Full speed ahead in relaxed style

BY INGE KJÆRGAARD

To many, Denmark means Hans Christian Andersen, the Little Mermaid, open sandwiches and an indefinable kind of social cosiness Danes call hygge. But Denmark is also Maersk, Vestas, Grundfos, Danfoss, and a lot of small- and medium-sized enterprises. A lot of people ready to do business with you. So what are they like, and what should you prepare yourself for when sitting down at the table with the Vikings from the cold north?

Danes may appear unstructured, when in fact they are not. Don’t underestimate them in negotiations – they know what they are doing. Illustration: Lars Chrois.

Forward, friendly, informal, unstructured, humorous. A foreigner’s description of a Danish businessman or businesswoman depends on the person’s own frame of reference.

“You typically make assessments from the cultural platform you stand on yourself. So opinions will differ widely, depending on whether you ask a Chinese, an American or a Saudi how they perceive Danish business people,” says Anne-Marie Søderberg.

She is professor of intercultural communication and management at Copenhagen Business School; her research interests include national identity and cultural analysis.

There are nonetheless some common characteristics which broadly categorise Danes, opines one of Denmark’s most well-known sociologists, Henrik Dahl.

“What strikes foreigners most about Danes is that we are quite anti-authoritarian. We have some very informal rules regarding how we socialise, while other countries have very formal rules about who can talk to whom, and how you dress,” he says.

Distances are small within power structures in Denmark – in both politics and management. One can see it in leadership style and the way managers dress.

“It is all very informal. But even so, productivity is fairly high. We are industrious – secretly. Unstructured appearances can deceive foreigners – because things are actually quite structured,” says Henrik Dahl.

COSMOPOLITAN VS. DANISH
Anne-Marie Søderberg thinks that Danish businesspeople are gradually shifting towards being cosmopolitan rather than Danish.

“The younger generation has travelled a lot, stayed abroad to study and worked abroad, perhaps in an overseas subsidiary of a big company they work for, so they are used to being among foreigners. Danish workplaces are also becoming more multicultural”, she says.

But Henrik Dahl thinks that Danes are still very Danish. Many companies have to instruct their staff concerning dress code when they travel abroad to conduct business.

“Danes have a tendency to think that their way is the best way. From an unreflected Dane’s viewpoint, foreigners are seen as rather odd and so may not always receive sufficient respect,” says Henrik Dahl.

Danish business people come in many varieties

Friendly, conflict-shy, prepared, not so prepared, flexible, not so understanding. These are some of the words the foreign businesspeople Focus Denmark has spoken to use to describe Danish businesspeople. The impressions are far from unequivocal – it all depends on the eyes that see.

A DEAL IS A DEAL

The Danes are unique to themselves, thinks Konstantin Fomin. He is a Russian director in Per Aarsleff, a company that specialises in foundation engineering and pipe renovation, and he conducts business with Danes on a daily basis.

“Danes are very different to other Europeans. I often meet businesspeople from Central Europe and they are very different – even Germans are different from Danes”, he says and continues: “If you do business with a Dane, you can be sure that a deal is a deal. You can really count on them. In many other countries you have to make sure you get things in writing.”

He thinks however that it can be a bit difficult to gauge their reactions in a negotiation situation.

“They do not quite show whether they are happy or unhappy, whereas other nationalities display their emotions more,” he says.

Konstantin Fomin thinks that the era of spending lots of time wining and dining with business acquaintances is drawing to a close – and that is certainly echoed by the Danes. They want to get down to business and sort out the paperwork. But it doesn’t signify any lack of respect for the culture.

“I think they are very flexible. If for example there is a national holiday, they show understanding for our traditions and are happy to participate,” he says.

FULL SPEED AHEAD

Prepared, focused and determined. That is Martin Fischer’s view of Danish businesspeople. He has lived in Denmark for seven years, is originally from Switzerland, but has lived in many countries including 10 years in the USA.

“When Danes go into a negotiation, they know what they want. They have prepared well and have their act together. And they are very focused about reaching their objectives,” says Martin Fischer, who works for Polycom – the world’s leading company in unified communication solutions.

There are pros and cons to the Danish approach, he thinks. The advantage is that they know what they are talking about, but on the other hand they can become a bit too focused and forget to listen to the people sitting across the table.

“Culturally, Danes are not always so understanding of others. They often go full speed ahead – like they do at home. But that is not necessarily the way to do things when you conduct business abroad,” he says.

Martin Fischer lived in the USA for many years, and sees a significant difference between American and Danish businesspeople.

“In Denmark, there is trust in the state to take care of you if things go wrong. It’s not like that in the USA – if things go wrong, you really fall. So there is a much more personal approach to things – as an individual you have to fight your way forward – and that makes Americans somewhat tougher businesspeople,” he opines.

HUMOUR TO SMOOTH OVER DIFFICULTIES

Maarten van Engeland is director of ISS Facility Services A/S, which operates in the cleaning and catering sector. He was born in Holland, but has lived in Denmark for 30 years.

“As a Dutchman I have had to get used to Danes generally not having too much regard for authority. You might think that Danes lack respect, but they don’t. To Danes, their word is their bond and they are very capable. Compared to foreign businesspeople they do not always seem particularly well-prepared at meetings. So some probably underestimate the Danes’ capabilities,” says Maarten van Engeland.

He thinks Danes are very convivial and good at socialising together. A nice meal is always a good idea, but the time and place are important.

“It should preferably be at a time that suits them. In other countries you dine out with businesspeople morning, noon and night. But Danes cherish their spare time, and rarely invite business associates to their homes, as one does in many other countries,” he says.

He describes himself as a very direct businessman, and in that respect he thinks he differs from most Danish businesspeople.

“Danes are more esoteric and indirect. They prefer to use humour to say the things they don’t like to say. They smooth things over and say ’We will work something out’,” he opines.

NO CHEATING

Straightforward, open and friendly. These are the words Hai Li from China applies to Danish businesspeople. He works for Vestas Aircoil in China, and his boss is Danish.

“If there is something they want to ask, they ask directly, and that saves a lot of time. In China, as in many other countries, people are not so direct,” says Hai Li.

Although Hai Li works closely with Danes, he has not adopted the direct approach to communication – neither with Danes nor local people.

He actually considers it is an advantage to refrain from directness, since many Chinese do not like it.

Hai Li thinks it is easy to do business with Danes when there is good trust, but recognises that it takes a little time to build.

“It requires a few meetings – to observe how you work and speak – and to gain trust. But Danes are very open people and good listeners. And they are willing to make changes if your idea is good,” he says.

Something Hai Li thinks is both good and bad about Danes is the speed with which they sometimes make decisions. It means that changes can be made quickly – but occasionally he thinks that they forget whether they have all the facts in their hands.

Hai Li emphasises one important point to note when doing business with a Dane: “You must not cheat a Dane. They become angry if they discover it,” says Hai Li.