Comparing Belgium, The Netherlands & Germany through Hofstede's dimensions

 Using the website of Hofstede’s Insights, I have decided to compare The Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany. I did this because they’re neighbouring countries and I noticed several clear differences between them, which seemed interesting to look into more as I did not expect these differences in neighbouring countries in Europe.

Power distance

In Belgium, power distance scores significantly higher than in the other two countries. Belgians are expected to use family names to speak to their higher-ups when first introducing themselves, but this might change to a first-name basis over time. This is a big contrast to the other two countries, where Germany and The Netherlands score close to each other. In these countries, it is more common for managers to consult their employees and use them as collaboration partners, rather than people who have to complete the tasks they were given.

This is a quite large contrast for neighbouring countries, something I was not aware of before now. It is interesting how neighbouring countries can still have such large power distance differences, because you’d expect them to be a bit of the same, especially in Europe where you’re free to go visit and work any country you want.

Individualism

Unlike power distance, the three countries score quite similarly on the individualism chart, with Germany just being a bit below the other two. All these countries are very individualistic, valuing privacy and taking care of yourself. Germany especially is known for having a very direct society, which will quickly point you to mistakes so you can solve them.

Comparing it to Belgium’s power distance, it creates a unique situation, as scoring high indvidiaulism means people are expected to voice their opinion and be clear on what they want, yet this is not always possible due to the large power distance in the country. This interesting dynamic could create issues as they contradict themselves.

Masculinity (task-oriented)

What is obvious in the masculinity chart, is that The Netherlands scores way lower than it’s counterparts. The country is extremely feminine with a score of just 14, which in my opinion is a number that represents Dutch working culture quite well. People are often seen as equal, even when directly talking to management, and work relationships go further than just being colleagues as many people can be found forming friendships through work.

If anything wrong happens in a working environment, Dutch people will often take their time to find a way of compromising to make things work for everyone involved. Status is also not very important, Dutch people might not take you seriously if you’re trying to show off too much. This is unlike Germany, which is a much more masculine country and people tend to show off with luxury products.

Belgium is quite divided on masculinity, being the country with two languages this is more common within the country and can often be seen in politics. The Flemish side scores 43 on masculinity, while the French side scores 60. Belgians often work by making compromises, as is frequently done in the country due to it being so divided by language.

Uncertainty avoidance

Belgium scores extremely high on uncertainty avoidance, which could also be due to their history of being ruled by other countries in the past. This score is shared by both the Flemish and French side, which makes it hard to find any form of compromise when changing policies.

Germans on the other hand can be seen as more willing to compensate for uncertainty, often by working together and showing their competence and expertise in a certain topic. They value thinking properly of something before doing it, resulting in properly thought out concepts instead of hoping for the best.

The Netherlands scores the lowest, they are not a fan of unorthodox behaviour and ideas compared to the other two. This can be proven by a dutch saying, which when translated means “Just act normal and you’ll be crazy enough”. Punctuality is expected in the country, meeting up at a certain time usually means you should be there a few minutes earlier to make sure the other person isn’t waiting for you.

Long-term orientation

With an almost identical score, Belgium and Germany are both very pragmatic cultures. These countries have no issue quickly adapting to a situation when necessary and usually work for long-term goals and making the best of their future, either by working hard, investing, or studying hard.

The Netherlands scores slightly lower but shows the same qualities, albeit to a lesser extent.

Indulgence

On the scale of indulgence, we can see large differences again. Dutch people value leisure time a lot, if they can they often spend money as they please, as they consider enjoying life and having fun as important things. This is about the same in Belgium, who see the world through the same lens but with a slightly lower score.

Germany on the other hand is quite different, scoring lower at just 40 and often restraining themselves. People in Germany will more frequently hold themselves back, as they are restrained by social norms in the country.

Conclusion

Despite being neighbouring countries, these 3 see a lot of differences between each other. It is noticeable that the language divide in Belgium also influences politics and social norms, as the country is often divided into two in these statistics.

These numbers also clearly represent the cultures in the countries, being familiar with these three countries makes it more obvious as some traits are clearly represented in the numbers.