Building Bridges: Doing business in Vietnam – Meet Antti Karjalainen WSP Finland

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By Nguyen Nguyen

WSP is one of the world’s leading engineering professional services consulting firms. From the earliest roots in the US over 130 years ago to the vast international presence today, WSP has enjoyed continuous development and expansion. We are technical experts who design and provide strategic advice on sustainable solutions and engineering projects. WSP has more than 500 offices around the world and 30 offices in Sweden. WSP Finland Oy has around 700 experts across the country with the headquarters in the Mall of Tripla, Helsinki. 

WSP Finland was selected to design the Hue City bridge in Vietnam on January 28, 2021, through an international design competition. This project represents another achievement of WSP’s work in Vietnam over the past 20 years, with iconic landmark bridges such as Thu Thiem 2, the Binh and Rao 2 Bridges in Hai Phong, Tran Thi Ly Bridge, the Fire-breathing Dragon Bridge in Danang, and the Cao Lanh highway project with its many bridges.

BiziVietnam was pleasured to have an interview with Antti Karjalainen, Director of WSP Finland, who have been living and working in Vietnam quite many years. 

“In Vietnam, business is mainly based on good relations; therefore, it is very important to get to know clients and earn their trust first.” – Antti Karjalainen, Director of WSP Finland

Why did WSP Finland choose South-East Asia, especially Vietnam, to be one of the core of the company’s businesses?

It’s a long history of WSP Finland. We saw this growing market already 25 years ago. As Asia and Africa were the most fast-growing economies at that moment, we saw a good change for infrastructure consulting in those regions, especially in Asia.

From my perspective, the Vietnamese market includes advantages and disadvantages for the business of WSP. 

One of the advantages for our business area is a need in Vietnam for international expertise. There have not been many local companies providing the services. Besides, the demand for future infrastructure development has also created good possibilities for WSP. More and more clients in Vietnam are interested in implementing new and modern technologies, which helps them stand out from competitors and highlight their profile in the market. This is a great chance for Finish companies in general. 

There are also disadvantages of doing business in Vietnam. For example, what we have scheduled does not always happen, especially when starting a big project. It often takes a lot more time than estimated to get approval for your request. In addition, customers often request us to send business proposals with quotations in a very short notice, which sets harsh requirements for presence and readiness. We also have cases working with the local authorities. It takes a long time to get approval, hence projects get delayed as it is difficult to foresee the situation compared to in Finland. Another disadvantage is business ethics. Even though there have been a lot of changes in Vietnam, there are still some challenges to keep business clean. This problem is much easier with private companies. I feel that business partners appreciate the honesty and openness of the Finnish style of business. In general, even though Vietnam is a challenging market, risks are manageable and long working experience with the locals helps a lot.

Were there any culture gaps between Vietnam and Finland as well as difficulties when WSP Finland started to build the market in Vietnam?

The first time I was in Vietnam was over 20 years ago; thus, I have witnessed the huge and fast development of the country. By that time, the English language skills of Vietnamese were generally weak, thus making communication relatively challenging. Currently, there are still some challenges, but much better. 

I also have experienced Vietnamese cultures when starting developing businesses and creating new contacts. During that time, I had a chance to attend informal business dinners with Vietnamese people. The Vietnamese were very friendly and everyone was equal during the meals. However, it is not the same in business meetings where bosses have strong power.

Noticeably, the Vietnamese do not like surprises in formal business meetings. Information should be provided in advance so that the client is ready to answer all questions and comments. If they cannot, it may mean you put them in the situation where “they lose their face” that we need to avoid. For example, there was one meeting that I wrote the minutes beforehand, and then, when the meeting finished, I was done with my memo as well.

Tran Thi Ly Bridge in Vietnam – WSP Finland

What is the greatest achievement of your company in Vietnam?

WSP Finland has designed several landmark bridges, such as Binh Bridge and Rao 2 Bridge (Haiphong), Tran Thi Ly Bridge (Danang), and recently, the unique Thu Thiem 2 Bridge in HCMC. To keep our bridge business running in Vietnam for over 20 years is a huge accomplishment for WSP.

Sometimes, when being asked why I had decided to work in Vietnam, my answer was “I’m searching for challenges”. The Thu Thiem 2 Bridge project is a good instance. It is “my” project I like the most as I have been engaged in the first sketch, which I actually did on the tissue paper at the airplane. The construction work of the bridge is almost completed now. Although the project is my “baby”,  it’s a good manifestation of great international teamwork, and it has been my honor to manage the project design in all stages. This project has been represented as the factor to our achievement: Innovative and forward-looking structural design combined with high architecture, aesthetics, and sustainability. This is how WSP Finland stands out from our competitors.

How do you see your business in Vietnam in the next five years?

From my point of view, after a couple of slow years, Vietnam needs to build a lot of new traffic infrastructure, which gives us a great chance in that market. However, next year could be quite difficult for all of us due to financial challenges when the global economy gets back to normal after the Covid epidemic.

To gain successful business in Vietnam in the coming years, we need to co-create more with local companies to find financial benefits and add competitiveness. The last couple of years have seen the withdrawal of many international companies from Vietnam. However, this is a good opportunity as we are still present in Vietnam.

What advice would you like to give to a Finnish company planning to enter the Vietnamese market?

In Vietnam, business is mainly based on good relations; therefore, it is very important to get to know clients and earn their trust first. Also, you have to be a presence in Vietnam and be patient to build new business. Having different and innovative products/ services will help you win the deals. Last but not least, Finland has a very good reputation in Vietnam, which can be beneficial for your future business.

Thu Thiêm II Bridge in Vietnam – WSP Finland 

Building Bridges

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