Jari, what does good leadership mean to you?
For me, good leadership means going to the front and showing the way when the situation requires it. To inspire your colleagues to reach common goals. To have the ability to combine clarity and demands with empathy, humanity, and warmth. To be accessible and open in your leadership. But most importantly, you are basically a secure person yourself with good and sound self-awareness.
Can you share an important lesson from your time as a leader that has decisively influenced your leadership style?
Since I have worked mostly in FMCG, I have learned that tempo is more important than perfection. More recently, I have worked on a large scale with Digital Transformation and learned a lot about how important it is to "evangelize" enough about major changes and what a radical effect a well-functioning cross-functional organization can have on efficiency and creativity.
In this week's "Under the Skin" podcast, you talk about laziness. The opposite of this is the virtue of diligence. How do you view this virtue?
In the corporate world, I translate diligence into work ethic. High work ethic definitely has an impact on the company's results. High work ethic usually comes from the values you have as a person and a leader's ability to inspire. Therefore, it is important to recruit the right leaders with the right values.
However, no one can perform at their best throughout their working life if they do not also allow themselves to be lazy. I myself am really good at being lazy at home. In my spare time, for better or worse😊