Managers' Forum ~ Website Reviews

I listened to a radio show on YLE radio, a Finnish radio station.  This station
broadcasts issues that are in the news at the current time.  They broadcast
live over a satellite which airs their shows in Finnish, Swedish, English, German,
French, and Russian. They do a lot of interviews by inviting influential people
to the studio to be part of their broadcast.

I listened to a show about what Finland’s presidents role should be in international
affairs.  Since Finland is ready to have another presidential election soon,
this is a current critical issue.  The debate is over how much power the president
should have.  Should he or she have a lot of decision making power?  Or should
he or she only serve as a representative of the country?

The interviewer concentrated on questions regarding the presidents role in regards
to the European Union (EU), that is where the country needs to be represented
regarding business related issues.  The president is the first contact person
in negotiations of new relationships such as imports, exports, foreign relations,
and other intercultural activities.  The responses were mixed. Some believe
that the president should have the authority to make critical decisions at critical
moments.  Others think that the president should be a representative with influence,
but no real authority.  One could make a case that Bill and Hillory Clinton
both exemplify these two beliefs.

I found it tremendously interesting since Finland is a social-democratic country
where parliament makes most decisions, but the president has influence on foreign
relations.  Just like in the U.S., the president is our representative and negotiator
in other countries.  All these good relationships are what allows us to cooperate
with other countries in business.  If two countries are in conflict regarding
political and social issues, this usually stops all business relations.  This
is a point that one of the guests brought up because in the EU they work to
get every countries economy strong by making the capital role through businesses.
 

The way radio and TV interviews are conducted in Finland is quite boring.  Usually
the guests are old men who are members of the parliament or established businesses
and they talk slow and some times very unclear.  The interviewer was very good
she restated several of the facts that the guests brought out and formulated
new questions accordingly.  Business people in Finland speak very formally and
it comes out very distinctively in the radio interview.  Commonly used words
are shortened because Finnish has so many long words since we add letters to
the end of each word to represent prepositions.  This has lead ordinary slang
to become accepted all through the country.  So when listening to this correct
Finnish being spoken it seems like they speak very slow and it takes a long
time to get to the point.

Overall I do not like listening to talk shows in Finnish.  I find it to be boring,
even though it is just people speaking correct Finnish.  The show hosts ,however,
do speak at a much more pleasant speed.  This radio show really was conducted
in a traditional Finnish manner, the way I can remember it being since my childhood.
 There was no European or American  influences, which are part of most shows
today.  I highly recommend taking time out and listening to this radio station.
 It brings out the Finnish culture and manners a lot.

Yle Radio Finland, radio Finland satellite audio live
Web address: http://www.yle.fi/fbc/rfinland/index.html

Contact Us!