You do not need to do everything yourself: An IT company can combine Suomi.fi Messages with its own products

The free Suomi.fi Messages service maintained by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency provides a solution for communications between the authorities, citizens and companies. By incorporating Suomi.fi Messages, a thoroughly tested messaging component, into their own products, IT companies can generate added value for their customers in public administration requiring watertight information security.

A thoroughly tested communications channel

More than 250 organisations, including the Finnish Tax Administration, Traficom and municipalities, now use the digital Suomi.fi Messages service created by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency (formerly known as the Population Register Centre). Applications, information requests, decisions and notifications are sent via Suomi.fi Messages. A number of government agencies have made Suomi.fi Messages into a two-way platform in which citizens and companies registered as service users can both send messages and answers to them.

Smooth services, lower messaging costs

Triplan Oy is an IT company developing and marketing case and document management systems for municipalities and other public-administration actors. Triplan has integrated its systems into Suomi.fi Messages. Mikko Laine, the company’s Product Manager, organised a small-scale feedback survey to gauge the service experiences of Triplan’s customers. According to the responses, the customers value the speed and strong information security of the electronic Suomi.fi Messages service, and traceability of the messages sent via the channel. One of the municipal customers also mentioned the commissioning support provided by the state as a positive factor.

Hannu Korkeala from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency, who has been closely involved in the development of the Suomi.fi Messages service, adds the cost savings (less paper mail) and the option of acting on behalf of another party to the list of benefits. He also points out that the users are not bound by time constraints or tied to specific end devices: “Recipients can open electronic messages whenever and wherever they want.”

Commissioning involves several parties

Integration into Suomi.fi Messages is not an overnight process as all parties must be prepared for a technical dialogue, analysis and coordination of interfaces that may last weeks. “However, the Digital and Population Data Services Agency provided us with extensive support and good documentation,” Mikko Laine notes.

When talking about development and enlargement issues, Mikko Laine would like to see more registered end users for Suomi.fi Messages. He suggests that incentives might sometimes be a good idea: “If there were more organisations using the service, it could also expand more quickly. That would definitely create more savings for our customers.”

Laine also makes a second proposal: “The exchange of messages in our systems is largely on the basis of traditional documents. I suggest that instead of sending pdf documents, users should opt for smart forms supporting functionality. These would provide an opportunity to enrich and deepen integration.” In fact, according to Hannu Korkeala, contents of external documents can be securely transmitted in the Suomi.fi Messages service using the Post form function: “This has been welcomed by our customers, especially in the healthcare and social welfare sector.”

Organisations using Suomi.fi Messages

Presentation of Suomi.fi Messages service