Vainioranta selected Police Officer of the Year
Published : 23 Oct 2020, 21:41
Updated : 24 Oct 2020, 22:10
Mika Vainioranta from the Kauhajoki Police Station of the Ostrobothnia Police Department has been selected as the 2020 Police Officer of the Year, said the National Police Board in a press release on Friday.
Vainioranta is in charge of the Ostrobothnia special operations group for demanding situations (VATI).
Vainioranta is one of the founders of the VATI group at the Ostrobothnia Police Department, and he has been involved in developing group operations for demanding situations from the outset. He has developed his personal expertise as well as the capabilities of his group by participating actively in training and keeping in close touch with operators in other units.
In the selection of the Police Officer of the Year, Vainioranta’s merits included his consistent long-term work to improve his group’s expertise, which now represents the highest national level. He also serves as an instructor at the Police University College, providing officers with training on group operations in demanding new situations.
“Vainioranta enjoys an extraordinary level of trust and appreciation in the workplace. As a supervisor or situation manager during assignments, his collected approach creates a calm atmosphere even in the most difficult situations. People want to work under his supervision in the group,” reads the statement of the jury.
Vainioranta has worked in the police force for nearly 20 years now. Throughout his career, he has dealt with matters related to the use of force. Vainioranta graduated as a Bachelor of Police Services in 2000. Soon after that, he completed a training programme for field instructors in the use of force. His goal was to improve the capabilities of police department personnel in various areas related to the use of force.
“In this job, you will never master everything. You always have something to learn. I feel that professional development and good relationships between supervisors and team members are important in terms of maintaining motivation at work. It is also rewarding to notice that the group know how to apply in practice what they learned during training. This ensures safety and high performance,” said Vainioranta.