Staff Interview with Taija Weckström, Solutions Team Leader
Taija Weckström’s arrival was quite a typical way to start working in Elinar. She was studying at Satakunta University of Applied Sciences (SAMK) Bachelor of Information Technology when she came at first half-year of training in Elinar. After that, she continued to work part-time while studying and also completed her thesis for the company. “And then I just stayed here, like many other of us”, Weckström laughs.
This Team Leader started her career in Elinar as a software developer. A young woman got interested in technology in her twenties – she attended an IT course at the evening school in Helsinki, where she lived in that time. “When I ran a computer driving license, I realized I wanted to work with computers. I applied to SAMK and got in. So, I came back to Satakunta, where I was born”, she tells.
Responsible and human-oriented work
Weckström has been working in Elinar for 18 years now, so she has experience in many different positions. She worked her longest time as a Senior Software Designer. In 2017 Elinar reorganized and Weckström became the Coordinator of the Solutions Team. A year later, there opened a Team Leader’s position and Taija started as the new head of the team.
In addition to the development of OCR applications, Weckström takes care of resource management, competency development, reporting and other current issues of her team. She likes her current position, especially because it’s very human-oriented. “Helping others and carrying responsibility motivates me”, Weckström describes. She has also liked the training offered by the employer because it has supported working in her new role. “We were recently in a two-day Team Leader power training with my colleagues. We learned there, for example, people’s personality and managing rush in work.”
Committed and ambitious Elinarians
As a working community, Elinar is a close team of different types of experts, who get along well with each other. “The atmosphere here is relaxed, with a touch of humor”, Weckström lists the best things of the workplace and adds: “The great workmates are bringing energy for every day. They are a big reason why I enjoy working in Elinar so much.” The length of Elinar’s employment is 7 years on average, which proves a good working atmosphere and opportunities for career advancement internally.
Elinar does neither have to be ashamed of external comparisons. “For example, IBM has praised the company’s extensive technical expertise. We are well-known for our hard skills abroad”, Weckström explains. She thinks that one of the reasons for the praise is Elinar’s flexibility. The company has always been able to use new technologies whenever needed and has not stuck to specific products. According to Weckström, the same flexibility of how Elinar reacts to changes in the market, is clearly one of the company’s competitive advantages.
Sport counterbalances sitting in work
The sporty Team Leader considers it very important for the employer to encourage employees to move in their free-time. “Elinar introduced vouchers which everyone can use in sports or culture as they wish. Moving is important for us who work sitting down, to maintain our working abilities”, she tells. However, Weckström has an electric desk so she can work also while standing. It surely helps her stay alert at the office. And when a working day is done, the active woman is engaged in cross-training and jogging in northern Pori.