Hive’s road to future-proofing Finland and its talent

In 2019, Hive was launched as the first peer-to-peer coding school in the Nordics, to bridge the gap between an untapped talent pool and the industry’s growing need for skilled coders. 5 years later, we’ve not only validated this pioneering model, we’re convinced it’s the key to future-proofing Finland and its talent. But the journey hasn’t been without challenges. Here’s our outlook into the future and how you can be part of it!

Bridging the Talent Gap

In 2019, at Supercell, we set out to build an independent coding school to bridge the gap between an untapped talent pool in Finland, and the industry’s growing demand for highly-skilled coders.

We came across a French revolutionary educational model that claimed to do just that; a 1.5-year program based on peer-to-peer, project-based learning. Completely tuition-free, no previous education or degrees required, and suitable for people with no experience in coding.

The real test to get into this program is a rigorous 1-month full-time bootcamp that assesses your motivation and resilience, effectively giving talented people from all walks of life the opportunity to learn coding.

The studies are 100% practical and simulate a real world environment, where students solve increasingly complex problems together, without any teachers or staff assistance. It develops not only technical hard skills, but essential future-proof soft skills, such as creative problem-solving, autonomy and collaboration.

Nothing like this existed in the Nordics, so we decided it was time to pilot this French model in Finland. Could this work in the land of well-renowened free education?

A successful proof-of-concept

Last year, in 2024, we celebrated Hive’s 5-year anniversary! Since its launch, we’ve demonstrated remarkable success in fast-tracking students into employment:

• 240+ Hivers (over 80% of our alumni) hired
• 100+ hiring companies in Finland, across industries, including juggernauts like Nokia, Supercell, Wolt and F-Secure
• 98% employer satisfaction rate
• 60% of students had no prior coding experience; the majority are internationals and career-changer

In this process, we’ve realized this alternative form of education fills a critical gap in Finland’s labor market. We are REALLY good at catching career-shifters, school dropouts and internationals who would otherwise struggle to integrate. We’re harnessing entrepreneurial talent already present within Finland and future-proofing it with the hard and soft skills required to thrive in a world that is constantly changing.

Speaking of which, the world has changed significantly in the past five years—what implications does that have for Hive’s future?

New mission: to future-proof Finland and its talent

Amid a slowing economy and the rapid rise of AI, the job market is transforming fast. While some see uncertainty, Hive sees opportunity.

At Hive, adapting to change isn’t new—it’s part of our DNA. When the pandemic disrupted the world, we proved that resilience, adaptability, and a strong learning community could outlast even the toughest challenges. Today, the same mindset applies: the future of work won’t be defined by those who fear change, but by those who embrace it.

The coders of tomorrow won’t just write code. They’ll be creative problem-solvers, adaptable thinkers, and resilient innovators who shape the future alongside AI and any new technology. More than ever, we’re confident that our education model is essential in fostering the tech talent that Finland needs to grow and to continue to compete on a global scale. This has only strengthened our ambition: Hive is here to future-proof Finland and its talent.

2025 focus: optimizing for impact and sustainability

We may have validated the concept, but we’re not yet sustainable. Hive’s potential impact in Finnish society is huge, and yet we face very real roadblocks that may prevent us from making progress, or even set us back.

Therefore, our 2025 focus is on optimizing for long-term impact and sustainability, through streamlined operations, diversified funding, and stronger public-private partnerships. Only when these core building blocks are in place, can we allow ourselves to dream bigger and unlock our full potential:

Sustainable operations

Hive started like any startup: small, agile, and scrappy. Our 6-10 person team has achieved incredible results, even surviving a global pandemic! As impressive as it is, we’ve certainly felt the growing pains of a young organization, figuring out as we go how to operate a unique school in the Finnish landscape.

Running an independent coding school in Finland comes with its own challenges. We’ve had to learn everything from managing a unique learning environment to navigating Finnish regulations, building an engaged community, establishing effective governance and bridging the gap between our alumni and the job market.

Moving forward, Hive must mature as an organization, through refining our processes, building team capabilities, sharing institutional knowledge, leveraging data-driven decision-making and ensuring long-term resilience. In other words, we need to strengthen our foundation, before we can build on top of it.

Diversifying our funding model

Sustainability also means standing on our own two feet financially.

Hive was founded as an independent non-profit foundation, funded entirely by donations. Supercell generously funded 100% of our pilot so far, but for Hive to truly succeed in the long run, we need broader support from private and public sector partners.

Fundraising has been challenging. Between a stagnant economy and restrictive public policy, it feels like we’re fighting an uphill battle. Unlike other non-profits that have dedicated fundraising teams, our small team has been balancing school operations with securing financial stability. We need to get to the point where we can thrive, not just survive.

That’s why we’re actively building new partnerships with organizations that share our vision, offering to collaborate and co-create value together, for example, with custom talent pipelines and even some out-of-the-box ideas around external teams’ having access to our campus. The possibilities for cross-pollination are endless!

Soon, we’ll announce a new key partner joining Supercell in supporting Hive. In our ideal world, we’d love to see 1-2 more key partners join our portfolio, followed by a larger community of supporters that contribute in other ways that fit their size and level of collaboration with Hive.

Collaborating with the public sector

We have been playing this game on “hard mode”. Due to defensively written legislation and policies in Finland, Hive and our students currently lack many of the benefits that are available for traditional educational institutions. Overall, Hive as a foundation is having a hard time fitting into the existing society. Not quite a school due to lack of public funding and supervision, and not quite a non-profit due to operating a school.

The path of a pioneer is rocky indeed!

As a private institution, Hive remains agile and industry-responsive, but for this model to thrive, structural change is necessary. Our success in securing KELA student subsidies in 2019 was a major milestone, made possible through collaboration with Supercell’s legal team, Opetushallitus, and KELA. Now, we’re working with the Ministry of Education and the City of Helsinki to push for policy changes that recognize innovative learning models like Hive and open the doors for others in the future.

It takes a village to build a Hive!

Hive has come a long way in five years, but our work isn’t done. To take Hive to the next level and ensure its longevity, we need the support of the broader ecosystem. If your company or organization believes in our mission and wants to explore collaboration, we want to hear from you! Together, we can redefine tech education and build a stronger, future-proof Finland!