Now, the reality is much more subtle. It's absolutely possible to introduce new ideas in these workplaces and have them valued, but I do find the process takes longer. Certain activities like eating together for lunch, having afternoon coffee together, or small talk before a meeting tend to go a long way in helping this, much farther than in an American workplace. I also find that there's a difference in directness that's hard to explain. When I say that the process for introducing ideas is more indirect, I don't mean that everyone there wants flowery language. However, I do end up speaking differently with my Scandinavian clients.
Anyway, these are just my opinions, so I don't want to make this appear as absolute. For me, it took about two years of living there before I felt comfortable navigating the environment and, certainly, I'm still not perfect.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_Jante
takes some getting used to and has an affect on the business environment. At this point, I do believe that someone can be just as effective in business in Scandinavia as other places like the U.S., but my first two years were difficult until I understood how to navigate these social norms. Mostly, this is to say that, even beyond immigration and paperwork, I don't think it's exactly simple for someone outside to move to Sweden to take advantage of these opportunities. I think opportunity is there, but it takes some adapting to things like Jante's Law.