Nordic Leadership

Nordic companies and organisations are often distinguished by committedemployees and a high degree of creativity. One reason is a specific Nordicleadership style, which sets itself apart through the delegation of power and responsibility to employees and a high degree of consensus seeking, among other things. Nordic leaders also stress the necessity of co-operation. In addition, they play down their authority and often function more as coaches for their employees. It is also important that leaders are able to inspire their employees, and be visionary yet realistic at the same time. This report describes how various studies on culture, leadership and values characterise the Nordic leadership style. The report also attempts to find factors in Nordic societies that could help explain the leadership style in the Nordic region. Particular attention is given to two of these: the creation of the Nordic welfare state and the tradition of balancing different interests in society, especially within the labour market. The discussion of these factors is also supplemented by examining the role played by the industrial structure.

This volume contributes significantly to the ongoing international and Nordic paradigm shift in educational leadership research. It advocates for going from a contemporary, mainstream functionalist paradigm to a reflexive paradigm, based on educational values and knowledge. The volume is built on the shared basis, that the purpose of education is, and must be, fundamental for school leadership practice. However, that is often forgotten in educational governance and policy. The basis of the argument is, that educational leadership needs to change from focusing on effectiveness and narrowly defined accountability towards focusing on leadership that is contributing to the general education of students. That entails that leadership research need to focus on complex perspectives like context, relations, trust, sense making and social and human values, and less on control, outcomes, accountability and testing. The volume reminds readers about the need to raise awareness of the contexts of education and research, be they political, cultural, economic or ideological. Chapters analyze, discuss and compare research from Nordic educational leadership research systems: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The cross-system insights clarify the fundamental relations between policy/governance and research/practice are and discuss forgotten dependencies and opportunities.

This book explores to what extent transnational influences change national/local values and practices in the Nordic educational systems. It provides country cases and thematic chapters that give nuanced insights into the influence of transnational agencies on national governance and discourses. It describes how national discourses and regulation influences school leadership values, culture and practice, in competition with traditional values. The transnational and global discourse on educational leadership is mostly formed according to Anglo-American thinking and tradition. Pivotal foundations of this discourse are strong hierarchical societies/class societies with liberal democracies, and clearly streamed education systems. The Nordic discourse, however, builds on a more equal society and flat hierarchies with participatory democracy, and on comprehensive schooling with strong local community roots. Leadership thinking and practices are formed by the culture and context they are part of: they are primarily shaped by the national/local values, traditions and practices, and only partially shaped by politics, discourses and literature. Due to the fact that a great deal of the literature that is being used in the Nordic contexts is of Anglo-American origin and many of the research projects have Anglo-American foundations, it is difficult to distinguish the sources for leadership thinking and practice. This book distinguishes the Nordic from the Anglo-American thinking and presents important findings and arguments for leadership practitioners inside as well as outside the Nordic countries.​

On the Move er en interessant og rettidig bog om relevansen af Nordisk Ledelse i en evigt forandrende, hastigt bevægende og intens forretningsverden. Bogen beskriver, hvad Nordisk Ledelse er og hvordan denne ledelsesform kan inspirere og implementeres også i andre dele af verden. Gennem interviews med mere end 50 udenlands bosatte, men nordisk fødte ledere, fortæller forfatteren Pernille Hippe Brun, Strategisk rådgiver indenfor ledelse og organisationskultur, historien om de udfordringer, sejre og faldgruber man kan opleve, når man drager udenlands for at lede under fremmede himmelstrøg. Bogen er fyldt med gode råd, personlige anekdoter og indsigter fra moderne ledelsesteori samt veletablerede nordiske praksis-eksempler på, hvordan en nordisk ledelsesstil kan implementeres, tilpasses og justeres, således at den kan komme internationalt til gavn og inspirere morgendagens ledere - hvad end de er af nordisk ophav eller ej. Pernille Hippe Brun er strategisk ledelses- og organisationskonsulent med erfaring fra opbygning og ledelse af egen konsulentvirksomhed samt mange års rådgivning af ledere fra både det nordiske kontinent samt USA, Kenya og Kina. Udover konsulentarbejde har Pernille været med til at opbygge og drive en E-MBA i Kenya i samarbejde med Copenhagen Business School. Pernille er forfatter til tre bøger – bl.a. bogen Strenghts Based Leadership Handbook. Pernilles primære arbejdsplads er i dag den globale virksomhed Tradeshift, hvor hun agerer som strategisk rådgiver indenfor kultur, ledelse og læring. BOGEN ER PÅ ENGELSK

The Global Climate Action Agenda (GCAA) covers a wealth of cooperative action between governments, cities, businesses, non-governmental organisations and citizens. Non-state climate initiatives under the GCAA represent a key means to rapidly bridge the gaps in current climate action. This report identifies some 300 international cooperative initiatives worldwide, noting Nordic stakeholders among the most active participants within these initiatives. The analysis recommends continued Nordic support for initiatives with strong commitments to effective and transparent action. It also filters out 7 mitigation, adaptation and/or finance related initiatives of particular interest for Nordics. They are well aligned with the 2019 Declaration on Nordic Carbon Neutrality by the Nordic prime ministers and represent major opportunities for accelerated climate action - also within Nordic countries.

This book explores the leading role played by nursing science in the European Nordic countries. Recognized leaders in nursing research from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, reflect on the leadership of nurses, the societal developments and the state of nursing science in their country, and the successes and remaining challenges nurses are facing. The book highlights representative leadership projects focusing on e.g. evidenced-based clinical practice, education and research that have impacted patient and healthcare outcomes in each country. The book shows how nursing, as a scientific discipline, has been developing rapidly in these five Nordic countries. They have more nurses per capita than other countries (OECD 2016) and healthcare is provided to all citizens. Moreover, nursing qualification in the Nordic countries was based on university education early on, and there are more professors of nursing than in other countries. Accordingly, this book on Leadership in nursing within the Nordic countries shares essential and pioneering expertise that will benefit nurses and nurse scientists around the globe.

Corporate Governance in a Nordic Setting focuses on the historical, cultural and political development of the Swedish corporate governance code and model. It explores the definition and interpretations of corporate governance, including the Cadbury Report and OECD definitions, and specifically discusses powerful institutions that shaped its tradition over time. It further outlines the distinguishing features of the Nordic and Swedish corporate governance models, including taxation, ownership structures, corporate culture, and leadership styles. Emphasis is placed on the role of corporate governance in achieving a sustainable society, arguing for the importance of integrating financial, social and environmental perspectives at the corporate governance level. The chapters discuss a broad spectrum of topics including corporate ownership structures, agency conflicts, board diversity, employee representation on corporate boards, sustainability governance, and corporate governance in times of crisis, providing insights into Nordic and Swedish corporate governance and highlighting their unique characteristics and implications for businesses and society.