| 1. |
- Andresen, Edith
(författare)
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Dressed for success : designing and managing regional strategic networks
- 2011
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Inter-organizational network initiatives such as regional strategic networks (RSNs) are often used by firms and public agencies to support regional development and competitiveness. RSNs are designed networks managed by a hub and financed by public or private means. RSN management is complex as members are autonomous and initially often loosely connected. The effects of RSNs on regional development are disputed as engineered relationship development may interfere with ongoing business relationships. Despite this, vast public funds are being invested in collaborative initiatives. Identifying factors affecting RSN performance will provide a better basis for evaluating and managing such initiatives.Based on concepts such as actors, resources, and activities findings are reported from longitudinal case-studies built on interviews with 68 members and hubs in four RSNs. Data were also collected through participant observation, conversations, archival data and emails. Findings indicate that factors such as evaluation criteria, member composition, relationships, location, goals, the hub, physical and human resources, knowledge sharing and development, resources, policies and norms, social activities, and communication exert an impact on entrepreneurship and cooperation.The first paper focuses on factors such as actor composition, actor goals, number of actors, and activities facilitating relationship development and commitment. The second paper identifies a framework of seven tasks to be performed by the hub. The effects on development of preferences and atmosphere are dealt with in the third paper. Effects of cooperation between public/private sector and universities are addressed in the fourth paper, and entrepreneurial processes in network contexts are analyzed in the fifth one.The important management role of the hub is emphasized as is carefully considered member composition. Relationships and commitment are found to be crucial. These factors are not covered by national and regional performance criteria. They merit a place of their own.
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| 2. |
- Abdi, Adel
(författare)
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Efficient Winter Road Maintenance : A Study of Technical and Contractual Issues
- 2014
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Since ancient times, roads have tied people and cultures together. Roads have been createdwith the aim of facilitating trade and cultural exchange among different regions in the world. After the technologic development in vehicle industry and dramatically increase of motoring in the world during the past century road communication has gained a great importance for transporting people and goods. Thus, good safety and accessibility on roads all year round is now a vital necessity for a healthy economy in all modern societies. In order to keep roads safe, available for use with high transport quality they need to be maintained in real time. One of the most difficult tasks in this context is to keep the roads in good condition and accessible even during winter. The main objective of this doctoral thesis is to attempt to specify the most efficient ways of executing winter road maintenance. The preliminary issue in this context is whether it is the use of current assistive tools, that is, technical aspects that should be optimized and developed or whether it is the way in which winter maintenance services are procured and outsourced, that is, contractual aspects that should be improved which could give the optimal impact for both clients and contractors and make winter road maintenance more effective, or both issues. In order to define the outline of the research project a comprehensive state of the art survey was initiated with the intention of collecting and gaining insights into the earlier studies in the research area. Three basic areas associated with the performance of winter road maintenance were considered to be most relevant for review due to the anchorage between the areas. The selected areas were climatological, technical and contractual aspects. The literature review was followed by an electronic questionnaire survey. The results of the study in this stage showed that current technical methods almost functioned in a reasonable manner but there was an imprecise dissatisfaction with the current maintenance contract. The second stage of the research consisted of a number of additional empirical investigations in order to identify contractual problematic issues behind the current winter road maintenance in Sweden. Generally, those factors that are rarely considered as potential underlying causes to costly performance of winter road maintenance in Sweden were studied in this research project for example improper use of related technical assistive tools, procurement of improper bundled winter services and inappropriate contract structure. This thesis consists of six papers, five of which are related to each other, and the first one is completely independent but within research area. Findings in the thesis contributes to extend understanding about; how designing appropriate contracts can improve winter road maintenance, how proper use of assistive tools can reduce unnecessary winter road maintenance costs and minimize road traffic disruptions and delays, how a partnering structure in contracts can create confidence and trust between clients and contractors that in turn leads to minimizing or eliminating conflicts and disputes between parties involved, how choice of appropriate procurement methods through proper bundling of winter road services can contribute to shorten the procurement process and create incentives for contractors, and how selection of proper payment mechanisms can contribute to higher service quality of performed winter road measures. Additionally, an adequate knowledge and understanding of climate, proper knowledge of road weather and its impact on winter road traffic is essential for contribution of better planning of how to maintain the road network during winter. Since understanding about winter issues and its effect on winter road traffic is far from complete and winter road maintenance in the cold regions is a similar challenge, broad and complex, the results of this research may even contribute to improving winter maintenance problems in the countries with severe winters like Sweden.
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| 3. |
- Berggren, Björn, et al.
(författare)
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Effect of syndication on the performance of venture capitalists portfolio firms: The Swedish case
- 2010
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Ingår i: Journal of International Finance and Economics. - 1555-6336 .- 2378-864X. ; 10:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this paper, we have analyzed the performance of 154 investments made by Swedish and international venture capital firms in Sweden. The purpose of this paper was to investigate whether the syndicated investments outperformed the non-syndicated investments in terms of growth and survival. The results show that the syndicated investments targeted different industries, primarily biotechnology and information and communications technology (ICT). The non-syndicated investments were to a larger extent made in mature firms in low-tech industries, such as traditional manufacturing and retail. Furthermore, the survival rate among the syndicated investments was significantly lower than the non-syndicated investments. This difference in survival rate is partly dependent upon the greater risk associated with investments in younger firms in rapidly growing industries. The managerial implication is that syndication is the means by which venture capital invests during the early stages of knowledge-based firms, thus making syndication between venture capitalists of primary concern for policy-making purposes.
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| 4. |
- Berggren, Björn, 1972-, et al.
(författare)
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Financing entrepreneurship in different regions: The failure to decentralise financing to regional centres in Sweden
- 2010
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Ingår i: Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development. - : Emerald. - 1462-6004 .- 1758-7840. ; 17:2, s. 230-246
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to analyse the financial search behaviour of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in different regions and the perceived importance of different external financiers for these firms. Design/methodology/approach: A postal survey targeting the chief executive officers (CEOs) of 459 SMEs was distributed indifferent regions of Sweden. Findings: Large differences exist in the financial search behaviour exhibited by firms in the four different types of regions. In the metropolitan areas, firms are more active in searching for new owners, especially professional investors. In smaller municipalities, banks dominate as the most important financier. Research limitations/implications: The study might not be generalised for other settings because it was carried out in Sweden. Furthermore, the regional types used might cause some concern as to whether the findings can be generalised. Practical implications: Thestudy provides evidence that policies need to be tailor-made for different regionsbecause the predominant type of financier differs greatly between regions. The findings also emphasise the need for policymakers to focus on equity gap issues in regionalcentres. Originality/value: The paper fulfils an important role in elaborating on the use and importance of different types of financing in various regions.
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| 8. |
- Fili, Andreas, 1973-, et al.
(författare)
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The impact of financial capital, human capital and social capital on the evolution of Business Angel Networks
- 2013
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Ingår i: International Journal of Corporate Governance. - Inderscience. - 1754-3037 .- 1754-3045. ; 4:3, s. 209-228
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Business angels are very important for the growth and development of start-ups as they contribute much needed capital and competence to these firms. During the past decades the formation and growth of Business Angel Networks (BANs) has become an increasingly common phenomenon and an important issue for policy-makers in most Western economies. In this paper, we follow the inception and development of three local BANs. The data in this paper come from in-depth interviews with the founders of the networks as well as bankers, civil servants, entrepreneurs and local politicians. The results indicate that capital alone will not guarantee success in a BAN rather it is a combination of the financial capital, human capital and social capital among the founding partners of the network.
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