We are not certified FCE experts. These company analyses are based on our current knowledge of the subject.

Their background

Eerikki graduated in 2013 from University of Vaasa where he held a Master of Business Administration (MBA), specializing in Service Business. He joined Martela in 2011 as an Account Manager. Since 2021, he is head of Business Design and Development at Martela.

Anne-Maria graduated in 1993 from Helsinki University of Thechnology where she held a Master of Science, specialising in Mechanical Wood Engineering. She joined Martela in 2006 as Quality & Environment Manager. Since 2021, she is head of global sustainability and quality at Martela.

Their work at Martela

As head of Business Design and development, Eerikki is working on new sustainable ways of doing business, particularly through circular and user-centric services.

Anne-Maria is responsible for sustainability and quality, environmental, health and safety management systems. She's also responsible for ensuring that the Martela's accredited testing laboratory is working as it should.

With its "Workplace as a Service" (WaaS), Martela is no longer focused on products but on the real needs of the client by offering a service around these products. Martela is therefore trying to provide the best possible working conditions for company employees and to maintain this performance over time. The aim is to optimise workplace space to increase usage and improve employee well-being.

Martela will work with clients (companies, schools, public entities, etc.) to respond to their needs and offer furniture as a service via a monthly fee. This monthly fee is determined according to the need, the size of the client organisation, etc.

In practical terms, to achieve this performance of use, Martela has created a service offer that includes :

• Sustainable and circular furniture to meet the client's needs. Firstly, they will offer reused furniture that meets the client’s needs (if they have it in stock) and then new furniture designed to last over time.

• Maintenance service and optimization of product life cycles. Martela will maintain and repair the furniture if necessary. If a change of furniture ever occurs, the furniture will be stored so that it can be used by other clients later. Furniture that can’t be fixed will be recycled.

• Delivery and assembly service.

• Flexibility and adaptation to client's needs. Workplace survey during the term of the contract to measure the user experience and modify the proposed solution if necessary. Depending on the size of a company, for example, they will make adjustments to ensure that the rate of use and the well-being of employees are always respected. The monthly fee will therefore evolve according to the need.

Because of the model transition that Martela is trying to experiment (moving from linear production to a more circular one), an internal management transformation occurred over the last few years. Developing this solution requires new skills and means a new approach of working with clients. With this WaaS model, it is no longer possible to only sell a product and not to take care of it after the process. Instead, Martela needs to be able to offer a complete solution that matches and adapts over time to the client’s needs. To achieve this, ongoing communication with the client is necessary. Skills in terms of repair and performance measurement need to be developed. It's a completely different way of organising work in the company.

It's easy to see that optimising use as much as possible means limiting the purchase of new furniture and therefore reducing the material resources produced.

Some externalities created or handled by the company have been identified : 

• Reducing the impact of their products on the environment by experimenting with the WaaS model and implementing a circular strategy: working with clients to optimise the use that best suit their needs, eco-design and durability of products through compliance with technical standards, use of renewable energy in production, consideration of the use of wood offcuts by other players, consideration of more efficient means of transport (low carbon), re-use and recycling at the end of the product life.

• Improving the well-being of employees at their client’s sites by providing workplaces that meet their needs and can adapt in the long term. The development of these intangible resources is strategic for their clients because a company with employees working in good conditions can then lead to better health, relationship, internal cooperation, etc.

There are various forms of cooperation around Martela's activity. 

• Strong cooperation with the client and its employees, who are in the best position to talk about their own needs. Workplace analysis, for example, is a service that enables them to understand how a space is used in order to optimise it in the future. Along the contract, Martela and the client keep the relationship going in order to respond to their changing needs (surveys, annual checks, etc.)

• Martela has its own in-house designers, as well as designers from design agencies outside the company, who design quality workplaces and furniture that best meet the organisational and aesthetic needs of its clients.

• Real estate agencies such as Evolve in Norway. Martela takes care of their furniture as a service. And the real estate agency provides the end users spaces and furniture as a flexible service model.

• An ecosystem is in place to meet furniture reconditioning, repair and recycling needs, both internally within the company and externally with partners for recycling, for example.

• The WaaS model is developing but for some clients it is still complicated to move toward it. They have budgets and they have traditional ways of buying. A lot of work is still needed to change this ownership mindset. But this would evolve in the next few years because of the future that is less and less predictable, so this solution offers a good flexibility.

• For now, it is still difficult to implement reused furniture in the model as a service for the clients because they want a high quality service and are still suspicious about reuse. 

• The monthly fee has to be very competitive because of the other cheap products on the market. It is difficult for the people to evaluate the impacts of the products they are buying and they still go to low priced products instead of quality ones.

In a world that is changing faster and faster, with specific and evolving needs, the WaaS model proposed by Martela seems to be a relevant solution. Martela's desired performance can be defined as follows: "Martela is trying to provide the best possible working conditions for employees and to maintain this performance over time". To achieve this performance efficiently, Martela has built up a range of services including upstream work on tailor-made responses to client's needs, its evolution and furniture maintenance. 

Martela does not respond to needs in a traditional, standardised way. The company co-constructs the solution with the client, working with him on its needs and supporting him as it evolves. This way of working together creates trust that builds long-term loyalty.

Martela is working on the sustainability of products by developing a circular model including less emissive production and transport means, reuse, repair and recycling. The designers also ensure that the products are timeless so that aesthetics are not an obstacle to reuse in the future.

Today, we spend most of our time in workplaces, whether in the office, at home or in a coworking space. Martela seems to offer real added value in terms of employees' quality of life at work (health, efficient organisation, communication, etc.). This aspect seems to be a real asset to highlight in the WaaS value proposition.

We would like to make it clear here that there is no question of negative criticism of this project. The aim is to imagine a fictional story about he development of a similar company through the FCE concepts. It is also a way to inspire people in a concrete way.

We are in 2030, Martela has continued its efforts. These efforts have become more productive, more relevant and more visible to more and more local actors thanks to the framework provided by the FCE...

Today, companies understand the strategic importance of intangible resources, which contribute to the creation of increasingly relevant value for themselves and the organizations around them. The development of intangible resources improves working conditions. Indeed, this has become a necessity due to the growing disengagement of workers in traditional organizations.

Martela, with its Workplace as a Service (WaaS) model, is positioned as a provider of well-being at work.

Martela's offer still includes the same services as in 2023. The company is increasingly working to ensure that old furniture in stock is reused in new projects. For example, Martela has found that some clients are willing to pay less for furniture that is not in perfect condition (that does not impact the main function). The company therefore offers all its clients a more affordable package in which the re-use rate (without reconditioning) is maximized while still meeting the need. For clients who are still reluctant, the offer is more expensive and includes new or reconditioned-as-new furniture. Martela strives to demonstrate the environmental benefits of a solution with as much reuse as possible.

This WaaS model continues to make the company's expertise evolve . Furniture maintenance, repair, refurbishment and recycling are becoming increasingly important. This know-how is an intangible asset that is becoming central to Martela's business. The company now has a stock of furniture operating in a circular economy (the need for new furniture is greatly reduced). Investment in intangible assets is now in Martela's interest to ensure the long-term future of the business. A profound change has also taken place in the training of sales teams. Their role is no longer simply to sell, but to maintain a good relationship with the clients over the long term. Indeed, thanks to the WaaS model, more the clients stay loyal more Martela will earn money. Project-related technicians and engineers are integrated into this relationship, so that all departments have a global vision of the solution provided to the client.

Only supplying furniture is not enough to achieve this performance in terms of well-being at work. That's why Martela initiated the creation, in 2025, of an ecosystem to provide a more relevant response. This group includes SuoValo, a Finnish company offering "As a Service" lighting solutions. Martela realized the importance of interior lighting for employee comfort. Together, the two companies offer a solution tailored to the client's needs. The monthly fee paid by the client is fairly shared.

To take the issue of employee well-being a step further, Martela offers its clients the services of its partner BioFinland. This company specializing in nutritional well-being offers workshops and training courses for employees. Some companies can then put their canteens in touch with BioFinland to manage lunchtime catering. Martela receives a commission from BioFinland for each new client.