Laura, could you tell us a little about the contents of your work?
My title is Human Resource Manager – Italy, and I am responsible for the HR area of the Italian Sales Company. Beyond the formal definitions, all these tasks have a common idea: to create a motivated and successful team for a successful company.

What was your motivation for applying?
I joined the Outokumpu Group at the end of 2003. I was extremely interested to try myself in a multinational context. What the company showed me during the initial interviews was very attractive: an industrial company in a strategic market – stainless steel – with an ambitious vision.

Could you tell us something about your responsibilities?
The main responsibilities can be summarized as payroll (costs and budget), recruitment, training, benefits, compensation, and HR projects. In Italy, I report directly to the Italian General Manager, Marco Assandri, while functionally I report to VP-HR Commercial Excellence Program and Sales Companies, Mr Quarmby. There is a very good atmosphere and sense of cooperation with them and also with all members of the management team. I have the autonomy of decision needed to manage the procedures of the group in the Italian context. I consider it an important professional success every time people I have recruited become an important part of our company – regardless of their role. To me, their personal success is also my success. So when I talk about “my success” I do not really think out of my personal point of view – I want to share the good results of the HR area with people that work with me every day and follow me in new projects.

What are your formal and personal qualifications for this job?
After my degree in Economics at the University of Genoa, I worked for a year as fiscal advisor in a famous office in Genoa. In 1999 I started my career in HR for a multinational company in the tourist market and worked there as an HR Manager Assistant for four years. After this, I entered the Outokumpu world – at first as HR Manager Assistant and from July 2004 as HR manager. Other than my education and experience, I think it is necessary to realize that a job within HR puts us in touch with people every day – both externally and internally. Therefore, I believe it is essential to have a capacity to understand people. If you do not, you will never be able to introduce new models to people or motivate them.

Are there any special possibilities and advantages with your job?
Every day is a new day, in the respect that new issues arise each day that have to be solved – and often as soon as possible.

And, finally, what would you tell a possible future colleague about Outokumpu and this job?
HR, to me, is a function that allows anyone that works in it to improve him- or herself each day because every day is a chance to learn from contacts with other people.