Member Survey 2010 Results

We now have the results from the 2010 member survey, which almost 700 members completed. We got some great feedback, including lots of praise, some constructive criticism, but also some unhappy users. Below is a compilation of some of the conclusions we can draw, and some of the comments we received. 

Conclusions

• The primary motivation for joining Expat in Denmark is social networking. The other main factors are wanting to maintain international contacts and professional networking;
• The most popular services and activities organised by Expat in Denmark are online news and culture updates, 100% socials, seminars and the online infocentre;
• Two thirds of the members believe the frequency of activities and events organized by Expat in Denmark to be just right, while 22 pct. answer too seldom;
• Three quarters of the members indicated that that the frequency of the newsletter is just right. 18% find it very interesting, and 60% somewhat interesting;
• 61% of the respondents were very satisfied or satisfied with the interface of the homepage, and 7% very dissatisfied or dissatisfied. Similarly, 61% were very satisfied or satisfied with the contents on the homepage, while 8% were very dissatisfied or dissatisfied with the contents.
• The overall degree of satisfaction with Expat in Denmark is high. 51% stated that they were very likely to recommend the organization to others, and 34% that they were somewhat likely to do so.

There is always room for improvement, and we take the comments – positive and negative – very serioulsy. However, all in all, we are happy with this year’s results.

Feedback & Suggestions

As mentioned, many members also took the time to provide feedback. Some of the many ideas and suggestions were:

• More activities outside of Copenhagen – notably in Esbjerg, Sønderborg, Aarhus, Odense, Holbæk, Roskilde
• A new discussion forum (idealy  one that is not infested with spam!)
• A more user-friendly user and event registration process
• Involving more Expat volunteers in planning and execution of events
• Earlier notice of upcoming events
• Events shouldn’t start until after 5-5.30 pm
• More marketing – make ourselves better known to research and business communities
• Include more Expat network events in the main calendar
• A mentorship programme
• Weekly event updates

We have listened, and will consider how we can accomodate the ideas according to the resources we have, our contract with the Ministry of Business and Economic Affairs, and our members in general.

Thanks again to all those who participated!

What a world

Originally printed in The Copenhagen Post, vol. 13 issue 51

These will be my last reflections on the wonderful “Expat world” that I worked with, and have come to know on a professional and social level the last 20 months. Come end of January 2011, I will be on my way to Brussels, initially for an internship in the European Parliament. Finally, after 8 years of “localisation” (following 12 years of childhood expatriation), I will myself be an Expat in Belgium. Kind of.

As promised last month, here are a few reasons why spending some time in the European Union capital, as a Dane, will be so much different from living in Denmark as an Expat. And far less daunting.

First of all, Brussels is an international city, and has been so for almost 60 years. The population is used to the 40+ nationalities residing in the city at all times. Second, “Eurospeak”, or broken English, and French are the main languages spoken. You may never master Danish 100%, but anyone can get the above two right (although after having met members like Elli in Odense and Shahar in Copenhagen, I am increasingly optimistic about the prospects of all Expats mastering Danish!). Finally, in Brussels, everyone represents their own region, nationality or organisation in a fascinatingly pluralistic environment that renders assimilation entirely meaningless. So even though identity formation is key to life in Brussels (and believe me, prejudices are alive and well there, as anywhere else in the world), you won’t constantly run into the same discussion about “integration”. At least not the Danish one!

2010 Review & 2011 call for blog contributions

Since launching our new blog in May 2010 we have posted more than 36 entries, and the blog has been viewed about 20,000 times. The busiest day of the year was October 12th with 495 views. The most popular post that day was The Hot Debate about the Cold Danes.

The many views, comments (see main attractions in 2010 below), and positive feedback convince us to continue expanding and developing our blog. As in 2010, however, we want to provide not just our own views and analysis of various topics and events, but also the experience and views of community members, and community actors. Sometimes written and analytical, other times photographically and light-hearted. In other words, we need your help to maintain an active, interesting, and relevant blog in 2011.

Therefore, if you would like to contribute, or would like to know more, please drop us a line or send us an email with your contact details, and we will get in touch!

We look forward to a full year of blogging here at blog.expatindenmark.com, and wish you a Happy New Year!

Your Expat in Denmark Team

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010:

1

The Hot Debate about the Cold Danes October 2010
112 comments

2

Does God hate Denmark? August 2010
13 comments

3

Darth-Pia Strikes Again August 2010
22 comments

4

Learn to love them: Danish taxes June 2010
2 comments

5

Hey Denmark, what are you doing?: Coffee and job interviews October 2010
3 comments

New Year 2011 – Photo by Tinus Løvento, Headshots.dk

“Ian Burns and That Theatre Company represents English theatre at its very best”

Before you say it, no, I did not write that myself. A Swedish magazine called Det Händer decided to give us this accolade for our efforts to raise the bar of English language theatre in the Øresund region. (I have always liked the Swedes and it goes without saying that I’m delighted). I’m curious to see if any Danish media will pick this story up or if this award might help us in our attempts to find funding. A case of “watch this space” I suppose, dear reader.

To those of you who came in to support our recent production of ‘The Collector’ I say thank you. If you didn’t come then maybe my next theatre venture might be of interest…

Hey Denmark, what are you doing?: What to think about the snow

The weather changes fast these days, so you better answer this weeks question pretty fast. It’s about snow, something that can disappear just as fast as it gets here. However, it’s also something that everyone can (and probably will) have an opinion about!

When you wake up one morning, all of Denmark is covered in 20-centimeter snow. How do you react?

Hey Denmark, what are you doing?: Being on time

Are you ready for the third question in the quiz about the Danes? It’s been a few weeks since the last question, so you are probably a bit wiser now, and full of good information about the Danes behavior. The quiz is just as unscientific as usual, but hopefully it’s able to help you a little bit.

You’re meeting someone at 10 AM. When do you turn up?

An Actor’s Life III – It’s a funny old game innit?

Win, lose or draw football I often imagine how I’d feel if, moments after stepping off stage, a reporter thrust a microphone in my face and demanded an explanation of my performance. ‘So Burnsy, not the three points you were looking for – you must be disappointed. We counted four ad-libs, two prompts and was Hamlet really supposed to die in Act Two?”

Fortunately it wouldn’t happen, but yet it happens to football managers every week. Win, lose or draw, they are expected to face the TV cameras immediately after a match to give their honest opinion of the game.

This is demanded of them. We, the public it seems, have the right to know everything. The camera moves in to close-up and we analyse every tick, twitch, scratch and move they make…