As an independent and through the companies, Living Institute and MindLab, I have worked with a number of different customers in Denmark and abroad. Among them are:
ARLA, Carlsberg, Cheminova, Chevron, Coloplast, University of Aarhus, Rambøll, Novo Nordisk, LEGO, Nordea, University of Copenhagen, Bestseller, Rockwool, Nilfisk, Maersk, Lundbeck, Landbrug og Fødevarer, KMD, Kaospiloterne, IDA Ingeniørforeningen, Leo Pharma, Merck, Danske Bank, Siemens Windpower, Vestas, TORM, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The American Embassy, Oticon, Væksthus Sjælland, Dansk Industri, DTU, Det Maritime Danmark, DONG, Energinet, Ernst & Young, Fritz Hansen, Vattenfall, and many, many others..
Presentations and counseling focused on specific national cultures relevant for cooperation and business.
Through my work with companies and organizations, and through thorough study of actual cultures, I have become specialized in explaining, especially, the differences between Danish culture and those of a number of other nations.
The ‘strangely’ Danish
My ambition is primarily to give Danes insights into their own culture, in order for them to learn how the things they perceive as ‘normal’, actually are very peculiar. I am happy to give this presentation for both Danes and foreigners at the same time, and of course in English.
And the American, Polish, German, or what about the cultural differences within the Nordic countries?
In addition, I am familiar with several other cultures that we often work with, and I am able to combine this knowledge in several different ways. The main focus will always be on cooperation, so that my talks, workshops, and counseling will always focus on the business and the day-to-day work. In that way, theory becomes useful in concrete ways.
Workshops or longer courses that help employees obtain a higher level of ‘cultural intelligence’.
Once we know a little more about each other’s differences, we obviously have to understand what to do about them. I have delivered workshops and training in cultural understanding for many years – of shorter and longer durations - at employee level as well as at management level. ‘Cultural intelligence’ is a central competency for the businesses and organizations of the future if they are to succeed in a global world. With a basis in my books, and many years as a coach, I will teach you in a varied, practical, and entertaining way how to gain better insights into and understanding of the importance of cultures among your colleagues, customers, and stakeholders, and how to manage differences in the most beneficial manner.
Groups, leaders, inspiration or training
Such programs can be organized for groups, individual leaders, teams, or entire organizations. They can be focused on certain nationalities, or broader competencies, and cultural intelligence can be tested in coordination with my international partners.
To me, the boundaries between being a public speaker, an inspirator, an adviser, and a consultant are fluid, but in this section I will present the essence of the tasks I have carried out for some of Denmark’s biggest companies in the last ten years.
The essence of my work within companies has always been to make people aware of some of their blind spots, notions, preferred truths, and stagnated assumptions that stand in their way of optimizing their cooperation with others, because it stands in the way of their respecting and understanding the people they are working with who are not similar to themselves.
This work has primarily been about translation between – and insight into – cultures of different nationalities in my years as an employee and a partner in various consulting firms.
But it could also be about seeing the differences between genders that appear in a work place, or the challenges of having humanists or other academics working in a traditional manufacturing company.
Overall, it is about opening your eyes to how others are different from you, teaching you what that means for your work relations, and finding out how to agree on a common course. This is what I describe in my book ”Cultural Intelligence for Stone-Age Brains” as, respectively, Mapping, Cultural Awareness and Bridging.
Below, under the headlines: “Specific Cultures” and “Cooperation across Cultural Boundaries”, you will find examples of the typical tasks I have carried out for different companies. I always attempt to customize my work to suit my customers’ agendas and situations, while executing it in a simple and relevant way – with a minimum of consultant BS and other empty jargon.
I believe that information, guidance, and rock solid practical knowledge is what my customers need. Not empty management talk, self-invented concepts or models that lead nowhere, or grandiose golden promises. I believe that the customers know what they want and don’t need to be sold all kinds of things that they don’t need, just because the consultant wants to sell them.
I do not accept tasks for which I am not qualified, or for that matter, have an interest in.