

After Nokia Layoffs, Tech Workers in Finland Regroup and Refocus - petethomas
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/10/technology/after-nokia-layoffs-tech-workers-in-finland-regroup-and-refocus.html?&moduleDetail=section-news-1&action=click&contentCollection=Technology&region=Footer&module=MoreInSection&version=WhatsNext&contentID=WhatsNext&pgtype=article

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ThomPete
Not directly related but

Realm ([https://realm.io/](https://realm.io/)) was started by two former
Danish Nokia developers working out of Denmark. I met Bjarne back in 11 or 10
at a Danish hackernews meetup and already back then were they talking about it
and how Nokia had started to close down places like Denmark.

Just goes to show how there are always great startups with great insights
hiding inside large organisations. And that the problems or discoveries they
make inside those organisations can be extremely valuable.

[http://www.businessinsider.com/realm-started-by-former-
nokia...](http://www.businessinsider.com/realm-started-by-former-nokia-
engineers-is-going-bonkers-2015-3)

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dijit
I was around during the fateful February in 2011 where Nokia shut down the
meamo/meego division in Ruoholahti, Helsinki.

I was surrounded by insanely talented and passionate individuals, and while I
get the impression a lot of talent dispersed and "went home" (it was a very
diverse atmosphere in terms of culture) there were a few that banded together
and made `Jolla`.

Which, I don't hear much of these days, but I hope they eventually carve out a
small chunk of the market at least.

Nokia is pretty well known in Finland for hiring a _lot_ of
contractors/companies. So layoffs can be quick, severance can be avoided but
the downshot for them is increased salaries.

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spiralpolitik
When Nokia decide to get back into the smartphone market they will have a
straight choice whether to go Android or "something else".

If they decide to go the "something else" route then expect them to acquire
'Jolla'. As great as 'Jolla' is that is sadly the best exit strategy they can
hope for at this point in the smartphone markets lifecycle.

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specialp
A good thing about being laid off by Nokia is that they will often give money
if you are starting a company as they mentioned with one of the start ups
formed by laid off employees. When Nokia laid off the Maemo/MeeGo folks, they
gave them money and IP to start with.

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Throwaway1224
I worked at Nokia in Finland from 2006 to 2014. I have nothing but good things
to say about the company.

I have since moved back to the United States, but my management philosophy has
definitely been shaped by the culture there and the way they treated their
employees.

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hwstar
That's the correct attitude, and it illustrates a stark difference between
American and European culture.

In America, this would never be allowed happen. You would need to be able to
start a business using your own resources, or you will end up working for
someone else or if that fails, homeless and living in poverty.

Some people argue that America has too large a population and the funds
required would be too much of a burden for businesses or the government, but I
don't buy this. I think it has to do more with keeping the powers that be in
place, and a loathing of government programs by most Americans.

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ajross
> You would need to be able to start a business using your own resources

Given that investors in the US seem to be literally throwing cash at bay area
startups (c.f. this very site), I'm not sure that I buy this point at all.
Surely it's much _easier_ to start a successful business as a US resident than
it is in Finland, right?

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trhway
except obviously for Nokia, i never heard about big companies R&D offices in
Finland/Helsinki (i've worked at 3 transnational BigCo-s). I'd [naively as i
have no specific info] suspect that it should be a good location to have R&D
office attractive for programmers from Baltic region, not?

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hrshtr
Good to see the government and Nokia stepping up to mitigate the pressure of
employees who were laid off.

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cooleng
It’s exciting.

