Carita has been at Futurice for just over 10 years now, and she’s learned a lot about the company culture and her own skills in that time. She reflects on some of the key insights that she’s gained during her Futurice career.
Despite being consultants who spend a lot of our time at our customers’ offices, our work isn’t all about technical and project skills – there’s so much more to working with other people than being good at programming, or whatever they’ve hired you for.
This is one of the first things I noticed when I joined Futurice from another company that has a very different culture. During my first project here I remember feeling frustrated because I couldn’t get the software I was using to work, and I was complaining out loud about it. I was just talking to myself really and I would have been ignored in my old job, so it was a complete surprise when two people came straight over offering to help! I immediately realised that the culture here is very much focused around how we can support each other, and this moment has really stayed in my mind ever since.
Despite being consultants who spend a lot of our time at our customers’ offices, our work isn’t all about technical and project skills – there’s so much more to working with other people than being good at programming, or whatever they’ve hired you for. You also need to be very aware of the people there and adapt to their culture, as well as interacting with the people in your team, so the softer skills such as listening, open communication and awareness of others’ feelings are often more important in this work.
Our teams always focus on working together towards a common goal – we simply couldn’t accomplish the same results if we were all working on our tasks separately. In the project that I’d say I’m proudest of overall, we set up a few ground rules from day one, including that we would never work on anything alone; when you’re working that way there’s always someone backing you up, so if you’re unavailable your teammates can ensure that the project is progressing and the customer isn’t kept waiting. As a result we were always prioritising the most important work, and the difference was clear compared to projects where we sometimes needed to stop and wait before continuing with urgent tasks.
Change is hard work for everyone – when you’ve been working a certain way for a long time it can be really challenging to change, even if you know it’s for the best. Some people have less of a change-oriented mindset, and there’s no magic solution for that as everyone is different. I’ve found it can help to explore the reasons for the change and discuss what needs changing in advance. It’s also good to constantly encourage people to keep pushing for change, because even if we know the results will be positive, it doesn’t always happen overnight.
It’s a lot easier to grow professionally when somebody believes in you, as the steps that take you forwards aren’t always the most comfortable ones. When I first joined Futurice I didn’t have the confidence or foresight to take on tasks and responsibilities that would help me progress in my career, and I ended up choosing similar projects that allowed me to stick to what I already knew. My current supervisor is a real people person who is also solution oriented, and by taking the time to listen to my concerns, showing trust and building my self-esteem, she’s helped me go beyond my comfort zone and challenge myself to achieve even more positive outcomes in my work.
Interested in reading more stories about us and our people? At Futurice, we celebrate diversity and cherish everyone's unique journey. Check out our Welcome Home page and get inspired by more journeys shaping our culture. If you would like to read more stories and get to know our people, our sites and the community better, check out the global version of our FutuStories Booklet.
