| 1. |
- Abrahamsson, Jan, 1981-
(författare)
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Beyond Going Global : Essays on business development of International New Ventures past early internationalization
- 2016
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The notion of International New Ventures, or INVs, emerged in academia in the early-to-mid 1990s and generally refers to entrepreneurial firms that tend to internationalize very early in their life-cycle, and whose expansion into foreign markets occurs much more quickly than predicted by earlier theories of the incremental internationalization process. Previous literature proposes effective networking with market partners and, more recently, internationally viable business model among key distinguishing features of INVs that allow for such early and rapid entry into international markets. Nevertheless, little is yet known regarding how these younger firms develop over time and how they could sustain international growth. With the purpose of filling this gap, this doctoral dissertation scrutinizes business models and business model innovation of INVs beyond their early internationalization, with a particular emphasis on INVs’ external relationships configurations. The dissertation consists of four self-contained essays that represent a methodological mixture of qualitative and quantitative approaches and incorporate longitudinal case studies, surveys and register-based data encompassing nine years of Swedish INVs’ development. The findings highlight the importance of the business model as an initial market entry tool, and of business model innovation as a potential growth vehicle over time. Findings also display that INVs work with a broader range of external partners compared to other firms for innovative purposes, and that INVs have different business model innovation patterns compared to other types of internationalized firms. Moreover, INVs focus more heavily on value capture innovations in their business models as they mature and seek to obtain a more centralized position in their industry ecosystem by re-configuring the parameters of existing external relationships or developing new ones. Overall, this dissertation contributes to the international entrepreneurship and business model literature by explicating how maturing INVs need to operate under different business model configurations as compared to emerging INVs, as the original business model might lack scalability after a certain point in time. Furthermore, the dissertation suggests how INVs can pursue a dynamic business model approach and utilize dynamic capabilities to design business models that put the focal firm more in control of the surrounding ecosystem, and reduce constraints that can limit the value capturing potential and thus the growth and development of INVs.
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| 2. |
- Lindvert, Marta, 1976-
(författare)
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Resource acquisition and the complexity of social capital : Perspectives from women entrepreneurs in Tanzania and Pakistan
- 2018
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Women entrepreneurs all over the world contribute significantly to innovation, employment opportunities and wealth creation in their respective economies. Despite their importance as drivers of development, there is a lack of research on preconditions for women’s entrepreneurship. In particular, little attention has been given to women’s venturing in developing economies. This is troublesome, since women have the potential to play a crucial role in the development of any society, not least through venturing. Entrepreneurshiphas long been recognized as one of the keys to economic developmentand numerous studies have confirmed its economic value. At the same time, a lack of capital and other resources is a crucial constraint in starting and expanding new businesses, especially in developing economies where the financial markets are often underdeveloped or dysfunctional. Further,previous research shows that women entrepreneurs face particularly high obstacles when searching for capital and other resources, as they have to overcome both formal and informal barriers.The aim of this thesis is to contribute to previous knowledge on women’s entrepreneurship in developing countries, by exploring and describing women entrepreneurs’ resource acquisition. The aim is further to explore the role of formal and informal institutions, as well as the role of social capital in relation to resource acquisition. The thesis is based on two field studies, conducted in two different developing contexts – Tanzania and Pakistan. Extended periods of time were spent in these contexts, where data were collected through semi-structured interviews, a questionnaire and participant observation. The focus is on how women entrepreneurs obtain access to financial and other resources. The focus is further on the role of formal and informal institutions in relation to women entrepreneurs as they acquire resources, and the role of social capital in resource acquisition. Special attention is given to contextual preconditions.The results from the four papers of this thesis show that the studied groups of entrepreneurs use similar financial behavior. In both contexts, women have almost no access to formal capital from banks, and have to rely on informal sources of capital and resources, mainly from family members. In Tanzania, the microfinance sector plays an important role, and other semi-formal actors (e.g. SACCOs and RoSCAs) are commonly used as well. In Pakistan, the microfinance sector is less developed. There are semi-formal actors that can be used (such as so-called “committees”) but it is more common to use one’s own savings and loans or grants from family members. Further, results show that women entrepreneurs have to navigate through a complex interplay of barriers on both formal and informal levels. Although respondents in both contexts recognize that informal contacts (such as family members, friends, and social networks) are important sources of capital and other resources, they clearly express their desire for reliable, well-functioning, formal financial institutions. Lastly, results confirm that social capital is a crucial factor for entrepreneurs. As women in the studied contexts are excluded from formal finance, they are even more dependent on informal capital, and thereby their ability to use social capital. However, it is remarkable how often their social embeddedness is not only complex but counterproductive. Results show both negative outcomes of, and limited access to, social capital for the studied entrepreneurs.
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| 3. |
- Sköld, Birgitta, 1957-
(författare)
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Vad hände? : Kvinnors företagande och de strukturella villkoren – en studie i spåren av den offentliga sektorns omvandling
- 2015
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Avhandlingen tar sin empiriska utgångspunkt i konkurrensutsättningen av den offentliga sektorns verksamheter. Förväntningarna har varit stora från politiker, tjänstemän och vissa forskare att denna omvandling skulle leda till ökat företagande, framförallt bland kvinnor. Syftet med avhandlingen är att förstå och förklara hur och varför kvinnors företagande förändras i spåren av den offentliga sektorns omvandling – vad begränsar och möjliggör. Avhandlingen innehåller fyra sammanhängande artiklar och en kappa. Studierna genomfördes med kvantitativa longitudinella data över åren 1993–2010.I artiklarna eftersöks vad som begränsar och möjliggör en förändring av kvinnors företagande. Det sker via studier i näringsgrenar och regioner där kvinnor dominerar småföretagandet som mest. Det visar sig att på aggregerad nivå har kvinnors företagande ökat i antal. En analys på detaljerad näringsgrensnivå synliggör dock att kvinnors andel bland företagarna endast ökat i 6 av 16 näringsgrenar och att kvinnors underrepresentation ökat signifikant i 10. Analysen påvisar kontextens och strukturella villkors betydelse för kvinnors företagande. Småföretagares relativa position förändras gynnsamt där det redan finns små privata företag och på de nya offentliga marknaderna reproduceras en stordriftsnorm. Studien stärker teorin om ett genussystem och synliggör dess inbäddning i företagandet. Det övergripande resultatet är att trots förändrade formella strukturer återskapas kvinnors underrepresentation i företagandet, vilket förstås med utgångspunkt i genusteoretiska resonemang.
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| 4. |
- Svanström, Tobias, 1978-
(författare)
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Revision och rådgivning : Efterfrågan, kvalitet och oberoende
- 2008
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Auditing is common in many organizations and a legal requirement for all limited liability companies in Sweden (ABL 9:1). In directives from the government it is clearly stated that small firms will be exempted from the statutory audit requirement. In light of this forthcoming change in regulations, this thesis is used to analyze which factors are associated with a demand for auditing. Analysis in this thesis is based on a national survey including 900 Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). Around 2/3 of respondent’s (CEO or CFO) state that the firm will choose to have audited accounts even in the absence of such a legal requirement. Based on responses from 421 firms, logistic regression results indicated that firms purchasing advisory services from an audit firm will choose to have their accounts audited to a higher extent than those firms not receiving advisory services. This finding, not identified in prior studies, is linked to advisory services being of higher quality when the audit firm also performs audit work. The demand for auditing is further positively associated with firm size, use of a Big 4 audit firm and firms located in the county of Småland. From these findings it follows that the traditional view of auditing as merely a control mechanism needs to be complemented by consideration of aspects of the internal value of auditing.The approaches of SME’s when engaging an audit firm for different types of advisory services is examined in this study based upon survey data. It is shown that the majority of advisory services provided are related to core competencies of an auditor such as tax, accounting and law. Logistic regression results show a positive association between firms purchasing advisory services and the length of the relationship with the provider as well as with the respondent’s perception of the audit quality. The latter association further confirms the close connection between audit and advisory services. It should be noted that when an audit firm recommends advisory services their use is significantly higher. There is also support for the demand for advisory services being positively related to firms that are corporate subsidiaries and located in Småland and Norrland, but negatively associated with the respondent’s level of education. It follows that factors related to demand for advisory services on an aggregate level could be categorized as being dependent on firm characteristics, audit firm characteristics and the relationship between the parties.Provision of non-audit services (NAS), such as different types of advisory services, to audit clients and the potential consequences for auditor independence and audit quality have been discussed in public debates and research as well as being subject of regulation. OLS regression results show that reporting quality is higher when the audit firm provides advisory services as well as preparing accounts. These findings hold for both discretionary accruals and a respondent’s perception of reporting quality. The provision of NAS improves the reporting quality due to better knowledge of the client and its operations. From the perspective of reporting quality this finding implies that there is no necessity to further restrict the possibility for an audit firm to provide advisory services as well as preparing accounts for audit clients.
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| 5. |
- Vanyushyn, Vladimir, 1979-
(författare)
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Innovative Behaviour of Small Firms : Essays on Small Firms' Internationalisation and Use of Online Channels
- 2011
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The spread of information technology and the dissolution of international borders have had a significant impact on the challenges and opportunities faced by today's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Innovative behaviour on the part of SMEs is a prerequisite for a successful transformation of the opportunities offered by these structural changes into growth and profitability. Thus, the overall aim of this thesis is to advance the understanding of small firms' innovative behaviour as manifested in the adoption of online channels and internationalisation. This doctoral thesis consists of an introductory chapter and six self-contained essays. The introductory section develops a general analytical framework for the thesis by reviewing the literature on innovation and organisational innovativeness and identifying key determinants and processes. The first four essays seek to explain a firm's propensity to adopt online channels and suggest that firm size and a firm's willingness to cannibalise, i.e. a firm's readiness to reduce the actual or potential value of its earlier investments, differentiate between adopters and non-adopters of online channels. Expectations of alienating resellers through online channel adoption may prevent a firm from adopting. Customers' pull, competitors' push and previous use of the Internet turned out to be strong drivers of online channel use. The fourth essay employs a two-wave research design and highlights that changes that occur in the technological and economic environment in which firms operate can, over time, change a firm's pattern of decision-making from innovation adoption to conventional cost-benefit approach. Essays five and six focus on the internationalisation of SMEs. In particular, essay five focuses on the process aspects of internationalisation and suggests that early importing has a modest direct influence on exporting, and that early importing activity indirectly enhances a firm's international experience and capabilities. Essay six investigates how competitive interactions affect internationalisation and suggests that cooperation with competitors, or coopetition, is a noteworthy internationalisation motive. This thesis contributes to the literature on innovation, internationalisation, electronic marketing and small business management and demonstrates that the dynamic forces associated with innovative behaviour affect SMEs adoption of online channels and how they work with customers and suppliers abroad.
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| 6. |
- Byberg, Lars-Anders
(författare)
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Framgångsrika exportörer: En studie av strategiska faktorers inverkan på mindre företags exportutfall
- 2006
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The purpose of this study is to investigate which factors that are of particular importance for export performance among small and medium-sized manufacturers. The present study concentrates on strategic factors that are within the powers of the exporters to influence themselves. Additionally, different ways of measuring export success are studied. The resourse based perspective on internationalization and the contingency theory of organizations are used as theoretical framework of the study. Three control variables have been choosen for the study: firm-size, line of business and region. A survey was conducted on a sample of 339 companies which have less than 200 employees each. They are located in eihter of two different regions of Sweden and are involved in one of two selected lines of businesses. 239 usable questionnaires were completed and those were analyzed with correlation analysis, component (factor) analysis and multiple regression analysis. The results indicate that commitment is the factor having the strongest relations with export success, and that background variables have the weakest relations. Of four different fields of strategic and general success factors, relationship marketing is the most essential one. On second place comes internal locus of control, and on third place knowledge orientation. The results show that of the strategic factors, those related to entrepreneurship are the least important for export success. One conclusion from the study is that, depending on how export success is defined and measured, the results differ slightly. The results show that larger companies are more professional in their actions than smaller ones, and for that reason more successful in exporting. Industries of more advanced technology have more elaborate export behaviour, and are therefore more successful than others. Concerning the location, it is concluded that different regions have different competitive advantages and that otherwise similar companies can experience differences in export success for that reason. In the study, companies with a more central location are more successful than others.
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| 7. |
- Chuairuang, Suranai, 1977-
(författare)
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Relational Networks and Family Firm Capital Structure in Thailand : Theory and Practice
- 2013
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Firms must access capital to remain in business. Small firms have greater difficulty accessing financial resources than have large firms because of their limited access to capital markets. These difficulties are exacerbated by information asymmetries between a small firm’ s management and capital providers. It has been theorized that many information asymmetries can be reduced through networks that link those in need of capital with those who can supply it. This research is about these relationships and their impact on the firms’ capital structure. This research has been limited to a sub-set of small firms, family firms. I have collected data through a survey using a systematic sampling procedure. Both self-administered questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were utilized. The data analysis was based on the responses from two-hundred-and-fifty-six small manufacturing firms in Thailand. Seemingly unrelated regression (SUR), logistic regression, multiple discriminant analysis and Mann-Whitney U test were employed in the analysis. The hypothesis that firms apply a pecking order in their capital raising was confirmed although the generally accepted rationale based on poor access (and information asymmetries) was rejected. Instead, at least for family firms, the desire to maintain family control had a significant impact on the use of retained earnings and owner’s savings. My results also indicated that while the depth of relationships had a positive effect on direct funding from family and friends, networks did not facilitate capital access from external providers of funds. Instead direct communications between owner-managers and their capital providers (particularly bank officials) mattered. A comparative analysisof small manufacturing firms in general and small family manufacturing firms revealed that there were differences between them in regard to their financial preferences, suggesting that family firms should be considered separately in small firm research. Further, the results of this research raise some questions about the appropriateness of applying theories directly from one research context to another without due consideration for the impact of cultural influences. Through this research I have added evidence to the dialogue about small firms from a non-English speaking country by investigating the impact of networks on capital structure and the rationale behind family firm capital structure decisions.
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| 8. |
- Bogren, Maria
(författare)
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EN UTOPISK IDÉ? : Medverkan på (o)lika villkor i utvecklingspartnerskap
- 2010
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- A utopian idea? Participation Under (Dis)Similar Conditions inDevelopment PartnershipsMaria Bogren Department of Social SciencesMid Sweden University, SE-831 25 Östersund, SwedenISSN 1652-8948, Mid Sweden University Licentiate Thesis 53;ISBN 978-91-86694-12-8 AbstractImportant societal issues nowadays do not get resolved through the care of the state; it is rather the case that solutions involve multiple actors. Such cooperation can be organized in partnership where actors from the public sector, private companies and non-profit organizations, for example, attempt to find solutions to a current societal issue. The target group affected by the problems can also be involved in the partnership. The aim of this study is to contribute to an increased understanding regarding cooperation in partnerships and especially the target group’s participation in partnerships. An idea regarding the target group’s participation stems from the European level to the national level and finally to the local level in a development partnership. I follow the local development partner-ship for two years with a view to examining the translation process of the idea regarding the target group’s participation. Data was collected through interviews, relevant documents and observation. What is more, the significance of the institutional surroundings regarding what happens in the partnership is discussed. The idea regarding the target group’s participation manifests itself on: a) how the target group should be represented; b) how it gains influence and c) how the role of the target group’s representatives should be shaped. The study shows that ideas change and adjust over time and also that the target group participates under different conditions compared to the rest of the representatives in the partnership. A way to strengthen the target group’s participation in the partnership can be through further organizing, thus increasing the legitimization level of the target group. Keywords: translation, target group, participation, public-private partnershipsSAMMANFATTNING Angelägna samhällsproblem får numera inte alltid sin lösning genom statens försorg utan istället involveras flera aktörer. Ett sådant samarbete kan organiseras i partnerskap där aktörer från exempelvis offentlig sektor, företag och ideella organisationer tillsammans försöker hitta lösningar på något aktuellt samhällsproblem. I partnerskapet kan även den målgrupp som berörs av problematiken involveras. Syftet med denna studie är att bidra till ökad förståelse när det gäller samverkan i partnerskap och speciellt när det gäller målgruppens medverkan i partnerskap. En idé om målgruppens medverkan följs från europeisk nivå, till nationell nivå och slutligen till lokal nivå i ett utvecklingspartnerskap. Jag följer det lokala utvecklingspartnerskapet under två års tid och använder dokumentstudier, intervjuer och observationer för att studera översättningsprocessen av idén om målgruppens medverkan. Dessutom diskuteras den institutionella omgivningens betydelse för det som händer i partnerskapet. Idén om målgruppens medverkan tar sig uttryck i idéer om hur målgruppen ska finnas representerad och hur den ska få inflytande samt hur rollen som målgruppsrepresentant ska utformas. Studien visar att idéerna förändras och anpassas över tid samt att målgruppen medverkar på olika villkor jämfört med övriga representanter i partnerskapet. Ett sätt att stärka målgruppens medverkan i partnerskapet kan vara genom ytterligare organisering för att på så sätt ge ökad legitimitet för målgruppen. Nyckelord: översättning, målgrupp, medverkan, privatoffentliga partnerskap
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