Stora Enso trainee Mikko Koskinen has been familiar with the paper industry since his summer internships. “I have worked at the Anjalankoski and Myllykoski paper mills, among others, and after graduation at Kemira’s R&D Center.”
Stora Enso launched a global trainee program in September, hiring 22 young adults. The goal is to develop them into professionals who can later become managers in Stora Enso's operations.
The one and a half year program offers work and training to young professionals who have just graduated or are recently graduated. The trainees, selected from over 2 applicants, come from Finland, Sweden, China, Brazil and Central Europe. They include both paper industry engineers and promising business professionals. Participants share an interest in an international industry and a willingness to move for work.
The trainee program includes, among others, a 2010-year-old Finnish paper engineer who graduated from Aalto University School of Technology in 29. Mikko KoskinenHe swapped his job as a development engineer at Sappi Fine Paper Europe's Kirkniemi paper mill for a trainee position at Stora Enso's Imatra mill. Koskinen was tipped off about the program through the social networking service LinkedIn.
Koskinen has been working as a production engineer at Imatra since August. He is responsible for the operation of two board machines and for start-up measures, optimizations and test runs following the investments made. Part of his time is spent studying the board manufacturing process.
Learn from around the world
Those hired for the trainee programme spend just under a third of their working time on training-related studies and the rest on permanent employment. In addition to Stora Enso, the studies are organised by the Swiss International Institute for Management Development (IMD). The training includes a three-month assignment abroad and a two-week volunteering period in Beihai, China in February 2014.
At IMD's campus in Lausanne, trainees focus on leadership, strategy and sustainable development, and look at Stora Enso from an outside perspective, including that of an investor.
"I find the trainee program to be a diverse and interesting whole in every way. The trainees have certainly applied to the program for various reasons, but I believe that internationality is a unifying factor for many," says Koskinen.
Koskinen hopes that as the program progresses, he will gain a better understanding of Stora Enso's various functions and the career opportunities offered by the international organization. He believes that it is impossible to assume that you can have a comprehensive career in just one place. The changes in environment will help you learn and develop as a manager, a paper industry professional and possibly a leader in the future, Koskinen believes.
Text: Ari Rytsy
Photo: Mikko Nikkinen
