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| City Guide - Oslo - Business | ||
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Business Business Profile: The oil and gas sector is the main industry accounting for some 22% of the GDP and making Norway the world's third largest oil exporter and one of the five biggest gas producers - on target for providing some 30% of European gas imports by 2005. Fishing is the next major export with lots of untapped coastal fishing potential and a rapidly expanding fish farming industry. Agriculture, although heavily subsidised, accounts for only 2% of the GDP. The merchant fleet is the third largest in the world and supports shipbuilding and ancillary industries, including brokering, insurance and offshore facilities. There are few large companies and only about 5% have 100 employees or more. The state is closely involved in business and owns in whole or part major companies including Kreditkassen Bank, Telenor, Telecom, Statoil and Norsk Hydro. Telenor is the telecommunications giant that was involved in the specification of the GSM standard for mobile phones and, as a result, the first GSM test system was built in Oslo in 1987. Their success in the domestic mobile phone market is evident with Norway having one of the highest percentage ownership of mobile phones. Nevertheless, the Norwegian government encourages an open economy, welcoming private enterprise and foreign investment. There are 1000 companies in the Oslo region under foreign ownership, such as the multinational pharmaceutical company, Alpharma Inc, which has its Norwegian headquarters in the capital. One of the main players in the city is Siemens, the private Norwegian electro-technical company, which supplies equipment for the production, transmission, distribution and consumption of electricity, as well as being heavily involved in telecommunications, oil and gas. The economy is booming with GDP increasing by 3.2% annually. As befits the country that developed the original prototype of the mobile phone, there is a superb technological infrastructure with some 80% of employees having access to a computer - a significantly higher figure than elsewhere in Europe and even the USA. Oslo, with a population of around 500,000, about 11% of the total population of Norway, has an unemployment rate of 3.7%, only slightly higher than the national average of 3.4%. However, within the Old Town of Oslo, an inner city area with a population of about 22,000 people, the rate of unemployment is almost twice the Oslo average and education levels are exceptionally low, by Norwegian standards. Business Etiquette: Visitors should dress conservatively in a smart business suit and shake hands with everyone present on arrival and departure. Punctuality is important. Appointments should be made well in advance and adhered to. If running late, it is important to telephone and explain why. Business cards should be exchanged after the preliminary introductions, but then it is straight down to business. Norwegians are direct and ready to negotiate with the minimum of small talk. Trust is important and, in negotiation, Norwegians are less likely to indulge in tactical dealing and will be more interested in the facts of the product than in personality or social skills. Visitors should make a fair pitch with room for a little adjustment but not produce an initial offer that could subsequently be seen as a negotiating tactic as this may be perceived as dishonest. Similarly expensive gifts should be avoided as they may be perceived as a bribe. Small items bearing the company logo would be suitable and bringing in the duty-free alcohol allowance would be well appreciated. In a country where the price of alcohol is prohibitive that could earn friendship for life. Visitors should not interrupt anyone when they are talking, it is considered very rude. It is also sensible to avoid complaining about the high cost of living in Norway and avoid the familiarity of first names unless the host takes the initiative. Business hours are 0800 to 1600, with employees leaving their offices promptly to return home for middag (dinner), eaten at around 1700/1800. However, an invitation to either dine out or eat at the home of a business colleague will normally be scheduled slightly later. |
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