Collection: Unto PIrnes

Unto Pirnes is the “grand old man” of Finnish management education. He has had a 32-year career as a management trainer and developer at the Management Skills Institute (JTO), which is owned by industry and business.

Unto Pirnes' interest in management was sparked early on. While studying at the Technical School, he was particularly interested in work management and work psychology, which others consider to be more of a "handy subject". He gained practical experience with the challenges of supervisory work while working as a foreman at Lahti Woodworking and as a foreman at the Alavute Wood Processing Plant.

Unto Pirnes' interest in training management had been noticed and he was asked to become a trainer for JTO in 1971. In the early stages, he taught work guidance, team leadership, negotiation skills and management by objectives. As the 1970s came, a strong influx of foreign (mainly American) management theories began to arrive in Finland. JTO invested heavily in familiarizing itself with these theories and providing further training. With this development, Pirnes actively familiarized himself with, applied and trained new management theories for three decades.

Pirnes wrote several booklets used in education, including on management by objectives and negotiation skills. His most significant publication is the book Kehittyvä johtajauus (Developing Leadership), which was used as a textbook not only at JTO but also at several universities.

The title of Chief Teacher granted by the President of the Republic is a recognition of the significant work done by Unto Pirnes.