Category: Students
Accelerating DEI agenda for companies, their reporting and KPIs
Both researchers and industry experts concur that workplaces with diverse and inclusive environments make positive impacts on organizations. They point out that having diversity, equity, and inclusion (hence DEI) initiatives at work improves corporate culture, client relations, enables the organization to move into new markets and even positively affects profitability. The three essential components – diversity, equity, and inclusion are interlinked and, when combined with business strategies, can help organizations thrive amid societal changes. (Ely and Thomas 2020.) These topics inspired me during my MBA studies and I chose them as a topic for my Master’s thesis. In my thesis, I collaborated with a company in Finland that has a nascent DEI strategy and was interested to develop a roadmap to amplify the benefits of having DEI in the workplace to the company’s leadership. Why the need to place a focus on DEI? Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), as a social pillar of sustainability policies, is part of the global goals in order to make a positive difference in own industry, as well as generate impact on society. DEI topics, as non-financial indicators, may be difficult to measure, unless they are conceptualized and well aligned to the strategy. This may pose a challenge to smaller companies, new to this area, and therefore the experience and developments in big companies deserve attention and dissemination. Especially the appropriate selection of DEI indicators is the necessary step for any organization in the new era of CSRD. For organizations, key performance indicators (KPIs) are the essential managerial tools to determine whether the company is headed into the right direction. Metrics are vitally important, as evidenced by the proverbs "if you can't measure it, you can't manage it" and "what gets measured gets done" (Marr 2022). The DEI KPIs are important not only for reporting, but for implementing and truly “living” the strategy of the organization. They are indicative tools that will shed light on performance and point out the areas that require special care. A look at EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) For the last two decades, the EU has been a champion in promoting DEI. The latest CSRD regulation (adopted since 5th January 2023) and its newly adopted EU standards (ESRS) include not only sustainability, but also - profoundly - social issues reporting, including DEI (see ESRS S1). As communicated in the EU Commission’s website on Corporate sustainability reporting: “Companies subject to the CSRD will have to report according to European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). The standards were developed by the EFRAG, previously known as the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group, an independent body bringing together various different stakeholders. The standards will be tailored to EU policies, while building on and contributing to international standardisation initiatives.” This latest EU CSRD legislation requires that all large companies disclose the information on the opportunities and risks they perceive as emerging from social and environmental issues, as well as their effects of their actions on the environment and human population (EU Commission, Press Corner, Q&A, 2023). At the European Commission's request, EFRAG (European Financial Reporting Advisory Group) drafted the standards to enforce the proposed CSRD, that focus on appropriate due process, transparency, and the knowledge of pertinent stakeholders. The 12 new standards (ESRS) cover the full range of sustainability issues and include the four significant “must-do” reports under the social facet, namely: ESRS S1: Own workforce ESRS S2: Workers in the value chain ESRS S3: Affected communities, and ESRS S4: Consumers and end-users. The ESRS standards point to a range of recommended metrics for disclosures under the social pillar, namely in “ESRS S1: Own workforce” (such as the characteristics of the undertaking’s employees to collective bargaining and social dialogue). Figure 1 shows the range of KPIs in the newly adopted CSRD and ERSRS recommended for corporate reporting. Figure 1. Metrics recommended by EFRAG for ESRS S1: Own workforce” (EFRAG 2022. Educational session on the first set of draft ESRS). In addition, the newly adopted CSRD and ESRS give room for flexibility to organizations which specific aspects of DEI they can select for reporting on their DEI related topics. Especially the gender diversity policies are seen as the most common focus in workplaces and reporting practices. By having a gender-balanced workforce, companies can demonstrate their commitment to having an inclusive and equitable work environment. This condition gives a unique chance to the front-running companies to excel and stand out among competitors by demonstrating their leadership via adopting not just mandatory, but wider reporting practices, beyond the required minimum. Nordic companies are at the forefront in DEI reporting Companies, especially the larger ones, have undergone digital and other transformations in the past decades. These changes were also closely related to sustainability and diversity issues. The organizations that successfully embraced these efforts as part of their business strategy were immediately spotted by other industry players, to a big extent, due to their excellence in reporting. These companies have managed to set examples of reporting that other organizations - as well as students in DEI topics - can learn from. The widely acknowledge examples of DEI leadership from Nordics include, for example, the following front-running companies. AFRY can be considered as an inspiring example of a leading international engineering, design, and advisory company when it comes to sustainability reporting. AFRY´s Annual and Sustainability Report 2023 (published in March 2024) measures and follows us on sustainability commitments through targets that encompasses its solutions, operations, and people. It also monitors its progress on a wide range of KPIs in DEI area (which is especially obvious when comparing to reports on DEI topics published in 2020 or earlier). Also, CGI make an interesting example among the largest IT companies in Finland that emphasizes in its DE&I governance. DEI is endorsed by the CEO and the executive committee, and that accountability for DE&I is a shared responsibility. DEI topics are embedded in the annual business plans for each Strategic Business Unit (for example, in CGI 2022 ESG report, p.45). The company clearly indicates its DEI targets and KPI also in its 2023 Sustainability report (published in 2024) and sets the targets, for example, to achieve the same level of gender diversity representation in leadership positions as is present across the entire company by 2025. (CGI 2023 ESG report, p.21). These Nordic examples demonstrate that, by understanding and selecting measurable DEI targets and KPIs, the companies can create and follow more professional development plans, identify the multitude of domains where DEI can bring benefits to an organization, and thus point to a measurable impact of DEI on the overall performance. It makes this topic worth studying, also by the students at universities of applied sciences. About the author: Joan Mhyles Cruz is an MBA graduate in Business Informatics. In her student times, Joan was a student ambassador of Metropolia UAS and an advocate of DEI. She made this topic into her Master´s thesis done for one of the front-runners of DEI in Finland. References: AFRY (2022). Annual and Sustainability Report 2022. Retrieved on 30.10.2023. https://afry.com/sites/default/files/2023-04/annual-and-sustainability-report-2022.pdf CGI (2022). Environmental, Social and Governance Report. Retrieved on 20.11.2023. https://www.cgi.com/sites/default/files/2023-03/cgi-2022-esg-report.pdf CGI (2023). Environmental, Social and Governance Report. Retrieved on 20.04.2023. https://www.cgi.com/sites/default/files/2024-05/cgi-2023-esg-report-en.pdf Cruz, Joan Mhyles (2024). A DEI Roadmap for an Organization and Its Sustainability Reporting:Master´s Thesis. Metropolia UAS. https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2024053018232 EFRAG (2022). Educational Session on Draft ESRS S1 Own workforce. Educational videos on the first set of draft ESRS (downloaded). Retrieved 30.11.2023. https://efrag.org/Assets/Download?assetUrl=%2Fsites%2Fwebpublishing%2FSiteAssets%2FFINAL_26.01_Long_S1_SR%2520PPT%25201%2520vers230126%2520%281%29.pdf EFRAG (2022). European Sustainability Reporting Standards (Draft). ESRS S1 Own workforce. EFRAG November 2022. Retrieved on 20.11.2023. https://www.efrag.org/Assets/Download?assetUrl=%2Fsites%2Fwebpublishing%2FSiteAssets%2F13%2520Draft%2520ESRS%2520S1%2520Own%2520workforce%2520November%25202022.pdf Ely, Robin J. and Thomas, David A. (2020). Getting Serious About Diversity: Enough Already with the Business Case. Harvard Business Review, Nov-Dec 2020. https://hbr.org/2020/11/getting-serious-about-diversity-enough-already-with-the-business-case EU Commission. Corporate Sustainability Reporting. EU rules require large companies and listed companies to publish regular reports on the social and environmental risks they face, and on how their activities impact people and the environment. (online). Retrieved on 01.02.2024. https://finance.ec.europa.eu/capital-markets-union-and-financial-markets/company-reporting-and-auditing/company-reporting/corporate-sustainability-reporting_en EU Commission (2023). People first – Diversity and inclusion. Fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace. Retrieved on 5.12.2023. https://commission.europa.eu/about-european-commission/organisational-structure/people-first-modernising-european-commission/people-first-diversity-and-inclusion_en#fostering-a-diverse-and-inclusive-workplace EU Press Corner (2023). Questions and Answers on the Adoption of European Sustainability Reporting Standards. 31.07.2023 (Brussels). (online). Retrieved 20.11.2023. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/qanda_23_4043 EUROPA. EUR-Lex. Directive - 2022/2464. Official Journal of the European Union. Directive (EU) 2022/2464 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 2022 amending Regulation (EU) No 537/2014, Directive 2004/109/EC, Directive 2006/43/EC and Directive 2013/34/EU, as regards corporate sustainability reporting (Text with EEA relevance). 16.12.2022 (online). Retrieved on 10.12.2023. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=uriserv%3AOJ.L_.2022.322.01.0015.01.ENG&toc=OJ%3AL%3A2022%3A322%3ATOC Marr, Bernard (2012). Key Performance Indicators: The 75 measures every manager needs to know. Introduction. KPIs are vital management tools (xxv). Pearson Education Limited.
Ethics in Medical History: How can we understand the history and the choices they made?
This blog reflects on my impressions ranging from disgust to respect in the Medical Museum of Copenhagen when exploring history and cultural well-being on the study trip with CRASH Master´s students of Metropolia. “The Body Collected” exhibition in the Medicinsk Museion presented the body parts collected from the 18th century to the present. The newest exhibits include dnas, cells and biopsies from bio banks, and the older ones were body parts, deformed foetuses, bones, skeletons, organs, tumours, lungs and so on. Visit to museum in a study trip to Copenhagen I took the stairs down to see the Indsamlade Menneske (“The Body Collected”) exhibition. The first element catching my eye was a full-term foetus in her mother’s womb. The birth had been obstructed due to the placenta being attached to other tissues and thus blocking the way out. I could clearly see the baby's face, hair, finger nails, all the possibilities of a new person being born. And why can I explore these samples, which were collected up to 200 years ago? It made me think if it is ethical to present these now? and what kind of ethical questions existed 200 years ago? Asking questions is a relevant part of ethics I can only imagine what has happened to the mother since her body was left in the hospital. Family might have been poor, or the mother was ill, or she might have gotten pregnant by the wrong man, or without being married. No matter what was the reason, their bodies were left to science, because no one paid the hospital fees and did not collect their corpses for burial; and this is how surgeons learnt the anatomy of the human body and learnt to practise their profession. This was also the way, ethical or unethical, how hospitals operated, and this is how medical science developed. I noticed a lot of unpleasant emotions and thoughts rising in my mind during this visit to the museum. Should I watch these at all? Can I be interested in the anatomy of a human, when it is presented via dead human beings and surely without consent? How many of the human rights and the laws are violated by portraying deceased person’s body parts? I do not have answers to these questions. I can only understand the history from the perspective of my time. This all seems so unethical considering modern time values and guidelines and legislation. From disgust to respect I continued my tour of the exhibition. Slowly, my disgust started to melt down. First, my emotion changed to wonder and interest, then to curiosity and finally to huge respect. It really hit me deeply. I realised that we would not have modern medicine without these scientists. They had the courage to explore human bodies in this way and teach the next generations by exploring these samples. It is way too easy to judge them with today’s ethical criteria and standards. Before these samples, the physicians were trained by exploring animal bodies. But we all can see the difference in the accuracy comparing, for example, the humans’ and the pigs’ anatomy. How many of us would be alive without the development and the research of these earlier generations? The driving motive behind these actions and modern science is nevertheless exactly the same, human’s need to learn, explore, develop, and they have the scientific enthusiasm. All these, of course, in addition to the influence of such much more down-to-earth factors as professional competition, need for funding, reputational considerations, personal ambitions, etc. just like nowadays. Later in the exhibition, I noticed that the museum had a separate room for ethical questions. They pondered on the same questions as I did. They asked from the audience if it is ethically bearable to have these collections presented to the public. The visitors’ answers varied from absolute “no” to “yes, of course”. My opinion swung to acceptance during the 30 minutes I spent watching these beautiful and remarkable samples. What did I learn from ethics? My main learning point was very simple and yet quite revolutionary on a deeper personal level. This experience touched on my physical body, my emotions, my thoughts and my biases. I felt my judgement and the resistance were melting away. My conclusion was that it is not fair to interpret history with current values and criteria. Who am I to say 200 years later that those actions were unethical? I felt that seeing the exhibition offered me a mindset change. I understood the proportionality of ethics, and how all actions need to be evaluated related to that time and place when these actions happened with their participants. How will this insight and experience influence me? How can I generalise this insight to a wider level? I came up with the following reflections from my part. What is ethical at this, modern time? What is ethical in our society and community? What are our values? In politics, values change every four years with the new elections, at least partly. Then, how about science? If science is based on our current understanding and knowledge, how should I think of what happened 20 years ago, and how will it be in 200 years to come? I can only come to the conclusion that ethics and our understanding of ethics needs to be re-evaluated and it transforms constantly. And yes, historical structures need to be dismantled, like the colonisation and the patriarchy. We need to be prepared to ask difficult and unpleasant questions, and see those unbearable painful injustices that happened in our society. Similarly, we will be embarrassed and judged by future generations for the actions of today. But without stepping into the unknown areas and taking risks, there is no development, no creativity, and no new insights. It is for the future generations to judge us. So, be fearless! Be the future-maker and take actions based on the values and ethics of our time and our understanding! Like Sanna Marin, the Prime Minister of Finland, encouraged us all to do in her speech at the New York University’s Commencement 17.5.2023 where she was recognized for her own courage. Similarly, we need to honour those who were before us and our time. They did their very best with all the understanding, the experience and the knowledge they had. Let’s consider their work and actions with respect and learn from them. It sends a clear message to our generation: be bold to change and yet honour the history! Why am I writing this? I’m one of the hope-holders for the future. I believe in the good in human beings. I see it in people’s willingness to respect our future by finding the ways to save our nature and planet. They try their best to find a harmonious and sustainable way of living with other living organisms on earth. So, what does this have to do with my experience in the Medical Museumn? I believe, it is exactly the same. Our enthusiasm is to learn, know, understand, develop, cure, find solutions, and ground them to the solid base of science, rather than contribute to prejudice of randomness. We strive to mix the knowledge and experiences with creativity to generate something new. We have the courage for new approaches, the tolerance of not knowing, but exploring constantly, and we have the attitude of respecting others and capacity to empathy; the ability to use our instincts and heart among the scientific knowledge. When wandering in the exhibition, I connected to those persons and their imaginary stories, not only their collected body parts in the exhibition. Those persons have a meaning even hundreds of years after their death. They help me to understand the core of ethics, develop my professional and personal thinking, and ground my own life actions more on respect. In short, I have had inspirational moments with ethical questions in my life, work, studies and research! and I encourage you to do the same. About the writer Hanne Aura is a student in CRASH, Master’s Programme in Creativity and Arts in Social and Health Fields. She has a work history over 30 years, in such roles as nursing in psychiatric care, as a nursing expert and counsellor, as a specialist in social and health care data system development, as a key account manager, and as a therapeutic worker utilising embodiment and other creative approaches. Presently, she is a practitioner and student of the counsellor of Systemic Constellation. References Medicinsk Museion (2023). Medical Museion of København Universitet, Copenhagen. Web-site of the museum: https://www.museion.ku.dk/en/forside/ The Body Collected: Exhibition (2023). Medical Museion of København Universitet, Copenhagen. Web-site of the exhibition: https://www.museion.ku.dk/en/the-body-collected/ Also available as a virtual tour: https://www.museion.ku.dk/en/product/the-body-collected-en/ Speech by Prime Minister Sanna Marin at the New York University commencement on 17 May 2023. Prime Minister´s office (17.5.2023). https://vnk.fi/en/-/speech-by-prime-minister-sanna-marin-at-the-new-york-university-s-commencement-17.5.2023
Designing for Sustainability in Berlin. A master´s study trip to “International Week on Sustainability 2022”
The Berlin School of Economics and Law (1) organizes the annual International Week on Sustainability (IWS) since 2019 with the goal is to integrate sustainability into the higher education curriculum. This year 2022, HWR invited master’s students from Metropolia for the second time to participate in the design and development of sustainable solutions together with companies and students from other countries in a series of workshops that lasted for 4 days, 18-21 November 2022. Our group of 10 master´s students was excited to get an approval from Meropolia´s International office. Additionally, the IWS study trip offered a chance to earn 3ECTS while solving real-world sustainability concerns, so we longed to go and try. The final argument in favor of the trip was its destination, as Berlin represents significant historical legacy, making it a unique opportunity to visit and experience it, difficult to pass by. Fast forward to November, it felt surreal to land at Berlin airport, and we were too excited to feel exhausted. Even the rain, slushy streets, and chilly air could not dim our spirits. In Berlin, we were all determined to expand our knowledge and make new connections. Day 1. Opening Day and Kick-off The program kick-off took place in HWR Startup Incubator Space located in the Siemens industrial park. It started with a briefing with project partners from Startup Incubator Berlin, which featured the startups in the sustainability field. The introduction also included a brief review of Service Design methods and tools covered by Prof. Christian Klang of HWR. There were about 30 participants coming from different academic and business fields who were assigned to five working teams. Each team selected one of the following challenges: 1) incentivizing nature-based solutions to climate change; 2) making travel sustainable and meaningful; 3) incentivizing CO2 reduction during commute; and 4) communicating vegan food delivery effectively. Teams put their hands to work on the challenge they had selected. The startups sat down with the teams to explain their projects and share their motivations and visions. Ideas poured in as each team concentrated on solving the issues and gathering data. Day 1 came to a close with more questions than answers. Day 2 and 3. Ideation and Prototyping Day 2 sessions were held on the HWR campus (2). As we had grown accustomed to the modern design of Metropolia´s campuses, the large corridors, arched hallways, and marble floors in the HWR campus were a little surprising. Teams worked seriously to build and test their prototypes. It became obvious that cooperation is essential to the success of the projects and this is where online tools for team collaboration became critically useful. Ideas and information were together put in an online board to make sure that good ideas and critical pieces of information are not missed out. The challenge was to make business sense out of all the ideas and information that we had, as we quickly realized that bright ideas and passion were necessary but not enough. We kept reminding ourselves that we needed to find solutions that would be viable, feasible, doable, and would make business sense for our partner startup. The second day ended with coffee and laughter, as we watched the first snowfall of the year covering HWR. On Day 3, we went to The Morp Company, a consulting firm that offers sustainability advice. A brief workshop on the use of the business model canvas as a tool to address corporate sustainability concerns was held and received very well as a hands-on new tool. Day 4. Pitch for Impact Day 4 was a pitching day. As teams presented their ideas and answered questions from partner startups and other participants, it was inspiring to see the variety of proposed solutions. There were no earthshaking proposals, but the teams focused on concepts that made real business sense and would advance true sustainability. Although the solution reports still need to be finalized, we felt a sense of accomplishment for having done something worthwhile as the last session ended. Discovering Berlin In all honesty, finding our way to the session locations in the morning was a bit challenging. Because of this, coffee and Google Maps have become our close allies. When in Berlin, we didn’t just snap pictures. We needed to get out there, interact, and connect. Berlin is blissful for shoppers and vibrant for foodies and art lovers. A frequent conversation starter during this trip was “Is this your first time in Berlin?” It was easy to say “Yes” in response to this question. “How do you find Berlin?” and “Which sites have you visited?” were the typical follow-up queries. With each passing day, we would find ourselves giving different answers because Berlin is too diverse to describe in a few words. Despite our time constraints due to working 4 full days on projects, we were nevertheless able to visit some famous sites. We were lucky to witness the start of Berlin's Christmas market and were able to sample local food including currywurst, kebab, stollen cake, and local wine. We had our taste of misadventure too during the first attempt to visit the Brandenburg gate, as we ended up at a factory site due to our over-reliance on Google Maps. On the last day of the trip, it was difficult to bid Berlin goodbye. Armed with new knowledge and filled with the brilliant sparks of Berlin, we boarded our plane to return to Finland. References The Berlin School of Economics and Law (Hochschule für Wirtschaft und Recht, HWR, Berlin) is one of the largest universities of applied sciences in Berlin. It was founded in 2009 as a result of merged of two other big higher education institutions, and it now enjoys more than 150 partners around the globe, including Metropolia UAS, its long-time partner. Read more about HWR from its web-pages: https://www.hwr-berlin.de/en/ Berlin School of Economics and Law, Badensche Str. 52, 10825 Berlin. The picture below shows the marble floors and grand interiors of this campus. About the author Karen Espiritu is a 1st year MBA student in Business Informatics at Metropolia Business School. Karen is a certified project manager and a result-driven professional who is passionate about fostering organizational sustainability on all three fronts: economic, social, and environmental. She enjoys blogging in her spare time and is an active student ambassador of Metropolia. Her video about IWS-2022 in Berlin can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPiUds0fVvo
Creating a Roadmap to Digital Transformation: A strategic plan to overcome the barriers to digital acceleration
Today, the digital opportunities are evolving faster than the pace of transformation in the organizations. To better understand the path our business is on, where to focus the efforts, and how to overcome the disruption and resistance to change, I decided to use this challenge as a topic for my Master´s thesis and created a roadmap for accelerating the digital transformation towards achieving my company’s future state (1). In the course of this research and development project, I realized several important things which I want to share with the readers. What is Digital Transformation? Many companies often end up with misunderstanding the concept of digital transformation. They often do not differentiate between beliefs and realities about digital transformation. Instead, before embarking on a digital transformation journey, companies need to become aware of a wide professional discussion going on in the professional world and be aware of key findings that business practitioners have came up with based on the experience of industry leaders. I summarize these key points below: First, digital transformation is not just about implementing new technology. It is about the adoption of digital technology to improve business processes, value for customers and innovation. (2) Second, digital transformation is not just a buzzword for business but a way to grow. Therefore, it requires clear targets for each source of value creation and ensuring that the entire company shares one digital vision. Third, digital transformation is not optional, it is mandatory for business success. It helps company businesses gain a competitive advantage. (3) Last, digital transformation is often mistaken for digitization or digitalization, but there are some significant differences. Digitization is, according to Wikipedia (4), the process of converting information into digital. Digitalization is, as Gartner (5) defines it, the use of digital technologies to change a business model and provide revenue and new value opportunities. While digital transformation is about transforming the customer experience and changing how to operate and deliver value to customers. What does acceleration of digital transformation mean? For most of digital services companies, the COVID-19 crisis has had an “all-or-nothing effect” on their digital strategy agenda. As reported by Deloitte (6), 77% of CEOs considered that the pandemic had sped up their company’s digital transformation plans. The crisis has significantly accelerated the digitization in terms of way of working and do business. Many businesses have already embraced transformational change. However, this large scale change should be fast. To leverage the opportunities quicker and overcome the possible challenges faster than the competitors, you don’t have to rush to the corner shop to buy the smartest gadgets. Instead, your company will need to start enhancing systematically your organization culture, operations, and capabilities for the workforce of the future. This phenomenon is called acceleration of digital transformation. McKinsey (7) suggests that the “digital first movers and fast followers capture more value within their industries than slower-moving companies”, taking the lead on digital transformation. It is just what Klaus Schwab, Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, said about the impact of speed on the business level: “In the new world, it is not anymore so much about the big fish which eats the small fish, it’s the fast fish which eats the slow fish.” What are the key enablers of digital transformation? The digital transformation is a journey where the desired destination and the path are different for every company. Like on any journey, a careful planning and a well-organized process would help the company to reach the destination safely and avoid back-roads and unnecessary costs. An analysis of the digital maturity of a digital services company, using BCG’s Digital Acceleration Index (8), reviled three relevant domains impacting its journey to successful digital transformation. First, the operations optimization needs a systematic digital approach in decision making to improve the quality of work and ensure customer satisfaction. Second, the digital talent is needed to enhance the changes to digital transformation to succeed points to building capabilities for the workforce of the future. Third, the dynamic organization that lies in creating an agile culture and new ways of working. As the figure below shows, the enablers for accelerating the digital transformation include precisely these three elements: the optimized operations, engaged digital talent & leaders, and dynamic organization. In other words, the chances for a successful digital transformation will be greatly increased in case your organization is able of doing: quick decision making, building the digital capabilities for the workforce of the future, rolling out an agile culture, and establishing new ways of working. What is a digital transformation roadmap and why do we need it? Most importantly, making your organization succeed in the digital transformation needs a plan with clear steps and effective actions to achieve the goals as part of your growth strategy. Mapping out these steps on a timeline with clear milestones builds a digital transformation roadmap. The roadmap that I proposed in my thesis for accelerating the digital transformation of my company that provides digital services defines three major elements to reach the digital transformation acceleration: 1) implementing a systematic approach in decision making, 2) building digital capabilities for the workforce of the future, and 3) creating an agile culture and a new way of working. By doing all of these, the company can better deliver relevant business outcomes to customers with fast payback and also enhance employee performance. On an EndNote Industry leaders often want to understand how far they are on the road of digital transformation. This was also the case with my organization that is concerned with the same question. After completing my investigation, my conclusion is this. Your organization is a digital transformation “performer” if (a) it has started to adopt the new ways of working, (b) has taken the efforts to build a more agile culture, (c) it has developed new digital capabilities, (d) it has a leadership mindset, and (e) it has streamlined the operations across its teams and organization. About the author Violeta Tudose is a seasoned professional with a MSc in Computer Science and many years of industry experience. Currently, Violeta is a Huld Leader at Huld ltd. Recently, Violeta decided to take up yet another challenge and graduated as Master of Business Administration from the Master’s programme in Business Informatics. Welcome to contact Violeta via violeta.tudose@huld.io and her LinkedIn. References: (1) Tudose, V. (2022). Roadmap to Digital Transformation. Master´s Thesis. Metropolia University of Applied Sciences. Available from: https://www.theseus.fi/handle/10024/783038 (2) Shaban, H. (2022). Digital Transformation Process: 5 Factors That Can Empower Your Transformation Strategy: Blog. Apti.io (18 February 2022). Available from: https://www.apty.io/blog/digital-transformation-process (3) Chakravarty, V., Wang, J, and Ahuja, S. (2021). Why digital transformation doesn’t have to be hard. (Online publication). Available from: https://www.ey.com/en_ph/board-matters/why-digital-transformation-doesnt-have-to-be-hard (4) Digitalization. Wikipedia (Definition). Available from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digitization (Assessed 24 November 2022). (5) Digitalization. Gartner Glossary (definition). Available from: https://www.gartner.com/en/information-technology/glossary/digitalization (6) Kane, G.C., Phillips, A. N., Copulsky, J., and Nanda, R. (2020). Digital Transformation through the lens of COVID-2019: A case of acute disruption. Deloitte Insights. Availabe from: https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/topics/digital-transformation/digital-transformation-COVID-19.html (7) Booth, A., De Jong, E., Peters, P. (2018). Accelerating digital transformations: A playbook for utilities. McKinsey. Available from: https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functions/mckinsey%20digital/our%20insights/accelerating%20digital%20transformations%20a%20playbook%20for%20utilities/accelerating-digital-transformation_a-playbook-for-utilities-vf.pdf?shouldIndex=false (8) Boston Consulting Group, BCG (2020). Accelerating digital to build the ´bionic company´: BCG´s Digital Acceleation Index (DAI) to more digital maturity. Digital BCG. Available from: https://cdn.auckland.ac.nz/assets/auckland/business/our-research/docs/CODE/Accelerating%20digital%20to%20build%20the%20'bionic%20company'%20Framework%20and%20case%20study.pdf
My Remote Studies in Procurement MBA
Only a few of us envisage a career path that we eventually end up following or foresee the choices that we will make along the way. But each professional and academic choice shapes us and broadens our perspectives, growing our network and leading to new opportunities. The Master´s degree programme in Procurement at Metropolia University of Applied Sciences was a choice that I was often asked about. Why study in Finland at Metropolia when I live and work in the United Kingdom? In times of turbulence, uncertainty, and change, it proved to be a choice that benefited me personally and professionally as a procurement leader. I was able to learn from senior people in the industry and apply examples of digital procurement technology and sustainability where Finland leads the way. However, studying whilst working full time can be a daunting experience, especially remotely or as a foreign student. So, I want to share my tips for getting the most out of your master´s studies and review my Finnish student experience. Start by choosing what you want to study I found the Procurement MBA programme through StudyPortals.com. I’ve studied in Sweden and England previously, so I was not intimidated by the prospect of studying in Finland. The degree was in English and fully remote, and covered those aspects of procurement that I was particularly interested in, including digital procurement technology, strategy, innovation management and circular economy. So, my advice is to choose a subject that you find interesting and valuable to your career and use the studies to develop yourself further in that field. Commit to your studies and organise yourself ahead by sharing your commitment with your line manager, with your family and friends. They are likely to be very supportive of your drive towards improving your knowledge and building upon your skills, and they may help by giving you the time and space needed for you to complete studies. Stay in control Studying for a master’s degree means that you are responsible for managing your time, allocating resource, and sticking to deadlines. My Metropolia study coordinator helped me with planning, so that I was able to build my own academic calendar and use the spectrum of online tools available such as OMA, Moodle, Tuudo, and other apps to ensure I was always up to date. My advice would be to start with listing all the deadlines for your assignments and other obligations, subscribing to learning resources that are available, being proactive in contacting lecturers and fellow students, and asking questions. If you miss something, think before putting the blame to others. Apply yourself We often hear the phrase ‘apply yourself’, but what does it mean for students? It means committing to the task and managing it like you would manage a project at work. In other words, prepare in advance, gather books, articles, and notes, and organize yourself into group roles with your fellow students. Pick a leader and make sure they do a good job at allocating resources and splitting tasks along a critical path. Maintain a healthy work-study-life balance My most important advice is to maintain a healthy body and a healthy mind. Don’t stretch yourself too thin so that you are not your best self. Ensure that you get plenty of sleep, eat well and take a day off so you can rest from your studies and work. Then you will get the desired results. Also, take part in extracurricular activities such as trips and evenings out that allow you to build your long term professional and social networks. Ask for support You will find that studying abroad or remotely can be difficult. You will have a whole new culture to adapt to, a different setting and a new academic system that you may be unfamiliar with. However, help is always available to those that ask for it. Reach out to Metropolia´s Student services and your Study coordinator for support. If you find yourself falling behind during your studies, be proactive in voicing your concerns to your lecturers. For me, studying procurement at the master’s level at Metropolia was an energising experience. I was able to relate to my previous work experiences and apply my corporate procurement knowledge in the academic setting, and thus got the most out of my studies. About the author Mindaugas Jočbalis is an MBA graduate from the Master´s degree programme in procurement at Metropolia UAS and a Category Leader for Packaging Procurement at Associated British Foods plc., looking after Europe, Middle East and Africa since 2018. In his career, Mindaugas has often worked in procurement, but never studied it. He started his career as a retail store manager, and later managed social corporate projects at Marks and Spencer. Following this, he then moved into a graduate procurement role at AkzoNobel in the decorative paints industry in 2013. As part of his professional development, Mindaugas has completed a single year master’s degree remotely at Malmo University, Sweden, studying Communication for Development in 2016. Having completed this graduate programme, he was offered a role at GlaxoSmithKline and looked after consumer healthcare packaging for two and a half years.
Corporate Ride-Sharing: Yet another promising option in sharing economy
Technology creates possibilities for organisations, and one of the well-known existing problems of commuting can be solved by integrating and promoting a ridesharing application within corporations. A ridesharing service refers to any method of transportation in which commuters use a single vehicle, either a private or company vehicle, to reach a similar destination. So far, ridesharing is known through initiatives such as Uber, Lyft, Taxify, Gett, Juno, and smaller providers around the world. It has its advantages and limitations, as with any initiative in the sharing economy. In this blog, a corporate ride-share service is described that was proposed as a student´s thesis project for the Aviapolis area, Vantaa, an area popular with companies and corporations. History of Ride Sharing The earliest reports of ridesharing arise in early 20th century America. The consent found between 1914 -1918, known as the Jitney craze (1), allowed individuals to think of an innovative and effective way to use their vehicles. With mass-produced cars flooding the market and the early stages of a recession coming into play, enterprising car owners in 1914 began offering rides in their vehicles for a “jitney” – five-cent streetcar fare. The idea grew from Los Angeles across America in less than 12 months, with an estimated 1,400 jitneys operating in San Francisco alone. Ride Sharing As economic growth increased, mobility became more important to support human activities and needs. One of the most prevalent needs is transportation to and from work. Long commutes cost employees and their companies considerable time, wasted resources, productivity, and additional expenses (emotional, physical, financial). New, fast-growing business regions located away from city centers are especially affected by this. In Helsinki, one such example is the Aviapolis business district (2), which is currently transforming into a business hub. More than 37,000 people are employed by more than 1,000 companies in the area. The area, however, faces its challenges with complicated commuter traffic and a congested parking lot, and main roads are highly congested during business hours. Corporate Ride Sharing The goal of this Master's thesis was to present an application for corporate ridesharing as a possible solution to this problem. In this thesis, we describe a solution to a common need: traveling between two locations. Some areas lack frequent public transportation, which means that the time interval between transport is very high or varies — resulting in long waiting hours, long traveling time, and higher costs. Corporate Ridesharing is one of the most valuable solutions when there are no other means of transportation to a specific location. The new service was outlined based on extensive analysis of the customer needs of the employees at several companies in the Aviapolis area. It was followed by the development of the actual application based on the PiggyBaggy platform. PiggyBaggy is another excellent example of how innovations help the world run better (3). The thesis combined web technology into a ridesharing solution to help provide immediate economic, environmental, and social benefits to the companies and their employees in the Aviapolis region. The application developed in the Master´s thesis was launched successfully(4), providing an easy platform to the employees of participating companies. There were also two pilots done in 2020-2021. Turku Pilot We have commenced a pilot where the objective is to create an incentive for drivers to offer rides in their car by giving in return access to parking places in prime locations in the city center . Additionally, we are testing in a particular area whether a combination of community services in addition to ride-sharing would increase participation. Tampere Pilot In this case, it was a public hospital, and the parking place management was again taken care of by a local operator. The participant numbers were encouraging, and the employer (hospital) issuing the parking place incentive is keen on considering scaling up the trial in the Fall. Results: Users in PSHP-group: 56 Rides executed: 232 Rides per month: 123 Because the trials were limited in duration, we did not reach the targets for shared-ride numbers as planned. However, I strongly believe that we planted the seed for Ridesharing and its benefits among many employees, which I believe will grow over time. The service is being improved by integrating AI-based trip and transport mode detection to automatically create routes for offering or requesting rides, as well as integrating with MaaS services (make transport capacity visible, e.g., in Matkahuolto Reitit ja Liput). About the Author Usman Khanzada earned his Master's degree in Business Informatics from Metropolia UAS. Professionally working as a Client Integration Manager for In4mo Solera. His career trajectory is based on Client management, process improvement, and project management in the information technology and services industry. He is passionate about finding ways to reduce CO2 in the corporate sector by taking the right steps and addressing the issues essential to the future health and well-being of employees, the community, and the planet. References Ride Share Research. (2009, 24 January). Massachusetts Institute of technology, Rideshare History & Statistics. MIT “Real-Time” Rideshare Research. [Online] Available at: http://ridesharechoices.scripts.mit.edu/home/histstats/ [Accessed June 2021] City Vantaa (2022). Aviapolis Major Region. Available at: https://www.vantaa.fi/en/regions-and-districts/aviapolis-major-region [Accessed November 2022] Piggy Baggy. (2021). KCity Market. K-citymarket Lahti Paavola hypermarket. [Online] Available at: https://pages.piggybaggy.com/en/partners/ [Accessed June 2021]. Usman, K. (2021). Corporate Ridesharing Application for Aviapolis Business Region. Metropolia University of Applied Sciences: Master´s Thesis [Online] Available at: https://www.theseus.fi/handle/10024/501460
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