By
Mira Lioleva
Julia Larsen-Disney
Mercuri Urval China has together with the SwedCham in China, successfully launched the Nordic Companies in China – People & Organisation Survey Results 2025/2026, followed by an executive panel with leaders from Roxtec, Stokke, and Norsepower and moderated by Mira Lioleva, MU Leadership and Organizational Advisory Practice Lead in Greater China.
Despite ongoing challenges, Nordic companies remain cautiously optimistic about 2026, based on insights from 115 Nordic companies and 17 in-depth interviews.
Key Insights
- China Strategy-organisation gap: a clear alignment gap between people & organization initiatives and China business strategy ambitions remains the key unresolved issue.
- Short-term Efficiency vs future readiness: cost focus dominates—yet an ambition–investment mismatch threatens future readiness
- Organisation as a growth lever: Localization alone is not enough—sustained agile performance requires intentional organizational design, capability building, and team effectiveness.
- Leadership remains the anchor, but must evolve toward resilience, strategic thinking, entrepreneurship & AI readiness
- Leadership reset: winning in China requires collaborative, agile, values-based leadership, grounded in strong local talent
- Expected HQ Response: Nordic HQs must empower China organisations with stronger decision rights and China-tailored talent development
A heartfelt thank you to the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in China, the Nordic business community and our partners – the Danish Chamber of Commerce in China, FinnCham China, and the Norwegian Business Association in China.