2009-05-27
Most companies who establish themselves in Sweden's have a strategy that the CEO of the new affiliated company is recruited from the parent company. This means that the CEO often is foreign.
There are many advantages with that and the biggest is that the CEO brings knowledge and experience from the parent company to Sweden. The CEO will also bring the parent company's corporate culture and its values to the new affiliated company.
However, there are several challenges for the foreign CEO as he/she will start up operations here. One is to build a relevant organization for business and to recruit the right employees.
The first the CEO may encounter is that the labor law is different in Sweden compared to many other countries. The second is that leadership, organization and communication differs between countries.
What should the foreign CEO do to successfully manage the cultural differences that may arise in connection with the establishment?
Culture is a strategic issue. This means that the CEO and even the new management understand and show that diversity adds value to the organization and to employees. The CEO is the role model that shows the right path
It is important to recognize, work with and build on differences rather than ignoring them. By being curious and asking questions, we understand that we are different. It would seem obvious and unnecessary to spend time on, but it pays off in the long run.
There are studies that show that the multi-cultural groups perform better if they initially engaged in working with the differences that exist, and accordingly decide how they will work together. It can be about how to inform each other in the group, how to behave towards each other, the time frame or which language.
A trap that is easy to fall into when working with people from other cultures is to generalize and use the stereotypes about them. It is very easy to divide people in different compartments and also evaluate them based on their own way of thinking. It is so easy to get caught up in "us and them". Next time you meet someone from another culture, the person will behave in a completely different way than you had expected. Therefore, it is important to meet people as individuals.
By understanding that we have something to learn from each other and that our own culture is not the best in all contexts shows that we have humility and respect for each other. In this way, we avoid corridor talk about the other culture, and employees can become more proactive. Instead of being trapped in the "we and them" we are building bridges between cultures and we can meet and enrich each other.
If the new CEO is aware that there are differences and is open to deal with them he or she will be successful. Then, it will also be obvious to both seek advice and support in local labor issues but also how he/she will lead the Swedish organization. Good luck.