YIT’s winning streak continues: once again ranked the most ideal construction employer by students

Technology students once again ranked YIT the most ideal construction industry employer in Universum’s Student Survey. YIT has dominated the ranking for nearly the entire 2010s. This year, YIT will again offer traineeships or summer jobs, involving challenging tasks and inspired teams, to 700 youths. The popularity of these positions is evident by, for example, the more than 30% increase in the number of applicants.

Systematic investment in co-operation with educational institutions and the successful completion of summer traineeships has played a key role at YIT for years. In the construction industry studies, experience gathered from traineeships is extremely valuable as the theory learned in studies can be applied in practice. When returning to the studies in the autumn, the theory is easier to understand when paired with personal, practical experience. Add the attitude of working together and interesting work tasks and it is obvious that the summer traineeships are a worthwhile experience to both the youths and the working community.

“I’m sure it shows that we greatly invest in our trainees. There’s been considerable interest this year, increasing the number of applicants by more than 30%. It is particularly pleasing to see that we have trainees from even more diverse backgrounds than before and that we are able to offer them great positions after their traineeships. Of last year’s trainees, about 100 students were taken in as permanent employees,” says Pii Raulo, Senior Vice President, Human Resources.

More than 50 summer trainees learning at Tripla site 

Our largest construction project, the ocean liner-sized Mall of Tripla in Pasila, Helsinki has the capacity for a large number of students. Last summer’s number of trainees can even be doubled. When a work site has more than 50 summer trainees appear at once, the induction and safety must be planned to a tee and the responsibilities of the students must be sorted out and included in the plans in advance.

“For us, trainees are a long-term investment. In a project lasting several years, the student is allowed to prove their ability and enthusiasm while learning a great deal about the implementation of a major construction project. A well-managed traineeship opens up learning paths at YIT from regular work to challenging supervisory tasks and teams supporting the production, such as safety at work, procurement, quality and leasing,” says Mikko Moilanen, Development Manager in charge of the Tripla trainees.

Markus Knuutila is a third-year construction student at Metropolia University of Applied Sciences and one of Tripla’s new supervisor trainees. He has already worked at Tripla for a year. His career at YIT started last year with a traineeship, continuing over the winter alongside his studies.

“The best part about my work has been the team spirit in our group of supervisors. Even as a part-time worker, I feel like I’m part of the team and I get help whenever I need it. It’s easy to stay interested in this work because no day is alike. My biggest expectation for this summer is to have a comprehensive understanding and control over the work,” says Knuutila.

Last year, Markus was also able to join the YIT Studies programme, organised in co-operation with Metropolia. It is a five-credit study module designed to deepen the students’ skills in the construction industry with materials from actual YIT sites and with experiences by means of contact teaching, work site visits and independent studying.

In addition to the fact that the Tripla site is filled with professionals and know-how from every branch of construction for the benefit of each trainee, the large number of trainees is also an excellent opportunity for the students to network and learn from each others’ experiences.

“The trainees from previous summers help the supervisors induct and guide the newcomers. They still remember the types of support and information needed to launch the work safely and efficiently. There is no better vantage point and launching pad into the future than Tripla,” Mikko Moilanen sums up.

Experience is everything and feedback ensures improvement

Feedback is a crucial method of improving operations. That is why YIT also hires a trainee each summer to collect feedback from our summer trainees by interviewing them face to face, over the phone and with an electronic questionnaire. The feedback provides us with detailed information on how to improve the experiences of next year’s trainees and to ensure that the students will continue to consider YIT the ideal employer. Our trainee feedback from last year revealed that 99% of the respondents would like to work for YIT in the future, and 98% felt that their work tasks corresponded to their skills.

Further information:

Pii Raulo, Senior Vice President, Human Resources, YIT, tel. +358 (0)40 5723568, pii.raulo@yit.fi

Mikko Moilanen, Development Manager, YIT Tripla, tel. +358 (0)40 830 7369, mikko.moilanen@yit.fi

Hanna Malmivaara, Vice President, Communications, YIT Corporation, tel. +358 40 561 6568, hanna.malmivaara@yit.fi

YIT creates a better living environment by developing and constructing housing, business premises, infrastructure and entire areas. Our vision is to bring more life into sustainable cities. We want to focus on caring for customers, visionary urban development, passionate execution and inspiring leadership. Our growth engine is urban development involving partners. Our operating area covers Finland, Russia, the Baltic countries, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland. In 2016, our revenue amounted to nearly EUR 1.8 billion, and we employ about 5,300 people. Our share is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki. www.yitgroup.com