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1.
  • Kurvinen, Jaana, 1963- (författare)
  • Imitation och omtolkning : Entreprenörers identifieringsprocesser ur ett genusperspektiv
  • 2009
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This study deals with the issue of entrepreneurship and gender. A central part is to understand how entrepreneurial opportunities and identities are constructed and linked to each other. The aim is to increase our understanding about entrepreneurial processes, identification and role creation. A gender structure is a premise and it is ar-gued that norms, values and meanings in society affect women that are entrepreneurs in the sense that they are seen as “the other” and are compared to a male norm. Entre-preneurship is described as opportunity construction rather than opportunity recogni-tion or opportunity finding. The empirical context is drawn from interviews with 15 en-trepreneurs, all women from the county of Gävleborg in Sweden, who have left a job in the public sector in order to start new private ventures. The main contribution of this study is an increased understanding of entrepreneu-rial identification processes, from a gender perspective. One part of these processes is resistance that the entrepreneurs meet and practice. This study identifies the strong presence of a male discourse and describes how women, who are entrepreneurs deals with that. It is argued that there is a need to open up the concept entrepreneurship, to a more gender neutral one, in order to make it easier for women who are entrepreneurs to identify themselves as entrepreneurs and not just ‘female entrepreneurs’. An empiri-cal contribution is a description of how different and contradictory identification proc-esses are going on at the same time. Marginalization and identification processes illus-trates that if entrepreneurs feel that they are not taken seriously in their attempt to cre-ate business practices that fit with their preferences, a struggle for recognition emerges. This study shows that processes of marginalization and role creation are intertwined in different ways that affect women who are entrepreneurs. A methodological contribu-tion is the deconstruction of interviews in order to understand how processes of imita-tion and reinterpretation exists as simultaneous and parallel events. The findings are presented in five recurrent themes: break away, identification, po-larization, marginalization and resistance. The themes are used in order to increase the understanding about how the entrepreneurs create contexts for their ventures and how this context can be understood as an arena where entrepreneurial opportunities are constructed. Three aspects, all related to gender, of resistance are described; resistance that the entrepreneurs have met during the time as employees in the public sector, re-sistance that the entrepreneurs have met during the process of starting their ventures and finally, resistance that the entrepreneurs practice in meetings with male norms.
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2.
  • Abrahamsson, Jan, 1981- (författare)
  • Beyond Going Global : Essays on business development of International New Ventures past early internationalization
  • 2016
  • 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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3.
  • Alexeyeva, Irina, 1973- (författare)
  • Essays on Audit Fees and the Joint Provision of Audit and Non-Audit Services
  • 2017
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This thesis examines the factors affecting audit and non-audit fees and the effects of the joint provision of audit and non-audit services on auditing.The first essay focuses on environmental factors. Using data for Swedish listed companies over a six year span, including pre-crisis, crisis and post-crisis periods, the essay investigates whether changing economic conditions affect the level of fees paid for audit and non-audit services. The finding suggests that auditors increase their risk premium for auditing during a financial crisis andtend to charge higher audit fees as a response to lower risk levels in the post-crisis period. On the other hand, a significant reduction in non-audit fees suggests that companies are less willing to invest in consulting services during thecrisis and post-crisis periods.The second essay also studies the effects of environmental factors on audit pricing. Using data for financial institutions in 24 European countries, the study examines whether the level of effort spent on the evaluation of fair values is higher for more uncertain fair values.The result suggests that an increasing level of complexity and risk requires greater audit effort. Furthermore, the results showthat the strength of a country’s institutional setting is positively associated with the effort spent on the evaluation of high uncertainty fair value estimates. The finding implies that auditors spend more effort in stronger regulated countries, possibly due to higher potential litigation costs.The third essay focuses on the factors related to an individual audit partner. Based on the data of publicly listed Swedish companies, it investigates whether partner special competencies are reflected in the prices charged for auditing. The findings show that partner industry expertise and client-specific expertise are associated with higher audit fees. A further finding isthat female partners are considerably under-represented among specialists. However,the under-representation of females among higher qualified partners does not seem to negatively affect their possibilities to earn higher fees.The fourth essay investigates how the joint provision of audit and non-audit services affects perceived knowledge spillover and audit efficiency. The essay makesuse of survey data from a large sample of Swedish auditors and finds that the levels of communication and trust are positively associated with knowledge spillover. The result further suggests that the information gained from the provision of non-audit services can reduce auditors’ effort (time) spent on different audit procedures, thereby increasing audit efficiency.
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4.
  • Anchev, Stefan, 1986- (författare)
  • Information and financial markets
  • 2018
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • The results in this thesis are consistent with the hypotheses that: 1) the incomplete dissemination of information across investors helps in explaining the occurrence and the persistence of cross-sectional stock return anomalies, 2) the properties of the investor base of a stock have implications for the informativeness of the stock's price and 3) a greater quantity of firm disclosure places less sophisticated investors at an information disadvantage. Overall, the thesis provides new empirical evidence about the role of information in financial markets.Investor Base and Stock Return AnomaliesAfter controlling for market capitalization, the predictability of future stock returns associated with each of the earnings-to-price ratio, the book-to-market ratio, the past return, the total volatility of returns and the return on assets is more pronounced among stocks with smaller total and/or institutional investor bases. These results appear even after controlling for several other stock characteristics and potential risk factors and they are both statistically and economically meaningful. Thus, they are consistent with the hypothesis that the incomplete dissemination of information across investors helps in explaining the occurrence and the persistence of cross-sectional stock return anomalies.Investor Base and Stock Price InformativenessThe relative idiosyncratic volatility of future stock returns is: 1) negatively associated with the absolute size of the total and the institutional investor base, 2) positively associated with the institutional ownership, 3) negatively (positively) associated with the average stock portfolio size (Herfindahl index) of the investor base and 4) positively associated with the indirect (i.e., through nominees) ownership. These results appear after controlling for several other stock characteristics and they are both statistically and economically meaningful. Thus, they are consistent with the hypothesis that the properties of the investor base of a stock have implications for the informativeness of the stock's price.Individual Investors and Quantity of Firm DisclosureWhen the amount of information disclosed by a firm is greater (or increases), the stock portfolio weights that individual investors allocate (through trading) to that firm's stock are lower (or decrease) and suboptimal. The former result is less pronounced or nonexistent for more financially competent individuals and for positions in firms with a poorer information environment. When they do allocate greater portfolio weights to the stock of a firm that discloses more, individuals, regardless of their financial competence, earn lower returns. Overall, these results are consistent with the hypothesis that a greater quantity of firm disclosure places less sophisticated investors at an information disadvantage.
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5.
  • Andersson, Annika, 1961- (författare)
  • Affärssystemsprojekt : konsekvenser av att vara sluten eller öppen för förändringar
  • 2016
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Affärssystemsprojekt är en väsentlig företeelse i organisationer. Allt ifrån små till större nationella och internationella företag har ett affärssystem som stöd för sina affärsprocesser. Införande och byte av affärssystem betraktas inom affärsvärlden som en av de mest krävande och riskfyllda förändringarna ett företag kan genomföra. Att studera affärssystemsprojekt är av intresse ur ett organisationsperspektiv eftersom resultatet får långvariga konsekvenser för organisationen. Interorganisatoriska affärssystemsprojekt består dessutom av parter från två organisationer, vilka har skilda typer av kompetenser och roller. I ett affärssystemsprojekt är begrepp som projektmål, tidsdimension, och interorganisatoriska team av vikt att diskutera. Kommunikation, funktionen som översättare mellan parterna och ledarnas delaktighet för att integrera informationsstrategier och affärsstrategier är, enligt tidigare forskning inom både informationssystems och projektforskning, av vikt att diskutera.Det finns olika synsätt på förändring och sambanden som råder vid genomförandet av affärssystemprojekt. Det ena är att projektdeltagarna bör vara slutna för förändring och det andra är att de bör vara öppna för förändring av projektmål, tid och team beroende på den kunskap som utvecklas. Studier som fokuserar på konsekvenser för organisationer av det ena eller andra synsättet är däremot begränsade. Studiens övergripande problem är att studera vilka konsekvenser det kan få för leverantörs respektive beställarorganisationerna om parterna är slutna respektive öppna för förändring.Avhandlingen avser att bidra till både näringsliv och affärssystemsforskningen genom att beskriva konsekvenser för leverantörs och beställarorganisationer av om parterna är slutna eller öppna för förändringar inom affärssystemsprojekt.Multipla och longitudinella fallstudier har genomförts för att uppmärksamma organisatoriska konsekvenser över tid. Studien har genomförts indelad i tre faser (1) en retrospektiv fas, (2) en observationsfas och (3) en longitudinell fas. Datainsamlingsmetoder som använts är intervjuer, observationer och dokumentgranskning för att beskriva konsekvenser för både leverantörs och beställarorganisationer som genomför affärssystemsprojekt.Resultaten visar att en öppenhet och en slutenhet för förändringar av projektmål, tid och team fick konsekvenser för de båda organisationerna. När båda parter var slutna för förändring blev det svårt att använda kunskap inom projekten. Leverantören identifierade strategiska lärandeprojekt innan de beslutade sig för att vara öppna för förändring. När beställarna var öppna för förändring och leverantören sluten för förändring genomförde beställarna lärande och förändringsprojekt utanför projekten och de gemensamma projekten sekventiellt. När båda parter var öppna för förändringar blev konsekvenserna varken system eller organisationsutveckling, vilket hade kunnat förväntas. Istället ledde det till kommunikationsbarriärer.I denna sammanläggningsavhandling sammanställs och beskrivs resultaten från studien av affärsystemsprojekt via fyra publicerade artiklar.
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6.
  • Andersson, Håkan A., 1948- (författare)
  • Svenska småföretags användning av reserveringar för resultatutjämning och intern finansiering
  • 2006
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Small firms often have inadequate access to the capital necessary for sucessful management. The Swedish Government introduced in the mid-1990s allowance rules that facilitate retention of profit for sole proprietorships and partnership firms. The tax credits arising from the allowances give certain benefits as a source of financing compared to traditional forms of credits. Among the more essential benefits are that the payment for some parts of the tax credit can be put on hold almost indefinitely, or alternatively never be paid. The firms are free to use these means, and the responsibility of future payment of the postponed tax debt stays with the individual firms. The comprehensive purpose of the dissertation may be stated as to increase the understanding of small Swedish firms, especially sole proprietorships, utilizing possibilities for allowances for income smoothing and internal financing. At the beginning the dissertation describes case studies, comprising a smaller selection of microfirms. With a starting-point from the accounted and reported income-tax returns, alternative calculations are made where additional positive tax and finance effects appear possible to obtain. One purpose of these studies is to increase the insight regarding the possibilities of income smoothing and internal financing that arise from utilizing these allowances. These studies also illuminate, to what extent and in what way they are being used in reality. Another objective of these studies is to give a more substantive insight into the technics behind the different allowances, appropriation to positive or negative interest rate allocation appropriation or dissolving of tax allocation reserve appropriation or dissolving of “expansion fund” Theories regarding the creation of resources, through building of capital, and theories on financial planning and strategy are studied. The purpose is to find support for the choice of theoretical grounded underlying independent variables that can be used in cross-sectional studies to explain the use of the possibilities of appropriations. Theories of finance that are of greatest interest, in the operationalisation of these variables, are theories that discuss the choices of different financing alternatives for small firms. The “pecking order theory”, describes the firm’s order of priority when choices of finance alternatives are made. The concept of “financial bootstrapping” expands the frame for different forms of financing choices that especially very small firms have at their disposal.The last part of the theoretical frame deals with the phenomenon of “income smoothing,” which can be translated as leveling out profits/losses. A number of financial and non-financial variables are supported by and operationalised from these financial theories e.g., return on sales, capital turnover, quick ratio and debt-to-equity ratio, respectively age, gender and line of business. Cross-sectional studies are implemented for the taxation years of 1996 and 1999, on databases that have been extracted from Statistics Sweden. The group of 87,276 sole proprietorships included in the study were required to complete tax returns and pay taxes for the business activity according to the supporting schedule, N2, information from the sole proprietorships’ income statement and balance sheet in an accounting statement that comes with the income tax return form. The possibilities of allowances are considered as dependent variables. The intention of the cross-sectional studies is to survey and describe the utilization of possible allowances, with the support of the financial and non-financial independent variables. The connection of these variables to the decision of sole proprietorships to appropriate to the tax allocation reserve is also summarized in a logistic regression model. A number of theoretically based propositions are made for the purpose of observing how the variables are connected to the chances that sole proprietorships actually appropriate to this form of allowance. Appropriation to the tax allocation reserve stands out as the most practiced form of allowance. The studies also clarify that utilization varies among different forms of allowances, but that not all firms that have the prerequisites to utilize the possibilities really do so to the full. A further utilization of the different possibilities of allowances is often conceivable. For the sole proprietorships that are not utilizing these possibilities, the allowances should be considered eligible as a contribution to internal financing and to increase access to capital.
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7.
  • Annelin, Alice, 1980- (författare)
  • Audit teams and audit quality : a sustainable development goal perspective
  • 2019
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This dissertation investigates the influence of audit teams on audit quality and produces a conceptual analysis through the perspective of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) framework (United Nations, 2017). Four articles study four different audit team factors, namely audit team hierarchical structures, team stress, team psychological distances and team equality. The conceptual analysis approach has been chosen to address the increasing demand for a better understanding of the accounting research role in sustainable development (Bebbington & Unerman, 2018), which drove the research problem focus in each article. This dissertation summarises the work that has been conducted in the four studies and also makes propositions for an SDG perspective on the work and for future research based on their findings.A unique set of data has been collected that contains information about auditors who have worked on the same engagements in the same team. The data has been collected by interviews and questionnaire surveys conducted in a field study, which have provided information that can be analysed using a qualitative and quantitative approach. The data has also included proprietary information about audit team client characteristics from a Big 4 audit firm. More specifically, this research has contributed to audit team, audit quality and the role of accounting in the achievement of the UN’s SDGs by answering several research questions. Results find that hierarchical power and status as well as trust play a role in audit team structure; audit team stress triggers and consequences include 1) team planning, competence, autonomy, 2) team changes, coordination and leadership, communication and cooperation and team support, and 3) team stress cognition, physical and affective forms; and, audit team psychological distances and equality has a relation to team behaviour. Findings can contribute to an understanding of equality and well-being in audit teams and therefore to the audit team’s achievement of the UN’s SDGs.
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8.
  • Babri, Maira, 1986- (författare)
  • The Corporate Code of Ethics at Home, Far Away and in Between : Sociomaterial Translations of a Traveling Code
  • 2016
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Corporate codes of ethics (CCEs) have become increasingly prevalent as overarching ethical guidelines for multinational corporations doing business around the globe. As formal documents, governing corporations’ work, policies, and ways of doing business, CCEs are meant to guide all business activities and apply to all of the corporation’s employees, suppliers, and business partners. In multinational corporations, this means that diverse countries, cultures, and a myriad of heterogeneous actors are expected to abide by the same standards and guidelines, as stipulated in the CCE. Despite this empirical reality, CCEs have previously been approached by academics mainly as passive company documents or as marketing or management tools, in the contexts of their country of origin. Building on Actor-Network Theory this thesis applies an interactionist ontology, and relational epistemology, seeing the code as a sociomaterial object with both material and immaterial characteristics, and moving in a global arena. Furthermore, the CCEs are assumed to be susceptible to change, i.e. translations. With these assumptions, the CCE of a multinational corporation is followed as it travels between its country of origin (Sweden) and another country (China) and goes to work in different contexts. Heterogeneous empirical materials such as interviews, company documents, observations, shadowing, and emails are used to present stories from different contexts where the CCE is at work. The overall purpose of the thesis is to contribute to the theorizing of CCEs, thereby providing further understanding of the possible consequences of CCEs in contextually diverse settings. By following traces of a CCE, this study posits the need for a simultaneous understanding of three dimensions of CCEs for CCEs to be understood in contextually dispersed settings. The three dimensions are a) material translations of the code, b) enactments of these translations, and c) ideas associated with the material and enacted code.  The study contributes to the understanding of CCEs by highlighting a specific country-context (China), by putting together knowledge from codes in various contexts, and the overarching contribution lies in highlighting codes as different kinds of objects and adding to the existing literature – specifically, contextualizing the CCE as a vaporous object.
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9.
  • Bergh, Pontus, 1976- (författare)
  • Learning among entrepreneurs in formal networks : Outcomes, processes and beyond
  • 2009
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This dissertation focuses on how entrepreneurs learn to acquire entrepreneurial knowledge and competence, which ultimately can open doors to business success. Contemporary critics suggest that programs designed to develop general competence are not sufficiently relevant to these entrepreneurs. On the other hand, scholars and practitioners have recently noticed that external relations in formal learning networks can be a notable opportunity for learning in entrepreneurs. The aim of this dissertation is to elaborate on the processes and outcomes of government supported learning networks among entrepreneurs who work in small and medium sized enterprises. It draws on reports of four separate but interrelated research studies that author conducted. The research described in the dissertation is based on multiple theoretical perspectives, methodologies, and data sources. To gain a full understanding of the experiences of the different network participants, as well as the interactive processes within the learning network, data were collected from multiple sources: interviews, participant observation, and videotaping. The conclusions stated in appended paper 1 and 2 are primarily based on the interviews, but they are also supported by the observations and written material. Paper three focuses on the videos in combination with the interviews. Finally, to complement the qualitative research with insights regarding the relationships among trust, learning, and self-efficacy, the last paper reports the results of a quantitative survey study. The dissertation makes several major contributions to knowledge. First and foremost, by combining entrepreneurship theory and learning theory, it describes the outcomes that can emerge from formal learning networks and shows how these outcomes can have entrepreneurial consequences. Second, it suggests how the learning situation can be characterized and describes an appropriate learning environment for entrepreneurs from small and medium sized enterprises. The research also contributes to theory on how trust in formal learning networks is built and how this trust contributes to entrepreneurial learning. At the same time, it shows that the potential benefits derived from trust cannot be realized without incorporating the entrepreneur’s level of self-efficacy in the analysis. The dissertation concludes by offering suggestions for exploiting learning and business opportunities through the construction and utilization of learning networks. 
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10.
  • Biedenbach, Galina, 1978- (författare)
  • Brand building in the business-to-business context : The brand equity perspective
  • 2012
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • The main purpose of this doctoral dissertation is to investigate factors affecting B2B brand building by applying the brand equity perspective in the professional services context. Three peer-reviewed and published articles and one book chapter examine different aspects related to the enhancement of brand equity and brand building in the B2B context.The first paper entitled “Brand equity in the business-to-business context: Examining the structural composition” (Biedenbach 2012) investigates the structural composition of brand equity and the interrelationships between the dimensions of brand equity in the B2B context. By specifying the multidimensional model, which can be utilized for measuring and managing B2B brand equity, the paper provides initial knowledge on how the companies can build a strong B2B brand across four dimensions of brand equity. The second paper entitled “B2B brand equity: Investigating the impact of contextual factors” (Biedenbach 2010) examines the impact of contextual factors in the organizational decision making process on the formation of B2B brand equity. The book chapter expands knowledge on B2B brand building by portraying how such characteristics of customers as relative size of their company and its industry sector can affect B2B brand building. The third paper entitled “The impact of customer experience on brand equity in a business-to-business services setting” (Biedenbach and Marell 2010) investigates the impact of customer experience on brand equity in the professional services setting. The study clarifies how customer experience can be utilized for building a strong B2B brand. The fourth paper entitled “Brand equity in the professional service context: Analyzing the impact of employee role behavior and customer-employee rapport” (Biedenbach, Bengtsson, and Wincent 2011) examines whether factors related to customers’ perception of employees’ role behavior in terms of customer perceived role ambiguity, role overload, and customer-employee rapport influence the development of brand equity in the professional service context. The paper advances knowledge on B2B brand building by considering the potential role of the company employees and consequences that their behavior can lead to in this process.To conclude, the doctoral dissertation demonstrates that the brand equity perspective can serve as a valuable foundation for theoretically understanding and practically managing B2B brand building.
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11.
  • Biedenbach, Thomas, 1976- (författare)
  • Capabilities for frequent innovation : Managing the early project phases in the pharmaceutical R&D process
  • 2011
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Despite their recognized significance for project success and innovation, the management of the early project phases is still an under-researched area in project management. For organizations to secure a continuous stream of innovation, the utilization of capabilities is crucial for managing the early phases of R&D projects. The purpose of this dissertation is to advance the understanding of the management of the early project phases in hypercompetitive environments. The thesis addresses the research question of how organizations manage the early project phases of R&D in hypercompetitive environments for frequent innovation by taking a dynamic capabilities perspective. The first conceptual study reviews the literature covering organizational change in hypercompetitive environments with a focus on projects as the vehicle to create the necessary flexibility. The study found that organizational aspects and capabilities have to go hand in hand as enabler and facilitator for a successful emergent change process. The second qualitative study investigates how organizations organize the early project phases of R&D in the pharmaceutical industry for an outcome of frequent innovation. The findings show that an optimization of combinative capabilities that balances dynamic, project and multi-project capabilities can be used as a powerful leverage to boost the outcome of frequent innovation. The third study investigates the philosophical stances and related methodologies used within the last 15 years of project management research at the example of IRNOP conferences. The findings show that ontological subjectivism and epistemological interpretivism are dominating. Moreover, case studies and qualitative methods were the most common methods, whereas mixed method studies were lacking despite their value for developing an increasingly complex research field. The final mixed method study explores how absorptive, innovative and adaptive capabilities within the early phases of pharmaceutical R&D affect project and portfolio performance. Based on the results of quantitative study, the set of capabilities has an overall effect on the set of performance outcomes and thus confirms the results of the qualitative study that a distinct capability mix is needed in the pharmaceutical R&D process. To conclude, the dissertation has comprehensively explored the management of the early project phases through four studies and by applying a multitude of methodologies.
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12.
  • Blomquist, Tomas, 1963-, et al. (författare)
  • Ekonomisk styrning för förändring : en studie av ekonomiska styrinitiativ i hälso- och sjukvården
  • 1998
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Since the end of the 1980’s  Swedish county council managers has been preoccupied with planning and implementing organisational change in order to alleviate the financial problems and to create more efficient production systems. Many of these efforts to change have implied changing the systems for management accounting and control, changes that have been inspired both by market-oriented ideologies and by the governance principles of large corporations in the private sector. Literature on manage­ment accounting and control indicates however, that management is unintentionally contributing to the creation of organisational inertia and conservatism. This contradiction is formulated as a change dilemma; ”How can managerial principles that make organizations subject to  bureaucratization and inertia be used as important strategies for organizational change?” The purpose of the study is thus to analyze the use of management control systems as organizational change strategies in health care, employing a change perspective on management control.When used as a change strategy,  management accounting and control becomes manifest as management control initiatives. Actors handle these control inititatives by organising themselves around the issue at hand. This organising process ends or fades away when there are no need for further attention to the control initiative.Empirical studies were made in the councils of Västerbotten, Sörmland and Upp­sala counties. Management control initiatives investigated were performance-related pay, quality improvement work, systematic planning procedures, provider/purchaser-models, downsizing projects and profit center systems.The systems for management accounting and control appeared to structure health care organisations in terms of spatial structuring temporal structuring and actor categorization. The management control initiatives introduced were structured as extraordinary organising processes delimited in terms of space, time and involved actors. Actors in the administrative norm system participated with the intention to change the organisation, while those in the medical norm system aimed at just handling the initiative.Management control initiatives can therefore be seen as passing opportunities to change, passing in the sense that the organising processes are temporary by nature, opportunities in the sense that temporary re-coupling can be used to  achieve long-term change. One such opportunity is the formulation of control initiatives; the possibility of using simple and standardized change strategies can be useful, but only if they are also linked to the medical norm system. A second opportunity is the temporary organising processes; if the project form of organising change can also be conveyed to the medical norm system, management control initiatives could result in short, intense courses of events that actually change things. The third opportunity  s the recurrent  cyc ica  pro­ perties  of  management  accounting  and control  systems, enabling  recurrent  activities around the same themes, thereby keeping them alive.
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13.
  • Burström, Thommie, 1964- (författare)
  • Organizing boundaries in early phases of product development : The case of an interorganizational vehicle platform project setting
  • 2010
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This dissertation concerns the development of a new interorganizational vehicle platform in the truck industry. The studied project setting was large, and can be referred to as a mega project. I ask the question How are boundaries organized in an interorganizational vehicle platform project setting, and how can we understand the tensions which arise when such organizing is performed? I assume that tensions arise in relation to questions concerning novelty, interdependencies, and differences.  Tensions should therefore not be seen as something bad, tensions are rather a prerequisite for achieving change.   The overall aim is to create insights in how boundaries in an interorganizational platform project setting are organized between: projects and governing actors, projects and permanent organizations, projects and external organizations, projects and projects, and finally inside projects (between different functions).  A secondary aim is to understand the roles which actors, activities and objects play, and the tensions which are experienced, when boundaries are being challenged and organized.   The study was performed during the concept phase, and a practice approach was used in order to capture the inner life of projects. A project setting with three projects was studied for three months, where I performed 68 interviews and observed 32 meetings. I have used a mix of narrative and alternate templates strategies and induced themes which constitute the base for the analysis.   I assume that boundaries are socially constructed and I argue that traditional normative findings in project management studies should be complemented with findings from organizational theory, and therefore use a multidisciplinary theoretical base. I have combined theories relating to; boundary construction, projects, boundary actors, activities, objects, and coordination/integration.   My analysis consists of two parts, in the first part I analyze value-, mandate-, and structural tensions and finds that actors in the setting; organize a commonality balancing area where decisions are affected by a mandates filter and need to be understood in relation to a coopetitive tensions model. In the second part of the analysis I have found that actors in the setting balance tensions and organize boundaries by performing four major Quality improvement loops based on a fragmented value base where boundary activities should be seen as having three dimensions; administrative, sharing, and political.   The creation of the shared platform is simultaneously affected by strategic, operational, and functional efforts.  This fact in combination with the size and uniqueness of the project setting, leads to the insight that technological innovation must be accompanied by organizational innovation. Therefore I have suggested that organizing of boundaries in interorganizational vehicle project settings should be understood as being performed through Concurrent Boundary Enactment.
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14.
  • Byberg, Lars-Anders (författare)
  • Framgångsrika exportörer: En studie av strategiska faktorers inverkan på mindre företags exportutfall
  • 2006
  • 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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15.
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16.
  • Chuairuang, Suranai, 1977- (författare)
  • Relational Networks and Family Firm Capital Structure in Thailand : Theory and Practice
  • 2013
  • 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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17.
  • Eriksson, Jessica, 1972- (författare)
  • Branschinteraktion och institutionell förändring : Omvandling i två livsmedelsbranscher
  • 2004
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Studien tar sin utgångspunkt i de senaste decenniernas trend mot avreglering, marknadsintegration och andra politiska åtgärder som syftar till att skapa bättre förutsättningar för konkurrens. Konkurrens antas skapa dynamik och ge olika positiva effekter såsom innovationer, förnyelse och mångfald. Denna studie belyser hur försöken att skapa mer konkurrens inte bara handlar om att ändra formella regelsystem, eftersom även institutionaliserade normer, olika föreställningar om hur man bör interagera, samt beroenden av olika slag, också påverkar interaktionen. Detta betyder att den institutionella förändringen i branscher, utöver formella regler, är av betydelse för att förstå branschomvandling. Analysen baseras på förändringar i två svenska livsmedelsbranscher. Teoretiskt utgår studien från sociologisk institutionell teori. Studien belyser vad branschinteraktionen betyder för institutionell förändring i branscher genom att lyfta fram fyra förändringsprocesser, institutionalisering, anpassning, experimentering och politisering. Särskilt fokus läggs på hur förändringstryck i form av politiska åtgärder leder till dessa processer. Med hjälp av de fyra processerna kan branschomvandling såväl som institutionell förändring beskrivas. Resonemangen leder vidare fram till en dynamisk paradox. Paradoxen utgår ifrån det välkända behovet av både stabilitet och förändring som grunden för dynamik. Politiska åtgärder handlar ofta om en strävan efter förnyelse och mångfald. Detta leder dock till en situation där olika nya produkter, processer med mera konkurrerar om legitimitet. Denna konkurrens leder till försök att skapa legitimitet för det nya, och därmed reducera osäkerheten, både för de konkurrerande företagen och för konsumenter och andra aktörer, vilket ofta understöds av nya politiska åtgärder. Detta begränsar i sin tur fortsatta utrymmet för experimentering. Det kan därför sägas vara svårt att vidmakthålla en kontinuerlig förnyelse och mångfald i branscher till följd av politiska åtgärder. En annan slutsats som dras är att det är kombinationen av konkurrens och samarbete som är av intresse för att skapa ”önskvärd” dynamik, snarare än konkurrens eller samarbete i sig.
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18.
  • Gabrielsson, Åke, 1942-, et al. (författare)
  • Individ och agentskap i strategiska processer : En syntetisk och handlingslogisk ansats
  • 2004
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Even if strategy research often assumes that strategies are the result of intentional and purposeful behaviour the individual and human agency have tended to be neglected. Few empirical studies focus on how the individuals, their conceptions and actions interact with strategy formation. Based on ideas from process research and critical realism we made a review of the research and we maintain that the bulk of the research is based on simplified assumptions. We therefore propose a supplementary socio-cognitive approach based on more realistic assumptions, a synthesis and action logic approach, emphasising the individuals, the leading team and their embeddedness. In a process study with a comparative case study design we followed, in real time for about a decade, strategy formation processes in intermediate organisation in local economic development. Various methods of data collection and analysis were combined. By laying bare some of the mechanisms that explain the outcome in four processes we demonstrate the use of the proposed approach. A theoretical construction, the agent´s strategic concepts of action (SCA), aims at capturing the conceptions as an expression of the individual frame of reference providing reasons for action. The SCA carries explanatory power and is significant for both the process and content of the strategies. A typology of the SCAs is developed. The composition, the interaction and the structure of the team are other central aspects. We conclude that a strong group well suited to lead a formation process include a proactive strategist with a strategic idea and social capability; the role constellation is differentiated, and supplementary and other strategic actors relate to the strategy and the contextual roots in a way that will support the strategy. We also demonstrate in which circumstances some cognitive, social and political mechanisms discussed in earlier research are activated.
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19.
  • Gaim, Medhanie, 1983- (författare)
  • Paradox As the New Normal : essays on framing, managing and sustaining organizational tensions
  • 2017
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Metaphorically, the idiom “you cannot have your cake and eat it too” describes fundamental tensions at the heart of today’s organizations. Engaging tensions may seem implausible or even impossible. However, there exists evidence, given the increasingly complex environment, that both are vital to organizational success. To succeed, therefore, requires that organizations be able to manage, embrace, and transcend tensions. Consequently, the overall purpose of this thesis is to advance our understanding of tensions in general, and in creativity-based contexts in particular.The purpose is achieved through five self-contained yet complementary papers. The conceptual parts, which resulted in three papers, include a literature review on tensions, from which inspirations and ideas from different disciplines have been drawn in order to add value to the literature specifically addressing tensions. In parallel with this conceptual work, I explore tensions (a paradox, to be specific) in a specific context (architecture), an effort that results in two papers. Consequently, in the conceptual work, I focus on what “could be,” while in the empirical work I focus on “what is.”The findings highlight that first, theorizing about tensions calls for conceptual clarity. This was accomplished by identifying and then assembling core features that scholars use to conceptualize tensions. In doing so, the thesis contributes to the ways in which tensions are “represented” by reducing confusion and by making the assumptions behind tensions clear. Second, the thesis establishes that dealing with tensions productively requires a shift from thinking (and doing) based on a contingency approach towards contemporary approaches. Given the nature of the empirical context and the challenges therein, a true shift of this order necessitates framing tensions as paradoxes. In the same vein, the thesis indicates the need to rethink the central question; currently, that question is predominantly “how can we accommodate both A and B?” Given the nature of the empirical context, the question can be shifted to “why not C?” Doing so breaks away from focusing on the existing competing options and turns the focus towards something new. Moreover, dealing with tensions through this lens prevents neutralizing them and settling for a bland halfway point between one extreme and the other. Third, the thesis challenges the taken-for-granted assumption in the literature that dealing with tensions as paradoxes necessitates temporal compromise, separation, or resolution. In the thesis, I argue that dealing with paradoxes is possible without separating. This is so because simultaneously engaging paradoxes allows organizations to tap their energy and opens up new possibilities. In this case, the thesis contributes to the literature by empirically studying architectural firms. This empirical study shows that dealing with paradoxes requires an intricate interplay between what I call paradoxical mindsets and practices—which comprise organization members’ emotions, cognition, and behaviors—and organizational conditions that embed such mindsets and practices into the organization’s system. Fourth, the thesis makes a point that not all tensions require an action move. Accordingly, the thesis establishes that dealing with paradoxes may not necessarily entail action moves but rather a space to engage in dialogue so as to connect opposites, move outside of them, and situate them in a new relationship. In doing so, the presence of tension is appreciated and complementarity is sought. That is, the challenge is to be able to embrace paradoxes and not to resolve them.The thesis concludes that although it is challenging to tap the power of paradoxes, it is not impossible. This thesis shows that this goal can be accomplished by accepting that paradoxes are normal, and then seeking to transcend them. In so doing, organizations can unleash the “slices of genius” in their members. 
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20.
  • Giunti, Giulia, 1984- (författare)
  • The impact of increased standard flexibility on disclosure practices : a comparison of the introduction of IFRS 8 in the UK, Germany, France and Italy and its impact on companies' segment disclosures
  • 2015
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Following a series of reporting scandals in the early 2000s, several researchers studied the gradual shift toward more principles-based accounting systems. There seems to be a general belief that the adoption of international principles-based accounting standards will improve financial reporting quality worldwide, although little evidence is provided for this claim. At the same time several studies claim that heterogeneity in countries’ environmental factors will not lead to harmonized accounting practices and that important differences will remain even though there is common international accounting system.This study contributes to the literature regarding a shift toward more principles-based standards by investigating the effect of increased requirements’ flexibility on disclosure practices in an international environment characterized by harmonized accounting regulations but heterogeneous disclosure practices. The standards that are used are IFRS 8 Operating segment and its predecessor IAS 14R Segment Reporting. IFRS 8 took effect from January 1 2009. The countries included in the study represent the four largest economies in Europe, namely the UK, Germany, France and Italy.The methodology used is quantitative and follows a positivistic research approach. This study investigates the impact that a regulatory change has on disclosure practices by observing data reported in the annual reports and asserts the eventual differences between the two standards and across the four countries.The study provides evidence of only a marginal change in segment disclosure practices after the introduction of IFRS 8. The change is mostly characterized by a loss of key information indicating that more flexible requirements negatively impact accounting practices. This implies that if the purpose of a regulatory change is to assure a certain level of information, more rigid requirements are to be preferred. Further, this study shows that, opposed to expectations; disclosure practices are more heterogeneous under more rules-based standards. However, there is indication that the reason for increased homogeneity is that companies listed in the UK and Germany, presenting a higher amount of segment information under IAS 14R, have decreased the information under IFRS 8. It seems thus that standard enforceability decreases under more flexible disclosure requirements.
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21.
  • Graff, Jens, 1945- (författare)
  • Career as an experiential learning voyage : Development of experiential assessment methodology in a lifelong learning context
  • 2008
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This research is in the management discipline, more specifically in human resource management concerned with staffing. It examines a relatively new phenomenon: career changes by a special cadre of individuals who have advanced education and training, perhaps a doctoral degree in sciences, humanities, or engineering, and who, at the dusk of their careers, became entrepreneurial and strive to switch from an executive position in business to an academic post or vice versa. In the light of recent societal and environmental developments, and the fact that people more often change careers, there is a growing need for systematic assessment processes. For people who want to change careers at an older age, there are no assessment models available and consulting agencies have not specialized in these areas.By using the assessment methodology developed in this research, it is possible to assess a person’s lifelong careers and to use these assessments in recruitment situations. The models explain how to select shortlisted candidates. The models are based on learning theory, especially experiential learning theory which is particularly important for candidates with lifelong careers and older exam certificates. The models give special attention to the learning that has taken place in practice for people aspiring to change careers. The respondents of the empirical study were of this type. Ten people with lifelong careers were interviewed through a narrative method but guided through a learning model of content, incentive, and interaction. Their cases have been related to experiential learning theory to give a foundation for developing an assessment methodology of lifelong careers. The concepts of competence and employability are central, as assessment has to be towards an object and purpose: a candidate for a job in a recruitment situation.The special characteristic of this study is that it deals with people who show entrepreneurial behavior by shifting to business after a long career in academia, or vice versa. For them a lifewide career can be described by the occupation they have had in the two professions, academia and business. Lifelong careers give candidates possibilities to see their lives’ courses in retrospect and to assess their careers. Based on recruitment criteria set up by the employer, candidates have the opportunity to deliver information and evidence for employability through describing their competences to assessors. Special weight should be put on describing the life courses through eras of their professional lives and what has motivated them in specific eras – and especially what has motivated them to change careers.The portfolio is a tool suitable for lifelong career reporting – especially on the candidate side as this gives him a “database” from which he can tailor job applications and address employer requirements. On the employer side, there is a need for assessment methods to select the best candidates. With the assessment methodology developed in this research, employers have models and tools for more objective recruitment of candidates. This research provides concrete methods for assessing candidates and models for quantitatively prioritizing shortlisted candidates. The aim of the study is to make assessment methodology and tools for recruiting purposes, especially for entrepreneurial people with a lifelong career.
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22.
  • Gustafsson, Peter, 1994- (författare)
  • Ships, clouds, and waves : understanding ecosystems in traditional industries
  • 2024
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This dissertation builds on a jointly phenomenological and theoretical approach to investigate how traditional industries face challenges related to ecosystem innovation. Phenomenologically, it investigates how innovation within the shipbuilding industry affects the activities performed by firms that have traditionally filled the role of suppliers to shipyards. Innovations in digitalisation threaten to upend long-standing relationships and, as a result, have a substantial impact on the structure of the industry, which has a long history of intense competition, long industry cycles, stable products and services, and dependence on global trade. Theoretically, this dissertation is positioned in the growing literature on ecosystems, which takes a particular interest in how innovation creates new interdependencies between actors, interdependencies that need to be aligned for value to materialise. Through this literature, we have an understanding of how innovation can enable new forms of value to reach end users, how firms can orchestrate such activities, and how new entrants can draw on innovation to threaten established industries. However, we have yet to fully consider how ecosystems emerge and are orchestrated in industries characterised by preexisting interdependencies and latent ecosystem structures and the role of complementors in this process.These issues are examined through four research papers that build on each other to investigate different aspects of the emergence and orchestration of ecosystems in traditional industries. This research follows an abductive approach, meaning that through iteration between data and theory, new results have been generated. The data for the studies are drawn from two case studies within the shipbuilding industry. The papers present four main findings: first, the emergence of ecosystems is significantly impacted by preexisting interdependencies, particularly incentives to innovate and regulatory dependence. Second, these preexisting interdependencies lead to complementors taking a leading role in innovation that spur the emergence of new ecosystems. Third, this is carried out through market and nonmarket strategies as firms must engage with each other and international organisations. Fourth, the preexisting interdependencies also lead to collective orchestration which requires significant internal coordination to successfully perform but allows for market actors to have greater influence in regulatory matters. I arrive at these results by drawing on insights from resource dependence theory, collective action theory, and corporate political activities. 
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23.
  • Hedlund, Therese, 1978- (författare)
  • Tourists' vacation choice structure : Influence of values and implications for green tourism
  • 2013
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • In the vacation choice structure, denoting how vacation choices such as choice of destination, travel mode, and accommodation, are related and prioritized by tourists, every choice plays an important and unique role. Although it has been recognized that vacation choices inter-relate in several different aspects, previous research has primarily studied the primacy aspect. It can however be argued that to only study the primacy of vacation choices is too limited and that it is necessary to also include other aspects, especially how important a certain vacation choice is to the tourist. This knowledge is important in order to get a more holistic picture of the vacation choice structure, but also for understanding the demand for green tourism. It can be argued that the vacation choice structure has an influence on tourists’ possibility to make green choices. This thesis extends present knowledge by analyzing the inter-relation between vacation choices and providing a framework for how the vacation choice structure is related to tourists’ green choices. The influence of personal factors such as values and green attitudes on the vacation choice structure and tourists’ green choices are also examined. Four studies with quantitative data are included in the present thesis.The findings of the first study show that the vacation choice structure varies with regard to primacy, importance, inflexibility, and impact on other choices, which further explains the inter-relation between vacation choices. The findings also show that familiarity with a destination has an effect on how important and inflexible the destination choice is experienced. The second study shows how value orientation mediates the relationships between socio-demographic factors and tourists’ green attitude. The findings suggest that the relationships vary depending on what vacation choice that is in focus, indicating that it is not possible to talk about a general green attitude in tourism. The study thus contributes to the knowledge about how values and green attitudes in tourism are related.In the third study, the findings from the second study are advanced by showing a positive relationship between the value type universalism, green attitudes, and tourists’ green buying intentions. This further enhances the knowledge about determinants for tourists’ green buying intentions. In the final study, the inter-relation between vacation choices are examined by studying the trade-off tourists make between and within various choices in a vacation package. If and when green alternatives are included in the different choices are also studied, as well as the influence of value orientation of tourists’ green choices. The study advances the knowledge about the vacation choice structure and its relation to green tourism. The results also suggest that value orientation does not directly affect the vacation choice structure.To conclude, the findings of the present thesis show that it is not possible to define a universal vacation choice structure. It is suggested that the motive of the vacation and the choice situation play important roles here. Further, it can be concluded values do influence green buying intentions through green attitudes, but that it is not likely that this intention results in an actual green behavior if the behavior does not give any individual benefits to the tourist. Finally, the findings demonstrate that the vacation choice structure can influence tourists’ possibility to make green choices as the most important vacation choice governs to what extent other less important choice alternatives are possible to consider. Taken together, the findings develop theory about the vacation choice structure and its relation to values and green tourism as well as it provides practitioners with important knowledge and suggestions on how to make their work more efficient.
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24.
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25.
  • Hällgren, Markus, 1977- (författare)
  • Avvikelsens mekanismer : Observationer av projekt i praktiken
  • 2009
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Bakgrund I det närmaste alla organisationer strävar efter att använda sina resurser så effektivt som möjligt. Vad som dock inte diskuterats i någon större utsträckning är att den starkt kopplade komplexa organisationen inte klarar av att bemöta ens den minsta avvikelsen utan att ägna den direkt uppmärksamhet. Den övergripande frågan är därför Hur hanteras avvikelser i starkt kopplade projekt? Det teoretiska ramverket är först och främst projektlitteratur men ramverket vidgas sedermera till att omfatta praktikansatslitteratur samt Weicks (1976) ”Loosely coupled systems”. Metod Givet ansatsen faller det sig naturligt att göra en fallstudie med observationer som huvudsaklig metod. Utöver tolv veckors observationer förlitar jag mig på 57 intervjuer och mängder av dokument. En organisation, två projektgrupper och 118 avvikelser observerades totalt under perioden. De data som samlades in analyserades med hjälp av dataprogrammet Nvivo. Resultat Analysen är uppdelad i tre integrerade kapitel. Det första kapitlet diskuterar avvikelser som företeelse och definierar begreppet närmare. En avvikelse definieras som en händelse som kräver såväl identitet som handlingskraft. Det andra analyskapitlet analyserar praktiken närmare. Allt som allt observerades 29 praktiker vilka kunde grupperas i åtta praktikmönster. Praktikmönstren kunde sedermera inordnas i två distinkta löskopplingsmönster i en teoretiskt underbyggd och empiriskt styrkt figur. Figuren och följaktligen praktikmönstren beskriver hur avvikelsen görs löst kopplad. Det tredje analyskapitlet diskuterar fem mekanismer som följer av med de löst kopplade avvikelserna. Dessa fem mekanismer kan sedermera betonas och utnyttjas av projektledaren. Slutsatser Slutsatserna följer två spår. Det ena spåret fokuserar på projekt i allmänhet och projektledning i synnerhet. Slutsatsen som kan dras där är att det finns en inneboende osäkerhet i projekt som kan utnyttjas för att hantera avvikelser. Alla avvikelser har inte stora konsekvenser men de besitter vissa gemensamma egenskaper. Det andra spåret är ett bidrag till teorin om löst kopplade system. Länge har en processuell och praktikbaserad studie saknats. Genom att undersöka löskopplingsprocesser i ljuset av en praktikansats har jag visat hur löskopplingsprocesser ser ut.
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26.
  • Isaksson, Anders, 1965- (författare)
  • Studies on the venture capital process
  • 2006
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This thesis consists of an introductory part, including venture capital definitions, the history of venture capital in Sweden, and an overview of the venture capital process, and four self-contained papers on venture capital and the venture capital process.Paper 1 investigates the standardisation of the contractual strategies applied in the Swedish venture capital industry. The study was based on a questionnaire data regarding the use of contractual covenants. Our results indicate that the greatest differences occur among those with different investment preferences. There would appear to be two distinct venture capital cultures controlling contractual choices in these groups. Our findings generally conform to expectations as predicated by institutional theory.Paper 2 investigate venture capital firms’ valuation practices in two different economic contexts, in the economic boom of 1999 and in the downturn market of 2002 by using an experimental case study design with a case based on a real firm. Contrary to our expectations, in times of heightened stringency and economic downturn, venture capital investors employ fewer valuation models than they do in boom times. The main contribution of our research is an increase in the knowledge of venture capitalists’ valuation practices under different market conditions. It can also contribute to researchers developing more relevant theories of valuation, valuation models and valuation practice.Paper 3 empirically examines the linkage between governance, trust and performance based on a questionnaire sent to entrepreneurs in venture capital backed companies in Sweden. The results suggest that the level of trust between the venture capitalist and the entrepreneur affects the relationship between VCs governance and the portfolio company’s performance.Paper 4 analyse exit strategies and exit-directed activities among entrepreneurs in venture capital relationships. The study focuses on the effect of the venture capital organization (independent, public sector and captive) on strategy and exit-directed activities. The results indicate that firms with a trade sale strategy tend to have a higher degree of exit activities compared to other exit strategies. Furthermore, the type of venture capital organization involved (especially when comparing private independent VCs to public sector VCs) also affects exit strategies and activities.
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27.
  • Isberg, Sofia (författare)
  • Den mångfacetterade marknadsorienteringsprocessen
  • 2006
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Hur blir marknadsorientering till? Såväl i marknadsorienteringslitteraturen som i företag framhålls vikten av att sätta ”kunden i fokus”. Genom att svara mot kundernas behov och önskemål för-väntas företagen vinna konkurrensfördelar och därmed bättre lönsamhet. Men ”kunden i fokus” är abstrakt och talar egentligen inte om för företagen hur en orientering mot kunden går till. Denna studie belyser hur ett försäkringsbolag på olika sätt försöker orientera sig mot kunden och kundens kontext, det vill säga den marknad kunden befinner sig på. Litteraturgenomgången visar att en stor del av tidigare forskning inom marknadsorienteringsfältet utgår från att marknadsori-entering blir till genom behandling av marknadsinformation. Detta är dock ett begränsat sätt att se på marknadsorientering och hur företag lär om kundens behov och önskemål. Det utgår från att information alltid är tillgänglig och att människor vet vilken information som är intressant. Ett grundantagande om att verkligheten ser likadan ut, oavsett vem som tolkar den, framträder och detta ifrågasätts i den här studien. Ett alternativt perspektiv på marknadsorientering, som tar sin utgångspunkt i att organisationer består av olikheter och mångfald snarare än homogenitet, pre-senteras därför. Informationsbehandling är inte tillräckligt för att lära om kundens behov och önskemål, människor lär i interaktioner, det är när olikheter och variation får diskuteras som kun-skap växer. I analysen utvecklas förståelse för vad i ett tjänsteföretag som försvårar respektive underlättar för sociala interaktioner i ett marknadsorienteringsperspektiv. När människor förstår varandra tack vare gemensam praktik, delade fysiska och mentala rum och kan tala med varandra med ett delat organisatoriskt språk bidrar detta till att marknadsorientering blir till. Föreställningar om kunden och kundens kontext konstrueras på många skilda platser i företaget, marknadsorienter-ing blir mångfacetterad. En slutsats som dras är att mångfalden i sig inte utgör ett problem, utan det är vad mångfalden gör för marknadsorienterandet. De skilda föreställningarna leder till en mängd olika ageranden, men även till att människor väljer att inte engagera sig alls eftersom de inte ser någon mening med olika marknadsorienterade aktiviteter. Marknadsorienteringens kontext, i form av den horisontella och vertikala specialisering som försäkringsbolaget är indelat i, influerar också interaktioner. Interaktioner mellan avdelningar och enheter, mellan det operativa och det strategiska arbetet influeras av föreställningar om tid, intern konkurrens, engagemang och otydlig kommunikation och en uppdelning av människor i ”vi” och ”dom”. I företaget finns ett styrsystem som bidrar till att människor prioriterar den individuella tiden, den som ger resultat i form positiva resultat i de månatliga mätningarna, före den kollektiva tiden i vilken människor kan dela erfarenheter och utveckla kunskaper om kunden. Styrsystemet medverkar också till att interaktioner mellan enheter med samma specialisering försvåras, ut-formningen av systemet bidrar till konkurrens snarare än samverkan. Interaktioner mellan männi-skor med olika specialiseringar influeras av engagemang, människor finner marknadsorientering betydelsefullt vilket innebär att aktiviteter som överbrygger specialiserade gränser skapas. Interak-tionerna influeras också av otydlig kommunikation. Slutsatsen av detta är att gränser och normer får stor betydelse för om marknadsorientering blir till eller inte. Marknadsorienteringens presta-tionsparadox handlar om att klara av att parallellt hantera intern effektivitet och extern fokusering på kunden och kundens kontext.
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28.
  • Jacobsson, Mattias, 1976- (författare)
  • Samordningens dynamik : om samordningens samspel och förändring i ett interorganisatoriskt anläggningsprojekt
  • 2011
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This thesis takes its starting point from one of the most essential parts of organization theory, namely coordination. It joins a new and emerging approach within which coordination is not only treated as a function but as a dynamic process. The thesis reflects everyday practice during a major construction project and focuses on how coordination is undertaken, and how it develops over time. The aim is to create an understanding of the dynamics of coordination. This refers both to the interaction between different types of coordination that continuously take place in the process of carrying out collective performances, and to how the coordination changes over time. The case study, that is the basis of this thesis, was carried out from 2006-2010 in a large construction project with Skanska and Jämtkraft as contractual partners. The project – called Destination 2011 – corresponds to an investment of € 100-110 million and aims at securing Jämtkraft’s power distribution from severe weather conditions in order to minimize the risk of power blackouts. The theory chapter of the thesis has an integrative approach and is based on theories of coordination. On the basis of this a conceptual framework was developed that focuses on how coordination takes place and how it can change in relation to its context. This was done in three steps. First, coordination was defined, positioned and set in relation to the organizational context in terms of uncertainty and complexity. Second, five broad categories were derived which indicate how different organizational arrangements create coordination. Third, the integrating conditions which evolve from the organizational arrangements were presented. These integrating conditions are essential for the individuals to coordinate their activities. Based on the case study, and supported by the theoretical framework, a process-oriented analysis was conducted in four steps. The first step was a narrative case description which focuses on the development of the project and the activities that make up the project process. The second step consisted of a thematic theory driven analysis that explains how the project members use a combination of different organizational arrangements to create the integrating conditions required for the coordination to occur. The third step of the analysis was based on a process analysis combined with temporal bracketing. This step focuses on how the coordination is structured and enables the understanding of how the coordination changes over time. In this step two temporal brackets (or micro-processes) were created, the first of which represents a sub-project under the first half of the project, and the second a sub-project during the second half. For each micro-process an analysis was carried out which identified a number of coordination processes. These coordination processes link the implementation phase together and explain how, and why, the coordination is built up as it is during a sub-project. In the fourth and final step a comparative analysis was conducted with illustrative narrative sequences. This analysis puts the two micro-processes in relation to each other, illustrates how the coordination changes over time, and exposes the underlying forces that explain the identified change. These analyses, brought together, show the interaction between different types of coordination, how the coordination is built-up, and how it changes over time, thereby providing an understanding of the dynamics of coordination.
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29.
  • Jansson, Johan, 1973- (författare)
  • Car(ing) for our environment? : Consumer eco-innovation adoption and curtailment behaviors: The case of the alternative fuel vehicle.
  • 2009
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Determinants influencing consumer eco-innovation adoption and green curtailment behaviors in a travel context are at the center of this thesis. Previous research on green consumer behavior has uncovered that internalized personal attitudinal factors such as values, beliefs, and norms are influential in determining mainly non-consumption and post-purchase behaviors. This thesis extends the understanding of a moral basis of green consumer behavior by exploring the influences of attitudinal factors on both car curtailment behaviors, and on consumer adoption of a high involvement eco-innovation – the alternative fuel vehicle. The integrated influences of innovation specific characteristics, car habits, knowledge and social norms, are also examined. Furthermore, differences between AFV adopters and non-adopters are explored, and the notion of consumers performing purchase and curtailment behaviors for different reasons is utilized in the development of nuanced profiles of three distinct consumer groups. Four studies, which build on two quantitative data collections on adopters and non-adopters of AFVs in Swe­den, are included in this thesis.In the first study, similarities and differences among adopters and non-adopters of AFVs, and the effects of attitudinal factors (values, beliefs, and norms), knowledge, and sociodemo­graphics on the adoption decision are analyzed. The results show that knowledge and personal norms are strong predictors of AFV adoption and that the VBN theory is applicable in this context. The main implication from the study is that high-involvement green purchase deci­sions, such as eco-innovation adoption, can be viewed as morally based.In the second study, a set of determinants influencing both curtailment of car use and willing­ness to adopt a less environmentally harmful vehicle are analyzed. Biospheric values, per­sonal proenvironmental norms, and car habit strength are found to influence both types of behaviors in different ways. The main implication from this study is that green purchase deci­sions and curtailment behaviors within a specific context are determined by partly different factors but personal norm is a strong predictor of both types of behaviors.The third study extends the findings from the previous one in segmenting consumers on cur­tailment behaviors and proenvironmental purchases. Three distinct types of consumers emerge from the data. The Non-greens are found to exhibit the lowest levels of green attitudes and behaviors, and the strongest car habits. The Curtailers are distinguished by performing primar­ily reductionist behaviors, and by being the most willing to reduce negative environ­mental impact of car use. The Ecovators are found to be the most inclined to purchase eco-innovations and also display the greenest values. The study shows that green consumers are a heterogeneous group that can be separated on the basis of green curtailment behaviors and proenvironmental purchase decisions, and that there seems to be no inherent contradiction in being an early adopter of new green technology (such as the AFV) and also having high levels of proenviron­mental values, beliefs, and norms.In the final study, innovation specific characteristics and consumer innovativeness factors are integrated with normative and attitudinal determinants influencing AFV adoption. The results show that personal and social norms, consumer novelty seeking, and four perceived innovation characteristics influence the adoption decision. Differences between AFV adopters’ and non-adopters’ ratings of AFV specific attributes are also analyzed. The contribution of this study is the integration of VBN theory and the DOI framework and the empirical conclusion that eco-innovations need to deliver on both traditional and proenvironmental attributes in order to be perceived as attractive by consumers.In sum, this thesis demonstrates the importance of proenvironmental personal norms for consumer adoption of a high involvement eco-innovation such as the AFV.
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30.
  • Jensen, Tommy Nöhr (författare)
  • Översättningar av konkurrens i ekonomiska laboratorier : Om ekonomiska teoriers förenkling, komplexitet och fördunkling i hälso- och sjukvården
  • 2004
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • FRAGMENTERAD SAMMANFATTNINGAktörerna i Stockholms läns landsting simulerar marknad och konkurrens och är väl medvetna om att de gör detta (Den Stora Upphandlingen; en inre marknad inom ramen för en förvaltningsstyrd struktur). Det är inte det denna alternativa berättelse om konkurrens avslöjar. Aktörerna vet precis vad de försöker göra när de försöker organisera hälso- och sjukvården i Stockholms läns landsting genom att låta sig influeras av andra ”världar”. En särskilt relevant ”annan värld” är ekonomen och ekonomisk teori. Men i den till synes medvetna processen händer något, det uppstår komplexitet; det uppträder många olika världar som cirkulerar i Stockholms läns landsting. Men översättningsprocessen av konkurrens stannar inte här. Aktörerna intensifierar sina ansträngningar för att komma tillrätta med det som blivit komplicerat. Nya förslag på hur hälso- och sjukvården ska organiseras konstrueras, där var och en för fram Det Bästa Sättet för att komma till rätta med de observerade problemen. Situationen och tillvaron blir fördunklad och ekonomisk teori har nu översatts så många gånger, av så många olika aktörer, att det cirkulerar otaliga kopior av den. Det är processen av förenkling, komplexitet och fördunkling som är essensen i min re-presentation och i mina anspråk på att försöka förstå konkurrensprocesser. En essens som jag fångar och illustrerar med hur aktörer i aktörsnätverk översätter (associerar, enrollerar och etiketterar) den neoklassiska marknaden.Men annat står också på spel. Aktörer översätter såväl människor som ting samtidigt som ting i sin tur influerar mänskliga föreställningar och ageranden. Men tings förmåga att konstruera människor är begränsat eftersom ting agerar utifrån givna koder, en given Ordning, (som givetvis kan bryta samman och ta oanade vägar, till exempel dataprogram), men som i sig är fyllda av mänskliga avsikter och intentioner. Vissa ”sociotekniska” ting är designade att centrera ”världar”, exempelvis Stockholms läns landsting uttryckt i siffror i en årsredovisning. Likafullt är det bara människor som, i processerna av förenkling, komplexitet och fördunkling, kan träda fram och konstruera och centrera heterogent materiella världar, men genom att centrera mängder av heterogena material (såväl människor som ting) förmår ting visa epistemologiska möjligheter för mänskligt agerande. Människor kan med andra ord färdas långt ut i världen med hjälp av ting. En empirisk observation är att ju längre aktörerna, i hälso- och sjukvården i Stockholms läns landsting, reser i de centrerade heterogent materiella världarna desto mer närsynta blir de samtidigt som potentialen att orsaka allvarliga sidoeffekter blir större och större. En annan empirisk observation i studien är att sidoeffekter hanteras på samma sätt i den nationalekonomiska neoklassiska teorin som i hälso- och sjukvårdens praktik, där internaliserade och väl avgränsade ekonomiska transaktioner antas utgöra normen och sidoeffekter undantagen på marknaden. Istället förhåller sig det precis tvärtom: Sidoeffekter är normen och internaliserade och väl avgränsade ekonomiska transaktioner utgör undantagen.
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31.
  • Johansson, Marlene, 1973- (författare)
  • The balancing act : Cooperating with competitors
  • 2012
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Coopetition, the strategy by which companies cooperate and compete simultaneously in their business relationships, has received increasing attention from scholars and practitioners the last decade. Despite the recognized importance for firms to develop strategies to manage coopetitive relationships, the ways in which firms cope with strategic dilemmas in coopetition has not been sufficiently researched.  Firms engaging in coopetition may encounter contradictions, paradoxes and tensions that need to be managed in order for the business relationships to be beneficial.This doctoral thesis consists of five individual but related studies with the overarching aim to advance the understanding of firms’ capabilities to balance strategic dilemmas in coopetition. The thesis addresses three research questions.  How do firms balance interaction, roles and expectation in coopetition? How do firms balance power and dependency through portfolios of relationship in coopetition? How do firms balance temporalities in coopetition?All five research papers explore different aspects of the ways in which companies balance contradicting logics of interactions in coopetition, and how firms manage tensions in the interactions, which is critical for the coopetitive relationships to evolve and be beneficial. Three of the papers examine firms’ capability to adhere to and balance different roles and expectations in coopetition. Firms need to be flexible in their role-playing behavior to act as customers, partners, supplier and competitors in a relationship. These roles come with conflicting role expectations. Firms’ role-playing capability is related to the mindset that is needed in their role performance.Moreover, the thesis investigates how Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) balance power and dependency through portfolios of relationships. These findings are reported in three of the research papers and cover both how SMEs balance asymmetric buyer-supplier relationships by building coopetitive relationships with SME competitors and how small firms build and reconfigure portfolios of relationships to balance their relationship with large competitors. The thesis uncovers how SME are able to sustain independence in and to balance asymmetric coopetitive relationships if they develop alliance portfolio managing capabilities; build legitimacy, enhance agility and create role flexibility. These capabilities are found to be critical for small firms in balancing and navigating among different coopetitive relationships, thereby creating and sustaining business opportunities.Finally, the thesis explores how companies balance temporalities in coopetition. Two of the research papers uncover firms’ capabilities to balance this dilemma. The studies uncover how firms encounter dilemmas to interact on a temporary basis while sustaining important long-term relations in coopetition and how increased temporary relationships combined with long-term relationships can create both dynamics and tensions and how these tensions need to be managed in order to be beneficial.To conclude, this thesis has comprehensively explored firms’ capabilities to balance strategic dilemmas in coopetition through five studies with different theoretical approaches and multiple cases of large and small firms in different industry settings, covering both more stable industries and dynamic and rapidly changing industries.
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32.
  • Kihlberg, Robert, 1975- (författare)
  • Influence in sensemaking during change : a study of the Swedish police reform and subsequent change work
  • 2022
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This dissertation is based on four articles, and examines efforts of influence in processes of sensemaking during, and subsequent to, the Swedish police reform. Sensemaking – a process where individuals work to understand what is going on when they encounter confusing events – is of central importance for how organizational change unfolds. Influence in sensemaking refers to activities with capacity to shape persons preferences and perceptions, as they try to make sense. In this dissertation, the overall purpose is to increase the understanding about influence in sensemaking during micro-processes of change. The research questions address how efforts of influence in sensemaking at different organizational levels can be understood, and by which means actors attempt to influence others sensemaking. The research applies sensemaking and sensegiving as its theoretical framework. With a qualitative approach, and ethnographic methods, influence in sensemaking is examined on four levels: Article 1 examines how the strategic level of reform promote change through visual media. The results show how 44 videos function to layer meaning and construct stereotypes in attempts to influence how the sensemaking of change would take place. Article 2 reports an ethnography of middle-managers involving employees in a multivocal process that aims to influence how sensemaking evolves. This process has four features: open-endedness, low control over cues given, several sources of cues, and the encouragement of complexity and ambiguity. Article 3 studies employees working as ‘change’ agents at employee conferences. Results show that these actors exert influence in three ways: drawing on positional power, acting powerless, and by attempts to give power away. Article 4 reports an ethnography of employees enacting a change initiative. The results show how employees’ various enactments involve episodic power, which influence the sensemaking process to varying degrees and towards diverse ends. Overall, the results from the articles outlines three understandings of influence in sensemaking: top-down efforts, reflexive interactions and responsive enactments – each with particular consequences for who can take part in processes of sensemaking, organizing, and change work, when and how. For organizations, the results imply a need for managers and employees to raise awareness of others as well as one’s own influence in sensemaking, as it shapes the way they make sense of, understand, and enact organizational change. In a larger perspective, this has significance for which forms of organizing are stimulated to develop – democratic or undemocratic.
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33.
  • Knutsson, Erika, 1975- (författare)
  • Bundling for consumers? : Understanding complementarity and its effect on consumers' preferences and satisfaction
  • 2011
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • It is a common market practice to offer two products in a package, so called bundling. While much research investigate how companies can use bundling to increase sales and profit, less is known about how bundling can be beneficial for consumers. There are many advantages with bundling for consumers, as bundles often are offered at a reduced price and provide convenience and reduced risk. But there are also major drawbacks, for example reduced freedom of choice and increased risk of over-consumption. In the present study, the general aim is to increase the understanding of how consumers’ perceive bundle value. To achieve this, focus is turned to bundle composition, more specifically the complementarity between bundle products, as a source of value for consumers. By exploring what complementarity is, how it influences consumer preferences for and satisfaction with bundles and how it interacts with bundle discount insights about the overall value of bundles for consumers is gained. In five scenario-based experiments, the influence of different kinds and different degrees of complementarity on consumers’ perceptions of bundle value is studied and compared to evaluations of separate products. The results show that bundles generally are not preferred over separate products and that they only exceptionally provide more satisfaction. However, the results also highlight the influence of bundle composition on consumer evaluations. Generally, bundle complementarity has a positive effect on preferences and satisfaction, especially when combined with a discount. The results also illustrates that complementarity is a multifaceted concept. Many kinds of relations between bundle products are considered complementary and the degree of complementarity may vary within and between different types of complementarity. Based on the results it is suggested that the notion of complementarity is closely related to consumers’ everyday practices and the value bundles provides in use. When consumers understand the value that bundle products provide in use, the perceived complementarity increases and preferences and satisfaction is positively influenced. It is suggested that bundling can be used as a strategic tool by companies to increase value for customers. By considering their customers’ needs and practices companies can compose bundles that are perceived as complementary and offer value-in-use. 
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34.
  • Kostis, Angelos, 1990- (författare)
  • Coping with Interpartner Uncertainty in Interorganizational Interactions
  • 2020
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Interorganizational relationships are uncertain endeavors. By engaging in such relationships, organizations become vulnerable to their partner’s behavior and their success is contingent on the partner’s willingness and ability to fulfill its promises. Despite the plethora of benefits provided by interorganizational relationships, organizations face difficulty in understanding and anticipating each other’s future behavior, in aligning their views and expectations, and in predicting the potentialities of their interactions due to the influence of the broader relational context. This difficulty stems from incomplete knowledge about the intentions of the partner and it is particularly salient within coopetitive interorganizational relationships, i.e., relationships involving the simultaneous pursuit of cooperation and competition, as the partners have only partially convergent interests. Whereas prior research has focused on how firms can manage calculable risks through static governance mechanisms, little is known about the underlying processes of how firms cope with interpartner uncertainty. In this thesis, I address the following purpose: to advance the understanding of the processes through which firms cope with interpartner uncertainty in interorganizational interactions.The purpose is addressed through five research papers, which build on each other and synergistically shed light on different processes through which organizations cope with interpartner uncertainty along the course of their interactions. With an inductive approach, this thesis mainly draws on a qualitative case study of interorganizational interactions in the robotics and automation industry in Sweden. In addition, two literature reviews and a quantitative study supported the fulfilment of the overall purpose. The findings of this thesis establish that three possible means of coping with interpartner uncertainty in interorganizational interactions are the adoption of both trust and distrust as organizing principles, reliance on hybrid interpretive schemes as forward-looking lenses and the use of digital artifacts as boundary objects. In addition, I provide answers about how each of these means of coping supports organizations to cope with interpartner uncertainty by influencing their interaction dynamics. Building upon these findings, I argue that the process of coping with interpartner uncertainty has three distinct, yet interrelated dimensions, namely managerial cognition, relationality and materiality. The thesis concludes by outlining the main theoretical contributions to the bodies of literature on uncertainty in interorganizational relationships, interorganizational trust, and coopetition. Finally, managerial implications are also outlined.
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35.
  • Lapanan, Nicha, 1987- (författare)
  • Individual investors and socially responsible mutual funds
  • 2018
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This thesis examines the behavior of individual investors towards socially responsible mutual funds. The results are reported in the four self-contained papers.Paper [I] profiles SR individual investors. An understanding of SR investors' characteristics is important for the development of hypotheses and for understanding the adoption of SR investing. We find evidence indicating, for example, that females, more educated, relatively older individuals, those with higher wealth and those living in municipalities with a higher proportion of SR investors are more likely to hold SR equity mutual funds.Paper [II] studies the relation between investments of adult children and their parents. The paper explores the importance of parent-child socialization in the formation of prosocial behavior. The study contributes to the understanding of when prosocial behavior is formed and how parent-child relationships influence it. We find evidence that there is a correlation between parents and children in the investment in SR mutual funds and that parental resources and parental experience are influential in the transmission of this prosocial behavior.Paper [III] documents individual investors' trading behavior in relation to SR equity mutual funds. Results indicate that SR investors are less likely to sell SR than conventional fund as past negative returns decrease. Nonetheless, fund flows of SR and conventional funds are similarly sensitive to past returns. There is, however, evidence that sticky SR investors' fund flows are more sensitive to past positive returns and are less sensitive to past negative returns on their SR than on their conventional funds. Despite sticky SR investors showing behavior in line with values-driven motives, they also appear to be less likely to reinvest in SR than in conventional funds.Paper [IV] examines whether SR investors are willing to forgo higher returns to invest responsibly.  Based on administrative data on individual investors' equity mutual fund portfolios, it is found that socially responsible (SR) investors forgo return by investing in a socially responsible manner. In comparison with similar conventional investors (in terms of characteristics), SR investors have an equal performance on their non-SR part of their total portfolio, but an inferior performance on their SR part. Analysis of individuals' money flows to funds further indicate that fund flows of SR investors who invest in only SR funds are less sensitive to past returns. Given that investors who value non-financial fund attributes, e.g., ethical or social, may be presumed to care less about the financial performance, the results lend support to an investment behavior, at least partly, driven by prosocial concerns. Taken together, the findings favor the interpretation that some individuals willingly forgo higher financial returns to invest in accordance with their social preferences.
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36.
  • Lauritz, Lars Erik, 1965- (författare)
  • Spirande polisidentiteter : En studie av polisstudenters och nya polisers professionella identitet
  • 2009
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Who am I? Who are we? And how are the two entities connected? These are key issues of this study. Socialization and other sense making processes create new social identities. One possible identity is a professional one. Professional identities are discussed as a construction where expectations and experiences of construed images, cultural and professional understandings are key elements. Social identities are fundamentally described as social and individual reflections. The purpose of the study is to extend the comprehension of how professional identities are constructed and to study new professionals navigation through the complex network of images and contrasting pictures that meet them in that process. The professional identity of Swedish police officers is focused. The profession is - by many of the ten informants in this recurrent, in-depth interview study - described as a dream from childhood. The first of four interview-series has been conducted in beginning of police education, the last after nine months work experience. There are two motives that all informants mention for choosing the profession. The first is a wish to care for others and for the society, the second is excitement. Other mentioned motives are the police profession regarded as teamwork with a high community spirit. It is expected to give good opportunities to develop as individuals and is thought to be a practical occupation, described with key words such as handy and flexible. The construed image, how informants believe that others view the profession, is described either as polices as the selected model or as prejudiced and hostile. The mass media is regarded the main intermediary of the second image. By the informants, a good police is regarded as being without prejudices and is presented as male. Male strength is one desirable quality, though the strength preferably can be combined with female softness. The care-giving motive is accentuated as the most important one in the first interviews, but replaced by excitement as the most important one in practice. Some general discourses are discussed. The first three - the social, the recruitment, and the distrust discourse - are discussed as sources of understanding to the frequently discussed notion of the police profession as constituting strong team spirit. Police identity is also presented as unprejudiced, male and young in the sense of engagement and activity degree. All discourses are often challenged in work- experience, from cultural as well as from image perspectives. On a highly generalized level the police identity can be positioned as one with a high degree of community. When the stories are scrutinized clearly disparate patterns between individuals however appear. The differences are expressed either in accentuation or definition of the common labels. Earlier research on the fields of identity reveals some shortages. The individual's role in constructing social identities and the pure locus of identity is overlooked. To reduce that shortage, this study introduces a professional identity model where the individual´s position is connected to the common identity by expectations and experiences of three key identity elements -Culture, Image and the Profession itself.
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37.
  • Leijerholt, Ulrika, 1975- (författare)
  • Public sector branding : an internal brand management perspective
  • 2019
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • The increased use of branding within the public sector signifies an important area for academic research that currently lacks theory and empirical evidence; public sector branding. Extant literature paints a scattered picture. On one hand, some branding principles appear to be equally relevant in the public sector as they are in the private sphere. On the other hand, the public sector appears to require a somewhat distinct approach to branding as there are contextual differences that may affect branding principles, their implementation, and outcomes. Thus, the field lacks established relevant theoretical frameworks to guide public sector organizations in their branding efforts.One particular area of interest is that of internal brand management. A strong organizational brand is dependent on the brand values being incorporated into the fabric of an organization and into the behaviors of its employees. How this outcome can be achieved in the public sector, however, is still unknown. Thus, the purpose of this dissertation is to investigate central factors affecting the implementation of internal brand management in the public sector, considering its specific nature.Through a multi-method study, this dissertation presents the synthesized findings of four individual papers. The first paper, a literature review, explores extant research on public sector branding. The next two papers are based on a qualitative case study, which includes interviews, observations, and brandrelated documents. The fourth paper is based on a quantitative study. The three empirical papers investigate various factors that influence internal brand management in the public sector.The synthesized findings demonstrate that organizations within the public sector need to approach branding in a manner that considers its distinct nature. From an internal brand management perspective this entails considering contextual, organizational, and individual factors. These factors have been found to affect branding principles and their implementation in public organizations and indicate the unique nature of public sector branding.
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38.
  • Lindahl, Helena, 1970- (författare)
  • Sociala identiteter i seriösa fritidsaktiviteter : - om samspelen mellan seriösa fritidsaktiviteter, platser, sociala världar och konsumtionsföremål i downhillcykling
  • 2011
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Background This study is about social identity processes within downhill mountain biking. Downhill is portrayed as reflecting the development of consumer culture in today’s society. The development is characterized by the increasing importance of consumption, and social institutions, such as class, family and education, which previously provided individuals with sense of belonging, identity and norms, that are dissolving. Instead, leisure activities offer individuals opportunities to construct social identities. Social identities are defined as the part of the individuals’ identity, which is constructed in interaction with the social categories (identity dimensions) that the he or she belongs to. Four different identity dimensions were considered particularly relevant; serious leisure, places, social worlds and consumer goods. The following main question was raised: How are social identities constructed in interaction with serious leisure, places, social worlds and consumer goods? Method Constructionist grounded theory was used to collect, present, interpret and analyze the empirical information. The empirical study was conducted by active participation in downhill mountain biking (2004-2006) and 38 interviews with mountain bikers in Whistler (Canada) and Åre (Sweden). Results A grounded theory was gradually generated from empirical interpretations into a model of how social identities are constructed in serious leisure activities. The model presents four types of serious leisure participants; new beginners, experienced participants, non-active participants and non-participants. The model is also showing three main groups of sub processes; experience and norm processes, behavioral, physical and verbal identity expressions and the processes of personal investments and benefits. The model also shows three different phases (trial phase, construction/reconstruction phase and disengagement phase) in the participants’ identity processes. Conclusions The participants construct social identities in interaction with the identity dimensions serious leisure, places, social worlds and consumer goods through the processes of experience development, boundary work, leisure career, imitation, norm processes, personal investments and benefits, and behavioral, physical and verbal identity expressions. The participants’ identity processes are dynamic, where the personal investments and benefits of the participants are creating movements between the more stable identity phases formed by the experience- and norm processes, and the different identity expressions.
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39.
  • Lindberg, Erik, 1953- (författare)
  • Effects of management by objectives : studies of Swedish upper secondary schools and the Influence of role stress and self-efficacy on school leaders
  • 2011
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the impacts of Management by Objectives (MBO) on upper secondary school education in Sweden. In particular the goal is to increase our understanding of how the implementation of MBO affects the schools and the role of head teachers. In addition this work seeks to generate new knowledge about the factors that influence the performance of head teachers. This dissertation includes four separate, but interconnected articles, each addressing a different aspect of the impact of MBO on schools and head teachers, it begins with an overview of all material. A multi-theoretical approach is taken here, using insights from diffusion theory, goal setting theory and role stress theory to guide the research. Even though qualitative methods are used the quantitative methods dominate the dissertation and most of the data is collected from a mail survey of head teachers. The results confirm the findings of other research that the diffusion of new ideas (in this the context MBO) stalls when it is introduced into local environments within which day to day work takes place. Goal setting and role stress theory are integrated, which makes it possible to show that role commitment had both functional and dysfunctional effects. It shows that efficacy plays a mediating role between stressors and performance and that the relationship between stressors and self-efficacy is not linear. Finally, the nature of the different stressors are described and role design has an impact on the level of them. All of these findings have practical implications for those responsible for education and school policy. The first article in the dissertation looks at how well MBO has been implemented in the upper secondary scools and its impact on student performance and school effectiveness. The results of the stydy are that head teachers report that the effects of MBO have declined over time. Its implementation appears not to have influenced student performance. On the other hand, it seems to have rediced teacher stress, but increased head teachers´ sense of frustration. The second article argues in contrast to previous research that goal commitment can have both a positive and negative effect on rple performance and conceptualizes self-efficacy as a mediator between commitment and performance. The findings of the study show that self-efficacy does act as a mediator and that high commitment can have both positive and negative consequences. In particular, high commitment can improve performance by reducing role ambiguity, but it also drives role overload, which can reduce performance. The third article builds on the findings of article two in order to deepen our understanding of the impact of self-efficacy on head teacher performance. In contrast to most of the literature it shows that stressors might have positive effects and that self-efficacy is involved in these relationships. The research presented in the article confirms that both role conflict and role ambiguity influence self-efficacy in a non-linear way. The focus of the final article focuses on the design of the role of the head teacher and how this impacts stress levels. The results show that when the head teacher´s role includes significant economic responsibility and more space to maneuver, or less, they experience role ambiguity, role conflict and role overload differently. Overall, the results suggest that it would be beneficial to take the factors that this study has shown to be important for head teacher´s performance into consideration when the role is designed.
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40.
  • Lindbergh, Lars, 1964- (författare)
  • Essays of Financial Performance and Capital Structure
  • 2003
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This thesis consists of an introductory chapter and four self-contained essays on financial performance and capital structure. Essay I assesses the strength of strategic inputs into profitability among firms within several sub-sectors within the industrial service sector in the U.S. and Sweden. In this study we employ an ordinary least square regression. The results, coupled with structural observations on production sectors, suggest that significant differences may indeed occur in both productivity and pricing in the two systems, i.e. the U.S. and Sweden. Essay II estimates the impact of operating costs and cost of debt on revenue, profit generation and asset retention in public housing companies in Sweden. A general conclusion to draw from the empirical results is that expentitures on consolidated maintenance is not only associated with short-term rental revenues, but undoubtedly long-term viability as well. Further, first difference results suggested that negotiated rents produced operating profits that kept pace with revenues over the time period of study. Essay III examines the impact of selected financial and contextual variables on managers’ decisions to appropriate funds to tax allowances in small firms in Sweden. The motive for appropriating to the tax allocation reserve is twofold. First, the tax allocation reserve is intended to lower the tax levy on investments financed with internally generated income. Second, it creates a possibility for firms to smooth income over a number of years. The results, from the logistic regression, suggest that financial performance, financial position and prior appropriations do impact on managers’ decision to appropriate. Essay IV examines the association between the two sides of the balance sheet based on financial statement information from small firms in Sweden The results of the multivariate canonical correlation analysis provides some support to the hypotheses that firms develop patterns, in their use of assets and their financing.
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41.
  • Ljunggren, Elisabet C., 1964- (författare)
  • Entreprenørskap og kjønn : en kunnskapsreise mellom to perspektiver: fra individ til relasjon
  • 2002
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • The subject of this study is entrepreneurship and gender, and the research question addressed is: What meaning has gender for entrepreneurship? Through a "journey of learning" the issue of entrepreneurship and gender is examined with two perspectives; the individual- and the relational perspective. This implies that the entrepreneur is studied with a mainstream entrepreneurship approach as well as a socioeconomic inspired ap­proach where embeddedness is a crucial concept. The doctoral dissertation consists of three studies of the entrepreneurial process, and one study where the entrepreneur is viewed as a participant in a household as well as in a firm; hence he/she is socially embedded. The thesis is based on a broad empirical material and represents a methodological diversity. Doing studies with different perspectives and approaches contribute to a diversified under­standing of entrepreneurship. In this understanding gender is crucial and in the disserta­tion two different approaches to gender are applied. The dissertation demonstrates the interconnection between gender and research on entrepreneurship; from one point of view where similarities and differences between men and women are important, to an­other point of view where gender is perceived as socially constructed. One main conclusion is that entrepreneurship is gendered and this needs to be taken into account when entrepreneurial research is conducted.
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42.
  • Manzhynski, Siarhei, 1981- (författare)
  • Understanding and managing coopetition for sustainability : process and outcomes
  • 2021
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Scholars highlight the potential gains of collaboration between competitors for supporting sustainability but there is a lack of both theoretical and empirical studies. In this thesis I aim to enhance the understanding of 'coopetition forsustainability', which I define as 'an inter-firm phenomenon where actors fromthe same industry simultaneously cooperate and compete with the intent to achieve environmental, economic, and social benefits'. By investigating the process and outcomes of coopetition for sustainability I develop several analytical tools for the systematic exploration of the coopetitive interaction for reaching sustainability goals and show that coopetition for sustainability raises numerous knotted paradoxical tensions. I further reveal organizing and regulating mechanisms that actors use to address these tensions, and which can motivate greater extents of sustainability in terms of outcomes.This thesis consists of six appended papers (two conceptual, two qualitative, and two quantitative) that explore coopetition for sustainability in three contextual settings (Swedish, Polish, and Belarusian housing). Collectively, the papers span several theoretical frameworks (paradox theory, sustainable value, modern portfolio theory) and methodological approaches (systemdynamics, in-depth case study, survey questionnaires). Overall, my explorations in this thesis show that whilst coopetition for sustainability is a complex, tensionfilled phenomenon, it has great potential to advance sustainability in both theory and practice. I contribute to theory by generating novel insights into: (i) The process of coopetition for sustainability showing how actors organize collaboration for sustainability and how they respond to paradoxical tensions they frequently experience; (ii) The outcomes of coopetition for sustainability, which I systematically conceptualize and model. I also offer several implications for practice that can help managers to navigate the process of coopetition for sustainability in order to enhance economic, social and environmental outcomes.
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43.
  • Nicol, Christopher, 1980- (författare)
  • Change in the cage : Exploring an organisaitonal field: Sweden's biofuel region
  • 2013
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This Ph.D. thesis seeks to better understand how change occurs within a group of organisations. Aiming to make a contribution to institutional theory, it brings together three main schools, namely: old, new and neoinstitutionalism, in an integrative approach for understanding organisational field change. The study seeks to examine and explore a community of organisations who have come together to form an organisational field. More specifically, the object is to better understand how an organisational field is formed and developed and how change is driven, at an organisational and organisational field level, as a consequence of this field formation. Moreover, the study investigates the impact of triggers for change upon the field, and the role that institutional forces and individuals play in the process of organisational field change.The theoretical chapters, as discussed, integrate the concepts of change from three schools developing a comprehensive framework of organisational field change with which the empirical material can be analysed, in order to make the theoretical contribution. The empirical work is based on a case study, incorporating two rounds of interviews and secondary data collection, undertaken from 2007 - 2011. The case study examines the development of the Biofuel Region, a collection of organisations based, principally, in Ornskoldsvik,  Northern Sweden, that have worked together to develop a public and private biofuel transportation infrastructure. Besides being a fascinating case of regional development and having the reassuring object of creating an eco-efficient fuel the Biofuel Region, regarded as an organisational field, provided good access to respondents and useful insights into the way that fields form and change.The contributions of this thesis offer an insight into the manner with which the formation of an organisational field can begin with a drive for a legitimisation of the field's endeavours.Underscored is how the field can restructure continuously as a consequence of triggers for change, and that consequently fields are dynamic and not static and are thus changing frequently. Furthermore, it highlights that given the correct conditions individuals can play a key role in the management of an organisational field. The overarching contribution is that change occurs in a plethora of different ways within a field as a consequence of its formation,development, triggers for change, individual's contributions and institutional forces. 
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44.
  • Nilsson, Andreas, 1971- (författare)
  • Projektledning i praktiken : Observationer av arbete i korta projekt
  • 2008
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Project management used to be described as rational and well structured - a notion that builds on a traditional view that project management is about planning, budgeting and controlling. Nevertheless, it has been questioned if this is a full description. Even though project management techniques were developed for large projects, those techniques and models are used today in small projects of short duration - projects that are quite dissimilar to the large ones. The present study takes a practice perspective to investigate what project managers do when they lead such short projects. Its observations and interviews are used to analyze what happens in the everyday life of project managers. Using classical managerial behaviour studies as a foundation, seen through a practice perspective lens, the study finds that the work of project managers in a software development project is fragmented – their time is filled with formal and informal meetings of different kinds and efforts to resist disturbances in the project.Three challenges were found in the project manager’s work. The first was to Understand: to create meaning. The plans were clearly defined at the start of the project but as the goals were later re-defined, it was scarcely possible to finalize them before delivery. Contrary to the traditional view that plans are inflexible, these plans were discussed, negotiated and interpreted throughout the project. This was the continuous work of creating both meaning in the plans and a common understanding of the project.The second challenge was to Order/coordinate: to manage resources. The project manager reacted to emerging issues rather than acting to prevent things from happening. These reactions led to creative ways of managing and finding solutions to problems. One important way of managing new or changed conditions was to reorganize resources to cover the needs of different teams. The meetings played a central role in this work as arenas for negotiating resources, which became especially evident in times of stress or high workload.The third challenge was to Make it in time: to manage time. Time is a central aspect of project management as projects are temporary organizations; they have a beginning and an end. Previous research has found a point in time, in the middle of a project, when the team starts to feel pressured and stressed about meeting their deadlines. For project managers there is always a struggle to manage time, as dates for delivery are one of the things in a project that are not negotiable. In short-duration projects where projects follow each other seriatim, there is an almost constant feeling of urgency; stress and pressure. The project manager used experiential data to determine and plan the amount of time that would be needed to manage changes in the project, intending that the slack created would enable the project to deliver on time. Although changes and deviations were expected, the project manager rarely knew beforehand what they were or when they would come.The three challenges, previously described as separated from each other, were observed to be all managed simultaneously. The site, the practitioner and the practices influence daily work practice.
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45.
  • Nilsson, Elin, 1984- (författare)
  • Where to shop? : understanding consumers' choices of grocery stores
  • 2016
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • For the last couple of decades consumer decision-making has been of increasing interest for retail as well as for consumer behaviour research. Food shopping constitutes a unique type of shopping behaviour. In comparison to other types of shopping, food is essential to life, and not often are there as many choices to be made in a short period of time as when shopping groceries.The purpose of this dissertation was to advance the knowledge of what influences consumers’ choices of grocery stores. More specifically, the main focus has been on how different situations (e.g., type of shopping) influence choices of grocery stores. Five papers, which build on three surveys on how consumers choose grocery stores in Sweden, are included in this dissertation.In the first paper a comprehensive set of ten aggregated attributes that determine store choices were developed. The second paper brought forward five consumer segments (Planning Suburbans, Social Shoppers, Pedestrians, City Dwellers, and Flexibles) based on where and how they shop. In the third paper it was shown that accessibility attributes (e.g., accessibility by car, availability) and attractiveness attributes (e.g., price, service) have different impacts on satisfaction, depending on consumer characteristics and shopping behaviour in supermarkets compared to convenience stores. In the fourth paper the result showed that satisfaction is affected by type of grocery shopping (major versus fill-in shopping) in conjunction with time pressure and which store attributes that are important for satisfaction. It was also shown that the effect of time pressure and type of shopping on satisfaction varied in different consumer segments. In the final paper it was shown that a store has to be more attractive in terms of attributes for a consumer to switch from the grocery store they usually patronage, even if the new store is situated right beside or closer than the consumer’s regular grocery store. The view of a “good location” is further developed in this dissertation, arguing that consumers’ mental distance to a store – their cognitive proximity – is much more important than the physical place of the store.In sum, this dissertation revealed that the situation is more important than previous research has shown. Depending on the situation, consumers will face different outcomes (different stores) and value different store attributes. Hence, stores need to manage different store attributes depending on which consumer groups the stores want to attract and what situation the consumers are facing. Therefore, consumers’ choices of grocery stores are situation-based choices. 
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46.
  • Nilsson, Henrik, 1971- (författare)
  • Essays on the value relevance of financial statment information
  • 2003
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • This thesis consists of an introductory chapter and four self-contained essays on the value relevance of financial statement information.Essay 1: The purpose of this essay is to examine relevance of environmental information from an investor’s perspective. The study proposes that the market value of companies will reflect both financial and environmental performance. The theoretical foundation of the study is the accounting based valuation theory outlined by Ohlson (1995). This study provides new insights into how environmental performance is reflected in the market value of Swedish companies listed on the Swedish Stock market.Essay 2: In financial accounting research, much effort has been devoted to study the relation between accounting earnings and stock prices. The primary purpose of the second essay is to investigate the effect of alternative return-earnings model specifications to the estimated returns-earnings relation, that is, the earnings response coefficients. The returns-earnings models investigated include the traditional earnings levels and changes, and models including analysts’ earnings forecasts based on Ohlson’s (1995) extended residual income model.Essay 3: Fundamental analysis research that focuses on the use of accounting information to estimate equity value, has surfaced as a central theme in market based accounting research of the 1990s (Lee, 1999). The purpose of third essay is to compare two different approaches to valuation based on the theory presented in Ohlson (1995) in terms of explanatory and predictive power of the value estimates. Both approaches are implemented with and without the use of analysts forecasts.Essay 4: In this essay data from the Swedish stock market is used to investigate the profitability of two different types of investment strategies based on fundamental-to-value ratios and past insider trading activity. The purpose of the research is to explore four related research questions: (i) Do accounting based trading strategies generate abnormal returns on the Swedish stock market?; (ii) Do trading strategies based on insider trading behaviour generate abnormal returns on the Swedish stock market?; (iii) Do insiders who buy stocks tend to favour value stocks and do insiders who sell stocks tend to dispose growth stocks?; and (iv) Are insiders able to discriminate between temporary high/low fundamentals and temporary low/high prices when buying/selling value stocks and growth stocks?
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47.
  • Nilsson, Jonas, 1978- (författare)
  • Consumer decision making in a complex environment : Examining the decision making process of socially responsible mutual fund investors
  • 2010
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • During the last few decades, "regular people" have become increasingly involved with investing in the stock market. One way of doing this, which has become more and more popular, is to invest in mutual funds. The mutual fund industry has, due to its explosive growth, been described as a success story of the 20th century. These days, sources report that over 70% of the Swedish population actively invests in mutual funds. This thesis is an investigation into consumer decision making regarding one specific type of mutual fund: Socially Responsible Investment (SRI). SRI profiled mutual funds are different from "regular" mutual funds in that they incorporate social, ethical, and environmental (SEE) criteria. In this manner, SRI profiled mutual funds could be said to have two separate dimensions. The regular financial dimension has the purpose of generating a high level of financial return while managing risk. The socially responsible dimension, on the other hand, focuses on incorporating SEE issues into the investment process. However, consumers that desire to choose mutual funds that will both perform well financially and have a good socially responsible dimension face a more difficult decision than consumers who choose to invest in "regular" mutual funds. As each of the dimensions come with its own set of challenges which the consumer must overcome, choosing an appropriate combination of these is a difficult task. In this manner, consumers of SRI profiled mutual funds have to navigate through a complex decision making environment to arrive at a good choice. Based in this notion of decision making in complex environments, this thesis investigates how consumers combine their "traditional" financial objectives with their "additional" SEE consideration and examines the impact of personal factors related to these two areas on consumer investment in SRI profiled mutual funds. Four separate essays on these topics, each investigating a specific stage in the Engel-Kollat-Blackwell (1968) consumer decision making process, are presented. Moreover, in order to understand how complexity impacts consumer decision making in the area, the results of each study are analyzed against a conceptual framework focusing on the complexity of the market. The results show that consumers of SRI profiled mutual funds care about both financial and SEE issues. However, how consumers combine these in their decision making differs. Factors, such as the stage of the purchase decision making process, personal abilities, preferences, and perceptions are found to impact consumer decision making.  Against this background, this thesis generates an increased understanding of consumer decision making in complex decision making environments in general and of SRI profiled mutual funds in particular.
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48.
  • Näsholm, Malin, 1981- (författare)
  • Global careerists’ identity construction : A narrative study of repeat expatriates and international itinerants
  • 2011
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Research on international work experiences has to a great extent focused on an international assignment as a single event, and on how to optimize it from the organization’s perspective. This thesis addresses individuals’ subjective experiences of international work experiences and focuses on individuals with global careers, who see working abroad as a major element of their careers, involving several international assignments or international work experiences. With the recognition that individuals will work abroad on their own initiative a differentiation is made between repeat expatriates; expatriates with at least two international assignments for the same company, and international itinerants; working abroad for at least two different companies.The main purpose of this thesis is to contribute to the understanding of global careers through applying an identity construction perspective on narratives of global careerists’ working lives.To address this purpose the global careerists’ identity construction processes are explored, and their career orientation, their identification with the organization and career, and country and culture are considered more directly. An important sub-purpose of this thesis is to make a comparison of repeat expatriates and international itinerants, in terms of their identity construction and identifications.An individual’s identity, or sense of self, is seen as constructed in social interaction, encompassing dualities such as both differentiation from and identification with others. This thesis addresses social identities as part of an individual’s identity construction in the transition in social, cultural and organizational context that an international work experience involves.The approach taken is that the increased understanding aimed for can be reached through narratives. Interviews were made with twenty Swedish global careerists. Each interview was constructed as a narrative and structured according to elements of narratives to construct aggregate narratives of repeat expatriates and international itinerants. The narratives were analyzed and comparison of repeat expatriates and international itinerants was made.The findings in this thesis show that all the global careerists in this study have experienced shifts in their identities and identity reconstruction in the course of their careers. External circumstances such as the type of location, the time abroad, and if the work abroad is perceived as temporary, is important to the global careerists’ identity construction.The findings illustrate that there are differences in repeat expatriates’ and international itinerants’ career orientations, in their identifications with the organizations they work for, with their careers and with what they do. The two types of global careerists differ in how they identify with their home country and culture and the countries and cultures they live in. The repeat expatriates and international itinerants also show different patterns in their identity construction.
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49.
  • Olsson, Rickard, 1969- (författare)
  • Portfolio management under transaction costs: Model development and Swedish evidence
  • 2005
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • Portfolio performance evaluations indicate that managed stock portfolios on average underperform relevant benchmarks. Transaction costs arise inevitably when stocks are bought and sold, but the majority of the research on portfolio management does not consider such costs, let alone transaction costs including price impact costs. The conjecture of the thesis is that transaction cost control improves portfolio performance. The research questions addressed are: Do transaction costs matter in portfolio management? and Could transaction cost control improve portfolio performance? The questions are studied within the context of mean-variance (MV) and index fund management. The treatment of transaction costs includes price impact costs and is throughout based on the premises that the trading is uninformed, immediate, and conducted in an open electronic limit order book system. These premises characterize a considerable amount of all trading in stocks.First, cross-sectional models of price impact costs for Swedish stocks are developed using limit order book information in a novel fashion. Theoretical analysis shows that the price impact cost function of order volume in a limit order book with discrete prices is increasing and piecewise concave. The estimated price impact cost functions are negatively related to market capitalization and historical trading activity, while positively related to order size and stock return volatility. Total transaction costs are obtained by adding the relevant commission rate to the price impact cost.Second, the importance of transaction costs and transaction cost control is examined within MV portfolio management. I extend the standard MV model by formulating a quadratic program for MV portfolio revisions under transaction costs including price impact costs. The extended portfolio model is integrated with the empirical transaction cost models developed. The integrated model is applied to revise portfolios with different net asset values and across a wide range of risk attitudes. The initial (unrevised) portfolios are capitalization-weighted and contain all Swedish stocks with sufficient data. The standard MV model, which neglects transaction costs, realizes non-trivial certainty equivalent losses relative to the extended model, which, in addition, exhibits lower turnover, higher diversification, and lower transaction costs incurred. The evidence suggests that transaction cost control improves performance in MV revisions, and that price impact costs are worthwhile to consider.Third, the research questions are studied within index fund management. I formulate two index fund revision models under transaction costs including price impact costs. Each model is integrated with the empirical transaction cost models. Transaction costs including price impact costs, cash flows, and corporate actions are incorporated in the empirical tests, which use ten years of daily data. In the tests, the two index fund revision models and several alternative approaches, including full replication, are applied to track a Swedish capitalization-weighted stock index. Instead of using an extant index, an index is independently calculated according to a consistent methodology, mimicking that of the most used index in the Nordic region, the OMX(S30). The alternative approaches are tested under a number of variations including different tracking error measures and different types and degrees of transaction cost control. Index funds implemented by the index fund revision models under transaction cost control dominate, in all dimensions of tracking performance considered, their counterparts implemented without transaction cost control as well as the funds implemented by full replication. Price impact costs constitute the majority of the transaction costs incurred. Additional results indicate that some common tracking error measures perform similar and that the technique to control transaction cost by constructing an index fund from a pre-defined subset of the most liquid index stocks is not efficient.The overall conclusion of the thesis is that transaction costs matter, that transaction cost control improves portfolio performance, and that price impact costs are important to consider.
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50.
  • Peterson, Christer, 1943- (författare)
  • Familjeföretag i omvandling : en studie av fusionsförlopp och utvecklingsmönster
  • 1985
  • Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • In this study a population of 60 family owned businesses acquired in 1971 are analysed over a period of 15 years. The firms are followed historically for four years before and ten years after the merger.The aim is to identify dominating processes and behaviour in different variables during the period 1967-81. This will be done through the following:- on an aggregated level, identify and analyse characteristic processes and patterns by the acquired businesses before and after the acquisition- on an aggregated level compare the pre- and post-merger performances- on an individual business level illustrate, validate and theoretically interpret results and conclusions.Primarily this study has not a theoretical but an empirical point of departure. A working paradigm is that the "confrontation" between the firms1 "external environment and internal resources" results in dynamics having an impact on the firms. The processes are classified in taxonomies/typologies, in an attempt to answer what has happened. Interpreting the forces behind the development is the attempt to answer why it has happened.The empirical data was collected through three different surveys resulting in quantitative and qualitative observations combined in different perspectives in a multimethological approach. The first is economic data (sales, financial ratios etc) gathered from the firms' external account statements. However, several firms were found to have gone bankrupt, closed down etc. This initiated a second, follow-up study, which had a longitudinal "geography of enterprise" approach and was implemented through a telephone inquiry. The third collection is a case-study of five firms from the population carried out by discussions with representatives of the merging companies.The merged businesses turned out to be extremes compared to branch characteristics respectively. Refinements of the patterns made it possible to construct a three-dimensional typology showing four principal processes.Ten years after the merger there followed five principal spatial and institutional changes. Closures, removals from community and amalgamation with group companies, reduction to production units only, the joining of premises with group companies in the same community and relatively "indépendant" affiliations. One third of the population have been closed down or removed. One half do not exist as "indépendant units". Only one third have escaped larger infringement. Thirty businesses have once more been acquired. Some more than once.When comparing the pre- and post-merger performances, a convergence phenomenon was identified. Oscillating and deviating pre-merger trends later converged towards standard variable values and equilibrium, searching for an optimum group course.The different changes and restructuring activities conducted after the acquisitions, can be summarized in three principal post-merger processes:- liquidation and adjustment of output capacity to market demand.- reorientation through new product and market combinations.- growth and development through "multiplying by splitting" and emancipation of expansion potential.
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