Greetings from Alumni: Janne Joukas, Head of Legal, Hitachi Energy Finland

In the first part of this autumn’s Greetings from Alumni series, we interviewed Janne Joukas, who now works as a head of legal at Hitachi Energy Finland. During his time at Hannes between 2010 and 2016, Janne worked in our IP & Tech Team in the positions of an associate and a senior associate.

Hi Janne, how are you?

Thanks for asking, all is good here! A lot of things going on both in and out of work but all in all doing very well.

You work as a head of legal at Hitachi Energy Finland. Can you tell us a little bit about your work and daily tasks?

I am responsible for Hitachi Energy’s legal matters in Finland and the Baltics. I support our businesses e.g. in contract reviews and negotiations, conflict management, integrity and compliance matters, and general business law. Daily tasks vary very much depending on what is happening in the business or what is otherwise topical in the company. Usually, days are a combination of internal or external meetings and negotiations, reviewing and drafting of contracts or other legal documents, some admin work, and responding to emails and ad hoc questions through Teams and other applications. I am also involved in the local leadership team and board work, and I am collaborating regularly with legal colleagues in our global legal & integrity function across legal teams especially in the Nordics and Europe.

You have been the head of legal in two different companies. What would you say are the most important skills for someone in that position?

Solid legal skills with a business mindset are essential in any in-house legal position. Also, ability to communicate clearly and to collaborate with various stakeholders across all levels of an organization is needed as well as solution-oriented approach and good sense of integrity.

Has your background in a law firm helped you in your in-house roles?

Yes, it has helped a lot. A law firm is a very good platform to learn the legal skills and how law works in practice. Working in a law firm also provides great opportunity to see and understand the legal questions, needs, and processes in different companies and industries. It also provides valuable experience on how to e.g. draft and comment contracts or other legal documents and how to collaborate with clients and counterparties.

What were the best things about working at Hannes?

Definitely the time spent with all the great colleagues, especially in the IP & Tech Team, both in assignment work and during team meetings, lunches, and some outside-of-work events. It is still always great to see any old Hannes Snellman colleagues in the alumni or other events.

Hannes Snellman is cooperating with Päätös, a podcast focused on decision-making, for its fifth season this year. Inspired by the podcast, we would like to conclude this interview by asking you about decision-making — what would you say is the most significant decision you have made when it comes to your own professional life?"

In my own professional life such a decision must have been the decision to move from a law firm position to an in-house role. It was not anything dramatic or drastic but still a change, and I have not had any regrets about it. There are many different good career paths both in law firms and in-house.