| 1. |
- Boström, Gert-Olof, 1959-, et al.
(författare)
-
Extra-curricular activities as a way of teaching sustainability
- 2021. - 1
-
Ingår i: Handbook on Teaching and Learning for Sustainable Development. - Cheltanham, UK and Northampton, MA, USA : Edward Elgar Publishing. - 9781839104640 - 9781839104657 ; , s. 323-334
-
Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This chapter takes its point of departure in the complexity of education for sustainable development (ESD) and the potential in regarding the surrounding environment as a resource and complement to the classroom and curricular activities. This inherent complexity demands different approaches to teaching and in this chapter the value of extra-curricular activities (ECAs) is elaborated upon. Two examples of ECAs conducted at Umeå School of Business, Economics and Statistics in Sweden are presented, discussed and analyzed. The chapter brings together a series of linked concepts, namely ESD, ECAs and experiential learning theory (ELT). The described activities provided experiences not possible to embrace within regular course syllabi and have the potential to benefit both students and teachers. A transdisciplinary context, where university and society meet in order to visualize the complexity of sustainability, can encourage dialogue and lifelong learning. A challenging dimension of sustainability is its dynamics, as development is continuous and therefore not always possible to frame in traditional university teaching. A transformative and transdisciplinary learning can take place when guest lecturers, researchers and students meet in a contemporary discourse about sustainability. There is a need for complex learning environments in order to support learning about SDGs and learning for sustainability.
|
|
| 2. |
- Boström, Gert-Olof, 1959-, et al.
(författare)
-
Hibernation : a strategy for building competitiveness during a recession
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Journal of Competitiveness Studies. - : American Society for Competitiveness. - 2330-4103. ; 28:2, s. 103-118
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Management during a recession is a particular challenge for the CEO of a company. This paper presents a case study of a small, but world-leading manufacturing company located in the sparsely populated northern part of Sweden. Sweden is a country highly dependent on its exports; the company studied was also strongly reliant on its international business. The activities performed by the company during the recession are studied through Resource Based Theory, which puts competitiveness in focus. The strategies adopted by company management during the recession can be summarized as 1) Hibernation: preparing the company for survival, securing access to money, downsizing, and adjusting to challenges 2) Building a team spirit: creating bonds of commitment, solidarity and shared involvement in the company, “we are in this together”. 3) Further training and involvement of the employees, resulting in increasing effectivity and productivity. These strategies helped overcome the crisis and ultimately changed the company culture, where the employees’ commitment has given increased competitiveness.
|
|
| 3. |
- Annelin, Alice, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
An assessment of key sustainability competencies : a review of scales and propositions for validation
- 2023
-
Ingår i: International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education. - : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1467-6370 .- 1758-6739. ; 24:9, s. 53-69
-
Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to review and provide propositions about survey assessment tools of the key sustainability competencies (KSCs) of education for sustainability. UNESCO points out how education plays an important role in transforming societies towards a sustainable future and achieving the United Nations’ sustainable development goals. To plan education for sustainability, teachers need to know the students’ competencies for sustainability before they come to class. Thus, a formative assessment about student competence for sustainability is needed.Design/methodology/approach: Firstly, a structured literature review of assessment tools used to measure sustainability competencies by questionnaire survey is presented. Secondly, the authors’ conceptualise how the competencies influence each other and provide propositions for future research.Findings: The literature demonstrates that there is much ambiguity between prior research about the scales used and what they represent. A lack of validation across disciplines is apparent and an assessment tool that includes all eight KSCs could benefit education for sustainability. Future research could investigate how the competencies influence each other and which drivers are stronger for each discipline across different countries. A formative assessment tool can address this need.Originality/value: The findings provide a new analysis about questionnaire assessment tools used in prior research to measure sustainability competence. The authors’ offer a discussion about the strengths and weaknesses found in prior research and propose suggestions for future research. Their conceptualisation also provides propositions for validating the KSCs presented in a recent framework.
|
|
| 4. |
- Annelin, Alice, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
Sustainability competence assessment validation
- 2024. - 1
-
Ingår i: Sustainability in business education, research and practices. - : Springer Nature. - 9783031559969 - 9783031559952 - 9783031559983 ; , s. 209-226
-
Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Education for sustainability (EfS) is recognised by institutions such as UNESCO, national education acts and higher education as of key importance. Business schools have been implementing the UN’s sustainable development goals, creating organisations such as the PRME. Support for implementing an advanced EfS is on demand. To plan education for sustainability, teachers need to know the students’ level of competencies for sustainability before they come to class to incorporate a learning progression approach. Thus, a formative assessment about student competence for sustainability is needed. This study provides a validation of a Sustainability Competence Assessment tool.Questionnaire scales that measure sustainability competence have been tested in prior research, but much work is required to validate the scales. We have designed an assessment tool that includes all eight key sustainability competencies (KSC). Several statistical tests (Hair et al. 2019; Lans, Blok, and Wesselink 2014) have been conducted to validate the sustainability competencies scales with participants at a university business school, comparing results across modules and programs. Results show there is some validity in using all eight KSC, but more investigation is needed to improve the tool’s validity.
|
|
| 5. |
- Biedenbach, Galina, et al.
(författare)
-
A data-driven lab in the context of open data : opportunities and challenges for a sustainable business model
- 2018
-
Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The report investigates theoretical and practical perspectives on sustainable business models in the context of open data. The main purposes of this report are (1) to investigate the opportunities and challenges for establishing a regional data-driven lab in the context of open data, and (2) to explore the possibility of developing a sustainable business model for a data-driven lab in Umeå (Västerbotten). The report examines conceptualizations of open data that initially emerged in the public sector and highlights the requirements open data are expected to comply with. The report identifies several types and categories of open data, which can be used to provide a variety of benefits for the public and private sectors, stimulate data-driven innovation, and enhance public value. In addition, the report acknowledges the barriers to the publishing and re-use of open data. The review of contextual conditions includes prominent examples of international, regional, and national initiatives for stimulating practical activities and policy-making in the context of open data. Furthermore, the report addresses different theoretical perspectives on how to conceptualize business models, ranging from presenting a company’s organization and its strategic view to emphasizing the elements required for creating, delivering, and capturing value in a specific context. The report elaborates upon the capacities of sustainable business models to achieve long-term success through business model innovation and to address environmental and social challenges while sustaining economic performance. Furthermore, the report emphasizes the importance of considering a complex ecosystem engaging diverse stakeholder groups and the open data lifecycle for developing a successful business model in the context of open data. The report reviews the business models used in the open data industry and discusses the important practical considerations for a data-driven lab. Overall, the report emphasizes the critical importance of creating the conditions that will enable the valuable resource of open data to be exploited and prioritizing the establishment of a regional data-driven lab by considering its potential to stimulate data-driven innovation and increase public value for society.
|
|
| 6. |
- Boström, Gert-Olof, 1959-
(författare)
-
A generic model for integrating ESD in a university course – complementing a textbook with contemporary material
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Studia Periegetica. - Poland : WSB University in Poznań. - 1897-9262 .- 2658-1736. ; 31:3, s. 67-80
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A large number of stakeholders are demanding more education for sustainable devel- opment (ESD) at Swedish universities, among them students who are expecting to find ESD in their courses. The aim of the article is to present a model for how to develop a course to include ESD when no updated textbooks are yet available and Bloom’s taxonomy is used for demonstrat- ing the high level of learning that can be achieved without any syllabus changes. The setting for the case study and model development was a course in service marketing with a diverse group of students in terms of their background and education, at Umeå School of Business, Economics, and Statistics at Umeå University in Sweden. The course took place in the middle of the education program. Techniques such as lectures, guest lectures, assignments based on the theoretical text- book content, and a term paper were used to incorporate ESD into the course in order to accom- plish possibilities for generic use. A challenge in designing ESD was the lack of knowledge about the students’ initial understanding of sustainability. The model was designed to take this into ac- count. The design of assignments showed clear possibilities of achieving high levels of learning in terms of Bloom’s taxonomy, including analysis, synthesis and evaluation. The model is also an endeavor to encourage university teachers to introduce elements of ESD in their usual courses.
|
|
| 7. |
- Boström, Gert-Olof, 1959-
(författare)
-
CAD adoption in the Swedish architectural industry : IT and the professional service sector
- 2001
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The adoption of information technology (IT) is an intensive and ongoing process in society. All types of firms, but especially service firms, tend to adopt IT. Professional services, a sub-section of the service sector, are heavy users of IT. These firms are special because their business builds on the knowledge of the people in the firm. Therefore, tt is of special interest to study the impact of IT in these firms.The impact of IT in professional service firms is identified in four ways: service quality, competitive advantage, bottomline (management visions), and industry structure. The empirical focus is on the Swedish architectural industry and the adoption of CAD in this industry. Two extensive surveys each consisting of several in-depth interviews and a mailed questionnaire provide the empirical data. The research design is longitudinal and changes in the industry were observed. In special focus were the differences between the firms that had CAD—adopter firms—and firms that did not have CAD—non-adopters.Both the architects and their clients rated services performed with CAD to have better quality; e.g., the cooperation was eased by the use of this technology. The findings also suggest that CAD may be used as a competitive tool in the industry. The adopters increased their productivity significantly more than the non-adopters did between the two surveys and the adopters had significantly more loyal clients. CAD seems to be a tool that accentuates the differences between the adopter and the non-adopter firms.The results suggest that adopters and non-adopters develop into two different types of firms. The characteristics of these firms indicate that a division of the industry appeared. For example, the adopters were significantly larger than the non-adopters and plans to expand their business. One explanation to the disparity between these two types of firms may be the differences in management vision. The adopters may be characterized as progressive firms and the nonadopters as traditional firms.
|
|
| 8. |
- Boström, Gert-Olof, 1959-, et al.
(författare)
-
CAD and Consequences in the Swedish Architectural Industry
- 2003
-
Ingår i: Services Marketing Quarterly. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1533-2969 .- 1533-2977. ; 25:2, s. 25-41
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- As an example of technology shaping the marketing environment, this paper reports on the impact of the introduction of computer assisted design (CAD) capabilities into the architectural industry in Sweden. Change is addressed at three levels-in the process of producing output, in the output itself, and in the industry as an apparent consequence of the technological introduction. It is observed that there has been a division in the industry-one segment representing a rather traditional approach to architectural services, the other a more business-oriented, adopter segment. Results are interpreted in terms of a structurational theory of technology. Understanding is discussed both in terms of technology adoption as well as the nature of professional services.
|
|
| 9. |
|
|
| 10. |
|
|
