In this exclusive interview, we speak with Finavia CIO Leyla Akgez-Laakso about the IT function she leads and its biggest achievements, emerging tech on her radar, as well as her focus areas and challenges. Additionally, she shares her experience as a member of the Executive Business Network Aurora Live, the value it brings her, and why having a peer network is crucial for the modern CIO.  

Tell us more about the organization of Finavia’s IT team. What recent highlights or achievements stand out?

In our IT unit, we are responsible for infra, networks, applications, and end-user IT, but, in addition, we have two responsibility areas, which are data and cybersecurity. Those are a bit different because we have the responsibility to guide the rest of the company on how to use data and make everything cyber-secure. But the IT roles are pretty similar to many other companies’ IT organizations and roles we have the project and service managers, architects, and IT and data specialists.  

We are responsible for IT operations at the airports as well; that means the IT systems that the passengers see like self-service, baggage drop, check-in, etc. All of those are part of our IT responsibility too, so that makes it interesting. It’s nice to be part of a tight operation, so we must ensure that our IT is high quality, up-to-date, and stable.  

One of our biggest achievements has been to stabilize the IT so that the passengers can have a smooth journey through our airports. Our passenger promise at Finavia is for smooth traveling, so all our IT efforts concentrate on making travel as smooth as possible for all the passengers. From an IT perspective, if everything works well the passengers won’t notice us. When passengers start to notice us, that means something is not working and that’s of course, not ideal.  

Another big highlight for my team has been the renewal of our airport terminals. Helsinki Airport and some of our airports in Lapland have gone through a big renovation. In those projects, we didn’t want to fill brand new buildings with old technology, so we also modernized the technology to support passengers better at the same time. For example, the new Helsinki Airport terminal relies heavily on the self-service concept, more so than any other big airport in the world. That means improved and faster passenger flow compared to being solely served by desk agents. Now we can cater to many more passengers in the terminal.  

How is AI technology utilized and implemented in Finavia’s systems?

AI can mean many different things. Machine vision is something that we use a lot in security checks. So, that is where AI plays a visible role from the passengers’ perspective. We are also looking into generative AI and large language models to improve our internal processes. AI is one of the biggest focus areas in 2024, and we are following AI developments closely.  

The language models are quite mature, but there are a lot of applications around them that are being developed. As we are a highly regulated industry, we can’t utilize AI-based tools in our operative processes until there are proven applications around them.  

That’s why we want to know when vendors are developing stable applications and products around utilizing AI.  

In addition to AI, cybersecurity is one of our key development areas. Cybersecurity in our environment is increasingly important because of the geopolitical situation. Emphasis on cybersecurity has grown in the past years and will continue to grow.  

The third focus area is data. We have a lot of analytical tools and data, and we aim to concentrate on getting the business to start utilizing that data in decision-making.  

We also have a lot of data from different sensors as a lot of our work is physical infrastructure management. The data that comes from different sensors in the airport, airfield, and runways is super critical for us.   

What are your top considerations when it comes to selecting the right vendors and solution providers?

As Finavia is a government-owned company, we use a public procurement process. So, we don’t always select who we want to work with. What we try to do when we meet vendors is collect ideas that might be useful for us. We then organize a public procurement where we try to attract as many vendors as possible to participate in that tender to get a suitable vendor for us. Meeting vendors for us is more about understanding what’s available out there. For example, the progress of certain technology among vendors and what they have been implementing.   

What are your top 3 challenges as a CIO?

Many CIOs are tackling increasing IT costs due to accelerating automation. A lot of tasks that were done manually are now done with IT systems. One concrete example is building management, taking care of heat and lighting. That used to be done with switches, and nowadays, it’s done with IT systems. If we want to be even more energy efficient, we need to add an IT system that optimizes the use of heat and electricity.  

You have to do more with preferably less money. You must cater to more systems and data and better cybersecurity, but the economic situation doesn’t let you invest more. How to make IT work better without increasing the budget is my biggest challenge.  

Another challenge is that our business users are getting tired of learning new technologies.  Technologies are developing fast and people need to learn new skills and tools. That is a big organizational change for the company. People need to learn new skills and utilize, for example, AI in the best way possible. A challenge for me is how to increase the adaptability of our business users.  

The third challenge is, of course, the IT skills gap. Everybody’s fighting for the same resources. That’s something we must be aware of, that we are trying to find the same skills in cybersecurity and data and so forth. Those skills are very much sought after by everybody else. Therefore, as an employer, we must stand out and differentiate to keep our current employees and attract new ones.  

What strategies have been implemented to attract and retain the right IT talent?

 We concentrate a lot on learning new skills. This year specifically we are launching the IT change management education program. We are educating our whole team in change management and skills related to that. For example, how to sell your ideas and handle different feelings people have when change happens. There are also very good AI courses provided by universities for free, so we are learning those together. Learning together is another big thing for us. In terms of retaining talent, our IT unit is quite social, and we organize many live social events. That’s something we put a lot of effort into.  

Getting people to know each other informally makes working together a lot easier and rewarding.  

You are one of the most active members of the Executive Business Network Aurora Live. Could you share your journey with us?

I first attended one of Management Events’ in-person events years ago, then pretty soon after that, the pandemic hit, and Management Events changed its business model. I got more interested at that point because I liked the portal a lot and enjoyed the on-demand content. I’ve used it heavily since and have participated in a lot of your social events and I like them as well. Like a true network, I began meeting the same people at different sessions and got to know the people better. I get someone’s email address or phone number to keep in touch with them on their projects and experiences. That’s when I noticed the network was growing.  

I also like the quality of the events. I always know what sessions to expect and when they are happening, whether it’s a social event, a virtual session, or a meeting with vendors.  

Knowing exactly what I’m going to do is important as I have a tight schedule and it’s difficult to fit in events.  

Why is having a peer network and joining relevant events important for today’s IT leaders?

I think being a CIO is quite a lonely job. Even though you would be part of the executive team in your company, you are always surrounded by customers in a way because everybody else in the company is using IT. So, you don’t really have peers within the company that you can bounce ideas with. For me, having this kind of peer network has proven valuable, and I know many CIOs are in the same situation. It’s really great. 

What separates Aurora Live from other business networks and events?

I find that your events are best organized and that the content is high quality, especially the discussions around leadership and strategic IT topics. Communication before, during, and after an event is also really good! 

*The interview answers have been edited for length and clarity.