"Language barrier is just an excuse" – How can SMEs harness the potential of international students?
Anna Häggblom is the founder of Aveo, a four-person company focused on interior design and online retail, located in the small village of Komossa in Vöyri. Häggblom knows that new ideas don't just walk down the village road; you must actively seek out for them.
– You have to consider what the options are: do you hire a consultant? Can you afford it? Or do you collaborate with a partner that has international insight and know-how? This is a cost-effective way, Häggblom says.
Last summer, Häggblom hired an international Master’s student from the University of Vaasa for an internship at Aveo. With her subsidiary company AveoAI, Häggblom is also taking part in the university's new Flipped Mentorship programme, aimed at international students and SMEs.
Insights to an online store's internationalisation project
Although Aveo's main customer base is in Finland, the company has customers from around the world, from Qatar to the United States. Therefore, there is a need for international expertise in the company.
– A good way to prepare for conquering the world is to have an international work community, Häggblom says.
In 2024, Aveo hired an intern for an internationalisation project. Häggblom received support from the University of Vaasa's career services, advising on which field of study would be the best match for their needs. The internship announcement was published on the university's JobTeaser service.
A company can receive financial support for offering an internship for a university student, which lowered the threshold for Aveo. The University of Vaasa pays increased internship support for companies hiring international students as interns.
Aveo selected Shidhanshu Khandelwal, a master's student in international business, as the intern. Khandelwal comes originally from India.
Khandelwal got involved in many activities at Aveo. He led a project to open an English-language online store in several countries. Additionally, he performed marketing tasks, conducted LinkedIn training, and developed the Aveo Student Hub focused on student housing.
– The polite and cheerful intern with a good sense of humour brought positive energy to our community, Häggblom says.
For Häggblom, the biggest benefit of the internship was that the company gained new perspectives. The language skills of the entire work community also improved.
– We spoke English all summer. It was good to practice the language daily.
What should a company consider when thinking about hiring an international student?
According to Häggblom, the company should have an onboarding strategy, whether the new employee is an international student or anyone else. When the onboarding is thought out, it is easy to integrate the international expert into the community. Introducing a new person always takes time, but according to Häggblom, there should be no significant difference whether the person is from Finland or abroad.
Häggblom believes that language barrier should not be an obstacle to hiring international talent today, as translation and interpretation tools are readily available.
– The language barrier is just an excuse – its breakers were invented long ago. But how do we get language tools into use in Ostrobothnian companies? Häggblom wonders.
However, there may be differences related to work culture that the employer should take into account.
– In Finland, the work culture is generally non-hierarchical. This is not necessarily always the case in other cultures. It's worth putting extra effort into ensuring everyone gets to know each other. It's also worth addressing issues directly and explaining how we operate.
According to Häggblom, introducing an intern can help the company clarify its own identity, values, and tone of voice.
– You can understand who we are and how we speak. In the age of AI, companies that know who they are, how they speak, what values they have, and what results they want to achieve will succeed.
Häggblom believes that for the student, an internship in a smaller company can be a good way to get to know locals. A small work group may become more familiar during the internship than in a larger company, where daily interactions with many different people can lead to more superficial relationships.
New type of mentorship programme brings new perspectives for company development
Häggblom eagerly joined the new Flipped Mentorship programme, which the University of Vaasa is piloting with Pohjanmaan yrityskummit (Ostrobothnia’s company mentors) association this spring. In this programme, a group of international students brainstorm solutions to a topic that the company wants to develop. There is also an experienced company mentor who supports the entrepreneur and facilitates mentorship sessions. The goal is to familiarise international students with local companies and their operations, but also to provide companies with new ideas and perspectives on a desired concrete theme. Students get to apply the skills gained from their studies and previous work experience around the world in the context of Finnish working life.
Häggblom joined the Flipped Mentorship programme with Aveo's subsidiary AveoAI, which offers AI consulting and training.
– AveoAI has grown on its own from scratch. We have customers even without marketing and company structure.
In the Flipped Mentorship programme, students get to create new ideas to develop the company.
– We are quite early in the process, but it looks very promising! There are very competent students involved, and the programme is well thought out in advance. The right questions have been asked, and I believe we will find answers and ideas on how to bring the project to completion.