Project management students from all over Finland once again competed against each other in the national Project Management Championship final organised by IPMA Young Crew Finland. The 2025 competition was exceptionally high level and tight – the winner was decided by only one point. The Grey Rocks team from Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences took the win.
Teksti Jonna Vuorenpää
Kuvat Anne Wuokko
The jury (left Petri Heikkinen and Mikko Saastamoinen) (right Jonna Vuorenpää and Jere Lehtinen) congratulates the winners Henry Toivomäki, Jenny Nyman and Siiri Karjalainen.
The PMC (Project Management Championship) is an international competition for students from universities and universities of applied sciences. The competition aims to develop the skills of young project managers, provide networking opportunities and build bridges between academia and the world of work.
Simulation led the way towards realistic project management
In the 2025 national final, the contestants got to play the role of a Scrum Master in a realistic simulation where they had to lead and implement an information system development project using an agile approach. The task was carried out using a simulation game developed by LessonLab Oy, which models agile project management based on the Scrum framework.
The teams were required not only to have technical project skills, but also teamwork, communication and the ability to reflect on their own performance. Student teams from Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences, the University of Vaasa and Savonia University of Applied Sciences competed in the final.
-The level of the competition was exceptionally high this year, which reflects the level of project management education in Finland. It was especially great to see that all teams understood the importance of managing people in the simulation, which is also important in real life projects,” says Mikko Saastamoinen of the jury.
Victory through the grey rock
The winning team was Grey Rocks from Haaga-Helia. The team consisted of Jenny Nyman, Siiri Karjalainen and Henry Toivomäki, who excelled in particular with their ability to work together, clear communication and in-depth reflection.
-The competition was very tight and each member of our team brought their own strengths to the table. We are very grateful for this opportunity and look forward to the international final!” said Jenny Nyman after the competition.
The winning team will get to represent Finland in the international IPMA PMC final in Warsaw, Poland, where they will face top teams from around the world. They will also have the opportunity to complete the internationally recognised IPMA Level D certification, which will support their career development as project management professionals.
Thanks to the judges and sponsors
The judging of the competition was particularly challenging this year due to the high level of competition. The judging panel included:
- Jonna Vuorenpää, President of IPMA Young Crew Finland
- Mikko Saastamoinen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Association of Project Professionals.
- Jere Lehtinen, COO, Lessonlab Oy
- Petri Heikkinen, Head of Digital Solutions Development, Posti
The competition would not have been possible without important partners. A warm thank you to the sponsors:
Association of Project Professionals Finland, Lessonlab Oy, Posti and Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences.
Warm congratulations to the Grey Rocks team for winning and good luck for the international competition!
The PMC competition is organised in Finland by PRY’s Young Crew, a network for people under 35 interested in project management. Young Crew Finland is part of the Association of Project Professionals (PRY).