From India to Helsinki: Nijitha’s relocation story

Meet Nijitha, who recently relocated to Finland, and our newest tech team member. This interview-based article is a story about Nijitha’s relocation experience starting from India to now building a new lifestyle in Helsinki, and her thoughts about it. 

Where did you move from? 

My story starts in India. The pandemic and my 14 years working as a software engineer there had me interested in a new challenge. And no, the plan wasn’t to move to the other side of the world but Mobal made me take that leap. Now thinking back, starting from a clean sheet in a new country was exactly what I needed. 

Why Mobal?  

I was contacted by a recruitment consultancy firm about Mobal. After talking directly and indirectly through consultants with different companies I saw a few positive signals from Mobal compared to other firms offering me an opportunity. 

I faced two challenges in the recruitment process with the other tech companies in the Nordics - the native language and not being able to provide the relocation process. These things were not an issue for Mobal, which made me stumble upon actually thinking about moving to Finland. 

‍

Tell us about your recruitment experience 

My recruitment process was fast. Before even realizing it, I was on a plane from Kerala to Helsinki. 

As mentioned earlier a consulting company contacted me about a software engineer position at Mobal. After telling them I was interested, Jonatan (Mobal’s tech lead) contacted me and we had my first interview. Luckily I struck all the right notes in our first interview, which got me a technical interview. A few days later, I was already packing my stuff and planning my move to Finland. 

Relocation is a stressful and scary process with a lot of uncertainty. However, how easy or smooth the process becomes is mostly up to the employer. This is why I’m thankful for the people team at Mobal. All the other hassle was fixed before even entering the country. This is why I was able to focus on settling in and dealing with being apart from my family.

‍

What did you value in the relocation process? 

‍

I want to say the immense support from the employees at Mobal. From small details to larger processes were taken care of before even landing in Finland. For instance, the People team had arranged an apartment for my first few weeks. Not to forget, that Anna, Mobal’s office manager, was waiting for me at the accommodation. From there on she was a rock in the process. She had arranged a temporary apartment next to the office which was filled with Finnish delicacies, food, and all the things I needed to start working. All these things made me feel as comfortable as possible with the move. 

Anna even taught me how to use public transportation, which is just the icing on the cake. I can gladly say that the relocation exceeded my expectations thanks to these small details. 

‍

So how is Finland compared to India?

In my experience, living in Finland compared to India is like night and day. Now after a few months, I’ve gotten the opportunity to reflect on my stay here. These are the main differences that I’ve experienced:

‍

• Equality; equality, in general, is so much better in Finland compared to India. In Finnish society, everyone is equal and must be treated fairly, which I’ve noticed firsthand. 
• Safety; I can honestly say that I’ve never been scared in Finland. Compared to India, I’m able to walk alone in the evening without being afraid. However, safety from physical threats is just one part. The other part is revolving around the government in Finland. Things work in a different way here compared to India, which is naturally the case as India has approximately 1.4 billion inhabitants. But here in Finland, the government supports you through different organizations, the public health care system, etc. You could call it a social, physical, and mental safety net.
• Honesty and transparency; I’ve noticed a huge difference in honesty and transparency since I came to Finland. It can sound weird, but it’s not a given thing in India. Here you put a lot more value on individualism than in many other cultures, which also allows you to be honest. This is why you are easily understood in Finland. 
• A balance between work and personal life; In Finland, and especially at Mobal, I’ve noticed that these two are separated. In India the relationship is different. Work is everything in India. This is for sure a thing I’ve come to value. When you invest in your private life away from work, you automatically improve your work performance. 
• Culture and support; I can easily say that my welcoming at Mobal was extraordinary. Which you tend to value even more when you are relocated from another country. 

‍

To conclude, my relocation advice is this; do your research about the country and the company you get hired to. Culture and support are so important when you move to a completely new country. You have enough adjustments outside work already. At least the work part should be comfortable. 

I can proudly say that I never have Monday blues because I enjoy the work I do with the people I do it with. 

Interested in hearing more about Mobal's job opportunities? Check them out here. We empathize with the relocation process and thus have invested in creating a supportive relocation setup. 

‍