<p>Palabras claves: liderazgo, cultura española y sueca, liderazgo situacional</p><p>Durante las últimas décadas, la globalización se ha extendido a todo el mundo. El desarrollo de nuevas tecnologías ha evolucionado rápido y nos ha dado posibilidades para enfrentar nuevos mercados más fácilmente que antes. Las condiciones para las empresas han cambiado y hoy en día no compiten solamente en su mercado local si no también con empresas en todo el mundo. Las empresas que entran en nuevos mercados se vuelven internacionales y diferentes culturas se mezclan en la organización. Esto a menudo es un problema ya que diferentes culturas utilizan distintos tipos de liderazgo. Qué pasa cuando una empresa española entra en el mercado sueco?</p><p>Hemos realizado esta investigación con el propósito de ver si una organización española, con un liderazgo centralizado, que entra en un mercado sueco, debe adaptarse a las diferencias culturales o puede seguir con la misma estructura de la organización que en el país de origen.</p><p>Resultado</p><p>En conclusión hemos notado que pueda haber grandes diferencias entre dos países europeos y que la ignorancia de estas diferencias pueden resultar en grandes problemas y malentendidos para las empresas. Las empresas españolas que abren sucursales en Suecia a menudo se encuentran en problemas en las siguientes situaciones:</p><p>· El trabajo esta por sobre el bienestar del trabajador.</p><p>· Un empleado es nombrado en un cargo por sobre otro aunque tenga menos experiencia.</p><p>· Los empleados son controlados y no pueden tomar iniciativas por el diseño estricto de la tarea del trabajo.</p><p>· Cuando existe una grán distancía entre jefes y empleados.</p><p>Esto lo podemos resumir en que las empresas españolas no han implementado un liderazgo situacional, en el que la empresa se adapta a la cultura, al abrir sus sucursales en Suecia. La adaptación del liderazgo ha sido minima y forzada por las experiencias que las empresas han vivido durante su estancia.</p><p>En conclusión una empresa, aunque tenga el poder centralizado en el país de origen, tiene que adaptarse y conocer hasta cierto punto la cultura del país de destino para tener éxito en el nuevo mercado.</p> / <p>During the last decades the globalization has spread and is now a concern for the entire world. The technological development has exploded and has given us new possibilities and access to information that make it possible to meet new markets. The conditions have changed and the companies not only compete with their closest competitors on the local market but also with everyone in the same business over the world. Companies go abroad with different entry modes to get new market shares and this results in a more international and multicultural organization. This is not always without problems since the companies are confronted with different types of cultures that are reflected in the organization and its work. Different kinds of leadership are used in different kinds of cultures but what happens when two cultures meet?</p><p>For example in Swedish culture hierarchy and power distance are distant ideas unlike the Spanish culture where it is to a great extent frequent.</p><p>After finishing the investigation it turned out that the cultural differences inside an organisation between two European countries can be big although in the beginning it’s not noticed. The ignorance of knowledge about the culture in the country of destination, from the employers, often contributes to a lot of problems and misunderstandings. We found that Spanish companies who open branches in Sweden often come across problems in following situations:</p><p>· When the work task is given priority to the wellbeing of the employees.</p><p>· When a less experienced person is given a position ahead of a more experienced employee.</p><p>· When the staff is controlled and can’t take their own initiative or haven’t the possibility to be flexible because of the strictly designed work task.</p><p>· When big differences in power distance between employer and employee are expressed.</p><p>We can establish that the implementation of the situational leadership has been rather absent in the beginning when opening in Sweden. The adjustment has come gradually and was strained because of the knowledge the Spanish companies acquired regarding Swedish employees and their culture. The companies were forced to adapt some of their leadership to the Swedish culture to be able to succeed on the Swedish market. The conclusion we come to is that a certain amount of situational adjustment is necessary even for the centralised governed company when opening branches in other countries.</p>

Palabras claves: liderazgo, cultura española y sueca, liderazgo situacional Durante las últimas décadas, la globalización se ha extendido a todo el mundo. El desarrollo de nuevas tecnologías ha evolucionado rápido y nos ha dado posibilidades para enfrentar nuevos mercados más fácilmente que antes. Las condiciones para las empresas han cambiado y hoy en día no compiten solamente en su mercado local si no también con empresas en todo el mundo. Las empresas que entran en nuevos mercados se vuelven internacionales y diferentes culturas se mezclan en la organización. Esto a menudo es un problema ya que diferentes culturas utilizan distintos tipos de liderazgo. Qué pasa cuando una empresa española entra en el mercado sueco? Hemos realizado esta investigación con el propósito de ver si una organización española, con un liderazgo centralizado, que entra en un mercado sueco, debe adaptarse a las diferencias culturales o puede seguir con la misma estructura de la organización que en el país de origen. Resultado En conclusión hemos notado que pueda haber grandes diferencias entre dos países europeos y que la ignorancia de estas diferencias pueden resultar en grandes problemas y malentendidos para las empresas. Las empresas españolas que abren sucursales en Suecia a menudo se encuentran en problemas en las siguientes situaciones: · El trabajo esta por sobre el bienestar del trabajador. · Un empleado es nombrado en un cargo por sobre otro aunque tenga menos experiencia. · Los empleados son controlados y no pueden tomar iniciativas por el diseño estricto de la tarea del trabajo. · Cuando existe una grán distancía entre jefes y empleados. Esto lo podemos resumir en que las empresas españolas no han implementado un liderazgo situacional, en el que la empresa se adapta a la cultura, al abrir sus sucursales en Suecia. La adaptación del liderazgo ha sido minima y forzada por las experiencias que las empresas han vivido durante su estancia. En conclusión una empresa, aunque tenga el poder centralizado en el país de origen, tiene que adaptarse y conocer hasta cierto punto la cultura del país de destino para tener éxito en el nuevo mercado. / During the last decades the globalization has spread and is now a concern for the entire world. The technological development has exploded and has given us new possibilities and access to information that make it possible to meet new markets. The conditions have changed and the companies not only compete with their closest competitors on the local market but also with everyone in the same business over the world. Companies go abroad with different entry modes to get new market shares and this results in a more international and multicultural organization. This is not always without problems since the companies are confronted with different types of cultures that are reflected in the organization and its work. Different kinds of leadership are used in different kinds of cultures but what happens when two cultures meet? For example in Swedish culture hierarchy and power distance are distant ideas unlike the Spanish culture where it is to a great extent frequent. After finishing the investigation it turned out that the cultural differences inside an organisation between two European countries can be big although in the beginning it’s not noticed. The ignorance of knowledge about the culture in the country of destination, from the employers, often contributes to a lot of problems and misunderstandings. We found that Spanish companies who open branches in Sweden often come across problems in following situations: · When the work task is given priority to the wellbeing of the employees. · When a less experienced person is given a position ahead of a more experienced employee. · When the staff is controlled and can’t take their own initiative or haven’t the possibility to be flexible because of the strictly designed work task. · When big differences in power distance between employer and employee are expressed. We can establish that the implementation of the situational leadership has been rather absent in the beginning when opening in Sweden. The adjustment has come gradually and was strained because of the knowledge the Spanish companies acquired regarding Swedish employees and their culture. The companies were forced to adapt some of their leadership to the Swedish culture to be able to succeed on the Swedish market. The conclusion we come to is that a certain amount of situational adjustment is necessary even for the centralised governed company when opening branches in other countries.

In the business world facilitation of corporate communication through the use of a single language has become almost a standard procedure. There is little knowledge, however, regarding how working in a language other than the mother tongue affects our thought processes and functionality at work. This study is an attempt to clear some issues around the subject.   The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of the corporate language, English, on managers’ communication within the organisation.  The target group includes Finnish and Swedish managers working at a Nordic IT corporation, TietoEnator. The study was conducted by combining theoretical material on communication, language and culture with the empirical results of 7 qualitative interviews.   The results show us that using a shared corporate language has both advantages and disadvantages. English helps in company internationalisation and in creating a sense of belonging, but also complicates everyday communication. The main disadvantage that English has caused is the lack of social communication between members of different nations in an unofficial level.   The main conclusion is that the corporate language is not at all times sufficient fulfil the social needs of the members of the organisation. Through this lack of socialisation it is possible that the functionality of the organisation loses some of its competitive advantage in the business markets.

Mass communication today stands for a great number of information in the developed welfare state of Sweden. This was also the case during the social and economic financial crisis in 2008-2011. At this point, the majority of the population chose to turn to the newspapers to look for further information. This essay seeks, in a comparative and theoretical way, and with the help of two theories of nationalism, to understand how the Swedish culture and tradition can be ex­plained via newspapers, and in what way these portray nationalism. What it also sets out to in­vestigate further is what kind of impact it might exercise over the population in its position as one of the leading providers of information. The research is conducted through the use of articles published by Dagens Nyheter and Svenska Dagbladet during the financial crisis 2008-2011 in Sweden. It occur a form of institutionalized nationalism that is barely noticeable in Sweden. The discussion concludes that even though there is a slight nationalism noticeable in the two above mentioned newspapers, one needs a further investigation in order to be able to generalize if mass communication in Sweden today portrays nationalism.

Emerging markets are countries with rapid economic growth and have been on the global agenda over the last decades. The most prominent of these markets are the BRIC countries where India is included. India is one of the largest emerging markets in the world with large annual economic growth and great opportunities for firms doing business in it. However, it has proven to be complicated for Westerns firms operating in the country, which stems from its cultural differences towards the West but also the cultural diversity within the country. Differences also exist between India and the West in a business context, where Indians highlight the importance of personal relationships before engaging in contracts, unlike for example Swedes that do the opposite. The purpose of this study is to investigate what cultural differences Swedish small and medium sized enterprises perceive while doing business in India, and what standardization or adaptation strategies they use to manage these differences. Empirical findings have been retrieved from interviews with key personnel in three firms located in Småland, in Southeast Sweden, which are established or have tried to establish business in India. The literature review contains three main concepts; Doing business in emerging markets, Standardization vs. adaptation and Cultural elements that are all connected to India and how SMEs should approach this market. These three concepts are later illustrated in a conceptual framework, which is based on the research questions. The result shows that Swedish SMEs perceive Indian culture as very hierarchical in both society and organizations. The aspect of time is not highly regarded, where payment and delivery delays are frequent. Indians rely extensively on personal relationships and try to avoid uncertainties in business communication. Findings also show that friendship and personal bonds are initial aspects when negotiating a potential contract. It is also essential for Swedish SMEs to adapt some business activities when in India, although certain standardization methods should be used in order to thrive on the Indian market.

Mergers and acquisitions have received much attention through the years due to the waves of modernity it has implicated. Three crucial aspects that can shape a merger or an acquisition are culture, leadership and human resource management. These aspects are studied and analyzed in a Swedish company that has been involved in an acquisition process with a French company.  The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the role of culture, leadership and human resource management in an acquisition process between a French/Swedish company. An abductive research approach is adopted for the research since a mixture between inductive and deductive research approach is used. The method chosen was semi-structured interviews, which was fulfilled with the management team in the chosen company as well as with a consultant.  The findings of the study are that the three aspects have an impact on the acquisition process where culture is the most central. The culture had a significant impact on the acquisition process and affected the leadership and the human resource management within the company as well. In the company studied, the human resource management was lacking and found that communication is crucial during an acquisition process.  The limitations are that only one company is studied and the aspects are limited to culture, leadership and human resource management. The original value of the study can give a clearer picture on how the three aspects affect each other and the total acquisition process. Suggestions for further research include analyzing additional processes and cultures, not only the ones chosen in this dissertation.

Although gazillion of studies have been conducted regarding what influences auditors’ judgment, few studies examined the impact of conformity pressure on auditors’ judgment. Despite the few attempts to discover this area, different results rendered from these studies.The purpose of this study is to explain how the conformity pressures affect auditors’ judgement. The effect of other factors was taken into consideration such as professional commitment, Locus of control and the characteristics of Swedish culture. The method was quantitative using data collected by surveys sent to auditors working in big-four and non-big-four audit firms.The findings show that conformity pressure does not affect the judgment of the Swedish auditors.The limitations of the study are the number of responses received through the survey and the difficulty of accurately target the Swedish auditors.

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to investigate the identity development of second-generation immigrants and gain a deeper understanding of how they develop their identity by navigating between their parents' culture and Swedish culture. The study had the following research question: In what way do second-generation immigrants develop their identity with regard to their parents' culture and Swedish culture?The method used in the study was semi-structured interviews with five participants from Södertälje municipality, all of whom belonged to second-generation immigrants. To analyze the data, various theories were used, including Goffman's theories of roles and stigma as well as Tilly's theory of inequality.The results of this study showed, among other things, that the respondents in the study do not feel completely at home in either of the two cultures they identify with. Their identity formation is affected by the degree of cultural affiliation, where they feel a stronger connection to their parents' culture while experiencing a stronger belonging to Sweden as a country. Although they are well integrated into Swedish culture, they are always considered immigrants and feel like "visitors" in their own homeland. Respondents also experience a feeling of not belonging to any specific culture, which reinforces their bond with their parents' culture of greater acceptance. They describe themselves as a hybrid of the two cultures and experience difficulties in fully integrating into either of them.

No description available.

Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att belysa hur svenska ledare bemöter kulturella skillnader i Kina samt på vilket sätt de anpassar sig till en kinesisk arbetsplats. Vidare syftar studien till att identifiera eventuella utmaningar som kan uppkomma för svenska ledare på en kinesisk arbetsplats.    Metod: Forskningen tillämpar en kvalitativ metod som utgår ifrån en deduktiv forskingsanstas. Studien använder sig av en komparativ forskningsdesign och implementerar semistrukturerade intervjuer för att utforska kulturella skillnader som svenska ledare upplever i Kina.   Empiri och analys: I det empiriska avsnittet sammanförs en sammanfattning av de insamlade intervjusvaren som är indelade i tre huvudteman (kultur, ledarskap och kommunikation). Senare analyseras det empiriska materialet utifrån den teoretiska referensramen.   Slutsatser: Slutsatserna som kan dras utifrån analysen av det empiriska materialet är att svenska ledare upplever olika typer av problem i form av ledarskap, kommunikation och kulturella koder. För att kunna handskas med dessa kulturella skillnader anpassar sig svenska ledare till den kinesiska företagskulturen. Dessutom anpassar svenska ledare en del av sitt egna ledarskap på arbetsplatsen, i samband med att kinesiska medarbetare anpassar sig till det svenska ledarskapet. Det uppstår alltså en ömsesidig anpassning. / Purpose: The purpose of this study is to highlight how Swedish leaders encounter cultural differences in China and how they adapt to the Chinese workplace. Moreover, the study aims to identify any challenges that may arise for a Swedish leader in a Chinese workplace.   Method: The research implements a qualitative method, based on a deductive research approach. The study uses a comparative research design and implements semi-structured interviews in order to study the cultural differences experienced by a Swedish leader in China.   Empirical findings and Analysis: The empirical part presents a summary of the collected interview data separated into three main themes (culture, leadership and communication). Thereafter, the empirical material is analyzed using the theoretical reference frame.   Conclusions: The conclusions that can be drawn from the analysis of the empirical material is that Swedish leaders experience different forms of complications regarding leadership, communication and cultural indications. To be able to deal with these cultural differences, Swedish leaders adapt to the Chinese corporate culture. In addition, Swedish leaders adopt a part of their own leadership in the workplace, in order for Chinese employees to adapt to the Swedish leadership. Therefore, a mutual adjustment from both sides appears.