In the new Report we are honoured to include contributions by some distinguished guest writers. The founder of the legendary Wallpaper and Monocle magazines Tyler Brûlé writes under the heading “Helsinki is the centre of my world”. He describes his own experiences of business travel and presents a vision of new belief in airlines.

The Climate Group analyst Damian Ryan discusses the opportunities for reducing air traffic emissions as well as emissions trading. The Climate Group and Finnair are both active in the Aviation Global Deal group pressing for a global emissions trading agreement.

Picking up on the format of a quality magazine, the Report also covers fashion and design. We take a look back to 40 years ago when people walked on the moon for the first time. In the same year, 1969, the first flights across the Atlantic from Finland began. Our distinctive blue and white aircraft flew passengers to New York with the fabulously attired Finn Hostesses to look after them. Their special uniforms were designed for the North American route, while drinks were served in the classic Ultima Thule glasses designed for the purpose by the renowned designer Tapio Wirkkala. Flying was truly a glamorous activity!

In contrast to that history, we also look 40 years ahead into the future. Students of the Aalto University were assigned to design the cabin crew uniforms of the future. This inspired a beautiful collection, amazing details and brilliant insights. How about a robot dog to help out with cabin service in the future, for example?

You can take a look at the whole collection online at http://www.finnairgroup.com/konserni/konserni_12_2.html . You’ll also be able to browse this article and others in the comfort of your Finnair aircraft seat: the Annual Report will be distributed in seat pockets over the coming weeks.

At the same time as publishing the Annual Report, we are also releasing our Corporate Responsibility Report with ambitious emission-reduction targets for the coming years: a cut of 24 per cent from the 2009 levels by 2017. Even better: these are realistic targets.

According to the latest research data the effects on global warming of aviation are significantly smaller than has been believed previously. It’s even possible that various emissions components may have cooling effects so the overall effect would be obtained by multiplying the effect of carbon dioxide emissions by less than one. Professor Seppo Laine of the Aalto University School of Technology, who contributes an article to the Report, puts the multiplication factor figure at 0.48. The Report will be made available on line at http://www.finnairgroup.com/group/group_12_4.htm , where you can already find previous Corporate Responsibility Reports.

We’ve tried to make the contents of our Reports as enjoyable and readable as any good magazine. We hope you enjoy browsing through them and we would really appreciate your feedback!

Maria Mroue
Director, Corporate Communications

If I were now to write an essay entitled “My Finland”, it would be a eulogy with no end. No “Oops!”. In this essay, I would tell about my fellow Finns. I would write about my foreign friend who feels that the best thing about Finland is its people. In her opinion, shyness combined with a willingness to help is charming. Initially her comments astonished me, but then I realised how right she is.

My own best memories of my times abroad are encounters with people – not visits to tourist sights. I don’t necessarily recall their clothing or how stylish their homes were, but the mood that prevailed between us: confusion, curiosity, joy, warmth, awkward silence or exuberant chatter. Photos tell the same story. The local sights are only partly on show; it’s the people in the pictures that really matter.

So let’s accept ourselves as we are! A favourable disposition towards oneself is outwardly apparent. It radiates. It even captivates. Inadvertently one finds oneself drawn to those who radiate acceptance and a healthy self-esteem.

I read somewhere that, in the opinion of a working group aiming to raise the image of Finland, Finland’s most important resource is what Finns are and what they say and do. Professor Laura Kolbe, a member of the working group, would tell foreigners that here in Finland live honest, reliable and innovative people. I can go along with that.

When we Finns travel abroad, we are calling cards for Finland. Nowadays this presumably also applies to websites, YouTube clips and Facebook profiles. When we, as crew, pass through airports, we are often asked the question: “Where are you from?“ The answer “Finland” does not necessarily always register with the questioner, despite our famous ice-hockey players, conductors, Moomins and heavy metals band. If the message at some stage final hits home, then more often than not the answer is: “Oh… Finland! It’s so safe there. Such a clean country. So peaceful. It’s so good to work with Finns,” to which we nod approvingly. We know, we know. The best place in the world.

Home sickness, moreover, can strike anywhere in the world. The thought of dark silence and of rain, snow and even slush seems uplifting. Imagining the taste of Finnish food makes the mouth water. We look at children’s pictures on our Nokias. We show a picture of our pet dog to a work colleague and are offended if he doesn’t remember the doggie’s name. I have recognised this regrettably often, and many suffer from it. Many a time that a customer steps on the plane and says: “Ah, wonderful, finally! It’s as if I were already at home.”

It’s absolutely necessary and healthy to acquire external perspectives. To listen carefully, to thank people for their attention, and accept matters humbly. Sometimes it’s also necessary to travel. Distance clarifies the mind and however problematic a matter seems, sometimes it looks much better from afar! We surely benefit from participating in the logistics of interaction.

It only remains for me to wish a lively Independence Day to all of you wonderful Finns!

Helena Kaartinen

1. Familiarize yourself first. Before you buy anything, always make a tour, examine items and ask for prices in a number of shops to get an idea of the price range.

2. Haggling is a social event. Be cheerful, friendly and maintain a good atmosphere, but always keep a poker face. Don’t show any great interest in the object you are hoping to buy. Ask the price of a few other products first and only then casually approach the item in which you are interested.

3. If you buy several items at a time, you get a bigger discount. Every product and all seams, buttons and joints should be examined carefully. If you find a defect, this will entitle you to an additional discount. With clothes you can often detect bad quality from the reverse side or by the fact that a label has been glued and not sewn on to the fabric.

4. Before you start negotiating a deal, consider what you are prepared to pay for the object. Don’t quibble over pennies, however.

5. An excellent help is a pocket calculator as this will enable private haggling. In front of a large crowd of onlookers you’ll receive a worse price, because preserving face is important in many cultures.

6. Ask the seller to offer the first price. If the answer is “what would you like to pay”, ask again. Your counter offer will depend on the price level: it could even be a quarter of the figure quoted by the seller. But if you offer too low a price, the seller will notice that he is dealing with a beginner (see point 1). The seller and the buyer offer prices in turn, until a price is reached at which both parties are satisfied. When you begin to get close to a price, you can ask for a final offer, “last price”. If the price is acceptable, it is time to buy. If not, then you can continue on your way without worries.

7. You can test the seller’s final price by walking away. If there is still scope for haggling, the seller will come after you and make a new offer. If you are allowed to depart undisturbed, the price was too low. At this point you should humbly return to the stall – if you really want the item.

8. Don’t start haggling if you are not interested in buying. There is no compulsion to buy, however, even though you start to haggle – except at the stage when you have offered a price, which the seller accepts. You should never offer a price that you are not prepared to pay.

9. You should have local cash to pay with, because cards are often not accepted. Where haggling takes place, the prices quoted are usually for cash.

10. A good and fair haggler is respected. For example Indians and Chinese are old trading people and are highly skilled in business. Often the first question is: “What country are you from?” This is because Europeans are known to be bad hagglers. Australians and Americans are more careful with their money.

Senja Larsen

In the book that we produced in collaboration with aircraft manufacturer Airbus and auditing firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, among others, we present astonishing images of aircraft of the future drawn by Kauko Helavuo and we tell different experts’ visions of future flying and tourism in the context of technology, safety, comfort and the environment. We also set up a website on the subject: www.departure2093.com.

Our project was unbelievably well received in the international media. A press conference in India, for example, was attended by more than 50 reporters representing more than 200 million readers. Similar events in Tokyo and Seoul attracted more than 50 and more than 40 reporters respectively. And there was lots more media attention elsewhere in the world. Googling “Departure 2093” returns more than 53,400 hits. Finnair representatives have also been invited to speak about the future at various high-level seminars around the world. In Finland, moreover, our visions of the future reached not only the TV news but also nearly every newspaper in the country.

The project lasted around six months and, in addition to the work input of a few members of staff, costs were a few euros per book in printing costs. Such a succesful advertising campaign or marketing tour could not have been obtained with the same money. It is also difficult to think of a more effective means of achieving corresponding recognition for Finnair in areas of the new Asian markets.

In March we initiated an internet competition in which we asked people to vote on which of the aircraft of the future was most captivating, and to communicate their own visions of the future of flying. The competition received no marketing push other than the above-mentioned website, but we received more than 14,000 entries over a couple of months. The subject is clearly a fascinating one.

Our partner PWC has just continued the future theme with its seminar series “Determining Company Value in 2039”. The seminars, directed at senior financial, communications and human resources staff, ponder the logic of the corporate world 30 years from now, the development of openness and transparency in corporate activity, the change and significance of stakeholders and forms of corporate social responsibility, and the importance of visions for companies.

It’s wonderful to see how fruitful good ideas are, how they rise into view and take flight – inexpensively. Just as impressive is to note how the focus is gradually shifting for reporting the past to opening future visions and strategies. Investors are not only interested in what has gone before, but how we intend to succeed in the future.

The project has also been a good reminder of how every single one of our decisions, big or small, may influence the future. All the time we are faced with a countless number of options, so let’s choose the best of them.

Inspired by our vision of the future, our PR office gave Finnair as a birthday gift the world’s first intergalactic space pop song. The challenge was to get the song into shape for presentation at the company’s Christmas party. You can view the premiere performance on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/FinnairComms.

Christer Haglund
SVP Communications (not in work outfit on video)