Career as a byproduct of your interests? Nordic AI Lead for Data & AI, Jarkko Ylipaavalniemi, loves technology and gadgets
March 18, 2022
"I have always had a natural inclination and desire to solve problems; it’s so rewarding to finally work out the solution to a particular problem. Working at Accenture has provided me with an arena where I can put both my theoretical and problem-solving interests into practice. I’m most proud of the moments where our team has been able to find ground-breaking solutions to problems that have prevented our clients from entering the market, doing business, or serving their customers.”
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In his free time Jarkko continues to explore and flex his creative muscles. Modifying his Raspberry Pi microcomputer has long been a source of inspiration. He also mentions antennas as one of the most entertaining areas of technical experimentation.
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"During my summer holiday I built a device capable of following airplane tracking signals. People using Flightradar are partially using the flight data I have gathered using that gadget."
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Jarkko describes his career path as fulfilling.
"If there's anything I would have done differently it might have been to set up my start-up company a little earlier.”
The start-up made mobile apps that used machine learning and computer vision. Back then it was a very different experience to build iOS apps than it is today. Jarkko says that he has an entrepreneurial mindset and is thinking about setting up a company and/or starting a new open-source project. He has had multiple chances to be entrepreneurial inside Accenture, so he has not needed to venture elsewhere for that.
To those aspiring towards a career in technology, Jarkko has some encouraging words of advice:
"The tech field stretches far and wide - in fact technology is increasingly found in a range of fields and sectors. The best way to start is by defining your own focus, which stems from your personal area of interest. And even once you’ve landed your dream job, stay curious - there is always something new to learn."
Jarkko describes Accenture as an amazing, and an amazingly huge, place to work. At Accenture you get to meet people with great skills and fantastic life stories that make it all worthwhile. Every day is a new possibility to find new challenges waiting to be solved, and there are so many opportunities to grow and learn for everyone.
Get to know Jarkko Ylipaavalniemi:
- If Jarkko were an app he would be Feedly, which is a news app where people can read collected news articles easily in one place.
- Jarkko has a strong background in sports. He has competed in archery at Finnish Championship level.
- Jarkko’s passions include continuous learning, machine learning, and learning theory. He would love to do these things from morning to night!
