10 JUNE 2026
For Erti Haava, service is about much more than repairing trucks. It is about keeping customers’ businesses running.
“Service is not a separate department,” says Erti, Area Service Manager at Scania in the Baltics. “It’s a chain. Every link affects the customer.”
With more than two decades at Scania, Erti has experienced the journey from many angles – starting as a stock manager, then working as service advisor, key account manager, warranty manager, and service quality manager before stepping into his current role.
Each step has shaped how he sees service today. “As a service advisor you stand between the customer and the workshop. You must keep your promises and communicate clearly, even when the news isn’t good.”
That experience gave him a deep understanding of what downtime means for transport companies. “When a truck breaks down, customers immediately feel the impact on their business. That’s when you realise how important uptime and trust really are.”
Erti plays a key role in keeping customers on the road and downtime to a minimum.
Much of Erti’s work happens behind the scenes. Customers might only see the service advisor, but many processes are already in motion long before a truck arrives at the workshop.
“Customers don’t see the preparation; the coaching, audits, competence building, and internal coordination we do to make things work smoothly.”
Sometimes the team goes beyond standard processes to support customers faster. “We may shorten a repair that normally takes seven hours to four. Customers don’t always see that effort, but it’s happening in the background.”
Working in service means balancing many expectations from customers, workshops, technicians, and the business. “It’s about balancing expectations from many directions,” Erti explains.
His approach is simple: stay calm and focus on facts.
“You cannot eat soup when it’s too hot,” he says. “Sometimes it’s better to take a break. When emotions calm down, the facts become clearer.”
According to Erti, Customer First is about asking one key question in every situation: “What value does this bring to the customer?” Great service, he says, builds long-term trust. “When the customer feels that Scania has their back, it reduces stress and creates loyalty.”
“The customer knows that Scania will help.”
– Erti Haava, Area Service Manager, Scania.
New solutions like Scania Service Planning help strengthen that relationship. Integrated into the My Scania ecosystem, it allows customers to book service, see workshop availability, and manage their vehicles more proactively.
“It gives customers a transparent way to plan service and anticipate their needs,” Erti explains.
What motivates Erti most is not technology, it’s people. “I’m passionate about seeing people succeed in their work and knowing that what we do truly helps the customer.”
He thinks the most important value in service is responsibility. “Responsibility means owning the outcome, whether it is good or bad.” It is a mindset he believes creates trust, both inside the organisation and with customers.
Outside work, Erti enjoys building smart home systems, connecting energy, lighting, and technology in smarter ways. He also stays active with gym training and swimming.
But whether at home or at work, the mindset stays the same: solve problems, improve systems, and make things work better.
Because in the end, great service means one thing: “The customer knows that Scania will help.”
