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  • How to build multicultural business premises? How Unity and Vincit support their community at the office

How to build multicultural business premises? How Unity and Vincit support their community at the office

Modern and inviting offices are increasingly the focus as companies compete for international top talent. Well-designed premises that support multiculturalism contribute to building a successful corporate culture and efficient working. We investigated what kind of solutions Unity and Vincit use at their offices to support the integration of international experts, community spirit and the building of a successful corporate culture.

According to Eveliina Korpela, a researcher at the University of Helsinki who studies multicultural work communities, Finland is attracting more and more international workers. Employers are also approaching the integration of these people more comprehensively than before.

“Companies operating in Finland play a significant role in the integration of immigrant workers, as state-supported language and integration programmes are mainly aimed at unemployed jobseekers,” Korpela says.

Social networks develop only when people meet and interact.

In Korpela’s view, employees no longer want to be locked inside the English-only corporate bubble. “Modern work communities are considering how to enable the comprehensive integration of newcomers, as well as the use of parallel languages on the premises and in company culture.”

In addition to optimal working conditions inside the office, Korpela emphasises the importance of participation and communality. Korpela says that knowledge workers moving to a new country are often dedicated experts who spend a lot of time at the office. This places the office in a central role in the integration of employees and their families.

Premises contribute best to the social framework when they serve as an extension of the home and enable interactions not only between the employees but also between their families.

A good location makes life easier

Communal spaces also provide an opportunity for interactions outside of working hours. An office located in the heart of the city or in a shopping centre can also serve as a base for a shopping trip, and a well-equipped game or movie room also attracts families to stop by the office.

“Social networks develop only when people meet and interact. The better the public transport connections and local services at the office, the more effectively it brings people together. In many cases, an easily accessible and central location is also important for international companies due to brand visibility and visits by foreign customers,” Korpela points out.

Good local services can mean, among other things, multicultural lunches for foreign employees, ancillary services that make everyday life easier, leisure activities that promote one’s own culture, and accommodation close to the office.

Unity’s office has the best views in all of Helsinki

The world’s leading gaming technology company, Unity Technologies, develops tools to create interactive 2D and 3D gaming experiences. The company’s best-known product is the game engine, which is used in more than a third of all mobile games worldwide.

The Finnish subsidiary, Unity Technologies Finland Oy, has 270 employees from a total of 40 nationalities. Justina Rautio, the Workplace Experience Territory Lead at Unity, says that Unity offices are located as close as possible to central locations in the downtown areas of large cities around the globe.

In Finland, Unity is located at the focal point of the capital city Helsinki – the Citycenter office building with wide-ranging services and Finland’s best transport connections, directly opposite the central railway station.

Unity is a gaming technology company with 270 employees in Finland who represent over 40 nationalities. The company, which invests heavily in making life pleasant for its employees and helping them integrate, chose Citycenter for its premises, in the heart of Helsinki. The location has the best transport connections and local services in Finland.

“We have been in the same premises since 2015, and we also wanted to stay here as our operations expanded. The central location and views were very important in making our decision. We have the best views in the whole of Helsinki, and it’s easy for international guests to get here,” Rautio says.

Rautio also has high praise for the shopping centre’s services, which make the daily life of the staff easier – shopping, pharmacy and gym visits are convenient during the working day, and for lunch, there is a wide variety of restaurants to choose from, all under the same roof.

Vincit’s new office is located in the centre of Tampere, close to excellent transport connections

Vincit is one of Finland’s leading providers of digital services. In November 2024, Vincit moved offices as it combined its two Tampere offices under one roof next to the Ratina shopping centre. Approximately 200 employees of the Vincit community in Tampere work in the new office’s 2,100 square metres.

In its search for new premises, Vincit emphasised, among other things, the central location and the availability of services. The new office space in Ratina perfectly meets this need, as the central location provides staff with easy access to the office and the versatile services of the shopping centre that further enhance the office’s attractiveness.

“Although hybrid work is our most popular form of work, offices that support everyday needs and togetherness are by far the most important arenas for us to build an exceptional employee experience,” says Krista Forsström, Workplace Development Lead at Vincit.

Unity provides its employees with facilities and activities that support integration

Unity gained an extra 1,000 square metres of floor space during 2022-2023 as the Citycentre building’s premises were renovated. The company’s facilities, totalling 4,000 square metres in an area on two floors, were transformed into a complex that serves the multicultural personnel even better than previously.

The sixth-floor part of the Unity offices has been opened out almost completely as a spacious lounge area, offering the opportunity to work, exchange news and hold larger events.

“We have a large living room-style lounge area that is used not only for working, hanging out and playing, but also for breakfast, events and weekly meetings. A well-equipped coffee bar also encourages interaction and chatting”, says Rautio.

With its cosy decor, the office also has quiet working spaces, as well as collaboration and training rooms. These are used for planning and workshops and larger meetings. There is also a wellness area on the upper floor, where body care classes are held. The sleep room, still under construction, will be used for rest, meditation and prayer.

“We have a dedicated team responsible for spaces, events and employee orientation. They brainstorm different events and activities that bring people together. We also organise events for our employees’ children and families, in addition to which many come here on their shopping trips or evenings. The fact that the place is rarely empty indicates that the staff have genuinely embraced the office”, says Rautio, who leads the team.

At Unity, the induction and integration of employees is the responsibility of a dedicated team, that brainstorms different activities and events for the staff. Some of the events are also aimed at the families of employees.

Vincit’s new premises are planned together with employees

The spaces and functionality of Vincit’s new office are planned together with its employees in Tampere. Various surveys, workshops and working groups have made it possible for everyone willing to participate in the design of the premises.

“Supporting a sense of community is a key element of our working environment strategy. We take into account both the customer and employee flow perspectives in the space design from the time we arrive at the office until the end of the day. Interactive arenas are built in central office locations to allow a lively mood and encounters even during quieter business hours,” Forsström says.

The purpose of the office is to serve as an everyday meeting place for all workers that binds them to the community

Once finished, the office will have meeting, workshop and conference spaces that support collaboration, all equipped with high-quality hybrid conference technology to make sure remote participants have a good experience as well. The creation of an inclusive atmosphere is supported by interiors, soundscapes and atmosphere that create inviting meeting spaces.

“Tampere is also a central location for Vincit as a meeting place for teams across city borders, and the accessibility of the office by different means of transport is of primary importance to us,” Forsström says.

“Ratina’s new office has facilities for, among other things, office exercise and morning yoga, table curling and ping pong, cooking and shared breakfast moments, as well as puzzles and PlayStation gaming. In addition, our people can be seen regularly at the pizza oven near the main entrance,” Forsström says.

Aiming for a meeting place for every (work)day

Vincit has placed an open and multicultural community culture at the centre of its integration and commitment work for international employees. The purpose of the office is to serve as an everyday meeting place for all workers that binds them to the community and creates encounters with employees who are less familiar with each other.

“We also hope to get many of our remote employees to return to the office more regularly, because we believe that it is extremely important not only for teamwork, but also for the well-being of individuals in the long run,” Forsström says.

The new office will also be available to Vincit employees outside working hours.

“At the office, we organise a variety of leisure activities, including some by FunSquad, which consists of members of the Tampere community, and Vincit’s own hobby clubs. We also organise various meetups and other networking events at our offices. In addition, we allow children’s birthday parties and other family gatherings at our offices outside of our business hours,” says Forsström.

During the planning and construction phase of the office, the cooperation between Vincit and Sponda has been close and productive.

“The office’s design team has gathered professionals from different design fields, with whom it has been very agile and pleasant to work. Sponda is making significant investments in our office through the modifications negotiated at the lease agreement phase,” says Forsström.

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