More Coffee, Better Work, New Hierarchies – Our Danish Secret to the Future of Work

Why Denmark Starts Work with Coffee — And Why You Should Too

In Denmark, we start every morning with coffee — not alone at our desks but together. During that time, we chat about everything: work, life, family, weekend plans. Strange? Perhaps, if you look at it through the lens of a German employment contract, where private conversations are often limited to exactly 7.5 minutes a day. But in Denmark, we know: the more personal connection we build in the morning, the better we work together.

It’s simple. If I know someone — truly know them — I know how they think, how they act, how they’ll handle a task or a challenge. That saves us hours of miscommunication and misunderstanding. Studies — and Danish common sense — suggest that a 30-minute morning coffee saves up to 1.6 hours of working time each day. Meetings become unnecessary. Collaboration improves. If we need to dive deeper, there’s always coffee and cake in the afternoon.

Mornings are for the day's tasks; afternoons for long-term thinking. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

Meanwhile in Germany (and increasingly in other places), it’s nearly impossible to reach anyone without first booking a phone call or a video meeting. People are busy — fully scheduled from morning to night, preferably in back-to-back video calls.

When I suggest, “Shall we just talk on the phone?” the answer is often: “Wait, I’ll send a video link.” And I wonder — when exactly do we do the actual work? Or are we hiding inside meetings because we’re unsure what our work even is anymore?

Coffee as a Leadership Tool — Welcome to the Post-Industrial Workplace

Could coffee be the answer to our productivity crisis? In a way, yes.

During industrialization, we invented the “refreshment drink” — cold sodas and sugary beverages — to survive the sweltering heat of factory floors, steelworks, and assembly lines. But in the digital age, we no longer need refreshment — we need connection. The soft drink companies figured this out before most employers did: they now market a whole new category — collaboration drinks. And nothing beats coffee.

This isn’t just about beverages. It signals an entirely new way of working: sitting together, exchanging ideas informally, sketching solutions — and then diving into focused work, often supported by AI.

But beware: this shift breaks traditional hierarchies wide open.

Goodbye Old Hierarchy — Hello Polycentric Leadership

In the industrial world, leadership was top-down. In the digital world, hierarchies become multi-layered and dynamic.

There is still a strategic leadership layer, but it no longer exists to control processes or enforce rigid structures. Its job is to manage the relationship networks of people and teams — ensuring that the right connections and conversations happen.

Beneath that, a new kind of leadership emerges: contextual leadership. Whoever is best positioned at that moment — by skill, insight, or experience — takes the lead. Yes, that might be someone who, in the old org chart, is “lower down.” (Not that this concept makes much sense anymore.)

This is the reality of polycentric structures — independent, trust-based, self-organizing work units. Instead of micromanaging tasks, leadership aligns on shared values and intended outcomes.

Here’s the magic: if you’ve had coffee together, if you’ve built trust, you don’t need a 20-page briefing. You can just shout across the office (or Slack): “Here’s the idea — go for it!”

This unlocks something powerful: not just productivity, but a renewed sense of self-confidence and joy at work. The more I can contribute my real strengths, the more I feel energized, less stressed, and less like I’m “working” — more like I’m living in my flow.