaces, to create pleasant work environments that promote health. In practice, this means producing instructions, models and guidelines, to name just a few examples.

Reetta Ripatti-Jokela, Head of Workplace Solutions

When our clients make comprehensive changes to their workplaces, we support them from beginning to end. A few decades ago I was offered the opportunity to become one of the pioneers of workplace development in Finland. My strengths are that I have a comprehensive understanding of the overall view of the sector and of the directions of future development. Over these years, the concept of workplace development has grown from space planning to being a multidisciplinary speciality area. There is now also a greater understanding of the strategic possibilities offered by work environments in the management of organisations.

Esa Halmetoja, Specialist, Maintenance Digitalisation

I usually describe myself as an electrician through and through. I started working as an electrician on building sites when I was 18. After working for various employers and gaining further qualifications, I ended up working as a specialist developing smart workplaces at Senate Properties. I’m a determined and curious person. Fortunately, in my current job, I have plenty to study and experiment with. In fact, challenges are my passion and finding a solution to a problem is the best reward.

Selja Flink, Construction Project Manager

Even as a child I was fascinated by old buildings. They oozed history and beauty that you can’t see in new buildings. That is why I have spent practically all my career as an architect working on historical buildings. For the past ten years I have specialised in a combination of fields that is quite rare in Finland: restoration and construction contracting. Accessibility became an important feature when I was in charge of castles and museums, as I believe that everyone must have equal access to buildings that are maintained by the taxpayer.

Heljä Franssila, Specialist, Knowledge Work

This is my calling: increasing the potential of knowledge work organisations and various personnel groups for making an impact. My mission is to enable productive and effective work in the central government – every day of the year! My primary job is to offer methods and procedures for both individual and communal knowledge work and anchor them in the daily work of our clients. At Senate Properties, I am responsible for knowledge work performance measurement and development services in the Work environments unit. I am also involved in the implementation of work environment development and change management services.

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