ESPORT CONNECTS PEOPLE ACROSS BUSINESS UNITS
Juuso Kosonen, Software Developer at Cargotec’s Digital Solutions Hub (DiSH), is known as a facilitator of Cargotec's esport gaming team. The team brings together people with similar interests who would probably not otherwise have met in a large company.
What is your story in gaming and how did esport get started at Cargotec?
I belong to the age group that experienced the personal computer breakthrough in their youth. At that age, like others my age, I was interested in anything new and innovative, so the Amiga was replaced by computer games. In later years, my interest shifted to team gaming because of its social nature, as chatting and networking were an essential part of gaming.
I've been involved in competitive sports all my life, so I'm always fired up by competitiveness. However, my skills are not at the level where I can compete at the proper league level of electronic sports. So when I found a league for companies, it opened the door for me to play competitive games. The next step was to find a corporate team to challenge other companies.
I started building a gaming team as soon as I joined DiSH in 2019, as I had also built a team at my previous job. I had to continue the tradition here at Cargotec so I wouldn't miss out on the games. Word of the player search spread quickly and I soon found a team for next season.
Today, around twenty Cargotec employees participate in the inter-company league of esports. The most common games are PUBG, CS and Rocket League, for which official games are organised every week or two. The games are streamed online, where people can follow Cargotec's team matches.
What is the best thing about esport at Cargotec?
We take the games seriously, but we play for fun. The best thing about the corporate league is working as a team and succeeding together.
Esport is a chance to get to know people from other business units that you probably wouldn't have met in-house otherwise. Because of the social nature of esports, you will naturally get to know players from other companies in the same way. Networking doesn't just happen online, our gaming team also meet each other outside of work from time to time.
How did you find your way to Cargotec?
Games have not been the only thing that fascinated me in technology. I also built my professional skills around it, studying computer science and software development at the University of Tampere. Here at Cargotec, I work as a Software Developer in the Digital Solutions Hub in Tampere, where I help business units with digitalisation, for example by creating new applications to make work more efficient.
A friend from Kalmar recommended an open position in the new Cargotec digital unit in Tampere, so I was ready to change the direction of my ten-year career. I was driven by the fact that Cargotec is a large and well-known brand, but DiSH itself is a new and small unit without the burden of history. The same motivating factors, such as agile working methods, have kept my interest from day one.
Do you want to work with like-minded people? Digital Solutions Hub in Tampere is hiring!
Are you interested in other activities? At Cargotec, employees gather for activities ranging from horse riding to diving and from floorball to hiking.