Time to start the criti… I mean analysis of Smile and other staffing firms. Is it a business of the future, or is it just about taking in massive investments from retail investors now and then living on easy street for a long time? Give your assessments, Inderes and other not-so-professional followers alike.
Uncle Masse isn’t participating in the offering, but is following with interest to see if he might jump in during the post-IPO drop 
The Staffing Services Association just released fresh data on the 20 largest operators, which provides a good picture of market development. We also published our comments Henkilöstöpalvelualan ripeä kasvu jatkuu - Inderes
In this case, I’m quite happy to watch from the sidelines over the next downturn.
The event showed that there’s at least a positive buzz within the company. 
The repetition of the “through joy” slogan did grate on me a bit, as I’ve heard from acquaintances about bad experiences with these staffing agencies (mainly Smile and Barona). Maybe I just have work-averse or otherwise difficult acquaintances. 
Yeah. If you add the aggressive interest of the trade union movement in everything that involves the working class, then staff leasing business is probably quite a volatile business. Weren’t the last airport strikes precisely against Barona?
As a member of the Industrial Union (Teollisuusliitto), I don’t recall any recent strikes against temporary staffing agencies, though I could be wrong. I have personal experience with Carrot from back in the day, and I can tell you from my experience that I had to keep very close track of everything, and even had to inquire about holiday pay after I quit the whole establishment.
Otherwise, I was treated like a slave. I’m skipping these “people-scamming” temporary staffing agencies purely out of principle.
This came a bit suddenly (Yu called me a moment ago to arrange it for this time) but Smile’s CEO Sami Asikainen is coming to ROAST this Friday at 7:30 AM! The LIVE will appear here ROAST Smile 28.9.2018 - Inderes
Feel free to send in tough questions! I’ll start compiling them right away… Luckily, I read Smile’s prospectuses as soon as they came out, so learning about the company won’t be starting from scratch.
Thanks Verneri
Same question as the thread opener, i.e.: In the 2020s, will all work go through temp agencies? Including Yu and comrade Verneri?
Oh, right, where does Smile put those anti-millions then? And: Is the trade union movement breathing down their neck about this and that?
It’s interesting that Finnish companies VMP and Smile are much more profitable than global giants.
EBITA % 2017 (adj.)
Smile 7.2% (Note: Smile does not adjust)
VMP 8.5%
Adecco 4.9% 
ManpowerGroup 4.1% 
Ranstad 4.6% 
Is there no competition here, or is the industry simply overly profitable in Finland?
VP, could you explain to us amateurs why it’s more advantageous and profitable for an employer to hire employees through a temp agency rather than directly? Or is it not?
P.S. VP gives a thumbs up to almost every one of Uncle Masse’s headlines, without separate compensation. Should I start my own blog? Of course, Masse has also given many thumbs up to VP’s good insights. This, too, at least for now, without separate compensation
Mmm, generally speaking, it can be said that hiring staff can be less risky when trying out new business operations, for example. You can simply stop hiring agency workers versus difficult dismissals.
I don’t know if it’s always cheaper, but in industries where demand is uneven (think of a ski slope bar) and intermittent, this can be a more sensible way to organize human labor.
Would agency work be so popular if, for example, layoffs were easy in Finland?
So, temporary agency work bypasses the inflexibility of labor mobility in present-day Finland?
Perhaps, more eloquently put: this can be done, although I don’t think everyone thinks of it that way. ^___^
Sami Asikainen, CEO of Smile, and his wife have hosted a refugee family from Iraq in their home for a year. Respect.
Verneri, I’m sure you can phrase the questions better than I can, so here are a few small, free-form topics:
-The risks in the listing prospectus mention “Difficulties in implementing, maintaining, and updating the Company’s new ERP system or other information systems, deficiencies in information systems, and related defects…” Is the company undergoing or about to undergo an ERP system update? (i.e., the fuse is burning…)
-Nowadays, we’re seeing light platforms that offer labor mediation, where essentially, an app matches employees and employers, they arrange a gig, and payment comes immediately after the job. Feedback/reviews are given like on Airbnb/Booking, building trustworthiness. What kind of threat do such new innovations and digital services pose to Smile, and how does Smile respond to this? Smile itself states that employees want freedom and flexibility – what could be freer and more flexible than easy sign-up via an app, a job pinging your phone that you can accept/reject? Additionally, feedback/reviews encourage both employers and employees to do their best. Does Smile have anything like this?
-How do potential strikes or industrial actions in Smile’s sectors affect Smile’s revenue streams?
-From the listing prospectus: “The use of temporary agency workers is restricted in some collective agreements. Typically, restrictions are such that the use of temporary agency workers is only permitted to balance peak workloads, and the permanent use of temporary agency workers is not in accordance with the provisions of collective agreements. Such a restriction is included, for example, in the collective agreements for the construction and construction industry sectors.” Smile operates, for example, in the construction sector. During a construction boom, the use of temporary agency workers is necessary, but what about when the situation cools down? There have already been signs of this, even though construction and renovation are still strong. Could it happen that the temporary staffing agencies acquired by Smile in the construction sector can no longer lease employees due to the collective agreement?
-Rising interest rates, i.e., how would a potential rise in interest rates affect Smile’s profit?
-Restamax as a customer accounts for 15% of Smile’s revenue. What about operating profit? What kind of multipliers are used for leasing to Restamax? What kind of long-term agreement was made with Restamax, and what factors in it give Smile’s future owners confidence regarding this large customer (and owner)? Is the trimming of Restamax’s restaurants and, on the other hand, the inclusion of Royal a threat or an opportunity, or both?
-Retaining good temporary employees is important. Does Smile intend to use its own shares in the future to incentivize its temporary workforce to the company?
Is Inderes going to release a company report?
What actions does Smile take to limit credit loss risks associated with growth financing agreements?
Thanks Iiiks, great questions!
And here’s the full preliminary list: note, I’m still happy to take more questions live if they come up, although of course not all of them may be asked (or they’re already on the list).