The 7 Steps programme, launched in 2021 by Estonia’s largest public clients, was born from a clear need to renew the operating models of the construction sector. Price volatility, increasing risks and traditional contract models no longer reflected market realities. Modern delivery models were needed to help bring transparency, predictability and better risk management into projects.
In Finland, alliance contracting and other collaborative delivery models had already been developing for over a decade. In Estonia, the need for renewal was recognised, but practical models were missing. Vison and the Estonian consultancy BrainTeam entered precisely at this point as sparring partners, trainers and eventually as ongoing partners helping to bring new ways of working into everyday project practices.
In 2024, the acquisition formalised the long-standing collaboration between Vison and BrainTeam.
Building the foundations through pilots
The first steps of Estonia’s alliance development were taken through pilot projects that tested collaboration, openness and shared risk models in practice.
- The Sindi–Lodja bridge was the first project to trial alliance procurement based on a negotiated procedure, where collaboration capability was also included as a selection criterion.
- In the City of Tartu alliance project, lean methods were applied on a smaller scale: a shared weekly rhythm, the Last Planner System and transparent sharing of information.
- At Paldiskis Energiasalv, preparation for a major project was carried out through open, workshop-based collaboration. For many Estonian stakeholders, its development phase was the first experience of a large, genuinely collaborative project.
- The Estonian Centre for Defence Investment launched the Tartu multifunctional office and accommodation building as an alliance.
- The State Real Estate Company together with the Estonian Police, Rescue and Border Guard have chosen the alliance model for building special training and preparation facilities.
The practices learned in these pilots—such as open-book cost structures, joint decision-making and an active client role—laid the foundation for the Rail Baltic Estonia alliances.
Rail Baltic Estonia: a mega-project with two alliances
Rail Baltica is a rail corridor of approximately 870 kilometres, 213 of which run through Estonia. The railway will provide a new, fast connection between the Baltic states and the rest of Europe. In Estonia, the project is delivered through two alliances, whose procurement strategy Vison and BrainTeam helped shape from the very beginning. Today they serve as project management and alliance advisors for both alliances.
“We started from the procurement strategy: how to define project system and procurement strategy that supports Client objectives and enables utilizing the most skilled international and local resources” explains Rami Tuokko, Business Director at Vison.
The two alliances were procured through a single procurement process using a negotiated procedure compatible with Estonian procurement legislation. The evaluation placed strong emphasis on project team expertise and collaboration capability.
After procurement, an intensive sprint phase was carried out to define the key processes, decision-making models, operating principles and rules of engagement before the organisation was scaled up to full design capacity. The multinational team has also brought new perspectives to the Finnish specialists involved.
“We have a fairly established way of doing alliance projects and project management in Finland, but at the same time we continuously learn from international companies.
We have gained valuable insights into how they manage large infrastructure projects and also seen that the fundamental challenges are very similar regardless of the country,” Rami explains.
Culture isn’t created in a single workshop
In the first joint sessions, companies from Finland, Estonia, Britain and France sat around the same table. Many had a strong history with traditional contract and management models, and an alliance of this scale was a completely new operating environment.
“An alliance changes the way projects are managed: collaboration, proximity to the client and shared responsibility emerge in a completely different way compared to what many international companies are used to,” describes Sulev Senkel, partner at BrainTeam.
In this international project, daily collaboration takes place in English. This requires attentiveness and an open mindset from the team, which is why conscious investment in building a shared project culture is essential. The goal is one unified culture that everyone commits to.
The culture is supported through regular practices that are visible in everyday work: monthly anonymous alliance health check surveys, culture and collaboration workshops, and shared big room practices and daily meeting routines with clearly agreed rules. These help ensure that the common way of working remains consistent across all teams.
“In this project we do not distinguish between nationalities or organisations. We have one shared project team whose primary goal is the success of the project — and the benefits it creates for everyone involved,” he concludes.
