When and how did you end up in Mtech?
Although I am originally from a very small town in Massachusetts in the United States, I have been living in Finland since 1999. Originally, I was working for Nokia in the U.S. and after my involvement with a cross-organization project between Nokia Boston and Nokia Finland, I was asked to move to Helsinki to help with their continuing software platform.
The initial one-year stay turned into two and then three and ultimately resulted in me staying here permanently.
After about twenty years in Nokia, I took fours years off to have some time to myself and relax. Eventually, my time off came to an end and I started looking for companies outside of the telecommunications field where I could work on something a bit different. It was actually just a bit of luck for me to have found an opening here in Mtech and I interviewed for the open position just days before I had planned to visit my family in the states for Christmas. Thankfully for me, the interview(s) went well and I was asked to join the Mtech family.
What do you do here?
I am currently the team lead for the Draco Team and a project/scrum manager for several of our Global projects. I am also currently heading the Mtech Recreation Committee, although 2020 wasn’t exactly the best year for recreation events…
What is your normal day like in Mtech?
During 2020, roughly 90% of my time has been remote, since working from home saves me easily over an hour of travel every day. My morning normally starts with a few cups of coffee and daily stand-ups for the projects followed by relevant project management issues or task clarification. I try to leave myself time to handle any team related issues since my project and/or line team is an important focus for me and I want to be available should they need help of any kind, whether this includes team meetings, HR issues, general line related queries, or task allocation.
What kind of things excite you at work?
Some might consider me far from a quiet person, so comradery and personal interaction is very important to me. Being able to work together with others to achieve a goal or to help someone turns an otherwise boring day into a good day for me. A side-effect and/or drawback to this is that I tend to ask quite many questions and talk a lot.
What is your nicest memory related to Mtech?
Since my time in Mtech hasn’t been too extensive, I will have to say that the first time I interviewed with my team was a very refreshing experience.
The Draco team has a practice where part of the interview process involves meeting the team you might be working with. This was something rather new to me and I was very happy to have been able to meet those whom I am currently leading and allowing them to learn a bit about me as well.
What do you do on your free time?
Outside of work, my interests are a bit across the board. I have taken a couple years of Fencing, have an intermediate belt in Krav Maga, and was practicing Crossfit for a number of years, as well as GeoCaching.
I am an avid gamer; whether it’s role-playing, board games, or video/online games, so geeking out is one of my favorite things to do.
I love to cook and can easily stay up late in the night watching cooking shows and YouTube videos in order to get inspiration and ideas for me to test out.