I just got back from San Francisco where I was reminded how different the mode of company building is to startups in Norway 💡 (Will share more from that trip next week after Oslo Innovation Week…)
It’s not just more VC money — early stage startups in the US are imagined and built differently than in the Nordics. The delta to Norway is perhaps most significant.
- They’re imagined differently — Bigger, faster, bolder.
- They’re hired for differently — Hire for talent, not role.
- They’re structured different — Operations matters.
This post by Alexis Ohanian, Co-founder of Reddit, really resonated with me, because that gap is only going to grow unless Nordic founders wake up to what’s going on in San Francisco.
Norwegian companies think regionally, and those with global ambitions leave the country more often than not. Even those with “big visions” are orders of magnitude less hungry than what I have witnessed over the past week / decade from my home town 🌁
Norwegian startups hire junior employees for low-ambition roles, and without considering how much change occurs every 3-6-9-12 months. Why would you hire someone with little experience as a first 10 employee? 🦐
My experience has been that Norwegian companies are in the dark about (or allergic to) the newest tools and they don’t hire systems builders, routinely underinvesting in operational talent until Series A when it’s too late. Growth is subsequently hampered as a result. Huge missed opportunity 📉
I won’t name names, but these hot takes have been confirmed to me by some of Norway’s foremost founders, VCs, and last but not least, the Norwegians who are playing a significantly bigger game abroad in Silicon Valley.
Why? Culture? Capital? Awareness? Leave your hot take in the comments 👇
Just tuning in? 👀
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