Cultural Analysis

of
The Netherlands

Presented by: Karolina, Min Zhi, Chow and Yesh

 AGENDA
❖ Netherland’s Culture
➢ Geography
➢ Size & Demographics
➢ History
➢ Politics
❖ Business Culture
❖ Recommendations

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 1.
Country’s Culture
Geography
● Access to the sea
● Flat country
● On trade routes

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Size
South Korea (99,678 km²)
is 2.7 times as big as
Netherlands (37,354 km²).

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History
● Motherland of Rembrandt, Van Gogh and Erasmus of Rotterdam
● Ruled by Julius Caesar, Napoleon, Adolf Hitler
● In 17th century became COLONIAL POWER
● Experiencing cultures helped to develop tolerance
● Kingdom of the Netherlands controls caribbean islands such
as Aruba, Curacao or the country of Suriname this this day

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Politics
● Kingdom of the Netherlands
● Role of the monarch rather
representative than decisive
● Multiparty system
● Current leading party : VVD
(People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy)
● VVD supports private enterprise,
market liberalism and economic
integration of European Union

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Demography
● Population: 17 million- most densely ● Multicultural society
populated country in Europe ● Ruling Religion : Atheism,
● Birth rate : 1.78 children per a Roman Catholic,
woman Protestants, Islam
● Average gross salary : 2.778 euros ● Immigrants : Indonesian,
gross per month. Turkish, Moroccan,
● Top industries: Bulgarian, Polish
- Agriculture and Food ● Big cities: Amsterdam,
Rotterdam, The Hague,
- Metallurgy
Utrecht,
- Energy

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Most famous Dutch companies

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 2.
Business Culture
1. Hierarchy
- Equal treatment across the organisation
- Executives rarely display power
- Informal yet direct communication
- Power Distance: 38/100
- Most employees are independent, responsible and take
initiatives
- Individualism: 80/100

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2. Meetings
- Usually informal
- Emphasises importance of reaching consensus and making
decisions
- Participation and contribution is important
- Perceived as an instrument to make sure that everyone is heard
- Masculinity: 14/100

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3. Greetings and Communication

- Handshakes - Straight forward

especially in emails
- Values personal space - Values work- life
balance
Indulgence: 68/100

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4. Business Strategy,
Planning and Negotiations
- Cautious
- Loves planning ahead
- Wants certainty in things
Uncertainty Avoidance: 53/100

- Pragmatic
Long Term Orientation: 67/100

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 3. Business
Recommendations
Use of Business Card

- A norm to exchange card

- Not an invitation to contact
after office hours

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Time Perception

- ‘Time is money’
- Avoid small talks
- Be on time for appointments
and meetings
Decision-making
- Everyone is expected to contribute
in decision making
- Once decision is made,
everyone is expected to stick
to the decision made
Greetings

- Use appropriate common title

(Mr, Mrs or Miss) when
meeting for the first time
- Be polite but informal,
friendly
 Thank you
for your kind
attention! :)
Any Questions?