Overall, however, Denmark ranks fourth, due in part to a shortage of talent. 

The Confederation of Danish Industry (Dansk Industri, DI) says this is cause for concern, writes dibusiness.dk.

The study, from the IMD World Competitiveness Center, puts Denmark at number one when it comes to being digitally ready for the future.

Overall, Denmark comes in fourth, moving up one spot from last year. The overall winner is the United States, followed by Singapore and Sweden.

“This is fantastic news. I have to admit, I’d rather be named world champion in future readiness than football, because this means that we’re well equipped to succeed in the global competition for growth and jobs,” DI director Lars Frelle-Petersen said, perhaps rather controversially given the World Cup fever currently gripping the country.

“We need to be better at telling the rest of the world that we’re part of the global elite so we can ensure that the best heads and most innovative businesses are increasingly drawn to Denmark,” he added.

Despite Denmark’s impressive ranking, the study also sets off several alarm bells, according to Frelle-Petersen.

Denmark is only 44th in the world when it comes to graduates in science, and only 18th when it comes to attracting foreign specialists.

“It’s worrying that we are not good enough at educating or attracting the talent of the future. This will make it hard to be world champions four or eight years down the line,” Frelle-Petersen said.

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The study also shows that Denmark ranks only 46th in the world when it comes to listing IT companies.

“Although a single study doesn’t necessarily represent the whole truth, there is no doubt that the challenges are real enough. It’s very rare that Danish businesses grow large enough to be listed. It will require a stronger digital mindset and more digital talents if we are to reverse that trend, and here we hope that (state initiatives) will help point to some solutions. We can’t afford not to take action,” Frelle-Petersen said.