Sirpa Vepsä

At work, Sirpa Vepsä explores how to use data to its fullest potential. Drawing from her extensive experience, she provides solution proposals to help application developers and most importantly, customers.

As a Solution Architect in the field of data management, Vepsä provides guidance on data modeling. Her work revolves around data warehouses, data, and customer deliveries, and involves databases used by banking applications to store data.

Vepsä says she draws pictures and waves her hands in the air while asking, “What if? And what about?”

– The solution becomes clearer and develops every time experts and customers engage in dialogue. Things need to be explained in plain language, and that requires asking the right questions. In addition, I clarify things through synonyms and examples, she adds.

Vepsä appreciates that she has been able to shape her job description to a significant extent. She draws on her expertise to provide smooth solutions. Experience has been gained especially from poor decisions, which inevitably come when one works in the industry long enough.

– I want to share the knowledge gained from experience. That’s why I was hired. I have gained a lot of experience from bad decisions, she chuckles.

Learning new things and insights

Vepsä is inspired by the inner life of databases. According to her, a good workday is one that includes insights and learning from others. She feels that successful experiences come when a decisive parameter is found that turns an impossible task into a possible one.

As an application architect, her work includes many meetings because the job is about teamwork.

– Nothing useful is done alone. In all solutions, it is essential that someone else benefits from their creation. Sometimes there are thanks, but often the lack of feedback means that the work has been successful, she says.

Work is about communication, listening, and questioning.

– It requires perseverance to explain things and clarify the background of questions. You have to be able to lead yourself and tolerate incomplete things. You have to learn to accept what is ‘good enough.’

The most interesting job in the world

The need for data management is increasing. Tightening regulation often requires more reports and data protection.

– This is particularly true in the banking world. It is good to understand that the cloud is always someone else’s computer. Therefore, it is important to define who can access the data, who gives permission to do so, and how monitoring is carried out.

According to Vepsä, databases are the most interesting thing in the world.

– They have data and everything useful. With them, things can be solved in many ways. I would say to everyone that an interest in the field is enough. There are many different things to do in IT. Career paths can develop in many directions.

Who: Sirpa Vepsä
Education: Datanomi (Vocational Qualification in Business Information Technology)
Expertise: Explaining and simplifying things, reading manuals, and databases