Team lead and product owner – Ilkka Räty enjoys leadership and client work

A new role at Sustera

“We’re about to open a position here – would you be interested in having a chat?” This was the message Ilkka Räty received from a former colleague at Sustera last summer. He was interested. A lunch meeting was arranged, plans were discussed, and soon Ilkka received a job offer which he decided to accept.

“Sustera was already familiar to me as a company with a strong can‑do attitude. A classmate of mine also worked here and spoke highly of the workplace.”

Ilkka joined Sustera from Granlund. The timing felt right: he had just completed his master’s thesis in circular economy studies at LUT University, and life had space for a new direction.

Stepping into the Real Estate Sector

Before his studies at LUT, Ilkka completed a degree in Energy and Environmental Engineering at Lahti University of Applied Sciences and began working at ST1 during his studies. The company produced, among other things, bioethanol from bread waste, and Ilkka had the opportunity to work on development projects for production facilities. However, he longed for work more closely connected to the environmental sector and moved to Granlund.

District heating networks were familiar to Ilkka from a summer internship at Lahti Energia, but otherwise the real estate and construction sector was new to him. At Granlund, he started as a junior specialist working on BREEAM In‑Use certifications, an area in which he had gained some experience through a student project. The real estate sector quickly drew him in: Ilkka progressed through BREEAM In‑Use Assessor qualifications to specialist and eventually senior specialist roles.

Ilkka also contributed to service development related to ESG due diligence, as sustainability is becoming increasingly central in the real estate and construction industry.

“I’ve always been interested in work that has an impact on something bigger. That’s also why I applied to study circular economy. The programme covered not only practical resource efficiency but also broad global phenomena and their cause‑and‑effect relationships. The built environment plays a significant role from an environmental perspective, and circular economy will have a major role in driving progress.”

Progressing into leadership roles

At Sustera, Ilkka is responsible for the BREEAM In‑Use service: its maintenance, development and overall management. He also has experience in carbon footprint calculations, sustainability reporting and EU Taxonomy consulting.

“Legislation and competition in the sector create pressure for all operators. For example, carbon footprint calculations as well as sustainability reports and programmes will, in one form or another, be required from almost every company. The same principles apply here as elsewhere: to be able to report and lead, you need reliable data.”

In addition to consulting on BREEAM In‑Use for existing properties, Ilkka has held the role of Team Lead at Sustera since early February. He had already expressed his interest in leadership responsibilities during the interview process, and the right opportunity opened less than five months into his Sustera career.

“By nature, I’m a leadership‑oriented person — even in my hobbies I’ve often been the team captain or coach. Moving into a leadership role felt like a natural step for me.”

Honesty and transparency in client work

Client work is important to Ilkka. He provides consultancy for professional property owners.

“I get to support decision‑making and help solve challenges. Sustera has long‑term client relationships that have been managed well.”

According to Ilkka, the key to maintaining strong client relationships is the same as in any human relationship: willingness to help and transparency. He values the directness and reliability often associated with Finnish communication. Receiving positive feedback is also rewarding.

“We Finns rarely give each other praise. So, when you do receive it, you know it’s genuinely meant.”

A strong sense of working together

What Ilkka values most at Sustera is the strong sense of working together and the team‑oriented way of getting things done. He works at Sustera’s headquarters in Helsinki within the Energy and Sustainability business unit, which consists of more than a dozen teams.

“We have around half a dozen teams providing sustainability services for real estate, and in addition we offer services related to energy management and technical property management. The team is young and enthusiastic. Everyone gets along well.”

Ilkka also appreciates the development opportunities Sustera provides.

“Everyone’s growth is supported, and many people are able to work across a broad range of tasks. Our team spirit also helps us deliver diverse and complex projects. People have expertise in different areas, and we also have true specialists in every field. We have the talent to cover the entire lifecycle of a property.”

In his free time, Ilkka enjoys spending time with his loved ones through sports and cooking. He plays and coaches football, goes hiking and trekking, fly‑fishes, snowboards and trains at the gym. Cooking interests him so much that he has even created cooking videos for social media.

Related services

Environmental certifications for existing properties