Swedish micro-businesses are encouraged by the government to internationalise and participate in entrepreneurial ecosystems. Yet research on how they should be supported while doing so is thin. Current research on entrepreneurial ecosystems shows that value co-creation breads sustainability, and increased attention is given to intermediary organisations. While scholars stress aligned expectations as key to value co-creation, intermediaries today are basing their actions on what they think businesses need and expect. This study challenges that logic. This study focused on the entrepreneurial ecosystem of New York, specifically looking at Swedish technology startups, intermediaries and investors. Trough semi-structured interviews the study sought to understand how congruent startups’ and intermediaries’ perceptions of challenges during business establishment in NYC are, and also, how they could be aligned. The study employed the framework of Gioia et al. (2012) when distilling challenges from the interviews. The results show congruence in some identified challenges, with a key difference in their temporal approaches. The intermediaries primarily focused on instrumental challenges and initial barriers-to-entry, while the startups (and investors) in higher regard focused on open-ended challenges related to relationships and legitimacy. This was considered proof of intermediaries employing an outdated theoretical perspective on their role as an instrumental broker. The study thus concluded by suggesting an alternative perspective, emphasizing dynamic and situation-based support. / Svenska mikro-företag uppmanas av regeringen att internationalisera tidigt och delta i entreprenöriella ekosystem. Mängden forskning på hur de bäst bör stödjas i detta är dock blygsam. Samtida studier på entrepreöriella ekosystem visar hur kollektivt värdeskapande (eng: value co-creation) föder långsiktig hållbarhet, och uppmärksamhet riktas allt mer åt intermediära organisationer. Även om forskare menar att kongruenta förväntningar är en nyckel till kollektivt värdeskapande baserar intermediärer idag ofta sina handlingar och stöd på vad de tror att företag behöver och förväntar sig. Denna studie utmanar den logiken. Studien fokuserade på New Yorks entreprenöriella ekosystem och undersökte svenska högteknologiska startupbolag, intermediärer och investerare. Genom semi-strukturerade intervjuer sökte studien lära hur kongruenta startups och intermediärer är i sina uppfattningar av utmaningar vid företagsetablering i New York, samt hur dessa kan göras mer samstämmiga för att föda långsiktigt hållbara stödfunktioner Studien nyttjade ett ramverk av Gioia et al. (2012) i destillationen av utmaningar från intervjuerna. Resultaten visar kongruens i vissa identifierade utmaningar, med en tongivande skillnad i dess tidsmässiga förhållningssätt. Intermedärerna fokuserade primärt på instrumentella utmaningar och initiala inträdesbarriärer, medan startups (och investerare) i högre utsträckning fokuserade på mindre tidsbegränsade utmaningar som t.ex. relationer och legitimitet. Detta ansågs vara bevis på hur intermediärer brukar ett daterat teoretiskt perspektiv på sin egen roll som instrumentella mäklare. Studien sammanfattade därför slutligen att ett nytt, mer dynamiskt och situationsbaserat perspektiv på intermediärer och stöd bör välkomnas.

SammanfattningMaria Kågebäck (2016)Specialpedagogik, Skolutveckling och ledarskap, Lärande och samhälle, Malmö Högskola. En uppsats om -kollegial grupputveckling och dess påverkan för organisationerSyfte och preciserade frågeställningarSyftet med uppsatsen var att se mönster i metoder och strategier som utvecklar grupper vetenskapligt. Vidare har jag även undersökt hur grupper med stöttning av kollegiala samtal arbetat gemensamt med problemlösning för att främja organisationer. Uppsatsen förtydligar hur förskollärarna upplevt sin individuella, gruppens och organisationens utveckling av arbetet med hjälp av aktionsforskning.* Hur organiserar sig en grupp i formulerandet av ett angeläget problem som berör en organisation och hur kopplas detta till vetenskap?* Hur agerar, diskuterar och reflekterar förskollärarna under själva processen som syftar till att skapa en gemensam utveckling?* Hur upplever gruppen sin process, metod och utveckling i relation till det vetenskapliga problemområdet?Tidigare forskning och teoretisk förankringUppsatsen utgår ifrån tidigare forskning som synliggjort vilka förutsättningar grupper behöver för att utvecklas mot förändring (Lewin, 1951; Svedberg, 2000). Den behandlar även vilka strategier och metoder som främjar eller stagnerar utveckling (Gjems, 1997; Rönneman 2012). Uppsatsen tar avstamp i den systemteoretiska teorin som förtydligar och beskriver en organisations helhetsutveckling (Boolman & Deal, 2012; Sandberg & Taragama, 2000).MetodUppsatsen är baserad på en kvalitativ undersökning som utgått från modellen aktionsforskning. Till grund för uppsatsen har deltagarna gjort en aktionsforskning som innehållit tre samtalssessioner. Sessionerna har sedan transkriberats och förstärkts med anonyma enkäter. I uppsatsen indikerar empirin att en god och sanningsenlig forskning som synliggjort deltagarnas utvecklingsprocesser har tillämpats.ResultatGenom analyser av empirin har resultatet delats in i tre områden i enlighet med syftets frågeställningar. Första området tolkar hur en kollegial utvecklingsgrupp skapas samt vilka förutsättningar som bör finnas för att den ska uppnå en maximal utvecklingsprocess. Andra området beskriver deltagarnas individuella utveckling, gruppens gemensamma utveckling samt dess påverkan för organisationens helhetsutveckling. Tredje området beskriver deltagarnas upplevelser av modellen aktionsforskning. Tillsammans antyder dessa tre områden att konkreta och inkluderande kollegiala samtalsgrupper har kapacitet att förändra en utveckling som gynnar en hel organisation.Specialpedagogiska implikationerSpecialpedagoguppdraget kan innehålla en funktion som samtalsledare inom olika utvecklingsformer i barn- och skolbarnsomsorgen. Resultatet påvisar att utvecklande samtalsgrupper behöver stöd för att kunna förstå och förändra modeller som exempelvis aktionsforskning. Ahlberg (2013), Gjems (1997) och Svedberg (2000) antyder att handledning med inkludering av specialpedagog kan vara ett bra komplement till grupper som gemensamt vill utvecklas för att främja en organisations helhetstänk.NyckelordAktionsforskning, förskollärare, grupputveckling, individuell utveckling, kollegial, organisations utveckling, systemteori

The topic of collaboration is delicate, several different factors are involved in making collaborations successful. The word successful is a charged word where it then implies success for everyone involved in this collaborative work. This thesis aims to investigate the notion of success by both academia and public sector in collaborations where academia plays a crucial part. The thesis descent from a critical realist standpoint where the purpose is to find the underlying mechanisms and structures of the events, in this case, within collaborative work. With a cross-sectional design the empirical data was collected through workshops with representatives from the public sector and publicly funded organisations and interviews were held with researchers, staff and students from Mälardalen University.  The data was analysed through a thematic analysis with deductively generated themes. The theory the thematic analysis was based on consider subjects such as university third mission, quadruple helix, Involving businesses in education, Innovation intermediation, the multifaceted roles of innomediaries, the process and success of innomediaries, collaboration structures, spaces for collaboration, system approach, cross-boundary teams and the researcher’s role. Lastly, the results is a set of capabilities built upon the found underlying structures and mechanisms, these capabilities are seen as valuable for academia.

This thesis examined how Covid-19 affected the role of CSOs in the MLG EU’s system and how these CSOs adapted to the new challenges that appeared during the crisis to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on civil society in the EU. Moreover, it also used two case studies, Barcelona and Stockholm, that by focusing on the role of their CSOs during Covid-19 helped understand better how was the role of CSOs in the MLG EU’s system and allowed to give some normative recommendations on what lessons can be taken to the EU from CSOs of these two case studies, to improve the EU action across the different levels of governance when another crisis occurs. The method of analysis used in this research is thematic literature review because it allowed me to have a thematic combination of sources that were used to come up with a current summary of empirical and theoretical findings of the CSOs role and adaptation in the MLG EU’s system and from the two case studies, Barcelona and Stockholm. The analysis concludes that CSOs during the pandemic suffered a reduction of their civic space, but they were considered essential actors in the MLG EU’s system with a more relevant role than before Covid-19 because they showed their importance in reducing the social gap during the pandemic when the EU and EUMS could not handle society's needs alone. Moreover, CSOs showed how they can be very resilient when a crisis such as Covid-19 hit, they could adapt rapidly their vital services by switching their activities to digital mode among other initiatives to meet these challenges. It also showed, with the academic normative discussion on the EU and the two case studies, that the EU need to include CSOs, especially CSOs at the local level, in the participation for the agenda-setting as their knowledge and important role can contribute to making a more effective EU action plan for the different levels of governance when another crisis occurs helping reduce the lack of coordination that the EU experienced during Covid-19.

The aim of this thesis work was to develop a management information system model for process-oriented healthcare organisations. The study explores two questions: “What kinds of requirements do healthcare managers place on information systems?” and “How can the work and information systems of healthcare managers and care providers be incorporated into process-oriented healthcare organisations?” The background to the study was the process orientation of Swedish healthcare organisations. The study was conducted at the paediatric clinic of a county hospital in southern Sweden. Organisational process was defined as “a sequence of work procedures that jointly constitute complete healthcare services”, while a functional unit was the organisational venue responsible for a certain set of work activities. A qualitative research method, based on a developmental circle, was used. The data was collected from archives, interviews, observations, diaries and focus groups. The material was subsequently analysed in order to categorise, model and develop small-scale theories about information systems. The study suggested that computer-based management information systems in processoriented healthcare organisations should: (1) support medical work; (2) integrate clinical and administrative tools; (3) facilitate the ability of the organisation to measure inputs and outcomes. The research effort concluded that various healthcare managers need the same type of primary data, though presented in different ways. Professional developers and researchers have paid little attention to the manner in which integrated administrative, financial and clinical systems should be configured in order to ensure optimal support for process-oriented healthcare organisations. Thus, it is important to identify the multiple roles that information plays in such an organisation. / <p>Report code: LiU-TEK-LIC-2003:14. On the day of the public defence the status of the article I was: In press and the status of article II was: Submitted.</p>

Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) have become recognised as brands in the academic and popular domain, but little is known about the relationship between these senior manager ¿brands¿ and the corporate brand of the organisation they represent. Since stakeholders associate the CEO¿s reputation with that of the company, they may negatively or positively affect each other, and there is little research into this dynamic. Indeed there is only a limited understanding about the field of people branding in general and much less into CEO brands in particular. Consequently this doctoral thesis investigates the people and CEO brands phenomena, the relationships between CEO, corporate brand and stakeholder¿s self-image and how these can be effectively managed in order to enhance brand equity for the company. Based on a critical realist perspective, this research examines traditional product brand elements from the literature and develops a new conceptual framework for people brands, which is subsequently applied to CEOs. Furthermore a survey is performed with business school students. The findings are analysed by using content analysis, descriptive statistics and by developing and testing a Structural Equation Model. The contribution to knowledge is threefold. Firstly a conceptual framework of people brands is constructed. Second this model is applied to CEO brands. Third five propositions about stakeholder perceptions of CEO brand differentiation and equity are empirically tested. The main findings are that visual presentation is not the main factor to differentiate CEO brands from each other, nor is their association with the company. Positive perceptions of corporate brands can influence the reputation of the CEO brand and lead to an enhancement of their brand equity. Importantly this indicates that stakeholders do not distinguish between CEO and company. Brand equity is also created if there is a relationship between stakeholder self-image and company brand, which in turn can improve the reputation of the CEO brand. Finally brand equity is enhanced through stakeholder perceptions of an ideal self-image. Overall this research has important implications for academia and managerial practice as it extends the knowledge about people and CEO brands and provides an insight into ways in which the relationships between CEO, company and stakeholders can be managed to enhance brand equity for the company

This research explores the nature and extent of training and development (TD) provision, as well as top managers' and TD personnel's attitudes towards the TD function within the medium and large-size private manufacturing organisations of Saudi Arabia. Extensive details of the TD situation are provided and assessed for their adequacy, covering among other elements a descriptive analysis of the main characteristics of the organisations concerned, an evaluation of their TD plans and policies, and a review of their budget allocation and funding. The research then proceeds to describe and discuss the extent to which such organisations are applying a systems approach to TD, both in terms of its design and implementation. Thereafter, the main factors impeding the effectiveness of TD programmes are examined, followed by a consideration of the future challenges that are likely to increase the importance of TD for the organisations in question. The research has adopted a mainly descriptive approach and uses both quantitative and qualitative analytical methods. The required data were gathered through a combination of semi-structural interviews with a number of top managers, and survey questionnaires addressed to the persons responsible for TD within the targeted organisations. The sampling strategy was disproportional stratified random sampling. In total 16 senior executives, 132 medium-size organisations and 94 large-size organisations took part in the study. The findings reveal that although attitudes towards the value of TD are generally favourable, in practice in the majority of cases TD is under-resourced, unplanned and patchy, hardly the ideal features of a systematic model of TD that will enable private manufacturing business to successfully meet the challenges of the future ahead. The research ends with a number of specific and practical recommendations intended to improve the effectiveness of TD in the private manufacturing sector of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as well as a number of suggestions for further research. / Government of Saudi Arabia

Purpose - The thesis determined how policy implementation and change management can be improved in Nigeria, with the health insurance scheme as the basis for narrative exploration. It sets out the similarities and differences in assumptions between supra-national organisations such as the World Bank and World Health Organisation on policy implementation and change management and those contained in the Nigerian national health policy; and those of people responsible for implementation in Nigerian organisations at a) the federal or national level and b) at sub-federal service delivery levels of the health insurance scheme. The study provides a framework of the dimensions that should be considered in policy implementation and change management in Nigeria, the nature of structural and infrastructural problems and wider societal context, and the ways in which conceptions of organisations and the variables that impact on organisations¿ capability to engage in policy implementation and change management differ from those in the West. Design/methodology/approach - A qualitative approach in the form of a case study was used to track the transformation of a policy into practice through examining the assumptions and expectations about policy implementation of the organisations financing the policy's implementation through an examination of relevant documents concerning policy, strategy and guidelines on change management and policy implementation from these global organisations, and the Nigerian national health policy document. The next stages of field visits explored the assumptions, expectations and experiences of a) policy makers, government officials, senior managers and civil servants responsible for implementing policy in federal-level agencies through an interview programme and observations; and b) those of sub-federal or local-level managers responsible for service-level policy implementation of the health insurance scheme through an interview programme. Findings - There are conflicts between the rational linear approaches to change management and policy implementation advocated by supra-nationals, which argue that these processes can be controlled and managed by the rational autonomous individual, and the narratives of those who have personal experience of the quest for 'health for all'. The national health policy document mirrors the ideology of the global organisations that emphasise reform, efficiencies and private enterprise. However, the assumptions of these global organisations have little relevance to a Nigerian societal and organisational context, as experienced by the senior officials and managers interviewed. The very nature of organisations is called into question in a Nigerian context, and the problems of structure and infrastructure and ethnic and religious divisions in society seep into organisations, influencing how organisation is enacted. Understandings of the purpose and function of leadership and the workforce are also brought into question. Additionally, there are religion-based barriers to policy implementation, change management and organisational life which are rarely experienced in the West. Furthermore, in the absence of future re-orientation, the concept of strategy and vision seems redundant, as is the rationale for a health insurance scheme for the majority of the population. The absence of vision and credible information further hinder attempts to make decisions or to define the basis for determining results. Practical implications - The study calls for a revised approach to engaging with Nigerian organisations and an understanding of what specific terms mean in that context. For instance, the definitions and understanding of organisations and capacity are different from those used in the West and, as such, bring into question the relevance and applicability of Western-derived models or approaches to policy implementation and change management. A framework with four dimensions - societal context, external influences, seven organisational variables and infrastructural/structural problems - was devised to capture the particular ambiguities and complexities of Nigerian organisations involved in policy implementation and change management. Originality/value - This study combines concepts in management studies with those in policy studies, with the use of narrative approaches to the understanding of policy implementation and change management in a Nigerian setting. Elements of culture, religion and ethical values are introduced to further the understanding of policy making and implementation in non-Western contexts.

The question of what agenda drives NGO peacebuilding in post-conflict setting has been raised in a number of literatures which make generalized conclusions that NGOs tend to respond to the liberal peace agenda, and in the process co-opt local peacebuilding initiatives. Liberal peace agenda refers to the post-conflict peacebuilding approach based on the promotion of democracy, economic liberalization, human rights and the rule of law. As such, NGOs are seen as privatizing peacebuilding, marginalizing local initiatives and applying unsustainable approaches to peacebuilding in post-conflict contexts. Provoked by these assertions, I conducted field research in northern Uganda, which up to 2006 had experienced 22 years of conflict between the Lord¿s Resistance Army (LRA) and Government of Uganda (GOU). I contend in my findings that while to some extent the generalized observations made by liberal peace critics are true, they fail to fully engage with the micro aspects of post-conflict peacebuilding. The macro-analytic assertions of the liberal peace critics ignore the plurality of the NGO peacebuilding practice, the diverse internal organizational culture, and the complexities and diversities of the contextual dynamics of post-conflict settings. My research was based on a micro level analysis and demonstrated that the peacebuilding process in northern Uganda was interactive, and, as such, engendered diverse encounters of sense-making, relationship building and co-construction of peacebuilding discourse and practice between NGOs, donors and local community. The study shows that peacebuilding was essentially relational and developed through a process of relational constructionism, which denotes social processes of reality construction based on relational encounters.

This thesis describes the development of a Knowledge Management (KM) Assessment tool for the Operational level of the organisation. Its main focus is to help organisations to identify the KM activities and mechanisms that they could improve in order to improve their operational efficiency. Current KM literature is lacking in guiding organisations in what they need to do in order to implement and formalise KM in their operations with a view to improving operational efficiency. Therefore the aim of this thesis is to fill this gap in the literature and also to influence the manner in which KM is practiced. The research project has three distinct stages: the model development, modification and testing stages. The model development stage synthesises KM literature and a pilot study in order to develop a conceptual model of the KM assessment tool. The second stage of the research project describes the application of the tool in three organisations and details the modifications that were made as a result. Finally, the third stage tests the final version of the KM Assessment tool using four case organisations. The KM Assessment tool presented in this thesis is not a prescriptive KM solution; it emphasises the need to approach KM from a process and task specific perspective. Put another way, KM improvements should be implemented to reflect the processes and task charactaristics of each individual organisation. However, the thesis presents a method of evaluation of such that is unform across organisational types