30 May Meet the new NordicHub stars
The project NordicHub was launched this spring! It is a Nordic competence hub that builds a network based cooperation in the region. To fuel the evolution and development of NordicHub, we have invited six High School students to join us. They are part of the “Responsible Summer Job” campaign and will join the NordicHub team for 3 weeks. These young visionaries will contemplate and discuss how to improve Nordic collaboration and its corresponding network. Beda Arponen (left) Emma Brandt (middle) and Ben Strömbäck (right) recently became members of the NordicHub project, and will act as coordinators and leaders of the high school students.
“I am a multilingual and determined Bachelor of Science in Economics and Business Administration. My major is International Business and I will continue my Master’s degree studies at the University of Vaasa after the summer. Through my studies, I have gained knowledge about international sales and marketing, international business operation modes, export marketing, emerging markets and international management. I want to continuously develop myself, and my goal is to work within interesting, international, and challenging work tasks that support my professional development. That is why i believe that Viexpo is a perfect internship place for me. I am also able to use and apply my studies in practice. I believe that my internship at Viexpo will open doors for me in the future as well, and learn a lot more about the internationalization opportunities and export of SMEs”, Beda says.
“I am a third year BBA student with major in International Business, originally from Kokkola. I recently returned from Spain, where I spent about four months as an exchange student. During my stay in Spain, I completed the rest of my studies, which consisted of marketing courses. I will graduate in December 2018, and I´ll begin to work with my thesis during this autumn. As topic for the final thesis, I´m interested to write about the international businesses of SME-companies. I am fully bilingual in Finnish and Swedish and besides that, I´m also speaking excellent English and good Spanish. Customer service, language skills and culture awareness are my strengths, they are also the reason why I think I´m going to fit in well in the international environment of Viexpo. Due to my studies and the exchange period, I’ve become more interested about companies’ internationalization process, that´s why I feel that the internship at Viexpo is perfect for me. I am eager to learn new things and I want to learn more about the different phases of the internationalization process and how to use them in practice, in order to help companies to enter new markets. I want to challenge and develop myself so that I will have good conditions in the working life after my graduation. I do believe that I can offer companies new perspectives and point of views because of my experience”, Emma describes.
I am a summer intern and will be focusing mainly on the launch of Viexpo’s NordicHub initiative. I grew up in Finland and have studied and lived abroad for the last seven years. As a result of my international background, I have been exposed to a wide range of cultures and societies. I have lived in the US, Brussels and the Netherlands for periods ranging from two to four years. My past experiences have made me realise the importance of internationalization in this globalizing world, where national borders are no longer a barrier. My internship will allow me to learn more about this global phenomenon as well as allowing me to contribute to it. My background is additionally complimented by my studies at University College Roosevelt in the Netherlands. There I am majoring in law and politics and have become familiar with research, writing, public speaking and the ability to think outside the box. I also have experience in team building and facilitating communication, this in combination with my ability to see the bigger picture, my international background and my ability to think critically will allow me to have a positive influence as a member of the Viexpo team”, says Ben.
More information about NordicHub:
Beda Arponen, NordicHub Project Assistant, beda.arponen@viexpo.fi, +358 50 330 8810
Emma Brandt, NordicHub Trainee, emma.brandt@viexpo.fi, +358 50 5166 431
Ben Strömbäck, NordicHub Trainee, ben.stromback@viexpo.fi, +358 50 5164 319
