When I started at The Switch as Sourcing Manger, I managed a tiny purchasing team in Vaasa, with converters as our main responsibility. Our team later took over the purchasing and sourcing responsibility for The Switch Marine Drives in Norway.

During my career at the company, there have been many organizational changes. At one point when I no longer had manager responsibility, I got nominated to the Yaskawa commodity manager team, having also a manager in our Headquarters in Eschborn. This team is the European lead and has responsibility for different commodity groups. My responsible area is C parts, and I’m striving to have one C parts’ supplier for all Yaskawa EMEA sites.

My first Finnish manager has now retired. Together with my new boss, we divided sourcing in Finland, Norway and China into different categories. My main area is mechanical parts – and as a new area and challenge – indirect spend.

I’ve also been establishing and developing our supplier relationship management process on Share Point with supplier performance data, compliance and a library. As I’m interested in surfing on the crest of an expertise wave, I wanted to update my knowledge. So, I joined the Purchasing and Supply Management Programme arranged by Lappeenranta University.

I’ve chosen The Switch, as I love working together with our international team and global scope. I highly value the smart, sustainable solution that our company offers. Other favorable aspects about The Switch are the location, company culture, employees who are up for new challenges, versatility, low organizational hierarchy, a sense of belonging – and the fact that I really like the people I work with. In addition, I enjoy engaging and bonding with our partners.

With a good work-life balance and alignment between my personal and company values, I have found a career in which I enjoy working every day. The best things are that I’ve been able to focus on my own personal growth by learning new skills.

My career path is not set in stone – and it doesn’t always follow a straight line. For instance, I have chosen to move laterally in my career to broaden my experience and become more successful for future positions.