Aino Kanerva

Hi! I’m Aino, a third-year student of chemistry and materials science. I am currently representing PT during my exchange studies in Hong Kong, and I will return to Finland at the turn of the year.

Finnish student life is world-class. I can proudly say this, as I have had the opportunity to meet students from all over the world this autumn. The foundations of our student life are built on community activities: we have student organisations whose goal is to promote student well-being. This is something to be proud of.

I am particularly proud of the strong can-do spirit within Prosessiteekkarit. Our guild has numerous people who, in one way or another, dedicate their time and energy to ensuring that we get to experience the best aspects of student life. Without them, our community would not function. I have personally experienced the best aspects of belonging to a community: I have become happier, more confident and stronger by being part of a community where I have been able to be myself.

I now want to do my part to ensure that we can offer this experience to future students as well. This is why I am applying for the position of Corporate Relations Officer.

During the current year, I have held several board and officer positions, including leading the social media team and serving as Wappu Master. In both roles, I have taken responsibility and led a team. I also have experience as a corporate relations assistant, which has given me a realistic understanding of how the corporate relations committee operates.

The financial situation for student organisations is currently far from ideal. Many companies are making cuts, which puts PT, as a relatively new guild, in a difficult position. Company management does not necessarily feel the same sense of obligation to support our guild. However, I believe my background gives me a good foundation to continue the excellent work of previous Corporate Relations Officers and ensure that our members’ skills and expertise do not go unnoticed by potential employers.

Aino

How would you develop the guild’s corporate relations next year?

In recent years, artificial intelligence has revolutionized the world. Working can now be significantly more efficient if you know how to use AI as a tool. Therefore, my goal would be to develop and come up with ways to effectively use AI to help identify and maintain corporate relations. I also believe that it would be extremely important for our students to stay at the forefront of AI usage. I think it would be great to organize an event in collaboration with a company where students could learn skills that companies consider essential for the future working life.

In addition to securing new sponsorships, my goal as Corporate Relations Officer would be to find out how PT’s current partners feel about our existing collaboration. Could we perhaps offer companies something new through our collaboration, and how well has securing sponsorships fit into our partners’ schedules, for example, in terms of budgeting? This would help us keep our partners even more satisfied and also make it possible for companies to avoid having to decline collaboration due to budgeting issues.

Ideally, our guild would serve as a student’s first inspiration and gateway to working life. In addition to excursions and the LinkedIn network, it would be great to offer students more accessible corporate events, such as sauna evenings or guild evenings, where students could genuinely talk about career paths with representatives from different companies.

Describe your interaction skills. How would you approach a company with which the guild has not yet had any collaboration?

My strengths in interaction have always been my listening skills and my ability to analyze situations. I can understand the other person’s mindset based on subtle gestures and tone of voice, and as an empathetic person, I am able to put myself in their position. This is helpful, as arguments are considerably more convincing when you understand the other person’s situation.

When approaching a new company, it is important to consider that their understanding of Prosessiteekkarit and even guild activities may be very limited. It is therefore important to present the facts clearly: our guild is part of the student organizations of Finland’s best university and admits a considerable number of students even by Aalto University’s standards. I would explain to the company why organizing community activities is important for students’ well-being and also emphasize the benefits that companies gain. Sponsoring guild activities creates an impression among students from the very beginning of their studies, and these impressions inevitably influence not only their first jobs but also their careers far into the future.

What kind of tasks and how much work would you delegate to your Corporate Relations Apprentices and Excursion Master?

The main responsibility for corporate relations lies with the Corporate Relations Officer. However, I consider delegating tasks essential for improving efficiency and reducing the workload. The amount of work that can be delegated depends greatly on the enthusiasm of the Excursion Master and the Corporate Relations Apprentices. Ideally, I believe that dividing the workload between different people would be best for the well-being of the Corporate Relations Officer and the Excursion Master, as well as for the learning of the Corporate Relations Apprentices.

I consider the position of the Excursion Master equal to that of the Corporate Relations Officer, even though the tasks differ. As the name suggests, the Excursion Master has the main responsibility for organizing excursions, and this would remain the case while I serve as the Corporate Relations Officer. I would hope to have an efficient colleague by my side with whom I could work together to think about the future of our guild’s corporate relations and support each other through both good and bad times.

In the case of the Corporate Relations Apprentices, I think the most important thing is that they get to decide their own workload personally. Their main task would largely be the same as that of the Corporate Relations Officer, securing overall sponsorships. The apprentices are learning about corporate relations, and my goal would be for them to establish at least one solid corporate contact and secure an agreement. However, if an apprentice has enough enthusiasm, I would also be willing to delegate greater responsibilities to them.