Our Alum Marjo Miettinen: Educational science provides a lifelong foundation for leadership

Electricity is in high demand – but that was not always the case

Marjo Miettinen is Chair of the Board and one of the nine owners of Ensto Ltd, the family-run business founded by her father, Ensio Miettinen, in 1958. Operating in twelve countries, the technology company offers sustainable solutions for electricity distribution and employs around 850 people.

“My father was a product developer at heart and held some 130 patents. Inventing something new has always been part of our company’s backbone,” Marjo says.

Over the decades, the company’s activities have covered a broad range of areas — some reorganised from time to time, others sold off — yet the business has always remained fundamentally linked to electricity.

“Electricity plays a key role in so many things today, and it is also recognised as an important tool in efforts to curb climate change. Just a few decades ago, the situation was very different: electricity faced intense public scrutiny, and heavy taxation on it was actively promoted. The world changes in many ways — sometimes very quickly,” Marjo notes.

Electricity plays a key role in so many things today, and it is also recognised as an important tool in efforts to curb climate change. Just a few decades ago, the situation was very different: electricity faced intense public scrutiny, and heavy taxation on it was actively promoted."

Marjo Miettinen

Swift decision-making requires trust

Marjo’s own world changed significantly in 1989, when she decided to leave her work as a primary school teacher and join the family business. She had spent ten years teaching in both Sweden and Finland. The decision was not an easy one: Marjo, who has always been passionate about working with people, enjoyed teaching and felt she was good at it.

She believes that her studies in educational science and her experience as a primary school teacher have given her a strong, lifelong foundation for leadership.

“Working as a primary school teacher was my leadership training. The only difference between leading children and leading adults is that the feedback you get from children is so honest and direct,” she says.

Working as a primary school teacher was my leadership training. The only difference between leading children and leading adults is that the feedback you get from children is so honest and direct,”

Marjo Miettinen

Her father’s wise advice has also proved valuable in her approach to leadership: surround yourself with people who have the skills you lack. Marjo found a well‑functioning balance with her engineer brother — he excelled in understanding technology and numbers, while she was naturally skilled with people.

Marjo regards trust capital as the foundation of leadership and all forms of collaboration, and it is also one of Ensto’s core values. The concept was developed by Marjo’s father together with Tampere University’s Emeritus Professor Risto Harisalo, and it refers to the level of trust that exists between people.

“Trust capital is particularly valuable in today’s world, where rapid changes in the operating environment demand quick decisions. Trust capital helps us navigate complex and uncertain situations, as it strengthens our sense of community, enables swift decision‑making and motivates everyone to do their part well.”

Innovations often arise at intersections

Marjo sees preparing the next generation as her most important task — both at Ensto and as a mother. She feels she has largely succeeded: the younger generation is well equipped for society, and most of the company’s ownership has already passed to the third generation.

“In family businesses, the aim is always to hand the company over to the next generation in better shape than when you received it. I am pleased that the company is doing well, growing, and developing steadily. The market for the products exists, so success depends entirely on us and our ability to open the right doors,” Marjo says.

Over the course of her career, Marjo has had the opportunity to reflect on the importance of education from many perspectives: as an educational scientist, a primary school teacher and a lifelong learner. In her 2020 doctoral thesis, she examined the competence development of Finnish shop stewards.

Marjo also served on the board of TTY Foundation, which operated as Tampere University of Technology, from 2009 to 2013. During that period, a foundation university was first being established in Tampere.

“I felt drawn to Tampere University from an early stage. It has grown from the region’s own university into an international higher education community. I’m delighted that it has developed into such a diverse institution, because innovations often emerge at the intersections of different disciplines.”

Marjo Miettinen is the Alumni of the Year 2026

Read more stories from our alumni

Text: Tiina Leivo

Photo: Karu Films Oy