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Denmark

by David Winter

Capital and Flag
Capital City: Copenhagen
The name of the flag is Dannebrog
which is also referred to as the
flag of the Danes, or the red flag
(Ministry of Foreign Affairs of
Denmark, 2014)
The colors red and white are
indicative of blood on the battlefield
and the Christian faith respectively
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)
The flag was first used in the
1300s (Global Road Warrior, 2014)








Image: (Proud to British, 2014)

Language and Religion
Language: Danish is the most spoken language, but English is used
for commerce (Global Road Warrior, 2014)
Danish seems to be a challenging language to learn
Here is an example of a Danish word:
speciallgepraksisplanlgningsstabiliseringsperiode (denmark.dk)
The religion of Denmark is Evangelical Lutheranism, funded and
supported by the government (Global Road Warrior, 2014)
o Bible and Book of Concord are recognized as the basis for the
church and are viewed as inspired by God
Many from other denominations with smaller numbers (Global Road
Warrior, 2014)
Nominal Christianity with many atheists (Global Road Warrior, 2014)

Tourist Attraction
Den Bl Planet (Blue Planet): National Aquarium in Denmark
It is the largest Aquarium in Northern Europe with 20,000+ animals and 7
million liters of water (National Aquarium Denmark, Den Bl Planet, 2014)
It costs about 144 DKK (Danish Krones) for admission which equals about
25 USD (National Aquarium Denmark, Den Bl Planet, 2014)











Image: (architecturelinked.com, 2014) Image: (pipeinsulation.blogspot.com, 2014)








Tourist Attraction
Kronborg Castle: Renaissance style castle from 1574 (Unesco World
Heritage, 2014)
It is well known as the setting for Shakespeares Hamlet as Elsinore
castle (Unesco World Heritage, 2014)










Image: (copenhagennet.dk, 2014) Image: (panaromio.com, 2014)

National Cuisine
Smrrebrd is an open faced
sandwich eaten at lunchtime
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)







Image: (Global Road Warrior,
2014)

Frikadeller: meatballs with pork
and veal served with boiled
potatoes and gravy (Global
Road Warrior, 2014)







Image: (Global Road Warrior,
2014)










Stereotypes by Americans
Belief that Danes are introverted to extreme degree
o Idea is rooted in the example of Shakespeares
Hamlet (Global Road Warrior, 2014)
o The Danes are very warm and sociable
Belief that Danes are scattered island tribe with
Viking roots
o The truth is that Danes are not Vikings
o Denmark has a well ordered and good-humored
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)

Julenisse: like Santa only he has a dark side (Global
Road Warrior, 2014)
Sometimes give rice pudding to keep him happy
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)
New Years Day: Fireworks are used as a shield from
the power of evil spirits (Global Road Warrior, 2014)
Children fling unusable pots and dishware at the
house doors to drive off the evil spirits as well
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)

Superstitions
Taking your pointer finger and placing it to your head
and swirling it around in a circle as you are driving is
viewed as offensive to fellow drivers (Wibbeke, 2014)
Forming a V symbol with your fingers while your
palm facing your body is understood as impolite and
lewd (Executive Planet, 2007)




Hand Gestures
Etiquette
o Hand shake, eye contact, smile (Global Road Warrior,
2014)
o Address people with last name and title (Global Road
Warrior, 2014)
o Make effort to pronounce names correctly (Global
Road Warrior, 2014)
Body Language
o Reserved in nature (Global Road Warrior, 2014)
o Confusing for travelers/businessmen to interpret
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)

Business Culture
Relationship building
o Equality and consensus among group members
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)
o Conducting of business over meals (Global Road
Warrior, 2014)
o Punctuality is of paramount importance to Danes
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)
Business Culture
Communication Styles in Decision Making
o Danes possess a very straightforward, almost
confronting style of communicating (Global Road Warrior,
2014)
o It is wise business tact to demonstrate interest in
learning some of the Danish language (Global Road
Warrior, 2014)
o Light humor is acceptable so long as it refrains from
insulting others (Global Road Warrior, 2014)
o Listen well, do not interrupt speakers, it is considered
impolite (Global Road Warrior, 2014)

Business Culture
Power Structures in Decision Making
o Person with most authority will make final
decision when group cannot agree (Global Road
Warrior, 2014)
o Men and women present ideas as equals to the
team, so it is important for traveling businessmen
to recognize and treat women as equals despite
their own cultural norms (Global Road Warrior,
2014)

Business Culture
Denmark
The Danes are very
reserved, creating
difficulty for travelers in
interpreting nonverbal
communication (Global
Road Warrior, 2014)





US
o Little expression in
their body language
overall (Global Road
Warrior, 2014)
o Some individuals
from other cultures
more expressive
(Global Road
Warrior, 2014)



Similarities and Differences: Body
Language
Denmark
o Communication
equal for all team
members
o Direct
communicators
who dislike
interruption
Similarities and Differences:
Communication Styles
US
o Direct communicators like the
Danes, but sometimes
appearing rude (Global Road
Warrior, 2014)
o Conduct business online or
over the phone
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)

Denmark
Reach decisions by
consensus usually
Most powerful
individual makes final
decision if necessary
Treat all equally
Similarities and Differences: Power
Structures
US
o Varies depending on
business, large companies
tend to be more stratified,
smaller ones reach
decisions by consensus
(Global Road Warrior, 2014)

Definition: the extent to which the less powerful
members of institutions and organisations within a
country expect and accept that power is distributed
unequally (Hofstede, 2014)
Denmark is a small power distance country, rated 18 on
the spectrum, where equality is valued and rate of
independence demonstrated by employees is highest
among the European Union nations (Hofstede, 2014)




Denmark: Small Power Distance
Country
Individualism: the extent of collaborative dependency
among the participants of a society (Hofstede, 2014)
We are considering the emphasis a society places
on individual or group responsibilities
Denmark rates a soaring score of 74 as individualist
nation (Hofstede, 2014)
It is culturally normal for Danes to be caring for
immediate families individually rather than extended
family all living together (Hofstede, 2014)
Denmark: An Individualist Country
Definition of Masculinity Dimension: related to the
reasons behind the actions of individuals (Hofstede,
2014)
In masculine cultures, people are striving to be the best
they can be
In feminine cultures, people express concern for the
needs of others and their standard of living (Hofstede,
2014)
Denmark is feminine culture with great emphasis on
group agreement before making a decision (Hofstede,
2014)




Denmark: A Feminine Society
Definition of Indulgence Dimension: level to which
people attempt to manage the meeting of their
various wants (Hofstede, 2014)
The alternative is restraint, or a withholding of
meeting ones desires
Denmark is very high on this spectrum because they
enjoy fun times and relaxing activities (Hofstede,
2014)




Denmark: An Indulgent Society
Denmark is a much
smaller power distance
country than US,
because individuals
treated with greater
equality
Compare and Contrast on Power
Distance
The US is still fairly low on
this spectrum but is higher
than Denmark partially
because of the emphasis
on speciality of all people
(Hofstede, 2014)
US still fully supports the
equality of all people
Denmark is mostly an
individualist society but
more consensus
oriented in its style of
conducting business

Compare and Contrast on
Individualism
US is even more
individualistic than
Denmark
Members of workforce
should show independence
and personal diligence
(Hofstede, 2014)
US families are very
independent (Hofstede,
2014)


While Denmark is considered a feminist country, the
US is a masculine country
US culture preaches the message of do the best
you possibly can in order to better your financial
circumstances (Hofstede, 2014)
The US emphasizes the idea of continual
improvement (Hofstede, 2014)
Americans are often considered to live to work
(Hofstede, 2014)

Compare and Contrast On
Masculinity
Denmark and the US are fairly similar in their ratings
on this dimension; Denmark scored 70, the US
scored 68
The US, however demonstrates behavior that is
opposite to its overall cultural philosophy
For example, drugs are rampant in usage while US
claims to fight a war against them (Hofstede, 2014)
Another example is the statement Work hard, play
hard (Hofstede, 2014)





Compare and Contrast on
Indulgence
It was recently announced in September of 2014,
that Wembley Stadium of Copenhagen, Denmark will
host the final and semifinal games for EURO 2020, a
European soccer tournament (BBC World News,
2014)
The Danish company Velux has made known that it
is closing a factory of in Bagvaerd Denmark, costing
65 people their means of employment (BBC World
News, 2014)
Current Events
architecturelinked.com. (2014). Retrieved from http://architecturelinked.com
BBC World News. (2014, September 19). Retrieved from BBC World News Web Site: http://www.bbc.com
Central Intelligence Agency. (2014, June 22). CIA World Factbook. Retrieved from CIA World Factobook:
https://www.cia.gov
copenhagennet.dk. (2014). Retrieved from google.com: http://google.com
Denmark: Public Behavior. (2007, October 18). Retrieved from Executive Planet: http://www.executiveplsnet.com
Global Road Warrior. (2014). Retrieved from Global Road Warrior: www.globalroadwarrior.com
Hofstede, G. (2014). The Hofstede Centre. Retrieved from Geert-Hofstede Web Site: http://geert-hofstede.com
MediaMeasurement. (2012). Retrieved from MediaMeasurement: http://www.mediameasurement.com
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. (2014). Denmark.dk: The Official Website of Denmark. Retrieved from
Denmark.dk: denmark.dk
National Aquarium Denmark, Den Bl Planet. (2014). National Aquarium Denmark, Den Bl Planet. Retrieved
from National Aquarium Denmark, Den Bl Planet: www.denblaaplanet.dk
panoramio.com. (2014). Retrieved from google.com: http://google.com
pipeinsulation.blogspot.com. (2014). Retrieved from google.com: http://google.com
proudtobebritish.co.uk (2014). Retrieved from google.com: http://google.com
Unesco World Heritage. (2014). Kronborg Castle. Retrieved from Unesco: http://whc.unesco.org
Wibbeke, E. (2014). WorldSmart. Retrieved from Global Business Leadership Web Site:
http://www.globalbusinessleadership.com

Works Cited

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