cross culture

Cross Culture

Nguyễn Đăng TấnMã Quang Thịnh Bùi Thành Trung

NORWAY

SWEEDEN

FINLAND

DENMARK

ICELAND

Content

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

CUTURAL ELEMENTS

BUSINESS BEHAVIORS

ADVICE FOR WORKING WITH NORWEGIAN

VALUES & ATTITUDES

• When doing business with Norwegians you may find them to be pragmatic and solution oriented. Decisionmaking can be speedy and non-bureaucratic. Key elements in Norwegian business culture is lack of hierarchy, focus on cooperation and trust, empowered employees, work-life balance, gender equality and risk willingness
• The World Economic Forum ranked Norway fifth out of 144 countries on the issue of wage equality in similar jobs. The gender pay gap in Norway is also low. The country ranks third in terms of equal pay for the same job between men and women.
• Norwegian values are rooted in egalitarian ideals and Norway is a progressive welfare state. Openness, equality and equal rights are important values that you will experience when you are in Norway. Openness, equality and equal rights in general– such as economic, social and gender equality – are important values to most Norwegians. It is also an established fact that people with physical and mental challenges should have equal rights and be treated with as much respect as other people, even 5-star prison. Naturally, international students also benefit from these values and rights. This is just one of the many reasons for international students to study in Norway.

VALUES & ATTITUDES

• Most Norwegians believe in equal distribution of wealth and that everyone should have equal opportunities. They generally have a high degree of trust in the government and believe in the welfare state. Norway is called a welfare state because the government, both federal and local, has primary responsibility for the welfare of its citizens. The Norwegian welfare state is mainly financed by taxes and duties paid by its inhabitants.
• Homosexual relations, for instance, have been legal since 1972, and same sex couples have been able to adopt children and get married since 2009.
• The egalitarian values at the root of the welfare state manifest themselves throughout Norwegian society in many ways. Systematic efforts are made to ensure that women and men are equal when it comes to education and wages. This has certainly changed the Norwegian male’s role as a father.
• Norway has a paternity leave quota, so that fathers have to take a certain number of weeks of parental leave, but can also take more time off to be with their children. This has helped make it much easier to combine careers and family. Nevertheless, the goal of total equality remains.
• Informality is widespread in Norwegian society. Formal titles and social position normally do not mean that a person should be addressed any differently than the man in the street. In other words, you are perfectly within ‘normal’ standards of behaviour if you call your professor by the first name for example. As a student you will likely have a friendly relationship with your professor, and this carries over into the workplace, where it is not uncommon to have lunch with your boss.

• Norwegian: 95%, as a first language
• Nynorsk ("New Norwegian", "New" in the sense of contemporary or modern): 10%–15%, west coast
• Bokmål ("Book Language/Tongue/Speech"): majority in Eastern
• Sami: 15,000 indigenous Sami people in Troms and Finnmark – two regions in Northern Norway, as a first language

POLITICS

constitutional monarchy

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close ties

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Local government

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Political process

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Parties

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LAW

1814 Constitution

hệ thống pháp luật dân sự

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Statutes

các đạo luật

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Regulations

các quy định

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LAW

Judicial review

Civil law legal system

Xem xét tư pháp

hệ thống pháp luật dân sự

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Arbitration

Notary functions

Trọng tài

chức năng công chứng

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LAW

Marketing

Intellectual property rights

Real Estate

Public Procurement

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Contracts

Oil and Gas

Entities, setting up business

Energy

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Tax

Employment

Dispute Resolution

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TECHNOLOGY & MATERIAL CULTURE

Batteries

Electric vehicles

Hydrogen and ammonia

Hydropower

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Solar power

Biofuels and biomass

Carbon Capture Storage

Next generation agriculture

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Maritime

Oil and Gas

Green buildings

Seafood

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Tourism

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EGALITARIANISM

Norwegian values are rooted in egalitarian ideals

Behaviors

• For most Norwegians, openness, equality, and equal rights (economic, social, and gender equality) are significant ideals.
• Individuals should be treated at the same rights, privileges and entitlements.
• Norwegians believe that everyone has the right to be heard.
• Norwegians usually call each other by their first names.
• Norwegians dress for comfort rather than to show off their position or status.

EGALITARIANISM

Norwegian values are rooted in egalitarian ideals

Leadership

• Norwegian leader is expected to act more as an instructor or an inspirational person rather than the "Big boss" with hard-to-hear requirements.
• Norwegian leader aspires to assist employees in becoming the best versions of themselves.

EGALITARIANISM

Norwegian values are rooted in egalitarian ideals

Decision making

• Managers expect to include everybody in the decision-making process
• Employees in Norway feel empowered to engage in discussions and vote on final decisions.
• Meetings are frequently held to make decisions and plan implementation strategies.

INDIVIDUAL FOCUS CULTURE

“Self” is important & individual, personal opinions are valued and expressed

Behaviors

• Norwegians are encouraged to be self-sufficient, to make it on their own, to think for themselves.
• Individual freedom is very important.
• Individual taste and style are expressed in home, decoration, offices, dress, and choice of cars.
• Encourage people to express their distinctiveness and uniqueness.
• Laws protecting the rights of individuals.

• Norwegians want to do their individual best in first and then help the team succeed in later.
• The employer-employee relationship is based on a agreement contract

INDIVIDUAL FOCUS CULTURE

“Self” is important & individual, personal opinions are valued and expressed

Recognizing Talent

• Employee of the month award.
• Recognize individual achievement with preferred parking spaces.
• Provide individual incentive compensation, celebrate individual performance.
• Talents tend to work on their own and work out problems by themselves.

TRANSACTIONAL/ LOW - RELATIONSHIP CULTURE

In team/ Organization

• Selecting their team members on the basis of their relevant experience and technical competence.

In business

• Trust is just assumed.

• Norwegians are not obligated to care about the interests and personalities of the people they work with.

• Relationship and Business agreements may be established for only a short period.

• Business Agreements must be protected by contracts and lawyers.

COMMUNICATION STYLE - DIRECT & LOW CONTEXT CULTURE

Norwegians are restrained in verbal and nonverbal communication

Norwegians non – verbal cues

• Norwegians tend to stand at an arm’s length distance from conversational partner in business meetings.
• Norwegians expect little touching in a business situation, no arm-grabbing, and backslapping. Just greeting with a brief handshake and steady, moderate eye contact.
• At the negotiating table, Norwegians often use moderate looking behavior, such as looking their partner straight in the eye and then looking away.

=> Norwegians use few gestures

Direct Communication with Low Context culture

• Norwegians speak and read English fluently; many speak German or French. They tend to be soft-spoken and taciturn.
• At the first meeting, Norwegians get to know counterparts while talking about business => what they said as clearly and briefly as possible without adding a lot of background information.
• Ask questions if they need additional information then expect to reach a decision at the end of the meeting.
• It is not acceptable to interrupt another speaker at meetings.
• Sometimes, Norwegians are used to the frank, straightforward language as when not really interested in a particular deal, they may be reluctant to say that bluntly.

TIME ORIENTATION - HIGH TIME CULTURE

Punctuality & Schedules

• Business meetings start and end on time in Norway

=> Activities are meticulously planned to fit into a specific time frame.

• If you are or will be a few minute late

=> Should apologize, explain the reason and advise new arrival time.

• Effectiveness is evaluated by on-time performance and adherence to schedules.
• Fixed deadlines and schedules .

=> Norwegian quickly lose interest in dealing with business partners who fail to meet their obligations in a timely manner.

• Being early or at least on time in social event .

=> Respectful

CHANGE TOLERANCE

In Norwegian society:

• Change is vital for success and is positive force.
• Change is future improvement and necessary.
• Leaders are considered as "the change inspirational person"
• Failure is not shameful when you learn experience and lessons from it.
• Accept new ideas, alternative ways of doing things.
• Creativity and experimentation is highly valued.
• Children are encouraged to be innovative and creative.
• Rules can be changed.

Behaviors

CHANGE TOLERANCE

In Norwegian business:

• Corporate culture expresses rapid change.
• Lifetime employment is not necessary.
• Accept new ideas. Prefer new ventures.
• Accept high employee turnover.
• Risk taking is rewarded.
• Loyalty is not highly valued.
• Achievement is more preferable.

Business

In Hiring

• Candidates may succeed when talking about their new ventures and how they learned from failures.

WORK – LIFE BALANCE Norwegians work to live

Behaviors and signals

• Norwegian lifestyle focuses on family values, sports, and outdoor life rather than work.
• Long vacations and limited work hours.
• The Norwegian Government encourages long-vacations and limit-work hours.
• Inefficient when leave the office late.
• People don’t like to work on week-ends
• Seek harmony in work environment.

• Money is not a source of social status.

=> Earn enough income

• Candidates at interviews are valued on their skills, qualifications rather than past achievements.
• Job satisfaction is more important than earning maximum income.

ADVICE FOR THE VIETNAMESE MANAGER WORKING WITH NORWEGIAN STAFF

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Political Relation between Vietnam – Norway

Diplomatic Recognition and Presence

1982

1996

1971

1978

2 countries established diplomatic relations

Vietnam closed Embassy and reopened in 2009

Norway opened Embassy in Hanoi

Vietnam opened Embassy in Oslo

Political Relation between Vietnam – Norway

High-level Visits

Relation between Vietnam – Norway

Effective Bilateral Treaties

1995

1997

2007

1996

• Agreement on Terms of Reference for Development Cooperation

• Agreement on the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Income Tax Evasion

• Agreement on Economic and Trade Cooperation
• Agreement on Air Transport

• Agreement on the acceptance of the return of vietnamese citizens

Language & Communication

• You should still learn Norwegian. You’ll enjoy life here more. Acquiring a command of the local language will help you get to know the people you work with and meet in the course of your daily life here better

• Most Norwegian speaks English fluently, but they watch TV, read the news, discuss the meaning of life and the issues of the day in their mother tongue

• Use clear messages that require few words to express. Focus on the clarity of messages rather than its interpretation.

• Verbal directness: Norwegian employees are very often direct in communication

• Paraverbal communication: They tend to be soft-spoken and taciturn
• Nonverbal communication: use few gesture

• Be confident in your direction, clearly communicate your expectations, and establish clear accountability for everyone you lead and always lead by example

=> In order to be soft-spoken while still radiating authority

Working & Meetings

• Defining roles and responsibilities for each people
• Ensures that team members have adequate training, time and resources to complete work

• Very egalitarian
• Less formal from more hierarchical cultures

• Be clear whether you’re throwing out ideas or calling for action.
• Involve the team in creating and designing the future of their areas.
• Discuss and share the implications of upcoming changes.

• Give team members time to understand and absorb major changes so they fully comprehend the intent and direction

• Change tolerance

Working & Meetings

• Should go to work earlier than them
• Be on time at appointments and control timing during meetings => ensure the meeting finish at ending time
• If the manager would be late for some reasons, they should be informed

• Punctuality and schedules

• Individual focus

• Award employee when they achieve the goals.

• Work life balance

• Offer flexible and remote working
• Focus on productivity rather than hours, spend time working smarter, not harder
• Encourage breaks: Encourage your employees to take breaks, take a walk or even work in an entirely different part of the office, lunch break, or vacation time
• Regularly review workloads: Review your allocation of duties to ensure individuals have achievable workloads.

Thanks!

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