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Behind the Badge with Behind the Badge with Sami Öfverberg – Inside ISS Finland’s Automation Journey
From call center operations to leading automation at one of Finland’s largest facility service providers – in this Behind the Badge interview, Michael Ghezzo sits down with Sami Öfverberg, Head of Automation Technologies at ISS Services.
Sami will be speaking at the Confare CIOSUMMIT in Frankfurt and Zurich with our partner Frends. Register now to meet him in person and hear how ISS is rethinking automation, integration, and the role of IT in a highly competitive industry.
In this conversation, Sami shares the bold story of building a custom ERP, why the Frends integration platform became the backbone of their digital infrastructure, and how empowering non-technical business users through low-code development is transforming the way ISS delivers value.
An interview that proves: Digital transformation doesn’t always start in the IT department — but with a problem, a prototype, and the courage to build something better.
Meet Sami Öfverberg and connect with over 200 IT decision-makers from across Switzerland at the Confare CIOSUMMIT Zurich.
Michael: It’s great to have you in our Behind the Badge session. Cheers from Vienna, and nice to see you in Helsinki, Sami!
Sami: Great to be here, thanks for having me.
Michael: Before we dive in, tell us a bit about ISS Finland and your role there.
Sami: Sure. I work for ISS Finland, which is part of the global ISS Group. In Finland, we have about 8,000 employees, and we provide five core services: cleaning, building maintenance, technical services, restaurants, and security. Globally, ISS operates in more than 30 countries with around 320,000 employees.
At ISS Finland, I lead the Automation Technologies team. That includes integration solutions, data and analytics, RPA, process automation, and of course, AI – which everyone is talking about nowadays. A special focus of our team is identifying new commercial opportunities – not necessarily creating new IT products, but finding solutions when customer needs go beyond our standard portfolio.
Michael: And how important is digitalisation and IT for the core business of ISS?
Sami: It’s absolutely critical. We’re in a low-margin industry, so lean, efficient processes are essential. Automating and digitising operations means we spend less time on admin and more time on delivering quality services to our customers. It’s not only about cost – it’s also about freeing up people to do their jobs better.
Michael: When you started at ISS, the IT landscape was highly fragmented. How did that impact the business?
Sami: Back in 2010 or 2011, we had about 10 core systems – none of which were integrated. It wasn’t a risk back then because the organisation was structured to support it. But it was inefficient – you needed double the admin resources, and we lacked any real data visibility.
Meet Sami Öfverberg will be speaking at the Confare CIOSUMMIT in Frankfurt and Zurich with our partner Frends. Register now.
Michael: What was the journey like from fragmentation to a harmonised IT landscape?
Sami: It started small. I worked in a call center and wanted to automate our local processes. That success led me into broader projects across ISS Finland. It took nearly 10 years of trial and error with different ERP systems – mostly off-the-shelf solutions that didn’t meet our needs.
Eventually, we decided to build our own ERP. It’s not a typical path, but we’d already invested heavily in trying standard systems, so we said, why not invest the same into building our own? The ERP became the heart of our architecture. Integrations are the veins that connect everything – and that’s where the Frends platform came in.
Michael: So, Frends is central to your integration strategy?
Sami: Exactly. Off-the-shelf ERPs often have limited integration capabilities. With Frends, we were able to build a custom ERP and connect all surrounding systems effectively. It’s been a real partnership – every time we hit a roadblock, we solved it together. That adaptability made all the difference.
Michael: But building your own ERP can create the legacy of the future. Is Frends part of the strategy to avoid that?
Sami: Definitely. No system stays modern forever unless you actively evolve it. We’re constantly developing the ERP – adding new capabilities, automating processes, and maintaining flexibility through integrations. Frends helps us avoid legacy traps by enabling business users to build solutions using its low-code environment.
We’ve upskilled people from business and support functions to contribute to development. You won’t turn a finance expert into a full-stack developer in six months, but you can teach them to build useful solutions with low-code.
Michael: How did the collaboration between business and IT evolve through this transformation?
Sami: It wasn’t magic – we just included business and support functions in the ERP project from the start. No PowerPoint decks – just showing them what’s possible. That’s what sold the idea. Some of those people even joined the IT team afterward. It changed how we work together.
Michael: What trends should IT leaders and CEOs be aware of in automation?
Sami: Generative AI is surrounded by hype, but still transformative. We’ve seen non-programmers in our company build working tools with prompt-based coding. It’s democratizing software development. I believe companies not currently developing software will soon be doing so – it’s getting that accessible.
Michael: And what’s next for your work with Frends?
Sami: We want to onboard more business users onto the platform – people without a tech background who can still build valuable automations. That’s our next step.
Michael: It’s been quite the journey. Looking forward to seeing you at the Confare CIOSUMMIT in September. Thanks for the great conversation!