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Changing jobs is a natural part of career development in the IT industry. Many are ready to seize the opportunity to experience and learn new things, even if they’re perfectly happy in their current role. However, rarely do we hear stories from those who have chosen to return to work for a former employer. In this article, four professionals who have returned to Nitor share their experiences.
Riku Kalander, Juuso Soikkeli, Anders Gebala, and Mikko Forsström have two things in common. Firstly, they value meaningfulness above all else in their work. Second, each of them moved on from Nitor in search of new challenges and ultimately returned.
Each interviewee draws meaning from working with talented colleagues, growing as professionals and working on projects that yield genuine impact. Although each views their career path from a unique perspective, shared circumstances that have led to new professional directions include favourable job market conditions and a desire to broaden one’s professional portfolio and experience.
Varied departure stories during the pandemic
It is no coincidence that Kalander, Soikkeli, Gebala, and Forsström each moved on to new challenges between 2021 and 2022.
Nitoreans are an exceptionally close-knit community. Dialogue and interaction between colleagues transcends team boundaries, and an open atmosphere facilitates the sharing of expertise. When the COVID-19 pandemic locked people into their homes in 2020, the first casualty in many organisations was the sense of community.
“A certain feeling of closeness definitely disappeared when the pandemic hit. And as everyday life changed, it gradually started to feel like now might be the time to try something new,” says Kalander, full-stack developer at Nitor.
“The sense of community at Nitor had always been really important to me. Shared activities and events were suddenly off the table, so when a headhunter called with a new opportunity, I decided to take the chance,” adds front-end developer Soikkeli.
The pandemic wasn’t the only factor prompting professionals to consider a change of scenery around these times. The IT job market was booming in the early 2020s, and professionals were spoiled with opportunities. Full-stack developer Gebala says his departure was ultimately a matter of coincidence, as he uncharacteristically responded to a recruitment consultant’s inquiry, and it led to a change of scene.
Software architect Forsström was looking to diversify his work. The veteran coder and technology evangelist eventually found his way to an in-house developer role at a familiar client.
New insight leads to enhanced professional perspective
Facing new career paths, the four found themselves on very different learning journeys. Kalander moved to another consultancy and worked as the sole consultant in a client’s team. The experience taught him a great deal about professional independence, while also offering reminders on how valuable it is to have colleagues to lean on for support.
“I recall sometimes pondering on whether I really knew enough about this or that. That kind of self-doubt evaporates quickly when work becomes more independent and self-reliant. I enjoyed the project immensely, but I would also sometimes miss my fellow Nitoreans and the opportunity to find confidence in my work through peer support,” he explains.
Soikkeli experienced something of a culture shock when he joined another company:
“I guess I had simply taken it for granted that sharing knowledge and interaction with colleagues would run as smoothly elsewhere as it does at Nitor. The truth was something very different. I did try at some point to introduce practices similar to the Kamu system at my new workplace, but it never really took off.”
Gebala found himself comparing his Nitor days to his new work life so often that his wife eventually intervened:
“Whenever we talked about working life, I would rave about how smoothly practical matters were handled at Nitor and wonder why practices like the Iron Bank weren’t standard everywhere. At some point, my wife noted that Nitor had vacancies open again and nudged me to go ahead and reapply.”
For Forsström, the years after Nitor yielded varied experiences via different employers and roles. The key lesson that crystallised for him was that if the values of the workplace don’t align with one’s own, it’s good to start considering moving on.
“Every workplace, team, and environment is different. What matters is that the values underpinning how things are done don’t conflict with your own. If they do, the atmosphere becomes toxic very quickly and friction accumulates.”
Returners’ insight on Nitor’s unique strengths
For each of our interviewees, the journey back was unique, but all four praise how easy and effortless returning to Nitor ultimately was. When asked what kind of new insight has shaped their second stint at Nitor, the answers are as varied as you’d expect.
Kalander laughs and says returning to Nitor was like coming back from a long summer holiday. He goes on to advise those considering a change of job or role:
“Pay attention to the community side of the company. With any luck, you’ll end up at a place like Nitor, where human interaction feels effortless, and barriers are low. Even if the company is full of the world’s best technical talent, poor communication makes everything harder, and the workplace atmosphere suffers as a result.”
Soikkeli mentions his latest Nitor Core project – an AI chatbot for improved accessibility – and emphasises how important it is that Nitor takes care of its people’s competence and gives professionals room to grow:
“Nitor has a training budget that allows you to attend conferences and courses or earn new certifications. That signals a genuine commitment to developing the workforce. It’s one thing to advertise that your company invests in its people, but putting real money and resources behind it is something else entirely.”
Gebala says he especially values the sustainable work culture at Nitor:
“You can of course find other places like Nitor that deliver strong results. The difference is whether those results are achieved by pulling together or by grinding people down. At Nitor, things are done in a sustainable way. To put it bluntly, people aren’t burnt out here. That is absolutely not a given.”
Forsström feels he has returned to Nitor at the best stage of his career. For the veteran professional, the perspective on growth is not only about what personal gains, but what can be passed on to others.
“Nitor is full of sharp, talented people, and at this stage of my career I find it especially meaningful that I can give more of myself and help younger colleagues and teammates. It also reframes the value of my own expertise in a new way, which feels very rewarding,” he concludes.
Looking for a workplace where community is more than a buzzword and the company invests in developing your skills? See our open positions!
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