| 51. |
- Woolfson, Charles, 1946-, et al.
(författare)
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The Swedish model and the future of labour standards after Laval
- 2010
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Ingår i: Industrial relations journal. - Oxford, UK : Wiley-Blackwell. - 0019-8692 .- 1468-2338. ; 41:4, s. 333-350
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This article reflects on the European Court of Justice ruling in the case of Laval, involving Latvian posted workers in Sweden. It analyses the implications of the ruling and ensuing debate over the Laval case for the future of the ‘Swedish model’ and labour standards. It suggests that profound dilemmas now face trade unions both at Swedish national and European level as to appropriate strategies to adopt to defend national pay and working conditions in the light of the European Court decision and especially in the Swedish context due to the subsequent ruling by the Swedish Labour Court. Nevertheless, a human rights discourse is emerging in which the European Court of Human Rights may act as a counterbalance to the European Court of Justice, especially in the context of the Lisbon Treaty.
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| 52. |
- Börjesson, Maria, 1974-, et al.
(författare)
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On the use of "average delay" as a measure of train reliability
- 2011
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Ingår i: Transportation Research Part A. - : Elsevier BV. - 0965-8564 .- 1879-2375. ; 45:3, s. 171-184
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We investigate how passengers on long-distance trains value unexpected delays relative to scheduled travel time and travel cost. For scheduled services with high reliability and long headways, the value of delays is most commonly assumed to be proportional to the average delay. By exploring how the valuation of train delays depends on delay risk and delay length, using three different stated choice data sets, we find that the "average delay" approach does not hold: the disutility increases slower than linearly in the delay risk. This means that using the average delay as a performance indicator, a guide for operations planning or for investment appraisal will underestimate the value of small risks of long delays relative to large risks for short delays. It also means that estimated valuations of "average delay" will depend on the delay risk level: valuations will be higher the lower the risk levels in the study are.
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| 53. |
- Tykkae, Saana, et al.
(författare)
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Development of timber framed firms in the construction sector - Is EU policy one source of their innovation?
- 2010
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Ingår i: Forest Policy and Economics. - : Elsevier. - 1389-9341 .- 1872-7050. ; 12:3, s. 199-206
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- To enhance competition in the construction industry, EU policies have created and harmonised functional building codes. Moreover, many actors advocate the construction industry moves towards a lean production, process-based way of working for quality and cost reasons. Here, Timber Framed Engineering approaches are considered to have a competitive and environmental advantage. There is however underlying concerns that conservatism in the construction industry, and lack of timber engineering skills, may be obstacles to change. This paper therefore assesses whether EU construction policy innovation contributed to innovation at the firm level. Timber framed innovators in six European countries were identified, and their sources of innovation assessed. The results indicate that timber framed firms have become actors in the construction industry. Firms have made product, process and organisation innovations. All case firms have similar sources for innovation. The common factor that triggers the firms to innovate is business opportunities that arise from demographic changes in the environment outside the firm, such as environmental sustainability and affordable housing for lower income groups. To address these opportunities, the case firms implicitly recognised that traditional project and site-based construction approaches are an incongruity. The firms have consequently established in-house prefabrication, including developed of lean production processes to ensure quality as well as effectiveness. The firms have all recognised that a fundamental barrier to their business was the lack of timber framed engineering competencies in their customers organisations. Accordingly, a business necessity for the case firms was developing construction design competencies. Firms benefited from governmental policy instruments that support timber framed Randamp;D and knowledge transfer. However, firms also gained new knowledge from their own experiences, which they also use in their operations. Accordingly, policy instruments are not a sole or dominant source for innovation in the case firms. Nonetheless, the change in building codes has been a pre-requisite the firms commercial developments.
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| 54. |
- Aronsson, Håkan, 1961-, et al.
(författare)
-
Developing lean and agile health care supply chains
- 2011
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Ingår i: Supply chain management. - : Emerald. - 1359-8546 .- 1758-6852. ; 16:3, s. 176-183
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose – The objective of this exploratory paper is to find out what is important to consider when developing a supply chain in health care, what is required in order to establish a supply chain orientation and how lean and agile can be used as process strategies in order to improve supply chain performance. Design/methodology/approach – In order to build an empirical framework for using both lean and agile strategies in health care supply chain management illustrative examples are provided from a Swedish health care setting describing the patient flow and planning processes. Findings – Supply chain management has potential to work well as a philosophy for patient flow in the health care sector. However, it should not only be about the use of the concept of lean in health care, as in fact is the case in practice today. It is rather about organizing for quick response and flexibility in a hybrid strategy through combining lean and agile process strategies. This can only be done if a systems approach is applied together with a strategic orientation, where cooperative efforts by the supply chain members should synchronize and converge operational as well as strategic capabilities into a unified whole. Practical implications – The analysis in the paper underlines the importance of focusing on both agility and leanness combined. Hospitals or health care systems that introduce such an approach, as opposed to only relying on lean strategies, could gain both competitive advantages and improved performance. Originality/value – In health care, even more so than in the manufacturing industry, containment of costs without sacrificing quality is important. This paper applies SCM techniques, tools and concepts that have not been used previously for patient flow in a health care setting, combining lean and agile in one and the same analysis.
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| 55. |
- Woolfson, Charles, 1946-, et al.
(författare)
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Illusory Corporatism “Mark 2”’ in the Baltic States
- 2011
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Ingår i: Warsaw Forum of Economic Sociology. - Warsaw : Warsaw School of Economics. - 2081-9633. ; 2:1 (3), s. 51-72
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In their paper the authors employ the notion of ‘illusory corporatism’ coined over a decade ago. In the Baltic states, despite introduction of neo-corporatist institutional arrangements, neo-liberal policies have prevailed, thus the term appears appropriate to describe the actual status of tripartite social dialogue in the area for many years. Following the onset of the global economic crisis, which deeply aff ected the Baltic region, neo-corporatist type arrangements seem to have been re-embraced by trade unions and received support of the state. However, this renewed interest in neo-corporatism is mostly a tactical move on the part of the state, aiming to facilitate social peace in the times of recession and the implementation of stern austerity measures, with trade unions largely failing to infl uence the shape of anti-crisis policies of governments. Th us this new chapter in the history of social dialogue in the Baltic states is labelled ‘illusory corporatism Mark 2’.
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| 56. |
- Brege, Staffan, et al.
(författare)
-
Sourcing, Insourcing and Outsourcing of Telecom for the Swedish Public Sector
- 2010
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Ingår i: Strategic Outsourcing. - : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1753-8297 .- 1753-8300. ; 3:2, s. 144-162
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe and analyze how and why the question of outsourcing or insourcing within a specific empirical context, telecommunications services, has been handled differently over time.Design/methodology/approach – A longitudinal study on procurement of telecommunications for the Swedish public sector's organizations during the last 40 years. The empirical data were collected from three case studies and one research project.Findings – The paper identifies four phases: from a simple buying situations, via insourcing of equipment in order to produce some services in-house, to outsourcing of telecommunications in a first step and to outsourcing of combined data and telecommunications in a second step. Three major contextual determinants are identified for the public procurement of telecommunications services: de-monopolization, rapid technical development and pressure on public agencies from politicians, citizens and others. In addition to low cost, core competence, control and flexibility, the paper identifies business development as a new logic for outsourcing and insourcing.Research limitations/implications – This study is limited to Sweden and public procurement of telecommunications services. Therefore, it would be of value to test if the development of public procurement of telecommunications in other countries passed through the same phases and with the same determinants.Practical implications – Many of the findings are valid for public procurement in other countries, especially in the European Union due to the common legislative base for public procurement.Originality/value – The paper fulfills an identified need to carry out a longitudinal study of changes in public procurement of telecommunications through the different phases of in/outsourcing.
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| 57. |
- Broberg, Pernilla, et al.
(författare)
-
What explains variation in voluntary disclosure? : A study of the annual reports of corporations listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange
- 2010
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Ingår i: Journal of Management and Governance. - New York, NY : Springer-Verlag New York. - 1385-3457 .- 1572-963X. ; 14:4, s. 351-377
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The demand for information and transparency from listed corporations has recently increased. In spite of an increased demand for mandatory disclosures from regulators, corporations choose to voluntarily disclose additional information in order to satisfy demands from the capital market. However, the extent and content of information in those voluntary disclosures vary across corporations. The aim of this study is to explain the variation in the content of information in voluntary disclosures by listed corporations. The analyses are based on data collected from 431 annual reports from corporations listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange during the years 2002 and 2005. The findings support explanations from agency theory and positive accounting theory that size and the debt ratio are positively correlated with the content of information in voluntary disclosures. Corporations with a high share of management ownership disclosed less information than corporations with a low share of management ownership. The study also shows that variations in voluntary disclosures can be explained by factors derived from institutional theory and ’international capital market pressures’. The results indicate that foreign ownership and international listing to some extent have a positive effect on the content of information in voluntary disclosures. Industry was another factor that had a significant influence on voluntary disclosures. One important finding is that regulation to some extent can stimulate voluntary disclosures; our results did not indicate an ’unintended chilling effect’ due to too much regulation. In general, the corporations disclosed more voluntary information after the introduction of IFRS. © 2009 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.
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| 58. |
- Broberg, Pernilla, 1981-, et al.
(författare)
-
Why reduce profit? – Accounting choice of impairments in Swedish listed corporations?
- 2011
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Ingår i: International Journal of Accounting and Finance. - : InderScience Publishers. - 1752-8224. ; 3:1, s. 49-71
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Positive accounting theory and institutional theory are used inconjunction in order to explain accounting choice. The theory is applied onIAS 36 (impairment of assets), and tested on a sample of listed Swedishcorporations. We find that the choice is mainly induced by agency and generalbusiness factors and to a slighter degree by institutional factors. Especially, wefind that institutional influence will be stronger when it is in the interest ofimportant stakeholders; that impairments can be used as a mean of signallingtrust to absent owners and that the institutional element of tradition cannot betested separately from the agency element of opportunism.
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| 59. |
- Gebauer, Heiko, et al.
(författare)
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Competitive advantage through service differentiation by manufacturing companies
- 2011
-
Ingår i: Journal of Business Research. - : Elsevier. - 0148-2963 .- 1873-7978. ; 64:12, s. 1270-1280
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper examines the relationship among the complexity of customer needs, customer centricity, innovativeness, service differentiation, and business performance within the context of companies that have made a service transition from pure goods providers to service providers. A survey of 332 manufacturing companies provides the basis for the empirical investigation. One key finding is that a strong emphasis on service differentiation can lead to a manufacturing firms strategies for customer centricity being less sensitive to increasingly complex customer needs, which can increase a firms payoff for customer centricity. In contrast, the payoff from innovativeness appears to be higher if the firm focuses its resources on either product or service innovation; that is, a dual focus does not work well. This paper discusses the implications of these findings for researchers and managers.
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| 60. |
- Kowalkowski, Christian, 1978-, et al.
(författare)
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Internalisation or externalisation? : Examining organisational arrangements for industrial services
- 2011
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Ingår i: Managing Service Quality. - Bingley, UK : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 0960-4529 .- 1758-8030. ; 21:4, s. 373-391
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose - Manufacturing firms primarily organise service provision internally, externally or through a hybrid arrangement. This paper aims to analyse how firm-, offering-, and market-specific factors influence the way in which a firm organises its service provision. In addition, the paper analyses the specific challenges that each organisational arrangement presents for a firm. Design/methodology/approach - The study employed a qualitative, multiple-case research design that involved seven manufacturing firms with different organisational arrangements for service provision. Findings - Contrary to certain explicit assumptions, few firms organise for service provision solely through an in-house organisation. Analysis of firms in a wide variety of industries has shown that the organisational arrangements (internal, external or hybrid configuration) are contingent on factors such as market strategy, customer relationships, product-service linkages, internal competences and market channel characteristics. Research limitations/implications - The paper is an initial attempt to understand the strategic choices that firms make in terms of inter-organisational arrangements for service provision. The research should be extended by way of a cross-sectional survey in order to test and further validate the importance of the determinants of the organisational arrangements for service provision. Originality/value - The paper contributes to the service marketing and management literature by examining factors that determine whether firms organise for service provision internally, externally or through a hybrid configuration. Prior research has not explicitly addressed this issue.
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