Sille Villem

“I really like that I can see the results of my work in real life – it’s a truly proud feeling to see products on store shelves that our team has helped create.”

Sille Villem is a vibrant personality who is fully immersed in the world of food with heart and dedication. Although her official title is Head of Product Development at Maag Eesti (covering Rakvere and Tallegg), her responsibilities in practice also extend to the entire Baltic product portfolio at Maag Food, including exports.
Sille joined us on December 20, 2010, becoming part of the Rakvere meat industry team. “I started there as a product developer. In 2014, when the company also acquired Tallegg and the product development teams of the two companies were merged, I had the opportunity to take over the leadership of the joint product development department. It was a big and exciting step that brought both greater responsibility and valuable experience. Between 2017 and 2019, even broader changes took place within the company, when product development and marketing departments were merged across the group. During this time, I was given the opportunity to lead red meat product development across both the Baltics and the entire Scandinavian region. This period was highly developmental—it significantly broadened my perspective and offered many new challenges,” says Sille, who previously worked as a supervisor at Rannarootsi meat industry and before that as a technologist at Ray meat industry.

Sille’s interest in food has been with her for as long as she can remember. “As a child, I spent a huge amount of time in the kitchen with my grandmother – she was the one who truly sparked my love for food. We cooked together almost every day, and my favorite part was, of course, baking. Those moments by her side were so wonderful and meaningful that it was probably there that I began to understand that food is not just food, but truly my world! After high school, studying food technology felt like a completely natural next step. I felt that I wanted to work in a field where I could truly engage with food every day and get to know this world more deeply.”

Respect for Rakvere Meat Industry

At the time when Sille completed her master’s degree in meat technology, she says it was every graduate’s dream to work at the largest meat industry in Estonia. “I clearly remember a moment when a job advertisement from Rakvere Meat Industry was posted on the school notice board – they were looking for a product manager. Our professor said that if we work very hard in life, we might one day reach a level like that, far in the future 🙂 We all had great respect for Rakvere Meat Industry,” Sille recalls.
Sille was brought to Rakvere by her strong people skills and determination. “At the time, I had a coursemate working there as a product development assistant, so I was already very familiar with both the nature of the work and the daily challenges. Through her, I also knew many people in marketing from earlier events. Because of that, I already felt comfortable and at home with the company. When a product developer position opened up, applying for the job felt like a natural step, and the interview was more of a formality.”
Settling into the job went surprisingly smoothly for Sille, as familiar people were already there and the team was very positive and supportive. “I felt like one of the team quite quickly. The biggest challenge turned out to be not getting lost inside the Rakvere factory. During the first weeks, I mainly spent time trying to figure out where all the corridors and doors led. I still remember how a colleague drew me a little ‘treasure map’ on paper so I could find my way from the office to the experimental department. That route was long, full of turns, and sometimes felt like a miniature labyrinth – at first there was a real risk I might get lost somewhere behind a sausage line forever,” she laughs.

Today, Sille sees her work primarily as being present for and supporting her team. “I make sure that product development projects move forward consistently, are well coordinated, and develop in the right direction. So the core of my daily work is supporting people, giving them direction, and ensuring the smooth progress of projects. Honestly, there is nothing in my work that I would consider particularly difficult. On the contrary – what’s most interesting is that every day is different, and in the morning you never quite know what awaits. The job involves a lot of problem-solving, which keeps the mind alert and makes things exciting. It’s this variety that makes the work special for me.
I also really like that I can see the results of my work in real life – when walking around the store, it’s a truly proud feeling to see products on the shelves that our team has helped create. It gives the work a very concrete and tangible meaning. Secondly, I appreciate the lack of routine. Everything is constantly changing, and no two days are exactly the same. That keeps the work exciting and continuously brings new challenges.”

According to Sille, solution orientation, speed, precision, and ingenuity play a very important role in this job. “These qualities help me deal with both unexpected situations and the constant changes in projects on a daily basis. A strong background in meat technology and long-term experience in the field are definitely an advantage, as they provide confidence in decision-making and help notice nuances that might otherwise go unseen.
I really like that our company is large and diverse, and that different areas of food production – both meat and dairy – are now under one roof. This creates an exciting everyday environment where it is possible to constantly learn something new and develop oneself. It is interesting to see that in the dairy sector there are, in some cases, very similar challenges to those in meat production, while at the same time it is a completely different world. Such diversity enriches the work and broadens one’s perspective, as every day offers an opportunity to understand something new and view situations from a wider angle,” she says happily.

All these interesting years have developed Sille at every step. “My communication skills have definitely reached a completely new level – I’ve learned how to communicate effectively with different people, how to listen, and how to clearly express my thoughts. My teamwork skills have also grown significantly: I’ve experienced how much value there is in supporting each other, trusting one another, and working towards a shared goal.
I have truly been fortunate with my team – they are supportive, cooperative, and reliable, which creates a very positive and united atmosphere in our daily work. It is a pleasure to work with them and also to interact outside of work-related topics.”

Changes are exciting

According to Sille, opportunities for development are very important to her, and this is also one of the main reasons why she has contributed to our company for so long. “Here I have constantly had the chance to improve myself and learn new things. Over the years, the company has gone through significant changes, and this has given me the opportunity to take part in a wide range of interesting projects. I enjoy learning and developing professionally, especially in the food sector.
While staying at home with small children, I rediscovered the joy of learning. At first it felt like a 15-year break from studies had left its mark, and it was hard to get back into the rhythm, but now it’s more like I don’t want to stop at all,” she says.

When asked about interesting or funny memories, Sille shares the following: “I once had a colleague who had a habit of conducting little ‘experiments’ on us. One of the most vivid memories is when he had us taste a boiled sausage without saying anything. We all dutifully tried it, and then he calmly announced that the sausage’s expiration date had actually passed over a year ago. Let’s just say it wasn’t the funniest discovery for us, but he was laughing wholeheartedly at our faces.”
When it comes to food, Sille describes herself as an omnivore who chooses products depending on the situation. “For potato salad, I always use children’s boiled sausage. In the summer, I enjoy grilling blueberry-marinated ribs or kefir-marinated shashlik. I usually make minced meat sauce from home-style minced meat, and for sandwiches I use either chicken ham or delicacy roulade.”

Sille admits that she has truly been lucky in her work, as she can say her job is also her hobby. “Because I genuinely enjoy what I do, I usually don’t feel that work and personal life are in opposition. This makes finding balance between them much easier and also gives me energy for everything else outside of work.
Since I have two small children, a large part of my free time is spent with them and enjoying time together as a family. We really enjoy being on the move – we have a camper van and use every opportunity to go exploring with it in Estonia or even abroad.
The time I have for myself I usually dedicate to exercise or movement in fresh air. In addition, I like to continuously improve myself in the field of food – quite often you can find me attending food-related trainings or courses.”

By the way, Sille has also prepared breakfast for President Alar Karis 😉 And in her life she follows the principle that if there’s no way forward, there is always a way to make it work!