Written by Ulrica Bladh
Thousand young managers (#1000nuortajohtajaa) is a nationwide campaign by the Junior Chamber International Finland and Chamber of Commerce that brings leaders and young people together. The campaign took place from 13th to 17th of November, and on 14th of November Bluet got Ulrica as a young manager for one day. Here's Ulrica's thoughts about the day at Bluet Ltd:
Entrepreneurship requires courage. Courage to embark on ideas. Courage to fall into an unknown world. Above all, the courage to go all in. In the same way, leadership requires courage. You have to have the courage to take responsibility, but at the same time to be dependable on others and their skills. When you start as an entrepreneur, you shouldn't be afraid of failure.
I got the chance to visit Tytti Sirola's work through the Thousand Young Leaders (#1000nuortayrittajaa) campaign. The morning began with a meeting with Finnish Water Forum's operational committee. The topic of the discussion was the development of the FWF and other future plans they had. It was interesting to see how the meeting progressed and the participants made decisions together.
After the FWF meeting, the trip continued to Bluet's office. Sirola told me that the team was a bit smaller than usual that day, but that didn't trouble me at all. Through Kimmo Saharinen, I got acquainted with engineering work that I find very interesting. The task at hand was to calculate cost estimates using Excel. However, that is not Saharinen's only responsibility at Bluet — the engineering work is really versatile.
Tytti Sirola's work is equally versatile. With the team being small and close-knit, leadership is a very flexible concept. Cooperation within the team, especially between Saharinen and Sirola, is strong and effective. I believe that a good leader must be cooperative, yet capable of making decisions independently on behalf of the company. We discussed leadership with Sirola, and she thinks leading by example is important — it shines through in her way of working. How can you expect others to be fully committed if you are not ready for the same? For her, the most rewarding part of leadership is the success of the entire team.
Not everyone's career path is perfectly straight. Few people end up doing exactly what they imagined they would do for the rest of their lives. You might hit a few bumps along the way, but you shouldn't be afraid. Many times, fate takes the lead. After talking with Sirola, I found out the same had happened to her. Not getting into the school you wanted doesn't necessarily mean that you can't make your dreams a reality, or that you can't be successful in your career. It's a relief to hear that you don't have to have everything figured out. Things will clarify over time.
The lesson of the day can be summed up in one sentence: The one who dares, wins.
– Ulrica Bladh –