Ukraine
ウクライナUA
Built around outsourcing and remote work for Western clients, and kept IT service exports going through the war.
This page collects tendencies reported for Ukraine's software industry in surveys by industry bodies and the developer community, and in news coverage. Practice differs a lot between outsourcing and product companies, and between people living in Ukraine and those working from abroad. Contracts and exports have figures from DOU and the central bank, while material on feedback and hierarchy comes mostly from outsourcing vendors and recruiters and often contradicts itself.
Within-country variance and counter-evidence
- Most material on feedback and hierarchy comes from outsourcing vendors and recruiters, and no primary research was found.
- Vendor and recruiter articles contradict each other. employsome (2026), unlike unicrew, says developers are comfortable with technical disagreement, and nCube, unlike Jappware, says formal hierarchy is respected.
- Hofstede's individualism (IDV) score was revised sharply from 25 in the older edition to 55 today, and older material still uses the old value.
- About 20% of IT workers work from abroad, so "Ukrainian developers" includes both residents and emigrants.
- At outstaffing companies and small and medium firms, more than 65% of workers were FOP (2025), and both contracts and culture differ from product companies.
- Erin Meyer's Culture Map does not place Ukraine.
Design & quality2 claims
At the ICPC World Finals, Lviv National University placed fourth in 2008 and Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv placed fourth in 2010, both winning gold medals.
Attested1 source2026ua-design-1
Ukraine's Hofstede uncertainty avoidance (UAI) score is extremely high at 95. The outsourcing firm N-iX (2019) links this to a preference for detailed plans and background explanations. The article is written from the seller's side.
Attested2 sources2026ua-design-2
Failure & risk4 claims
In a July-August 2024 Deloitte and AmCham survey of 139 executives at member companies, 76% said prolonged blackouts affect their operations. At the same time, 88% said they were prepared for outages and 94% had or were developing a business continuity plan.
Attested1 source2024ua-failure-1
IT companies are reported to have handled blackouts by setting up coworking spaces with generators and Starlink and by subsidizing employees' backup power.
Thin1 sourceua-failure-2
Central bank figures reported by AIN.UA show IT service exports peaking at $7.3 billion in 2022 and falling to about $6.4 billion in 2024 (down 4.2% year on year). According to dev.ua, exports recovered slightly to about $6.66 billion in 2025.
Attested2 sources2026ua-failure-3
An article by the outsourcing firm Alcor, citing DOU surveys, says 38% of IT workers feel burned out at work. Thirty percent of IT specialists serving in the army receive payments from their IT employer.
Thin1 source2026ua-failure-4
Feedback & code review2 claims
The outsourcing firm N-iX (2019) writes that Ukrainian engineers speak their minds on important technical decisions. This is a seller's claim, and no independent study was found.
Thin1 source2019ua-feedback-1
The recruiting firm unicrew (2026) writes that unless expectations are made explicit, developers may not push back hard on poor technical decisions.
Thin1 source2026ua-feedback-2
Hierarchy & decisions2 claims
Ukraine scores high on both Hofstede power distance (PDI 92) and uncertainty avoidance (UAI 95). Edge Executive Services (2024) links this to multi-layered organizational hierarchies and a large number of rules.
Attested2 sources2026ua-hierarchy-1
The outsourcing firm Jappware claims that Ukrainian IT companies were early to drop rigid hierarchy and formal communication.
Thin1 sourceua-hierarchy-2
Communication & docs2 claims
An Alcor article citing DOU surveys says 66% of IT workers work fully remotely.
Thin1 source2026ua-communication-1
N-iX (2019) says formality at first meetings is a sign of respect, and that the one-to-two-hour time difference with Europe makes it easy to overlap working hours. This is a seller's description.
Thin1 source2019ua-communication-2
Work & careers3 claims
In DOU surveys, the share of IT workers registered as FOP (sole proprietors) fell from 87% (2022) to 70% (2024), 57% (2025) and 49% (2026). Workers are moving to Diia.City gig contracts and employment contracts.
Well attested2 sources2026ua-work-1
Diia.City gig contracts, introduced in 2022, carry 5% personal income tax, a 5% military levy and social contributions of 22% of the minimum wage. As of October 2026 the regime had more than 4,600 resident companies covering about 217,000 specialists.
Attested2 sources2026ua-work-2
In DOU's December 2025 survey (4,522 responses), the median developer take-home pay was $3,450. A study by the law firm Juscutum and the Diia.City Union found that about 20% of IT professionals work from abroad.
Attested2 sources2026ua-work-3
Open source & community3 claims
GitLab is an open source project that Dmitriy Zaporozhets started at his home in Ukraine in 2011. In 2014 he turned it into a company with Sytse Sijbrandij from the Netherlands.
Attested1 source2022ua-oss-1
Grammarly (a product, not open source) was founded in Kyiv in 2009 by Max Lytvyn, Alex Shevchenko and Dmytro Lider. Its largest engineering hub is still in Kyiv.
Attested2 sources2022ua-oss-2
The developer community DOU.ua's annual survey "Портрет айтівця 2026" (Portrait of an IT specialist) drew 14,631 respondents. The community publishes its own pay and contract data every year.
Well attested1 source2026ua-oss-3
- DOU: Портрет айтівця 2026 (2026)
Scales
Fourteen lines, one per scale. Each tick is a country or region placed where a published framework puts it. Read them as positions relative to each other, not as traits of the people who live there. How to read these scales
Culture Map positions
Communicating
Communicating: US −3, DE −2, NORD −2 (DK −2, SE −1, FI −1), NL −2, UK −1, BR 0, PL 0, IN +1, FR +1, KR +2, CN +2, JP +3.
No source: Israel, Ukraine
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK −2, SE −1, FI −1.
Source: Erin Meyer, The Culture Map (2014) and her country mapping charts. Positions are approximate, read off her charts onto a seven-step grid. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Step (−3 to +3) |
|---|---|
| United States US | −3 |
| Germany DE | −2 |
| The Nordics NORD | −2 (DK −2, SE −1, FI −1) |
| Netherlands NL | −2 |
| United Kingdom UK | −1 |
| Brazil BR | 0 |
| Poland PL | 0 |
| India IN | +1 |
| France FR | +1 |
| South Korea KR | +2 |
| China CN | +2 |
| Japan JP | +3 |
Evaluating
Evaluating: NL −3, IL −3, DE −2, FR −1, NORD −1 (DK −1, FI −1), PL −1, US 0, UK 0, CN +1, IN +1, BR +1, KR +2, JP +3.
No source: Ukraine
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK −1, FI −1.
Source: Erin Meyer, The Culture Map (2014) and her country mapping charts. Positions are approximate, read off her charts onto a seven-step grid. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Step (−3 to +3) |
|---|---|
| Netherlands NL | −3 |
| Israel IL | −3 |
| Germany DE | −2 |
| France FR | −1 |
| The Nordics NORD | −1 (DK −1, FI −1) |
| Poland PL | −1 |
| United States US | 0 |
| United Kingdom UK | 0 |
| China CN | +1 |
| India IN | +1 |
| Brazil BR | +1 |
| South Korea KR | +2 |
| Japan JP | +3 |
Persuading
Persuading: FR −3, DE −1, PL −1, BR 0, NORD +1 (DK +1, NO +1), NL +1, UK +2, US +3.
No source: Japan, South Korea, China, India, Israel, Ukraine
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK +1, NO +1.
Source: Erin Meyer, The Culture Map (2014) and her country mapping charts. Positions are approximate, read off her charts onto a seven-step grid. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Step (−3 to +3) |
|---|---|
| France FR | −3 |
| Germany DE | −1 |
| Poland PL | −1 |
| Brazil BR | 0 |
| The Nordics NORD | +1 (DK +1, NO +1) |
| Netherlands NL | +1 |
| United Kingdom UK | +2 |
| United States US | +3 |
Leading
Leading: NORD −3 (DK −3, SE −3, FI −2), NL −3, IL −2, US −1, UK −1, DE 0, FR +1, BR +1, PL +1, KR +2, CN +2, JP +3.
No source: India, Ukraine
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK −3, SE −3, FI −2.
Source: Erin Meyer, The Culture Map (2014) and her country mapping charts. Positions are approximate, read off her charts onto a seven-step grid. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Step (−3 to +3) |
|---|---|
| The Nordics NORD | −3 (DK −3, SE −3, FI −2) |
| Netherlands NL | −3 |
| Israel IL | −2 |
| United States US | −1 |
| United Kingdom UK | −1 |
| Germany DE | 0 |
| France FR | +1 |
| Brazil BR | +1 |
| Poland PL | +1 |
| South Korea KR | +2 |
| China CN | +2 |
| Japan JP | +3 |
Deciding
Deciding: JP −3, NORD −2 (DK −2, SE −2), NL −2, DE −1, UK 0, IN +1, US +1, FR +1, BR +1, CN +2.
No source: South Korea, Israel, Poland, Ukraine
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK −2, SE −2.
Source: Erin Meyer, The Culture Map (2014) and her country mapping charts. Positions are approximate, read off her charts onto a seven-step grid. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Step (−3 to +3) |
|---|---|
| Japan JP | −3 |
| The Nordics NORD | −2 (DK −2, SE −2) |
| Netherlands NL | −2 |
| Germany DE | −1 |
| United Kingdom UK | 0 |
| India IN | +1 |
| United States US | +1 |
| France FR | +1 |
| Brazil BR | +1 |
| China CN | +2 |
Trusting
Trusting: US −3, UK −2, DE −2, NORD −2 (DK −2), NL −2, PL −1, FR 0, JP +1, IL† +1, KR† +2, CN +2, IN +2, BR +2.
No source: Ukraine
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK −2.
† Placed from reviews and summaries of Meyer's work, not from her own chart.
Source: Erin Meyer, The Culture Map (2014) and her country mapping charts. Positions are approximate, read off her charts onto a seven-step grid. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Step (−3 to +3) |
|---|---|
| United States US | −3 |
| United Kingdom UK | −2 |
| Germany DE | −2 |
| The Nordics NORD | −2 (DK −2) |
| Netherlands NL | −2 |
| Poland PL | −1 |
| France FR | 0 |
| Japan JP | +1 |
| Israel IL † | +1 |
| South Korea KR † | +2 |
| China CN | +2 |
| India IN | +2 |
| Brazil BR | +2 |
Disagreeing
Disagreeing: IL −3, DE −2, FR −2, NL −2, NORD −1 (DK −1, SE +1), PL −1, US 0, UK 0, IN +1, BR +1, KR +2, CN +2, JP +3.
No source: Ukraine
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK −1, SE +1.
Source: Erin Meyer, The Culture Map (2014) and her country mapping charts. Positions are approximate, read off her charts onto a seven-step grid. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Step (−3 to +3) |
|---|---|
| Israel IL | −3 |
| Germany DE | −2 |
| France FR | −2 |
| Netherlands NL | −2 |
| The Nordics NORD | −1 (DK −1, SE +1) |
| Poland PL | −1 |
| United States US | 0 |
| United Kingdom UK | 0 |
| India IN | +1 |
| Brazil BR | +1 |
| South Korea KR | +2 |
| China CN | +2 |
| Japan JP | +3 |
Scheduling
Scheduling: DE −3, JP −2, NORD −2 (DK −2, SE −2, NO −2), NL −2, US −1, UK −1, FR 0, PL 0, IL† +1, IN +2, BR +2.
No source: South Korea, China, Ukraine
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK −2, SE −2, NO −2.
† Placed from reviews and summaries of Meyer's work, not from her own chart.
Source: Erin Meyer, The Culture Map (2014) and her country mapping charts. Positions are approximate, read off her charts onto a seven-step grid. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Step (−3 to +3) |
|---|---|
| Germany DE | −3 |
| Japan JP | −2 |
| The Nordics NORD | −2 (DK −2, SE −2, NO −2) |
| Netherlands NL | −2 |
| United States US | −1 |
| United Kingdom UK | −1 |
| France FR | 0 |
| Poland PL | 0 |
| Israel IL † | +1 |
| India IN | +2 |
| Brazil BR | +2 |
Hofstede dimensions
Power distance
Power distance: IL 13, NORD 28 (DK 18, SE 31, NO 31, FI 33), UK 35, DE 35, NL 38, US 40, JP 54, KR 60, FR 68, PL 68, BR 69, IN 77, CN 80, UA 92.
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK 18, SE 31, NO 31, FI 33.
Country averages. About 80% of variation in values is between people inside a country (Taras et al. 2016).
Source: The Culture Factor country comparison tool, current values (revised around 2023), retrieved 2026. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Score |
|---|---|
| Israel IL | 13 |
| The Nordics NORD | 28 (mean of DK 18, SE 31, NO 31, FI 33) |
| United Kingdom UK | 35 |
| Germany DE | 35 |
| Netherlands NL | 38 |
| United States US | 40 |
| Japan JP | 54 |
| South Korea KR | 60 |
| France FR | 68 |
| Poland PL | 68 |
| Brazil BR | 69 |
| India IN | 77 |
| China CN | 80 |
| Ukraine UA | 92 |
Individualism
Individualism: IN 24, BR 36, CN 43, PL 47, UA 55, IL 56, KR 58, US 60, JP 62, FR 74, UK 76, DE 79, NORD 83 (FI 75, NO 81, SE 87, DK 89), NL 100.
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: FI 75, NO 81, SE 87, DK 89.
Country averages. About 80% of variation in values is between people inside a country (Taras et al. 2016).
Source: The Culture Factor country comparison tool, current values (revised around 2023), retrieved 2026. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Score |
|---|---|
| India IN | 24 |
| Brazil BR | 36 |
| China CN | 43 |
| Poland PL | 47 |
| Ukraine UA | 55 |
| Israel IL | 56 |
| South Korea KR | 58 |
| United States US | 60 |
| Japan JP | 62 |
| France FR | 74 |
| United Kingdom UK | 76 |
| Germany DE | 79 |
| The Nordics NORD | 83 (mean of FI 75, NO 81, SE 87, DK 89) |
| Netherlands NL | 100 |
Motivation towards achievement and success
Motivation towards achievement and success: NORD 14 (SE 5, NO 8, DK 16, FI 26), NL 14, UA 27, KR 39, FR 43, IL 47, BR 49, IN 56, US 62, PL 64, CN 66, UK 66, DE 66, JP 95.
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: SE 5, NO 8, DK 16, FI 26.
Country averages. About 80% of variation in values is between people inside a country (Taras et al. 2016).
Source: The Culture Factor country comparison tool, current values (revised around 2023), retrieved 2026. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Score |
|---|---|
| The Nordics NORD | 14 (mean of SE 5, NO 8, DK 16, FI 26) |
| Netherlands NL | 14 |
| Ukraine UA | 27 |
| South Korea KR | 39 |
| France FR | 43 |
| Israel IL | 47 |
| Brazil BR | 49 |
| India IN | 56 |
| United States US | 62 |
| Poland PL | 64 |
| China CN | 66 |
| United Kingdom UK | 66 |
| Germany DE | 66 |
| Japan JP | 95 |
Uncertainty avoidance
Uncertainty avoidance: CN 30, UK 35, IN 40, NORD 40 (DK 23, SE 29, NO 50, FI 59), US 46, NL 53, DE 65, BR 76, IL 81, KR 85, FR 86, JP 92, PL 93, UA 95.
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: DK 23, SE 29, NO 50, FI 59.
Country averages. About 80% of variation in values is between people inside a country (Taras et al. 2016).
Source: The Culture Factor country comparison tool, current values (revised around 2023), retrieved 2026. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Score |
|---|---|
| China CN | 30 |
| United Kingdom UK | 35 |
| India IN | 40 |
| The Nordics NORD | 40 (mean of DK 23, SE 29, NO 50, FI 59) |
| United States US | 46 |
| Netherlands NL | 53 |
| Germany DE | 65 |
| Brazil BR | 76 |
| Israel IL | 81 |
| South Korea KR | 85 |
| France FR | 86 |
| Japan JP | 92 |
| Poland PL | 93 |
| Ukraine UA | 95 |
Long-term orientation
Long-term orientation: BR 28, IL 47, PL 49, US 50, IN 51, UA 51, DE 57, NORD 57 (SE 52, NO 55, DK 59, FI 63), UK 60, FR 60, NL 67, CN 77, KR 86, JP 100.
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: SE 52, NO 55, DK 59, FI 63.
Country averages. About 80% of variation in values is between people inside a country (Taras et al. 2016).
Source: The Culture Factor country comparison tool, current values (revised around 2023), retrieved 2026. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Score |
|---|---|
| Brazil BR | 28 |
| Israel IL | 47 |
| Poland PL | 49 |
| United States US | 50 |
| India IN | 51 |
| Ukraine UA | 51 |
| Germany DE | 57 |
| The Nordics NORD | 57 (mean of SE 52, NO 55, DK 59, FI 63) |
| United Kingdom UK | 60 |
| France FR | 60 |
| Netherlands NL | 67 |
| China CN | 77 |
| South Korea KR | 86 |
| Japan JP | 100 |
Indulgence
Indulgence: UA 14, CN 24, IN 26, KR 29, PL 29, DE 40, JP 42, FR 48, BR 59, NORD 65 (NO 55, FI 57, DK 70, SE 78), US 68, NL 68, UK 69.
No source: Israel
NORD is drawn as a span over its members: NO 55, FI 57, DK 70, SE 78.
Country averages. About 80% of variation in values is between people inside a country (Taras et al. 2016).
Source: The Culture Factor country comparison tool, current values (revised around 2023), retrieved 2026. About this scale
Positions as text
| Country or region | Score |
|---|---|
| Ukraine UA | 14 |
| China CN | 24 |
| India IN | 26 |
| South Korea KR | 29 |
| Poland PL | 29 |
| Germany DE | 40 |
| Japan JP | 42 |
| France FR | 48 |
| Brazil BR | 59 |
| The Nordics NORD | 65 (mean of NO 55, FI 57, DK 70, SE 78) |
| United States US | 68 |
| Netherlands NL | 68 |
| United Kingdom UK | 69 |