Managing Cultural Diversity Norway
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Introduction
Norway was in the center of all the attentions few months ago with the Utoya island drama. A really irrelevant advertising and definitely not really pleasant for a country usually discreet in the international scene. An event which led us to wonder if Norway is eventually the country that we seem know.
Indeed like its Scandinavia sisters, Norway is seen by our imagination as a peacefully place, outside all current burning issues of our contemporary world. For example the fact that it has never accepted to enter into the European Union has been underlined by many European opponents. Indeed they use this case to explain that a European country has not to accept blindly the EU and moreover wants to put in relief all the drawbacks of the monetary Union.
But even in the back of the world scene Norway offers many job opportunities and a really peaceful lifestyle. Thats why some foreigners decide to move in this country in spite of some drawbacks for a non native as the principal one; the climate. But as says a common Norwegian expression: “there are no bad weather, only bad clothes”. In fact all is question of adaptation and implication. Of course its taken for granted that there are some peoples more welcoming than other and its not totally wrong, but the success of a good integration in a new society dwells in all the efforts implemented to improve the knowledge of the specifications of a new culture linked at a new country.
Thats why we will try to build a useful document for anyone who wants to discover more deeply the divergences between French and Norwegian. Our main goal is at the same time the crux of our production, our capacity to go beyond all the clichés that lead us in the wrong way. Of course we cannot overcome the evidences and we will have to deal with all the way.
So we will mix some formal analysis with testimonies to eventually answer at the question: how to quickly adapt itself in the Norwegian society when you are French?
I. Analysis and explanation of cultural differences
A. Analysis
All expatriates risk a mistake if they dont try to understand the country where they work. The Hofstede Framework gives a tool to include it. This tool is composed of five items:
Power distance
French workers expect a gap between them and their managers, a difference of treatment between them and the people with high level of comfort (government, famous people). Usually the power and the authority are centralized and managers keep it without delegate.
In Norway, people have a low power distance. That wants to means they expect equality in work relation. The delegation and decentralized structures are the courant working relation. Statuses are made for change.
A French managers has to pay attention by not to be too stiff or too distant. He must place equality on the center of his management.
Individualism
This item is the same for French and Norway workers.
They mainly search the financial securities for them and their family. In working relation they want seek achievement and individual recognition.
Masculinity
Norway is a high feminine country. Work is relation oriented and workers search employment security. They mainly prioritize cooperative working relationship.
France is in a middle position. French workers looks for compromises between a relation oriented and achievement oriented work.
French managers, to stimulate his team, must organize a participative management and favor a team spirit by informal communication
Long term orientation
Norway is a short term country. The Norwegians want fast result, they search to have pay and promotion with shareholders.
This item is one of the most important because the French managers must be in short term management if he wants motivates his team with short term reward.
Uncertainty avoidance
In France people are more formal, and workers must follow rules. Managers want group consensuses with where dissent is not really tolerate. These situations usually create stress.
Norway is in middle position, less strict and rigorous than France. But in Norway initiatives are more individual.
French manager should give independence and capacity of initiative for his team. And he must be more directly and simple in his communication.
B. Explanations and Norwegian point of view
We will now try to understand why these parameters are so different between France and Norway. After meeting a Norwegian guy working in France, we have found some interesting points which could explain these differences.
The Norway society is more egalitarian and uniform than the French society. This is due to the fact that Norway is a country of