My first contact with ÅF was as a student. I was their host during the 2001 careers convention at the Swedish Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Kista and got to know a little about the company then. After graduating I started work for another consulting company, but just a few months later the chance arose to take up a position with ÅF that was much better suited to my qualifications. So I seized it with both hands.

 

For the first six months I worked on various projects as a design engineer. It was a great time, when I got to know the company on home ground, but, to me, the philosophy behind working as a consultant means being out of the office and liaising with your client. And that's what I have been doing ever since.

 

I became involved in a project in Spain and, after a settling-in period, I commuted to Spain for around six months. It was the best thing I had ever done! You learn an incredible amount by working side by side with your client - especially when your client is abroad. It's then that you realise it isn't just the technology that's important in a project, but the culture and the way people work in that particular office in that particular country.

 

The decision for me to commute long-distance was one I had to make very quickly, and that's the way these things happen. Because ÅF is an international organisation, there is plenty of opportunity for a lot of foreign travel - and sometimes no way of avoiding it!

 

Right now I'm working in our Kiruna office in the far north of Sweden on a collaborative project involving several different ÅF units. The offices in Piteå, Örnsköldsvik, Sundsvall, Norrköping, Karlstad and Trollhättan all have a part to play, which means that you get to know colleagues from other places. Commuting can be hard work, but at the same time it's extremely good for your development.

 

Having the opportunity to work outside Stockholm without having to pull up roots and move home is a real bonus. It's a positive experience, putting a bit of distance between yourself and the big-city buzz of the capital now and again. You appreciate things more when you get home. But there is another side to it, too. You have to leave behind all the things you think of as "home". Still, working hard and efficiently while you're away means you can have more free time to unwind and recharge your batteries once you're back home.

 

I'm not sure what's on the agenda after Kiruna. I don't know what kind of project it will be or what role I'll be expected to have. I have enough on my plate, concentrating on what I'm doing right now. But whatever the next challenge is, I'm sure I'll be looking forward to it when the time comes.

 

Name	Mikael Bodin
Education	Mechanical engineering, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm
Job	Consultant
Age	29
Lives	Solna, Stockholm
Drives	Nissan
Family	Partner
Best thing about the job	Meeting new work colleagues and being able to do new things without changing my employer. No two projects are the same.
Favourite gadget right now	My car! I like to be able to go wherever I want, whenever I want.