It’s the opportunities: opportunities to grow, learn, and experience new things while working on something meaningful. That is how Kimmo Korhonen would define career success.
During his 11 years at Medixine, Kimmo has seen and done it all. Coming in as a Developer, Kimmo is now working as Team Lead for our Medixine Suite Development team. Between those two roles, he has also worn the hat of a Software Architect and a Senior Developer. As a freshly anointed Team Lead, Kimmo is excited to step into a more “people business” role while still working hands-on on software development. We wanted to chat with Kimmo to learn more about what excites him to go to work every day.
Kimmo, how do you feel about your career at Medixine?
During these years, I have had different bosses in different scenarios. Many positive things have happened here, and, in general, I love the feeling that things continuously evolve for the better. Naturally, there have been times when I’ve felt like my career stood still, but then I have always been given a new challenge, and things have moved forward again.
You have had several positions at Medixine. Is there something that all these roles have in common?
In general, even though jobs may change, one thing has stayed relevant no matter what my title is: a part of my responsibilities is to ideate, constantly trying to see what we could do better, and then selling my idea internally and ensuring it gets implemented.
I’m very excited about my new Team Lead role and eager to see how things will go and what it involves exactly. I was nervous about how my colleagues would take my new role but was relieved to notice they were all happy and supportive.
That sounds like you want to take ownership – would you say that’s common at Medixine?
Yes, because taking ownership is facilitated here. Firstly, people need to feel empowered to handle things, and there needs to be a culture where it’s easy to approach people, even the CEO. Also, if people know why things are done and how everything works, making good decisions and taking ownership becomes much easier.
At Medixine, we have specific industry know-how. Medixine’s founder, Tapio, is a doctor, so from the very beginning, we have always put a lot of effort into mastering industry practices. For example, suppose a developer is building a functionality related to blood pressure measuring. It is good that they understand how the procedure is done. And what this may mean for his work. This kind of culture helps with the sharing of tacit knowledge as well as forming and strengthening our collective consciousness.
Are there any good stories you would like to share?
Yes, of course. There are spectacular wins and some losses. I love the cases where we test new things that work out and implement them into our offering. Those cases are very concrete. Another excellent example is our cooperation with the leading U.S. remote care provider Lincare. This is a considerable feat both in terms of business achievement and technology.
Most of the failures have come about when we have been too hungry and too agile – if you can believe that. There was a time before we concentrated on creating a product when we were doing bespoke projects based on our technologies. Basically “anything you want” in the healthcare domain. That approach leads to many interesting projects but sometimes too far from our core. An example of this would be a UI we were making for an animal clinic. We were trying to modify a solution we had built for human patients and convert it to animal patients. And you know, animals are different from humans, so the project sometimes felt ridiculous, and the customer agreed. Still, these kinds of projects teach a lot and make the team proficient at testing.
As every developer might know, this job is generally about small moments of success. You have tricky challenges, grind your way through, and then succeed. Those are the moments you get your kicks from.
Medixine is a growth company. That often means role changes, growing pains, and a shifting environment due to constant learning. What kind of person would be happy here?
You need to have the will and ability to work independently. We don’t micromanage, nor do we constantly hold your hand. We operate a lot in teams and pairs. You must take care of your stuff, prioritize your work, and respect your colleagues’ time. I think it’s essential that the “doers” can focus on their jobs.
Also, we are a tight group with a good mix of different people, which makes each day feel like a field trip.
To summarize, why should someone get interested in working at Medixine?
Firstly, work is such a big part of your life, so the community at work makes all the difference. You want to find people you like. Secondly, the health tech industry. I used to work in media before Medixine, and I must say that it’s more motivating to help people live better instead of optimizing advertising revenue. We make technology that aids people. That motivates a tech geek like me.
Do you want to learn more about what it’s like to work at Medixine? Get to know the team’s stories from our blog.
Or perhaps you are convinced already and want to apply to join us? Check out our open positions and reach out to us!