Meet our People: Konsta Hintsala, Power Platform Advisor & Team Lead

From Trainee Program to Team Lead 

If someone had told me a few years ago that I’d be working as a consultant, leading a team, supporting sales, and helping customers solve complex challenges around Power Platform every day, I probably wouldn’t have believed them—or even known what the heck Power Platform was. Yet here I am, writing this from summer cottage and reflecting on how I ended up here. Like many people starting their careers, I didn’t have a perfectly planned roadmap. Instead, I followed what genuinely interested me, and that eventually led me to Forward Forever.

How I Got Here 

I joined Forward Forever a little over two and a half years ago through the company’s Trainee program. 

I studied business administration but towards the end of my studies, I became increasingly interested in data and analytics. That interest eventually led me to dive deeper into the topic and start my thesis around Power BI. At the same time, I was looking for my first full-time job after graduation. 

Someone happened to send me a link to Forward Forever’s Trainee program and recommended that I apply. They mentioned that the company had a great atmosphere, talented people, and a culture where you have every opportunity to learn and grow. Looking back now, I can honestly say that everything I heard and felt through the interviews turned out to be true. 

Joining the Trainee Program gave me a fantastic jump start to my career within Microsoft Power Platform. It didn’t take long before I was involved in real customer projects, working with technologies like Power Apps, Power Automate, Microsoft Fabric, Power BI and other Microsoft tools. After completing the program, I continued directly into full-time consulting and development work, and I’ve been working with customers ever since. 

Today, my responsibilities are much broader than when I first started. Alongside customer consulting and technical delivery, I’m also responsible for leading a team, managing customer relationships, and supporting our commercial work by participating in sales opportunities. It’s been exciting to grow professionally while taking on new challenges beyond pure technical consulting. 

My Day at Forward Forever 

One of my favourite things about this job is that no two days are exactly the same. 

There are naturally recurring tasks and routines, but every day brings a slightly different combination of customer work, meetings, technical problem solving, planning, team leadership, and occasionally sales activities. 

I usually plan my week in advance. At the beginning or end of each week, I go through my calendar, review all the tasks waiting for me, and block out some dedicated time for most of the tasks between meetings. Having a plan helps me stay organised, even though unexpected things inevitably come up during the day. 

A typical morning starts with opening my laptop and checking whether there are any messages or customer issues that require immediate attention. If something urgent has come up, I’ll deal with that first. Otherwise, I simply continue with the schedule I’ve already planned. 

Some mornings begin with customer or internal meetings, while others allow me to dive straight into development work. A large part of my day is spent solving customer problems. Sometimes that means building something entirely new, sometimes improving an existing solution, and sometimes simply taking the time to think through the best approach before starting the implementation. We usually work iteratively with our customers, continuously refining solutions based on feedback, making improvements, and solving new challenges as they arise. Every now and then, unexpected support cases also require immediate attention, which keeps the work interesting.

Alongside customer work, I also spend time in my role as a Team Lead. That means regularly checking how my team members are doing, making sure everyone has enough meaningful work, coordinating workloads with other Team Leads, Service Managers, and Responsible Advisors, while supporting people in their professional development through regular discussions around goals, growth, and career development. During certain periods of the year these team leading responsibilities take up a much larger portion of my schedule, while at other times customer projects naturally become the main focus. 

Another part I’ve really enjoyed is that the team lead role isn’t only about supporting my own team. Together with the other Team Leads and our CEO, we also get to discuss the direction of the company and how we can continuously improve the way we work. It’s rewarding to know that you can have an impact not only on your own projects and team, but also on how the company develops as a whole. 

Besides these, I also enjoy contributing to sales whenever possible. Sometimes that means helping shape technical solutions, preparing materials, or supporting customer discussions before a project even begins. 

Whenever I have quieter moments in my calendar, I like to invest that time in learning. Technology evolves quickly, especially around Microsoft Fabric, so I enjoy exploring new features, experimenting with different capabilities, and building small demos to better understand how they can be applied in real customer scenarios. Staying curious is an important part of the job. 

What I Enjoy Most 

The biggest reason I enjoy my work is problem solving. 

I’ve actually noticed that the more challenging the problem is, the more I enjoy working on it. Sometimes a solution takes much longer than expected, which can certainly be frustrating. But once everything finally clicks into place and you find a solution, the feeling is incredibly rewarding. 

Another thing I genuinely enjoy is working with people. I consider myself a social person, and interacting with customers, teammates, and colleagues across Forward Forever is something I look forward to every day. Technology is a huge part of the job, but the people around it are what make the work meaningful. 

I also enjoy designing larger solutions and understanding how all the different pieces fit together. There’s a satisfying moment when a complex challenge suddenly makes sense and you can clearly see the right direction. Turning that vision into a real solution that delivers value for a customer is one of the most rewarding parts of my work. 

In the end, technology evolves and changes quickly. Projects come and go. Roles evolve over time. But if there’s one thing that has stayed the same since I joined Forward Forever, it’s the people. They’re the reason I’ve learned so much, enjoyed coming to work every day, and continued growing into new roles. Looking back, joining the Trainee Program was one of the best decisions I could have made.

Here’s a look back at where part of my journey began. In this video for Microsoft Finland, I talk about how my interest in data led me to study Power Platform and ultimately helped me find my path into working with Microsoft technologies.