Copenhagen Business School

The small Nordic economies are at risk of having all their growth eggs in one basket when a handful of firms account for a hugely disproportionate share of both profits and R&D.

Listen to this podcast on diversity management and how large organisations, like companies and trade unions, can learn from social movements such as Pride. While some of it may be lip service, the hope is that some elements stick, resulting in more diverse and inclusive workplaces across the Nordics and beyond.

Most food delivery riders fall outside the scope of the ‘Danish model’, its comprehensive system of social welfare and the industrial relations model where trade unions bargain collectively for a large proportion of workers. Steps are needed to protect riders in Denmark, although the degree of insecurity and contractual terms vary. Recent domestic and EU developments and a collective bargaining agreement at Just Eat may give riders a reason for optimism.

Working with migrants can challenge the usual expectations and routines of the workforce in welfare institutions. Bureaucrats respond differently depending on their own background and they can resort to different coping strategies, such as, ‘othering’ their migrant clients. Organizational pressures such as integrating new public management processes add to these challenges and can result in existential insecurity amongst bureaucrats; their ontological security is challenged which can have a knock-on effect on their work, that of the institutions they work for and outcomes for their migrant clients.

Maintaining high quality welfare organizations is tough even in the Nordic countries with a myriad of unforeseen challenges to contend with, including budget cuts, personnel issues and reorganization. The focus of New Public Governance on how to govern networks between public and private actors is useful. However, the managerial, organizational and constitutional levels need to be connected in a legal framework where more organic and democratic collaborative processes can also be forged – leading to ‘co-production’. Research from Denmark can be helpful here: It has highlighted how collaboration between municipalities and independent day care institutions can meet both contractual issues as well as more unforeseen demands which come from society, parent-led boards and interest organizations. It is possible to achieve successful co-production through new ways of regulation which also safeguard public value, but it is crucial that it is developed and nurtured on both an operational and political level.

Listen to a podcast on the difficulty of conceptualising the 'Nordic Model' when there is not just one model and many countries outside the Nordic region have similar traits.

In principle, all levels of the male-dominated professions in the Nordic countries are accessible to men and women alike. But, informal processes of exclusion may interfere with gender integration; an extensive use of humor can, for example, interfere with women’s attempts to become part of the military profession. While military organizations are typically characterized as quite formal, humor and laughter also play an essential role in the everyday interaction between soldiers. This supports the forming of social bonds, upholds morale, and ensures that most soldiers can cope with an (at times) exhausting and overwhelming job. It might also have negative consequences, not least for women’s inclusion. So, while the Nordic countries are often seen as societies at the pinnacle of gender equality, research shows that here, too, inclusion is far from ensured in the workplace.

From the outside, it is assumed that the populations of the Nordic countries are fairly homogeneous and that there is a relatively high level of gender equality and acceptance of different sexualities and diversity. In short, identity is not much of a problem. On closer examination, however, there are similar tendencies to elsewhere, such as more entrenched identities that can be both inclusive and exclusive. Feelings of identity can give a sense of belonging, or potentially lead to polarisation between different groups. Nevertheless, ‘Nordic’ identity does, at least to some extent, appear to happily co-exist with those of the five nation states (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) as well as other layers of identity.

Denmark has been a cautious participant of European supranational integration since the Second World War, evaluating the pros and cons of integration, and making the decision to ‘opt in’ when there were benefits. The driving force behind Denmark's accession to the EEC was the desire to become part of an open European economy, rather than support for federalism. Key parliamentary decisions on European integration were made by consensus between the main political parties, regardless of the coalition in power.