I dont think its unclear what your job is or what youre supposed to do. But there is an expectation that you should figure out HOW to do it yourself. And you are also expected to ask for help if anythings unclear, rather than somone tells you unsolicited.
When i moved home to Norway in 2008, i got a job in a software company, it support, customer care, sales and event planning. I startet 29th of June.within 1-2 weeks the whole office took vacation, so I was there alone running things. I had never worked in IT before. But I learn some easy HTML coding and looked at older emails, called all the customers B2B and got to know them and their software solutions. So it was a steep learning curve, but free lunch and a huge balcony to relax on with an ocean view. Plus all the nespresso coffee I could drink😅
We dont "just" get fridays off. But many (most?) have the opportunity to work a few hours extra on other days so we can get the day off or leave early.
@@LarsEspen Many emplyers allow employees to work in hours during the week. And if you have enough hours, and the employer let you, you can take some fridays off. Usually not every friday though.
What this lady is talking about is for those who work in an office. This does not apply to all jobs in Norway, just to be clear. I personally don't think you are assigned to a workstation, and left there on the first day at work. Everyone must be given instructions on what to do, even if you have been given all the tools for the job such as a PC, phone ++++.
Yeah tbh the Norwegians are very loyal to their workspace. Sometimes if they work overtime they work for the job and not for the money. Like if they didn't finnish smth then they take some time extra.
I am a former Norwegian teacher, and one of the most important qualities we encourage in our children is learning responsibility. We have a philosophy that you cannot learn to take responsibility without being given responsibility, and this is done from an early age. When the people are raised that we have freedom under responsibility, then people understand what it means to take responsibility - including taking responsibility for figuring out what to do. Training will usually be provided, but you actually have to ask yourself if something is unclear. One of the worst things Norwegians know is being herded like a flock of sheep in the workplace. It is therefore important that you ask yourself, so that the boss or other employees know that you need help. This may sound strange to many, since Norwegians can in other ways be like a herd of sheep because we are used to being able to trust the politicians and the media, so if they tell us that everyone has to take an experimental injection, then most people will do. Even if we ten years earlier were told the exact same thing, and it turned out to be a huge mistake.
When you apply for a job, you of course know what kind of job position you applied for and based on your experiences, you should know how to do it. You might receive a brief training on procedures if the company has a specific requirement, but in general, you're expected to be a professional that knows how to complete your tasks, and even figuring out what your tasks need to be.
In general Elli’s analyses are right, but there is always *two sides of a coin.* How a person perceives a Norwegian vs a US workspace depends on the kind of work the person is doing: blue vs white collar, technical vs theoretical, physical vs academic, etc. For +10 yrs I studied and worked in the US before moving back to Norway, ie it’s fair to say that my different US bosses' management strategies is a reflection of my entire work career. At some jobs I had 90% freedom (and responsibility) to do my things, just as I was used to when studying/working in Norway. And I praise those bosses for that. However, at my last job I truly felt the micro (and macro) management burden of a typical authoritarian US boss. Even to the extent that he was frustrated and froze me out when I got married and had a family in the middle of the contract (supposedly my academic time should be 110% dedicated to work). In the end I gladly just left the USA and I’m happy to say that I've reiterated numerous times, "I’ll never look back!" After a while trying to recover my work mode/flow here in Norway, I had no luck with the independence I had missed, and to say it mildly: I dug myself into an extremely negative hole in terms of life/work/family. However, over the yrs I realized that I missed/needed at least some aspects of a manager/boss who could guide me, set goals and keep a strict work schedule. So, at my current job (which is anything but a desk/office job) I have several, but different, kinds of tasks. And all I hear from my boss is, "You do this!" or "You produce that!" For every job I have to figure out by myself how to do it, and mostly how to do it at my own pace. As my tasks are practical - and most of them I have never done before at other workplaces - it's both liberating and motivating to have the "space" to figure this out by myself, and especially when the job is done to satisfaction to both myself and the boss. However, and to my frustration, sometimes I truly miss that I'm not given any guidance and/or instructions when a specific job is new to me. It can be minute things that could have made me do the job much quicker and better, but nevertheless. I guess my Norwegian shyness tells me, "You figure this out by yourself!" At the end of the day, I finally found a perfect job/workspace/colleagues where I love the freedom/responsibility, but where I also can miss hints of guidance/micro-management. Somebody said, "You cannot have it all ..."
I work in IT and have been working internationally for many years, and I can attest to the unclear issue. Norwegian IT workers are very individual in their work methods, and they have the mandate to make decisions. In other countries, more decisions are made in teams (decisions by committee) or by management way up high. Here in Norway, the decisions are often made on the floor by workers affected. Role descriptions are often vague and you may end up doing something more or less related. As a new employee, you will have to search and find empty shoes to fill... You may be hired as a designer, but if no one is tracking the velocity of the team and if you have that skillset -> you kinda just take it. You might ask first if it's ok for you to take it, but yes: Autonomous team structure in my industry is a given by now. My past 3 roles have not had a written description. You and your team have to figure out how to solve it and sometimes also what issues to solve. I am aware this is not for all industries, but Norwegian IT sure feels like this.
Don't recognize everything here. Yes, we somethimes leave early on a friday. But looking into statistics, Norway is highly ranked when it comes to efficiency a.s.o. So when working, we really work!
I live in Málaga southern Spain and I have a great work life balance.I start work at 7.00am each day and finish at 15.30 pm with 30 minute lunch 5 days a week. Also if all tasks are complete we finish at midday on a Friday. We are not micro-managed and treated like responsible adults. Here we work to live not live to work like in America. The American structure and way of life starts early by having to swear allegiance to the flag each day and being indoctrinated into cult America. By the time most Americans leave school they are just sleep walking through life and know nothing about life outside of America. Cult America taught how great America is and the media they consume has an American narrative only. Hence they are willfully ignorant about anything outside their bubble.
Its very different from job to job. We help people from other countries in the industri. She talkes about offices. I,ts thousands of other type of jobs. Thats not like she says. I work with peoples from 5 other countries . We allways help each others.
The job is more often than not a social club where you serve time in order to "contribute" to the welfare state. The actual contribution comes from oil exports, so the rest of us are basically scrambling to keep the wheels and cogs of society running smoothly. The problem is that nobody wants the "real" jobs like nursing, cleaning, physical work etc, as you'll be making more money in the vague sector. The downside is constantly living in fear that the management start disliking you, as they can very easily make a case for you not actually "doing your part". (This is satire)
We dont start work without knowing what u are doing, it’s rubbish to say that. Would u get a job if it wasn’t in your field. Think for yourself is the motto’s
The loyality to the workplace goes bith ways. In america. And do correct me if i am wrong. You get screwed. Work and eployers relationship to you is one of exploitation. If they can get away with not paying you they will and they would still feel entitled to 80 hours a week if they could get away with it. Their only focus is proffit and share price. Fuck quality fuck the employee fuck human life. Its all about the bottomn line. So not taking full advantage of the norway system would be stupid.
Yes, when I started at an American company's facility in Norway, my new boss said almost exactly what she said, desk, phone, coffee mug, good luck.
I dont think its unclear what your job is or what youre supposed to do. But there is an expectation that you should figure out HOW to do it yourself. And you are also expected to ask for help if anythings unclear, rather than somone tells you unsolicited.
This is exactly what I have experienced in my job. Now I am a retired Norwegian
When i moved home to Norway in 2008, i got a job in a software company, it support, customer care, sales and event planning. I startet 29th of June.within 1-2 weeks the whole office took vacation, so I was there alone running things. I had never worked in IT before. But I learn some easy HTML coding and looked at older emails, called all the customers B2B and got to know them and their software solutions. So it was a steep learning curve, but free lunch and a huge balcony to relax on with an ocean view. Plus all the nespresso coffee I could drink😅
We dont "just" get fridays off. But many (most?) have the opportunity to work a few hours extra on other days so we can get the day off or leave early.
We don't get fridays off, are we supposed to?
@@LarsEspen Many emplyers allow employees to work in hours during the week. And if you have enough hours, and the employer let you, you can take some fridays off. Usually not every friday though.
What this lady is talking about is for those who work in an office. This does not apply to all jobs in Norway, just to be clear. I personally don't think you are assigned to a workstation, and left there on the first day at work. Everyone must be given instructions on what to do, even if you have been given all the tools for the job such as a PC, phone ++++.
Yeah tbh the Norwegians are very loyal to their workspace. Sometimes if they work overtime they work for the job and not for the money. Like if they didn't finnish smth then they take some time extra.
I am a former Norwegian teacher, and one of the most important qualities we encourage in our children is learning responsibility. We have a philosophy that you cannot learn to take responsibility without being given responsibility, and this is done from an early age.
When the people are raised that we have freedom under responsibility, then people understand what it means to take responsibility - including taking responsibility for figuring out what to do. Training will usually be provided, but you actually have to ask yourself if something is unclear. One of the worst things Norwegians know is being herded like a flock of sheep in the workplace. It is therefore important that you ask yourself, so that the boss or other employees know that you need help.
This may sound strange to many, since Norwegians can in other ways be like a herd of sheep because we are used to being able to trust the politicians and the media, so if they tell us that everyone has to take an experimental injection, then most people will do. Even if we ten years earlier were told the exact same thing, and it turned out to be a huge mistake.
When you apply for a job, you of course know what kind of job position you applied for and based on your experiences, you should know how to do it. You might receive a brief training on procedures if the company has a specific requirement, but in general, you're expected to be a professional that knows how to complete your tasks, and even figuring out what your tasks need to be.
It’ seen as a problem and a lack of clarity for others, but not for us Norwegian.
In general Elli’s analyses are right, but there is always *two sides of a coin.* How a person perceives a Norwegian vs a US workspace depends on the kind of work the person is doing: blue vs white collar, technical vs theoretical, physical vs academic, etc.
For +10 yrs I studied and worked in the US before moving back to Norway, ie it’s fair to say that my different US bosses' management strategies is a reflection of my entire work career. At some jobs I had 90% freedom (and responsibility) to do my things, just as I was used to when studying/working in Norway. And I praise those bosses for that. However, at my last job I truly felt the micro (and macro) management burden of a typical authoritarian US boss. Even to the extent that he was frustrated and froze me out when I got married and had a family in the middle of the contract (supposedly my academic time should be 110% dedicated to work). In the end I gladly just left the USA and I’m happy to say that I've reiterated numerous times, "I’ll never look back!"
After a while trying to recover my work mode/flow here in Norway, I had no luck with the independence I had missed, and to say it mildly: I dug myself into an extremely negative hole in terms of life/work/family. However, over the yrs I realized that I missed/needed at least some aspects of a manager/boss who could guide me, set goals and keep a strict work schedule.
So, at my current job (which is anything but a desk/office job) I have several, but different, kinds of tasks. And all I hear from my boss is, "You do this!" or "You produce that!" For every job I have to figure out by myself how to do it, and mostly how to do it at my own pace. As my tasks are practical - and most of them I have never done before at other workplaces - it's both liberating and motivating to have the "space" to figure this out by myself, and especially when the job is done to satisfaction to both myself and the boss. However, and to my frustration, sometimes I truly miss that I'm not given any guidance and/or instructions when a specific job is new to me. It can be minute things that could have made me do the job much quicker and better, but nevertheless. I guess my Norwegian shyness tells me, "You figure this out by yourself!"
At the end of the day, I finally found a perfect job/workspace/colleagues where I love the freedom/responsibility, but where I also can miss hints of guidance/micro-management. Somebody said, "You cannot have it all ..."
I work in IT and have been working internationally for many years, and I can attest to the unclear issue.
Norwegian IT workers are very individual in their work methods, and they have the mandate to make decisions. In other countries, more decisions are made in teams (decisions by committee) or by management way up high.
Here in Norway, the decisions are often made on the floor by workers affected.
Role descriptions are often vague and you may end up doing something more or less related. As a new employee, you will have to search and find empty shoes to fill... You may be hired as a designer, but if no one is tracking the velocity of the team and if you have that skillset -> you kinda just take it. You might ask first if it's ok for you to take it, but yes: Autonomous team structure in my industry is a given by now. My past 3 roles have not had a written description.
You and your team have to figure out how to solve it and sometimes also what issues to solve.
I am aware this is not for all industries, but Norwegian IT sure feels like this.
It is your own responsibility to keep yourself updated. And make sure you have the knowledge and information you need 🌸
Don't recognize everything here. Yes, we somethimes leave early on a friday. But looking into statistics, Norway is highly ranked when it comes to efficiency a.s.o. So when working, we really work!
This does not sound like a work place in Norway. It sounds more like the job George Costanza in Seinfeld got working on the Pensky file.
I live in Málaga southern Spain and I have a great work life balance.I start work at 7.00am each day and finish at 15.30 pm with 30 minute lunch 5 days a week. Also if all tasks are complete we finish at midday on a Friday. We are not micro-managed and treated like responsible adults. Here we work to live not live to work like in America. The American structure and way of life starts early by having to swear allegiance to the flag each day and being indoctrinated into cult America. By the time most Americans leave school they are just sleep walking through life and know nothing about life outside of America. Cult America taught how great America is and the media they consume has an American narrative only. Hence they are willfully ignorant about anything outside their bubble.
Its very different from job to job. We help people from other countries in the industri. She talkes about offices. I,ts thousands of other type of jobs. Thats not like she says. I work with peoples from 5 other countries . We allways help each others.
The job is more often than not a social club where you serve time in order to "contribute" to the welfare state. The actual contribution comes from oil exports, so the rest of us are basically scrambling to keep the wheels and cogs of society running smoothly. The problem is that nobody wants the "real" jobs like nursing, cleaning, physical work etc, as you'll be making more money in the vague sector. The downside is constantly living in fear that the management start disliking you, as they can very easily make a case for you not actually "doing your part". (This is satire)
We dont start work without knowing what u are doing, it’s rubbish to say that. Would u get a job if it wasn’t in your field. Think for yourself is the motto’s
At the end of the day, the job still have to be done...
If we get drunk on thursday, we`ll not work on friday
The loyality to the workplace goes bith ways. In america. And do correct me if i am wrong. You get screwed. Work and eployers relationship to you is one of exploitation. If they can get away with not paying you they will and they would still feel entitled to 80 hours a week if they could get away with it. Their only focus is proffit and share price. Fuck quality fuck the employee fuck human life. Its all about the bottomn line.
So not taking full advantage of the norway system would be stupid.