The Employment Fund was created when the former Education Fund and Unemployment Insurance Fund merged at the beginning of 2019. However, the preparations for the merger date back several years.
The values, the vision, the mission and the strategy of the new Fund were agreed in consultation with staff in 2018. It was clear that we could not meet our new ambitious targets without thorough restructuring and a fresh approach. We had to be bold and leave the safety of the familiar to step outside of our comfort zone and explore a new direction.
A round of negotiations under the Act on Cooperation within Undertakings at the start of the year reshaped our organisation and introduced a number of new teams and responsibilities. Although the process created several new roles, it also amalgamated others and made some roles – and therefore some employees – redundant.
Restructuring requires leaps that are long enough to leave old habits behind. Our employees and the entire organisation have already taken several major steps forward, and we are learning all the time.
The journey ahead requires all of us to use our existing know-how and experience to create something new. Our staff need to be both resilient and adaptable to survive the transition. Employees’ faith in their own survival grows with every successful reform.
Finding motivation from within is important. It helps us to see the journey as something that we chose ourselves and wish to pursue, and keeps us interested and driven to reach the goal.
The building blocks needed to implement our new strategy have been identified, and the organisation’s potential to achieve the desired end result was reviewed in the spring. We can continue on our journey confidently in the knowledge that the Employment Fund’s staff are competent and eager to learn and grow.
The organisation will be in a flux for a long time, and there is still a lot to do. Our priorities this autumn are training our experts and honing our culture. A healthy workplace culture is important for making work run smoothly and our strategic goals easier to reach.
Everyone benefits from the support of a warm and safe community in times of change. Our upcoming performance reviews will set the course for the future and ensure that our staff have the necessary skills and are clear about their goals.
We are only at the beginning of our journey, but we are moving forward – together. The know-how and expertise that we share and the companionship that we have in each other are what will keep us going.
