Background: China is today regarded as Sweden’s most important business partner in Asia. Even if there are cultural differences between Sweden and China the intercultural distance has successively decreased. One of the reasons is the globalisation. Another reason is the consecutive development of Swedish-Chinese relations. The interpretation from common understanding has increased the level of trade between the nations. There is an on-going development of business co-operation between Sweden and China.  The Purpose: This Bachelor Thesis will examine the differences between the Swedish-Chinese business culture and how the cultural differences affect the Swedish B2B in China. The purpose is formulated by the basis of our main research questions; “How do Swedish B2B companies perceive the cultural differences between the Swedish and Chinese way of doing business?“ and “how do Swedish companies operating in China deal with business cultural diversity in China?”  Theoretical Framework: The basis of our Bachelor Thesis examines the theories within cultural dimension. The theoretical framework is based on proven studies from e.g. Hofstede’s Five Dimensions, Trompenaars Cultural Diversity, CVS, the GLOBE Study, Cross-Cultural- Communication & Adaptation and Guanxi.  Methodology: We have used an abductive approach with the basis of a qualitative research strategy. The primary data is gathered from six different case studies; Scania, Ludvig Svensson AB, Formox AB, Century 21, Business Sweden and Småland-China Support Office. The empirical findings will further be interpreted with the theoretical framework, analysed and we will finish up with our conclusion.  Conclusion: From the research examined we have identified a numerous of business cultural differences between Sweden and China. Even if the cultural barriers including communication, decision-making, co-operation, relations and business behaviour differs there are numerous of essential exploratory effort that can be initiated to prevent cultural misunderstandings and barriers. This fundamental will be presented as our suggestions.

The purpose of this paper is to increase the understanding of how host-country language proficiency affects the ability of expatriates to manage business operations overseas. Therefore the relevant aspects of intercultural communication are identified, and then how these aspects are affected by a Swedish expatriate’s proficiency in the host-country language (Japanese) is examined. Subsequently, the effects of the identified aspects on the expatriate’s ability to manage business operations in the host country (Japan) is explored. Additionally, in order to achieve the purpose of this thesis, the following main research question will be answered: How does Japanese language proficiency affect the ability of Swedish expatriates’ to manage business operations in Japan? The literature review includes theories and findings of previous research related to intercultural communication, and what effect language proficiency has on the different aspects of intercultural communication. Furthermore, the literature review elaborates on the role of communication in business, with examples from previous studies on expatriates in Japan, finally ending in the conceptual framework used for this study. The methodology chapter explains the approach, method and design used for this study, as well as introducing the respondents chosen for this thesis. In the empirical findings the respondents’ responses are presented. This is followed by the analysis which includes a comparison of empirical data and literature and a discussion regarding similarities and differences. The analysis explains how language proficiency has a positive effect on the effectiveness of communication between the expatriates and their Japanese co-workers and business partners, as well as on building of trustful relationships, the ability to access information, and consequently work performance. The conclusions of this study are that language proficiency has a positive effect on intercultural communication and consequently on the expatriates’ ability to manage business operations, mainly in the form of trustful relationships, effective communication and access to information.

In the first half of the year 2020 the Coronavirus has, and still does as this thesis is being written, had an unpresidential impact on the world. In Sweden there are less restrictions than in some countries, but for Swedish firms with a high international presence in their operations, the challenges are still extensive. The situation caused by the Coronavirus pandemic is unique in both social sense and a business perspective. Our thesis is to fill the research gap that has been created in terms of how the business relationships are being affected by the impact of the virus. To conduct this thesis, the research was done during the crisis caused by the Coronavirus in order to capture the wanted effects it had. Choosing a qualitative study as the research method, with an abductive approach, the thesis is able to capture a deeper understanding of the studied firms’ relationships and what effects they experienced. The literature reviewed on this thesis helped us gain a better understanding of business relationships and what effects it can experience. With chosen theories a conceptual framework was established to connect the impact of the Coronavirus to how it affects the examined business relationships. This framework was used as a guide through the gathered empirical data. These empirical findings are highlighted and displayed in the empirical chapter and then analyzed in the following after. In the analysis chapter similarities and differences are discussed of the gathered empirical data with the conceptual theoretical framework as a frame. The last chapter, the conclusion of the analysis and answering the research questions followed by implications, limitations and further research suggestions on the subject. The findings of this study resulted in a deeper understanding, and the importance of, that communication between stakeholders intensifies during a time of uncertainty. The study also made it clear that nurturing a business relationship prior to a crisis may have effects to the relationship during the crisis.

The fundamental aim of this study has been to analyze the experiences of fifteen small South African companies that are currently trading with Africa. The sample included Durban based businessmen who frequently travelled to the respective countries in Africa. Their responses were analyzed against the major documented challenges that are faced when trading in Africa. A wide range of literature has been consulted in order to familiarize the researcher with current business strategies practiced in South Africa, the bodies that have been set up to assist free trade between Africa and South Africa and business practices that are inherent to Africa. The recommendations conclude that the small businessman battles with on-the-ground trading, and even though much has been done by the South African government to "get his foot through the door", the smaller businessman battles with the day to day intricacies of trading in African countries. These problems have to be addressed, as it is the private sector, which is the engine for growth in Africa. / Thesis (MBA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.

<p>This thesis deals with how companies utilize their enterprise systems in their business relationships. The study’s starting point is enterprise systems that basically are standardised information systems that the company can acquire from software vendors like SAP, Oracle and Microsoft. Enterprise systems aim to integrate and manage all the company’s data and it can also be linked to its business partners.</p><p>The thesis contains two case studies of how a focal company utilizes its enterprise system in their business relationships. To accomplish this, an analytical framework based upon the combination of an information systems (IS) and a business relationship perspective is developed and applied. The IS perspective follows an ‘ensemble view of technology’ approach which describes the use of information systems as embedded in a both technical and social context. The business relationship perspective is founded in empirical studies of industrial companies. Basically, business relationships are unique and based on the companies’ exchanges. It also involves behavioural elements as trust, commitment, adaptations and interdependencies between the partners.</p><p>The two case studies cover the business relationships between ten companies and the character of the studied business relationships varies. The results show that enterprise systems are mainly focused on the companies’ internal activities. The exchanges in the business relationships are either carried out without the enterprise system or are supported by some complementary information system. Enterprise systems are thus mainly seen as production systems. This can be explained by the heritage from former material and resource planning (MRP) systems. An alternative explanation can be that business relationships are unique and require continuous adaptations and a mutual orientation. Enterprise systems require structural data rendering them difficult to use for the activities of a business relationship. The users then develop other, individual, applications that handle what is needed in their ongoing business. The threat is that information can be lost on a company level. The challenge is therefore to investigate the complementary information systems functions to see if it is possible to extend the enterprise system to include them. To be worth its epithet, the enterprise system must facilitate all the business activities found in the companies business relationships.</p>

Den ekonomiska jätten i öst växer som aldrig förr och affärsmöjligheterna för företag har gåttfrån att bara ha varit ett land där man förlägger sin produktion, tack vare att kostnaderna är såpass låga, lockar numera den snabbt växande konsumentmarknaden fler och fler företag atttesta lyckan i landet. I denna uppsats tas den affärskulturella skillnaden upp både internt iföretag där man har kinesiska kollegor samt externt, hur man jobbar med kinesiska företagfrån ett svenskt perspektiv. Den stora problematiken längs vägen mot en hybridkultur är denkulturella skillnaden som råder mellan Kina och Sverige som medför utmaningar för varjeföretag som ämnar etablera sig i Kina. Skillnader i värderingar, religion, normer, vanor medmycket mera bidrar till en skild uppfattning om hur affärer ska skötas.Genom att söka relevant data i litteratur, tidskrifter och artiklar samt genomföra kvalitativaintervjuer med personer som har erfarenhet och kunskap av den kinesiska kulturen då de harantingen verkat i Kina eller har arbetat med kinesiska kollegor under en längre tid, hoppas vikunna skapa en djupare förståelse för hur svenska företag bemöter den kinesiskaaffärskulturen. Dessa personer hittar vi i både stora och små företag som verkar i Kina för attfå fler perspektiv på hur kulturen fungerar. Hur mycket de kommer i kontakt med begreppsom guanxi1 och mianzi2, som är stora delar av den kinesiska affärskulturen, är också relevantför denna studie. Vi ville även undersöka hur aktuell befintlig data inom ämnet är och om denär i behov av en modernisering för att spegla dagens rådande affärsklimat.Hur ser de kulturella skillnaderna ut för ett svenskt företag och hur gör de för att överkommadessa för att lyckas på den kinesiska marknaden? Hur mycket behöver de anpassa sig till denrådande kulturen samt hur mycket anpassar sig de kinesiska företagen till de svenskaföretagen? Var är den internationella affärskulturen i Kina på väg? Detta är några av de frågorvi försöker få svar på genom denna studie. / The financial giant in the east expands like never before and the business opportunities havegone from just being a country where you place your production due to the low costs, to arapid growing consumers market that attracts more and more companies to try out their luck.In this thesis the business Culture is described both internally in the company where you haveChinese colleagues and externally, how you work with Chinese companies from a Swedishperspective. The main issue along the way towards a hybrid culture are the culturaldifferences between China and Sweden as well as the challenges that comes with it for everycompany that tries to establish themselves in China. Differences in values, religion, habits andnorms among much else contribute to a separated opinion on how business is supposed to bedealt with.By searching for relevant data in literature, periodicals and articles as well as carry outqualitative interviews with individuals with experience and knowledge about the Chineseculture where they have worked in China or have had Chinese colleagues under a longerperiod of time, we hope to create a deeper understanding of how Swedish companies treatsthe Chinese business culture. We find these people in both large and small companies that arein China to get more perspective on how the culture works. How much do they get in contactwith concepts like guanxi1 and mianzi2, which are major parts of the Chinese business culture,is also relevant to this study. We also wanted to do research of how up-to-date current data inthe field is and if the data is in need of a modernization to reflect the current business climate.How do the cultural differences look like for a Swedish company and how do they go about toovercome this to succeed on the Chinese market? How much do they need to adapt to theculture and how much do the Chinese companies adapt to the Swedish business culture?Where is the international business culture heading? These are just a few of the questions thatwe are trying to find an answer to with this study.

Culture is a strong part of people’s lives. When you are working with people and building relationships with them, it helps to have some perspective and understanding of their cultures. In the Japan business culture, there are several things that differentiate them from Swedish their way of conducting business. The purpose of this thesis is to explore how Swedish firms adapt in order to manage business relationships with Japanese customers. By investigating this, important components of cross-cultural differences have been identified and a deeper understanding of the cultural obstacles of doing business between two cultures that has great differences in their business cultures. A qualitative research method, with an abductive approach, has been conducted to this thesis to provide a deeper understanding of the topic. The literature review starts with presenting the concept of cultural differences between Sweden and Japan, then continuous with cultural adaptions and business relationship management. A theoretical framework is presented to illustrate the relationship between these concepts. The analysis discusses and compares the theoretical concepts with the empirical findings in order to understand the relation to each other. In the final chapter, a conclusion is made where the authors present answers to the research question, theoretical- and policy implication, limitations and suggestions for further research. The findings of this thesis have narrowed down the research gap regarding how Swedish firms manage business relationships with Japanese customers. We suggest that, in order to succeed on the Japanese market as a Swedish firm, one must adapt towards their cultural values and be open-minded regarding their business management when establishing a new relationship with a Japanese customer.

Doctor of Philosophy(PhD) / Globalisation in general and trade liberalisation in particular have impacted on many areas of industrialised governments’ foreign economic policy. Export support is an area which is inevitably affected by trade liberalisation, as governments are expected to decrease their intervention into exports in the name of barrier-free(er) trade. However, if one considers that the 1990s and 2000s have seen governments expanding their trade promotion agencies, increasing funding for export support provision and developing a range of new export support programmes, it is easy to recognise that government export support seems to have grown, rather than diminished over the past decade. This thesis investigates the complex influences of the world trade regime, to create a nuanced picture within globalisation theories - which ultimately explains the paradox of growing government support in the era of deepening trade liberalisation.

<p><!--StartFragment--><p>Det har inom området marknadsföring skett en förskjutning av fokus, från enbart aktioner i syfte att öka försäljningen till att företag i dag vill skapa en relation med sin kund. Tanken bygger på att företagen ur ett långsiktigt perspektiv ska vinna på att delta i relationen, även om relationen ibland medför ökade kostnader, andra uppoffringar och utbyten av bland annat känslig information.</p><p> </p><p>Vi har undersökt fenomenet genom att läsa litteratur inom området samt utfört en egen undersökning av Roupéz kunder där vi fått fram vilka faktorer som är viktiga för att en långsiktig relation ska existera. Vi har också haft tillgång till tidigare undersökningar som gjorts åt Roupéz.</p><p> </p><p>Roupéz är verksamma inom profil och presentreklambranschen. Deras mål är att på ett enkelt och rationellt sätt stärka kundens varumärke genom att fördjupa kundrelationen och öka teamkänslan hos personalen. Roupéz startades år 1989 och har kontor i Värnamo, Jönköping och Växjö.</p><p> </p><p>De faktorer som är viktiga vid skapandet och bibehållandet av en relation av affärskaraktär är enligt litteraturen, vår egen studie och de tidigare undersökningarna att företagen arbetar i interaktion där det sker utbyte socialt, utbyte av information men även utbyte i processer så som produktion. Andra viktiga faktorer för att en relation ska kunna existera är tillit företagen emellan och att parterna är engagerade och kommunicerar i de processer som hör relationen till. Vi vill slutligen peka på att i ett föränderligt affärsklimat är det viktigt att underhålla relationen genom att arbeta kreativt och innovativt i de processer där företagen interagerar.</p><!--EndFragment--></p>

<!--StartFragment-->Det har inom området marknadsföring skett en förskjutning av fokus, från enbart aktioner i syfte att öka försäljningen till att företag i dag vill skapa en relation med sin kund. Tanken bygger på att företagen ur ett långsiktigt perspektiv ska vinna på att delta i relationen, även om relationen ibland medför ökade kostnader, andra uppoffringar och utbyten av bland annat känslig information.   Vi har undersökt fenomenet genom att läsa litteratur inom området samt utfört en egen undersökning av Roupéz kunder där vi fått fram vilka faktorer som är viktiga för att en långsiktig relation ska existera. Vi har också haft tillgång till tidigare undersökningar som gjorts åt Roupéz.   Roupéz är verksamma inom profil och presentreklambranschen. Deras mål är att på ett enkelt och rationellt sätt stärka kundens varumärke genom att fördjupa kundrelationen och öka teamkänslan hos personalen. Roupéz startades år 1989 och har kontor i Värnamo, Jönköping och Växjö.   De faktorer som är viktiga vid skapandet och bibehållandet av en relation av affärskaraktär är enligt litteraturen, vår egen studie och de tidigare undersökningarna att företagen arbetar i interaktion där det sker utbyte socialt, utbyte av information men även utbyte i processer så som produktion. Andra viktiga faktorer för att en relation ska kunna existera är tillit företagen emellan och att parterna är engagerade och kommunicerar i de processer som hör relationen till. Vi vill slutligen peka på att i ett föränderligt affärsklimat är det viktigt att underhålla relationen genom att arbeta kreativt och innovativt i de processer där företagen interagerar. <!--EndFragment-->