At Aalto University, Ponsse CSR reporting excelled in the Accounting Capstone course

Ponsse CSR reporting – The Capstone course in Accounting is a master’s level course that all accounting majors must take. The course is often taken by students in their fifth and final year of study. This management consulting course allows students to put their analytical abilities and accounting knowledge, which they have gained throughout their studies, to good use. Small groups handle real-world business difficulties offered by the course’s participating enterprises and organisations. The challenges are taken on by groups of 3–5 students, and 8–10 challenges are commissioned for each semester with the goal of giving everyone the chance to work on a topic that interests them. 
 
Professor Jari Huikku and Assistant Professor Jukka Sihvonen teach the Capstone course in the autumn, while Professor Seppo Ikäheimo and Professor of Practice Mirel Leino-Haltia teach it in the spring. Jari Huikku notes that the course organizers are flexible in terms of the subjects they commission and that they work with the participating companies to design and agree on the cases. ‘The student projects provide hands-on experience with real-world business difficulties. Professors guide students’ work along the way because the anticipated end result is actual managerial contribution. The commissioning organization is not charged for the casework.’ 
 
Ponsse’s students were honored for competition comparisons and in-depth interviews. 
The project created for Ponsse was deemed the finest in the autumn 2021 semester by Jari Huikku and Jukka Sihvonen. “Developing key performance indicators and reporting of social responsibility” was the title of the project. Jenna Punakivi, Otso Kotilainen, Ilkka Haapaniemi, and Matias Kauhanen made up the student group. 
 
Ponsse CFO Petri Härkönen, who is in charge of social responsibility efforts, praises the students for their professional approach to the subject. ‘The job was well-structured and competent, and the end result had a vast breadth.’ I’d venture to say that the outcome and cooperation are far above our expectations. ‘I am delighted to encourage both businesses and students to take advantage of similar collaborative opportunities,’ says Härkönen. 
 
Katja Paananen, Ponsse’s Sustainability Manager, agrees with her colleague and says that Ponsse was very pleased with the students’ work, which showed a lot of effort and intelligence. 
 
Assessing social responsibility KPI measures necessitates more examination by firm management and functions. Nonetheless, the initiative provided useful insights and generated debate about our social responsibility goals and present operational openness.’ 
 
The students’ competitor comparisons and KPI comparisons between Ponsse, its competitors, and other operators of comparable scale were also valued contributions to Ponsse.

Ponsse CSR reporting

‘When constructing our KPI measures, we will incorporate the outcomes of the student project with our own assessments.’ 
 
People at Ponsse commended the students for the interviews, noting that the group had successfully increased the number of interviewees from the original proposal. Because the students were able to interview more employees than anticipated, they were able to collect a wider pool of valuable perspectives on the responsible task. 
 
‘I received internal reports that the pupils performed admirably throughout the interviews.’ The interviews were described as ‘acceptable, dependable, and open-minded,’ according to the report. Katja Paananen elucidates the situation. 
 
As is the case with Capstone courses, students present their final output to representatives from the commissioning company after finishing the project work. 
 
‘Despite having significant background material, the students were able to focus on the essentials throughout the project presentation, which was structured, seamless, and suitable. Ponsse’s management agreed to take an active role in the analysis of the results, and their assessment of the project was unanimously positive. The pupils’ diverse range of minor disciplines must have supplied a wide range of approaches to tackling the problem,’ says the professor. Paananen keeps going. 
 
The pupils learned about the concepts of accountability and project management.

Matias Kauhanen is ecstatic to have the opportunity to work on such a timely and fascinating topic, one whose importance in the labor market will certainly expand.

‘Interviewing Ponsse’s experts in such depth was both thrilling and challenging. The positive feedback from the interviews encouraged me that I have the capacity and abilities to handle obstacles if I dare to take them on.’

Aalto University

‘The study we did for the assignment broadened our awareness of accountability themes and practical difficulties that firms and stakeholders deal with on a daily basis.’ As a result, the project’s scope’s breadth was its main strength. We have the opportunity to look at accountability from a variety of angles, not just one. 
 
Jenna Punakivi intends to work in a profession that involves social responsibility after graduation. ‘This course gave us a sneak peak into the world of business consulting, and we got a lot of practice implementing such a major project.’ We had a great team spirit, and everyone was able to contribute their unique skills to the project.’ 
 
On behalf of the entire team, Ilkka Haapaniemi commends the Capstone Accounting course. ‘The training provided a fantastic opportunity to put what I had learned in previous courses to use. Every student in the class must have thought it was fantastic to work with successful domestic and international companies on their own terms. It provided an excellent opportunity to hone our project management skills.’ 

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