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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 January 2025
“For me, it is all about love and friendship. People are taken care of here, and you can be yourself. I can tell my stupid jokes and laugh and be silly,” Marina Lindström told us. Marina works as Producer at Moomin Characters. She is as excited about her work as the day when she first started several years ago.
“If you work hard, you must have fun. I wouldn't do it if I didn't enjoy it so much. I have gone through some bad experiences in my life, and Moomin has always been there to support me.” Marina's comments suggest that people management at Moomin is something special.
‘The Moomin stories are adored by adults as much as they are by children largely for the range of life lessons and philosophies to be found in Moominvalley’, the Moomin Group onboarding booklet for new employees claims. ‘From the importance of respecting people even if you disagree with them, to how to tell whether or not someone is dangerous by how much they like to eat pancakes and jam, there is wisdom to be found on every page and from every inhabitant, large or small.’
The onboarding booklet recites the Moomin values of love, equality, and courage. We are told that Tove Jansson's Moomins follow these values ‘to live in happiness and harmony with their diverse group of friends and acquaintances’. All Moomin employees, old and new, are invited to join in and make the leap from fiction to their work and lives. The onboarding booklet takes people by the hand and lets them know what this could mean. Yet, these materials only tell so much, and the reality is more complicated.
“Some people say that you can't be married to your work, but I love my work and I love my colleagues,” Marina Lindström told us with a smile. “It's more than work. It's like the Moominhouse where everyone is taken care of and respected and welcomed. There are also some disagreements, but it's just a special atmosphere here, that you don't find elsewhere.”
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