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- Cavalcante Bernat Junior, Stefan, 1974-
(author)
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From Approaching to Challenging the Forerunners : A Study of Innovation Capability Building in Brazilian Firms
- 2023
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Innovation capability refers to the ability to continuously innovate. Firms have recognized this ability as the most critical source of innovation performance, firm performance, and sustained competitiveness. In emerging economies, innovation capability is also noted as a significant source of economic development, which can lead to improvements in education, health, and democracy. It is not easy to build innovation capabilities in emerging economies. Unlike firms in developed economies, emerging economy firms (EEFs) lack resources, competencies, and capabilities. They depend on international clusters of innovative suppliers, as critical resources are not readily available within the firm or with other domestic partners. EEFs also face low-quality education, weak institutions, and financial constraints. Although innovation capability building has attracted the interest of scholars over the last decades, the possibilities for developing better explanations of the concept are far from exhausted. The literature in this field still lacks consistency, a comprehensive viewpoint, and efficient operationalization. Moreover, economic slowdowns in several emerging economies reinforce the need to better understand how EEFs build innovation capability. For this purpose, the case study method was applied in the research papers to investigate firms from Brazil, a recognized emerging economy in Latin America. The research included 13 case studies based on 47 interviews and numerous secondary sources. In addition, different levels of analysis, ranging from project to firm to ecosystem, helped to complement and enrich the findings and conclusions. The research shows that EEFs build innovation capability by first learning and accumulating technological capabilities to approach the forerunners. Once the technological gap has been reduced, EEFs continue building their innovation capabilities by sensing the environment, seizing windows of opportunity, reconfiguring existing technological capabilities, managing suppliers and complementors, strategically aligning the technology upgrading, and providing continuous learning to keep their workforce prepared. At this later stage, the goal is to seize opportunities that help EEFs challenge or even overtake the forerunners. Finally, it is especially noteworthy that learning is present throughout the entire process.
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| 2. |
- Dahlgren, Sofia, 1992-
(author)
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Decision-making and decision support connected to biogas use in Sweden
- 2021
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Human activities cause many sustainability challenges in the world, which need to be dealt with. One way to decrease the negative impacts related to those challenges is by replacing currently dominating technologies with better, alternative technologies. However, such shifts are not easy to achieve – for example, each new user has to make a decision to start using the technology.The aim of this thesis is to contribute to a greater understanding of what the decisions to use alternative technologies are based on and how the decisions can be supported. In order to achieve this aim, the thesis focuses on the decisions of private companies’ and public organizations in Sweden of whether or not to use biogas in Sweden. The thesis is based upon six appended papers, which are used for addressing three research questions: How do biogas compare to other potential alternatives? Why do decision-makers in Sweden find it interesting to use biogas, and what makes them hesitant? And, how can decision support be used in decision-making to deal with complexities connected to biogas decisions?It is concluded that biogas has environmental and social advantages compared to several other renewable alternatives, but that it can be more expensive. The technical maturity of biogas use depends partly upon the usage area – biomethane buses is a mature area while heavy trucks is less mature. Biogas is perceived by decision-makers as a good environmental option and a better long-term solution than several other renewable alternatives since there are investments done and since the policymakers seem positive towards biogas. Public organizations tend to look at the broader positive aspects of biogas, such as energy security and nutrient recovery, while private companies tend to be more focused on biogas as an environmental action that can benefit the image of the company. However, decision-makers can be hesitant towards biogas due to economic or policy aspects or a lack of technical maturity. The decision-makers can also experience a lack of knowledge that makes them uncertain about biogas. Decision support can help the decision-makers in different ways, with different tools being more suitable for different parts of the complexities connected to biogas decisions. Multi-criteria assessments can help the decision-maker focus on several impacts at once and making the decision process transparent for trade-offs, while socio-technical scenarios can help the decision-maker understand how the wanted changes can be realized.
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| 3. |
- Dahlgren, Sofia, 1992-
(author)
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The role of biogas in a more sustainable energy system in Sweden
- 2019
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Licentiate thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- There are numerous problems in the world that need to be dealt with in order to achieve sustainable development. The energy system has significant negative impacts on many of these problems, and there is a need for a transition towards more sustainable energy. Sweden has already started this transition and is using large amounts of renewable energy. However, within the transport sector and the manufacturing sector in particular, large amounts of fossil fuels are still used. Biogas is one alternative that can help solve several sustainability problems and that could be part of a future more sustainable energy system. However, it is not certain what biogas is most suitable to be used for.The aim of this thesis is to investigate how biogas should be used in a future more sustainable energy system, by answering three research questions: 1) In what ways can biogas be used in a more sustainable energy system? 2) How can we assess whether biogas is suitable in a specific context? and 3) What determines whether it is easy or difficult for a user to start using biogas? These questions are explored in a Swedish context using four appended articles, which are based on two collaborative projects using a combination of workshops, literature reviews and interviews.Biogas can be used for heat, electricity or fuel in the manufacturing or transport sector. In Sweden, heat and electricity are mainly of interest for smaller production scales, while production on larger scales will likely be dominated by upgrading mostly to CBG but also to LBG. CBG can be used for less energy-intensive purposes, such as cars or buses, while the growing interest in LBG in Sweden may open up new market segments for biogas which are more energy-intensive, such as heavy trucks or shipping, or in geographical locations that are further away from the site of production.Several sustainability assessment methods exist that can be used to evaluate whether biogas is suitable in a specific context, such as multi-criteria assessments or scenario analyses. These methods can include a number of different aspects that are relevant to biogas use, such as GHG emissions, safety issues, and the vitality of the surrounding region. In order to introduce biogas, six main factors were identified that can make this easier or more difficult: technical maturity, tank volume, distance between the producer and the user, scale of energy use, policies and costs, and strategies of individual organizations.Overall, the rise in LBG production creates new opportunities for biogas use in both geographical and usage areas that did not previously use biogas. There is no simple answer to what biogas should be used for in the future – rather, this depends on the circumstances. It is also possible that the usage areas that are most suitable now for biogas might not be the most suitable areas in the future, depending on developments within, for example, the electricity system and hydrogen. However, CBG and LBG are likely to dominate biogas production in Sweden until then.
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| 4. |
- Werner, Viktor, 1993-
(author)
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Ghosts of the Past or Facilitators of the Future? : Firm-System Interactions in the Transition to Electrified Goods Transportation
- 2023
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- If you visit Linköping, you have good chances to see electrified cars, or you may even take a ride on an electric city bus. However, you will have some difficulty spotting one of the very few electric trucks operating in the city. The transition to a road-based goods transportation system with electrified trucks is much slower than the transition to electrified passenger transport in Sweden. Part of the explanation for this are the profound system changes required to realize a competitive electrified goods transportation system, a system that involves different firms with significantly different resources and varying relationships to existing system structures. This thesis aims to contribute to transition studies by mapping out how firm-system interactions unfold during an ongoing sustainability transition. Therefore, attention is placed on how dynamic transition processes are affected by firms with stakes in the emerging socio-technical system for electrified goods transportation. The thesis also emphasizes the firms' limitations in shaping the environment in which the electrified trucks will operate. The data on which the thesis is based was collected within the context of two research projects, both funded by the Swedish Energy Agency and affiliated with the Swedish Electromobility Center. The data collection included observations at 42 industry events and 34 semi-structured interviews with different actors involved in the development of electrified goods transportation in Sweden. In addition, a literature review was conducted based on articles in the research community of transition studies, highlighting how established firms in the automotive sector handle major transitions of socio-technical systems. In general, the thesis contributes to the ongoing discussion in transition studies about the role of firms in transitions. In particular, there is a vivid discussion about two issues in this research community: how established firms can contribute to ongoing transition processes and how to understand the interactions between firms and systems during ongoing transitions. This thesis synthesizes the results of five articles to address these questions in three main ways. First, the thesis contributes to the discussion on incumbent firms with an "extreme" empirical case of system reconfiguration, characterized by the interactions between two socio-technical systems where incumbent firms play the role of users and producers in both systems. The thesis describes how different incumbent firms have different system functions and different resources and how these functions and resources are reshaped as the new system emerges. Second, the dissertation contributes with a conceptualization of two types of interactions between firms and systems, covering how the firm can influence the emerging system and how feedback from the emerging system travels back to the firm. The thesis nuances the academic discussions on firm-system interactions by considering the possibilities of established firms to strategically invest in a favorable dynamic of co-evolution between their own resources and the emerging socio-technical system. Third, the thesis develops analytical tools to investigate how incumbent firms can influence changes in their environment by contributing to the design of favorable future markets and to understand how incumbent firms influence problem-solution couplings during transitions.
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| 5. |
- Andreasson, Martin, 1993-
(author)
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The process of executing digital transformation strategies : Case studies in established Swedish manufacturing firms
- 2023
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Licentiate thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The emergence of digital technologies has forced established firms to engage in a digital transformation. Digital transformations are complex and time-consuming processes, and therefore, they require unique strategies for coordinating and prioritizing activities. Existing research provides some examples of established Swedish firms engaging in digital transformations to keep up with competition. Responding to the need to better understand how these firms approach their digital transformation, this thesis explores how digital transformation strategies have been executed by established Swedish manufacturing firms and why some digital transformation strategies are realized whereas others are not.This thesis builds on digital transformation and digital transformation strategy literature. The term "digital transformation" primarily refers to firms’ incorporation of digital technologies into products and services, the development of new digital business models, and new organizational setups. The term "digital transformation strategy," likewise, refers to the process of executing the digital transformation.To answer the research questions presented in this thesis, I conducted two studies at two different firms. Study 1 was an embedded longitudinal single-case study conducted at the corporate unit and two business units of one firm and includes 30 interviews. Study 2 was a multiple-case study conducted at two firms and included six cases and a total of nine interviews.This thesis’ examination of digital transformation strategies demonstrates how the firms incorporated both basic- and advanced-level digital technologies into existing and new products and created new digital services. The firms also implemented new business models, such as e-commerce channels and pay-per-use payment schemes. Further, the firms also introduced new organizational setups, such as cross-functional teams and departments specializing in digital technologies and their potential applications. The execution of the digital transformation strategies was dynamic, and the firms regularly reformulated their strategies throughout the process. Furthermore, this study’s analysis of the execution of digital transformation strategies highlighted how managers interpreted the firm’s intentions and created emergent strategic responses to adapt to new digital technologies and customer demands. The firms measured the outcomes of the digital transformation strategy by considering both traditional measurements, such as return on investment, and new measurements, such as positive brand image and customer engagement.The thesis identified three key elements that impact whether or not a firm is able to realize its digital transformation strategy. First, new digital products and services must be aligned with market demands and customer needs. Second, internal and external collaboration support digital product and service development. Third, all dimensions of the digital transformation must be managed to avoid creating a misalignment between the firm’s digital transformation strategy and current business strategy.The execution of a digital transformation strategy requires managers to constantly reevaluate the strategy and respond to changing customer demands and available digital technologies. The lessons of this thesis can provide managers within digitally transforming firms with useful tools to improve the execution process of their digital transformation strategy.
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| 6. |
- Zanatta, Hanna, 1993-
(author)
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The diffusion of biogas systems in Brazil
- 2024
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Licentiate thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Brazil is one of the largest economies in the Global South. Because of the country’s strong agribusiness and large population, it has a huge potential for biogas production that has yet to be realized. Biogas systems could potentially address a broad range of social, environmental, and economic issues, such as improving accessibility to clean energy sources in rural areas, alternative cooking fuel, and providing proper treatment of organic waste. Hence, biogas systems can play an important role in sustainability transitions by improving the environmental performance of energy generation, waste management systems, and food production. However, despite the availability of substrate for biogas production and the multiple benefits that biogas systems could bring, there is still a large implementation gap. Biogas systems go beyond technical components and involve a multitude of stakeholders, infrastructure, knowledge, and formal and informal institutions. Therefore, the diffusion of biogas systems cannot be explained only by analyzing the technical components of biogas systems. Previous studies have explored the influences of societal contexts on technological diffusion, but these explored countries in the Global North. However, social, economic, and political aspects differ significantly between Global North and Global South countries. This thesis aims to explain how societal contexts influence the diffusion of biogas systems in Brazil. The thesis distinguishes between societal contexts, delineating them as societal environments and socio-economic structures. Societal environments refer to the circumstances and aspects surrounding the diffusion process where alignment processes between new socio-technical systems and society happen across five environments: user, business, regulatory, cultural, and trans-local. Socio-economic structures refer to societal arrangements that shape social and economic aspects of society. The Varieties of Capitalism framework provides a tool for comparison of the socio-economic structures of different countries in the Global North and South. The thesis relies on case studies based on quantitative and qualitative data from documents (scientific articles, news articles, technical reports, research reports, official documents by governmental agencies, and policies) and interviews. Societal contexts appear to be more unstable and fragmented compared to counterparts in the Global North, influencing the diffusion of biogas systems. Hierarchical structures in Brazil lead to power disparities between administrative levels (municipal, state, and federal levels), impacting policymaking and hindering local-level biogas system configurations. The thesis highlights socio-economic diversity among Brazilian states and how it influences where and which biogas system configurations are formed. This thesis emphasizes that studies on biogas systems’ potential should consider contextual aspects beyond substrate availability to comprehensively understand biogas systems diffusion in diverse settings.
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