Hullu Poro’s recipe for success: When an employee is doing well, the quality of their work is reflected in the company results
/ Article
The winter season in northern Finland is currently at its busiest, with dozens of planes carrying thousands of foreign tourists daily to Lapland destinations, particularly Rovaniemi and Kittilä.
As many as 90 per cent of the customers at legendary Hullu Poro in Levi during the Christmas season were international tourists. Once the ski holidays get underway, however, the situation will even out as loads of domestic tourists will descend on Lapland. Overall, international tourists account for half of Hullu Poro’s annual clientele.
“International guests come to Lapland to experience the snow, the polar nights and northern lights. They also want to try out various activities and they use a lot of the local programme services. Finns are primarily interested in cross-country and slalom skiing”, says Annukka Paksuniemi, Executive Vice President and Director of HR of Hullu Poro.
Hullu Poro Ltd is known, in particular, for its Hullu Poro Areena, which attracts thousands of visitors each year to listen to numerous top performers. In addition to its great concert venue, the company also runs hotels, other accommodation facilities, meeting rooms as well as cafés and restaurants. For example, the company’s restaurants can accommodate a total of 6,500 customers.
For the Christmas season in 2024, the company opened its most recent addition, the Visitor Centre and Santa Claus’ home in Elves’ Village, where tourists can experience genuine Lappish atmosphere. Elves’ Village has, among other things, a café-restaurant, accommodation, Santa Claus’ home, the Elf School, the Gingerbread House, the Wise Elf’s hut, fairytale forest and other programme service activities.
“We invested approximately 4 million euro in the Visitor Centre and Santa Claus’ home in Elves’ Village, and the last few years since the Covid-19 pandemic have seen steady growth. We now have so many facilities that we have to invest constantly in order to ensure that all the buildings remain in good condition. Our next challenge is to think how we might encourage tourists to travel here outside of the winter season”, says Paksuniemi.
Attracting summer tourists to northern Finland has been a hot topic within Lapland’s tourism sector for years. According to Paksuniemi, one approach is to improve accessibility and marketing efficiency.
Competent, motivated and committed personnel play a key role in the success of any company operating within the service sector.
“When an employee is happy and healthy, it is reflected in the quality of the service and, thereby, generates growth and profit for the company. We are working hard to increase the value of and appreciation for our industry. Co-operation with educational institutions is also important to us”, Paksuniemi specifies.
Hullu Poro has an average of about 100 permanent year-round employees and, during the winter season, there are over 200 employees representing a variety of cultural backgrounds. Assuring consideration for and equality between different cultures and individuals as part of personnel management and supervisory work is essential in order to ensure the functionality of the team.
Paksuniemi also has a range of practical means at her disposal to ensure the well-being and coping of the employees. Over the past 15 years, she has studied human resource management, occupational and organisational psychology and pedagogical skills.
“Our approach involves supporting the training and studies of our employees, utilising an early support model to rapidly address inappropriate behaviour, investing in communication and encouraging open dialogue, actively collaborating with our occupational health provider and addressing sickness absences. The goal of everything we do is to create a happy and satisfying workplace. It was really rewarding in May of last year to receive recognition for having a workplace that supports mental health (Hyvän mielen työpaikka)”, the HR Director states.
Hullu Poro and Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Company are working closely together to achieve and maintain this goal. The annual job satisfaction survey for employees serves as the basis for supervisor training, which is organised twice a year. The theme of the next training course is work ability management.
In addition, the monthly Mental energy pulse surveys provide valuable information on employee coping and motivation. At the same time, they generate the foundation for new training opportunities.
“I get help myself and the supervisors get support from Elo’s experts. We have a nice and functional collaboration, where we call to see how things are going and hug when we meet”, says Paksuniemi.
As many as 90 per cent of the customers at legendary Hullu Poro in Levi during the Christmas season were international tourists. Once the ski holidays get underway, however, the situation will even out as loads of domestic tourists will descend on Lapland. Overall, international tourists account for half of Hullu Poro’s annual clientele.
“International guests come to Lapland to experience the snow, the polar nights and northern lights. They also want to try out various activities and they use a lot of the local programme services. Finns are primarily interested in cross-country and slalom skiing”, says Annukka Paksuniemi, Executive Vice President and Director of HR of Hullu Poro.
Hullu Poro Ltd is known, in particular, for its Hullu Poro Areena, which attracts thousands of visitors each year to listen to numerous top performers. In addition to its great concert venue, the company also runs hotels, other accommodation facilities, meeting rooms as well as cafés and restaurants. For example, the company’s restaurants can accommodate a total of 6,500 customers.
For the Christmas season in 2024, the company opened its most recent addition, the Visitor Centre and Santa Claus’ home in Elves’ Village, where tourists can experience genuine Lappish atmosphere. Elves’ Village has, among other things, a café-restaurant, accommodation, Santa Claus’ home, the Elf School, the Gingerbread House, the Wise Elf’s hut, fairytale forest and other programme service activities.
“We invested approximately 4 million euro in the Visitor Centre and Santa Claus’ home in Elves’ Village, and the last few years since the Covid-19 pandemic have seen steady growth. We now have so many facilities that we have to invest constantly in order to ensure that all the buildings remain in good condition. Our next challenge is to think how we might encourage tourists to travel here outside of the winter season”, says Paksuniemi.
Attracting summer tourists to northern Finland has been a hot topic within Lapland’s tourism sector for years. According to Paksuniemi, one approach is to improve accessibility and marketing efficiency.
Reliable personnel is essential
Year-round tourism would also help solve another challenge, namely employee recruitment and commitment. Hullu Poro has successfully managed to attract seasonal workers, but finding employees who are willing to move permanently to the area is more challenging.Competent, motivated and committed personnel play a key role in the success of any company operating within the service sector.
“When an employee is happy and healthy, it is reflected in the quality of the service and, thereby, generates growth and profit for the company. We are working hard to increase the value of and appreciation for our industry. Co-operation with educational institutions is also important to us”, Paksuniemi specifies.
Hullu Poro has an average of about 100 permanent year-round employees and, during the winter season, there are over 200 employees representing a variety of cultural backgrounds. Assuring consideration for and equality between different cultures and individuals as part of personnel management and supervisory work is essential in order to ensure the functionality of the team.
Paksuniemi also has a range of practical means at her disposal to ensure the well-being and coping of the employees. Over the past 15 years, she has studied human resource management, occupational and organisational psychology and pedagogical skills.
“Our approach involves supporting the training and studies of our employees, utilising an early support model to rapidly address inappropriate behaviour, investing in communication and encouraging open dialogue, actively collaborating with our occupational health provider and addressing sickness absences. The goal of everything we do is to create a happy and satisfying workplace. It was really rewarding in May of last year to receive recognition for having a workplace that supports mental health (Hyvän mielen työpaikka)”, the HR Director states.
Hullu Poro and Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Company are working closely together to achieve and maintain this goal. The annual job satisfaction survey for employees serves as the basis for supervisor training, which is organised twice a year. The theme of the next training course is work ability management.
In addition, the monthly Mental energy pulse surveys provide valuable information on employee coping and motivation. At the same time, they generate the foundation for new training opportunities.
“I get help myself and the supervisors get support from Elo’s experts. We have a nice and functional collaboration, where we call to see how things are going and hug when we meet”, says Paksuniemi.