First taste – Joining Rakettitiede, part 1/3
A new job, a new crew, and a first impression that sticks. We asked four of our consultants to share how they first discovered Rakettitiede, what the recruitment process felt like, and how life on board the Rocket has treated them so far. This is part one of a three-part series.
Part 1: First taste
Part 2: The decisive moment
Part 3: The daily grind
We’ve written about our recruitment process before, but time flies and the crew keeps growing so we figured it was time for a fresh take. We sat down with four of our more recent consultants to hear how they ended up here – and what they thought when they first heard the name Rakettitiede. Let us introduce you to:
Nicoandres Rodriguez, rocket scientist #67
Ville Räsänen, rocket scientist #71
Ville Lindholm, rocket scientist #72
Anonymous rocket scientist
First contact: How did you hear about us, and what was your initial impression of the company?
As is typical in tech, most of our new hires had heard about us through a colleague – or received a DM on LinkedIn. For some, Rakettitiede was a bit of a mystery at first.
“All I really knew was that it was a small consultancy that hires more senior folks. I lumped it in with other ‘talent house’ type companies such as Witted, Wunderdog or Nitor,” says Ville R.
Ville Lindholm’s interest was sparked by the boutique consulting model: a focus on senior consultants and none of that sausage factory vibe.
He first spotted us on LinkedIn a while back but didn’t consider us a serious option at the time:
“I was still working at a Big Domestic Company™, and the idea of joining a small consultancy felt foreign, unnerving, and honestly a bit scary. But over time, my career path started pointing in that direction. A few years later, it didn’t seem so strange anymore – it actually made a lot of sense.”
Ville L. came across Rakettitiede while on a job hunt: “I knew the Rocket’s focus was on senior consultants, and that it wasn’t some massive sausage factory.”
“I was a fan of the idea of boutique consulting from the get-go.” – Ville L. rocket scientist #72
Once they started talking to us, the vibe became clearer. After a few chats with current rocket scientists and some light Googling, the picture started to form: we do software consulting, we hire mostly senior developers and boast a fair salary model.
“I knew it was a consultancy, and the most strong impression I got was about the payment model,” says Nicoandres.
What really got him excited, though, was the company culture: “A fun environment with talented people with an amazing company culture and strong identity.”
Ville R. puts it simply: “It felt like a people-first type of company, with experienced consultants and a strong focus on employee well-being and growth.”
The first meeting
A recurring theme in the consultant quartet’s stories? A mix of relaxed vibes and serious technical chops.
Our anonymous consultant says they were struck by how friendly and knowledgeable everyone was – and that the friendliness wasn’t just a recruiter trick. It turned out everyone at the Rocket was nice, not just one or two people.
Ville L. appreciated the fact that the conversations focused on the right things:
“No fluff. Just real talk. I liked that.”
The first meetings also confirmed what our interviewees had heard: the developers here know their stuff.
“The Rocket seemed to have a good buzz going on. People were clearly skilled but didn’t take themselves too seriously,” says the anonymous consultant.
Nicoandres was won over by Rakettitiede’s relaxed, skilled, and community-driven atmosphere.
Several people mention that their chats with Rakettitiede’s recruiters – Tessi and Karri – were smooth and easy-going and helped clarify what the company was all about.
“Rakettitiede started taking shape in my mind as a place with highly skilled professionals offering their knowledge to tech companies.” – Nicoandres, rocket scientist #67
People seem to have enjoyed the technical interviews – no, we’re not kidding.
“I actually like technical interviews and find them important.” – Ville R. rocket scientist #71
“Tech interviews give you a sense of the level the company is aiming for,” Ville R. says. “I had a great time sparring with Arttu and Marko. We dove straight into things like server-side rendering in Next.js and the pros and cons of ORMs. No one asked me to write FizzBuzz, thankfully.”
Ville L. had a similar experience: “We clicked right away. The technical interview felt more like a good nerdy conversation than a test. It wasn’t about fitting into a mould – it was about exploring strengths. They really knew how to spot talent.”
A quick recap on our recruitment process
Before we wrap up part one, here’s a quick look at how our hiring process works. We want both sides to feel confident before making a commitment, so we take our time:
• First chat – are we a good match?
• Technical interview – ideas, inspiration and feedback.
• Dev date (optional) – a chance to see what working on board the Rocket feels like.
• Chat with sales – what kind of work makes your heart flutter?
We’ve written more about our process here: Rakettitiede’s recruitment process is (relatively) painless
In part two of this blog series, we’ll dive into what our new consultants considered before saying “I do” – and what finally sealed the deal.
Read the whole series:
First taste (you just read it!)