The world’s first large scale offshore wind farm, Horns Rev 1, is approaching the decommissioning phase the profitability of future investments therefore has to be investigated further. Investment decision-making requires the consideration of several perspectives based on a life cycle view of the asset’s condition and profitability. In order to contribute to the economical perspective of Asset Life Cycle Management, a business case model has been developed in two parts, one that represents the whole wind farm and one for a single wind turbine. Through the two models, the user can examine the profitability of a wind farm from a system perspective as well as on a more detailed level. The purposes of these models are to assist in the budget planning of Horns Rev 1 and provide support for investment decisionmaking.

Transformers are electrical devices used in practice to increase or decrease voltages. Transformers are of various sizes and used mainly in power distribution. To provide cooling and insulation, transformer oils are used together with cellulose that acts as a solid insulation. The most common type of transformer oil is mineral oil and is a product derived from the refining of crude oil. Its low cost and good compatibility with cellulose are two factors that have led to its predominant position as the common transformer oil. There are also synthetic ester based transformer oils, and following an increased interest in environmentally friendly products, transformer oils made from natural esters such as sunflower, soybean and rapeseed. Mineral oil is not biodegradable and is deemed as hazardous waste. The ester based oils are biodegradable and promoted as a more environmentally friendly alternative to mineral oil. In this thesis, the possibility of re-refining used mineral transformer oil is assessed from a financial perspective in the form of a business case and an LCA study has been done to compare the environmental impacts between ester based transformer oils and mineral based transformer oil. The results from the LCA study showed that from a cradle-to-gate perspective, mineral oil has a lower environmental impact than ester-based transformer oils. The re-refining of used mineral transformer oil further reduces the environmental impact. The results from the business case showed that a small scale re-refining facility is financially feasible but highly dependent on the supply and demand of used transformer oil. It is recommended to pursue further studies before making any decision. There is lack of data regarding the re-refining market in Eastern Europe and the accuracy of the LCA study can be further improved by having emissions data from re-refining used mineral transformer oil. / Transformatorer är elektriska komponenter som tillämpas vid spänningsregleringar. Dessa transformatorer har olika storlekar och används i eldistribution. Transformatorolja tillsammans med cellulosa används som elektrisk isolering och kylning av transformatorer. Den vanligaste typen av transformatorolja är mineralolja och är en produkt som erhålls vid raffinering av råolja. Dess låga kostnad och goda kompatibilitet med cellulosa är två faktorer som har lett till dess dominerande ställning. Det finns också syntetisk esterbaserad transformatorolja och efter ett ökat intresse för miljövänliga produkter så tillverkas även transformatoroljor av naturliga estrar så som solros, soja och raps. Mineralolja är inte nedbrytbar och anses vara farligt avfall. De esterbaserade oljorna är nedbrytbara och anses vara ett mer miljövänligt alternativ till mineralolja. I denna rapport utvärderades möjligheten till att återraffinera använd mineralolja ur ett ekonomiskt perspektiv i form av en affärsplan och en LCA-studie där esterbaserad olja och mineralolja har jämförts ur ett miljöperspektiv. Resultaten från LCA-studien visade att mineralolja från ett ”cradle-to-gate” perspektiv har en lägre miljöpåverkan än esterbaserade transformatoroljor. Återraffinering av använd mineralolja minskar dess miljöpåverkan ytterligare. Resultatet från affärsplanen visade att en småskalig återraffineringsanläggning är ekonomiskt hållbar men samtidigt väldigt beroende av utbud respektive efterfrågan på använd mineralolja. Det rekommenderas att göra en djupare analys innan man fattar ett beslut. Det finns brist på information med avseende på återraffineringsmarknaden i Östeuropa. Noggrannheten på LCA-studien kan förbättras ytterligare genom att emissionsdata från en återraffineringsanläggning är tillgänglig.

Every new product launching industrial company faces the difficulties of forecasting future success or failure of a new product before launch. Before launch it is common to develop a business case in order to estimate future quantities and set prices. In the present paper the challenges of developing a standardized business case tool for a large industrial construction and mining company are presented. Few academic studies have been conducted on the challenges and complexities of developing business cases. The research question under which this study is done is: What are the challenges associated with developing an effective standardized business case tool for a large industrial construction and mining company? Due to the different subject areas of the business case for new product launch, the challenges are categorized by topics developed by the researcher in the course of this project: process and team, data gathering and validation, quantity forecast and price forecast. The main challenges found in these categories by the researcher are: finding and motivating experts for the project of developing a standardized business case, gathering and selecting all data necessary without including redundant data, ensuring that different potential new products can be forecasted and designing the price forecast to be profit-maximizing. Solutions to these challenges are provided in the context of a case company by using methods suggested by the academic literature and the evaluation of expert interviews inside the case company

In this dissertation, including three papers, I examine the business case for corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the hospitality industry. The first paper provides a systematic review of the business case for CSR based on 170 articles published in leading hospitality journals. The review paper serves as a literature review of this dissertation, leading to the second and third papers. In the second paper, I examine CSR as a strategic tool to offset corporate social irresponsibility (CSiR) in the hospitality industry. Findings indicate sector differences within the hospitality industry. The third paper examines corporate philanthropy, focusing on the notion of strategic philanthropy. Results indicate the predominance of strategic philanthropy especially in hospitality companies, compared to companies in other industries. Findings of the dissertation as a whole suggest the need for hospitality-specific business case for CSR. In practical terms, this dissertation provides better informed decisions for hospitality mangers in terms of using CSR as a corporate strategy to achieve competitive advantages in the highly competitive industry. / PHD / This dissertation examines corporate social responsibility (CSR), specifically, why hospitality companies engage in CSR and how they can achieve social and financial performance at the same time. The first paper reviews the relevant literature. And based on the findings and gaps in the extant literature, I conducted the 2nd and 3rd studies. In the 2nd paper, I examine whether hospitality companies do something good in response to something bad (to society). Findings indicate that hospitality companies do good to offset their wrong doing. However, it appears to be less salient in casinos and fast-food restaurants, which are controversial with the possible harms of operating their businesses to society. The 3rd paper examines corporate philanthropy, which can be considered as altruistic activities to help people in need. Arguably due to lack of resources in hospitality companies, corporate philanthropy in the industry seems to be used as a marketing-tool, increasing firm sales.

The global climate and energy crisis has amplified the need for renewable energy sources, withsolar photovoltaic (PV) systems expected to play a significant role in the future energy mix. In this context, distributed energy systems (DES) are identified as part of the solution to address climate and energy challenges.With the increasing demand for photovoltaic energy sources, there is a growing requirement forefficient Business Case Tools (BCT) to analyze investments in distributed solar PV installations.A two-part model, consisting of a solar model and spot price data, was developed based onparameters such as solar radiation, location, angle, orientation, system losses, installedcapacity, and historical spot price data. The model was integrated with Power BI for investment calculations and visualization of results. The developed model provides approximations for solar PV system electricity production, which were validated against selected installations in allelectricity areas of Sweden. The validation revealed an average relative absolute error of 14.72 percent for the model. The conclusion drawn is that BCT can be utilized to analyze and visualize solar PV investments at specific locations in Sweden. The results indicate that Power BI, as a BCT, has limitations indynamic data collection but performs well in executing calculation of investments and visualizingthe results. Well-developed BCT can facilitate decision-making through real-time calculations and contribute to smoother implementation of distributed systems by providing detailed insightsinto their financial characteristics. Further research is needed to develop a model specificallytailored for distributed installations with storage capabilities. / Världen befinner sig i en global klimat- och energikris vilket ökat behovet av och efterfrågan på förnybara energikällor. Solceller förväntas utgöra en betydande del av den framtida energimixen. I kombination med detta identifieras distribuerade energisystem (DES) som endel av lösningen på klimat- och energifrågan. I takt med den ökade efterfrågan på fotovoltaiska energikällor ställs större krav på effektiva Business Case Tools (BCT) för att analysera investeringar i distribuerade solcellsanläggningar. En modell bestående av två delar, en solmodell och spotprisdata,utvecklades utifrån parametrarna solstrålning, plats, vinkel, riktning, systemförluster, installerad effekt samt historiska spotprisdata. Modellen sammankopplas med Power BI föratt utföra investeringskalkyler och visualisera resultatet. Den utvecklade modellen gerapproximationer för solcellsanläggningars elproduktion, vilket validerades mot utvaldaanläggningar i Sveriges samtliga elområden. Enligt valideringen uppgår modellens genomsnittliga relativa absoluta fel till 14,72 procent. Slutsatsen dras att BCT kan användas för att analysera och visualisera solcellsinvesteringar på specifika platser i Sverige. Resultatet visar att Power BI som BCT har brister när detkommer till dynamisk datainsamling, men genomför och visualiserar investerings kalkyler med enkelhet. Välutvecklade BCT kan användas för att underlätta beslutsfattande genomrealtidsberäkningar och kan bidra till en smidigare implementering av distribuerade systemgenom att belysa deras finansiella karaktär på ett detaljerat sätt. Fortsatt forskning krävs föratt ta fram en modell anpassad för distribuerade anläggningar med lagringsmöjligheter.

This master thesis examines inception of the new web portal focused on shopping and its entry into Czech internet market. First part introduces methods of market situation analysis that are applied in second part of this master thesis. Thesis also includes analysis of Czech internet market from the perspective of on-line shopping and identifies potential customer segments for this new internet portal. Next part defines business objective of new internet portal and its marketing strategy. Results of this master thesis where applied during preparation phase of internet project CoKoupit.cz and will also be further applied during company start-up.

Abstract Products have a significant and multidimensional role in business, whereas product management as a scientific field is still in its emergence. However, long industrial tradition positions product management as a holistic and complete business management of products at different levels throughout product lifecycles. The evolving business environment and external stakeholders influence the decision-making in product management. A commercially successful new product may necessitate as much as hundreds of new ideas and opportunities to be screened. Hence, decisions made in the front-end of product creation significantly affect the product cost and value throughout its lifecycle. This dissertation aims to answer the question of how product management can analyse stakeholders and business opportunities in a systematic way in the front-end of product creation. The study follows a qualitative research strategy and a constructive approach along the research process. Four original publications focus on stakeholder business opportunity analyses; the first one analyses external stakeholders as a business ecosystem for collaborative product creation; the second assesses the influence of internal stakeholders in product creation; whereas the third and fourth articles focus on systematic ways to conduct business case analyses during product creation. The systematic analysis of external stakeholders’ business models is seen as a tangible way to perceive the business ecosystem. Salience assessment further helps to explain how the voice of stakeholders can be noticed by product management decision-making. Systemising the business case analysis procedure, including gathering, processing and integrating information from different knowledge and functional areas – customers, marketing, technical, financial and strategic – provides the rationale for product management to make well-informed go/no-go decisions and assurance for commitment towards funding and launching product creation projects. / Tiivistelmä Tuotteilla on merkittävä ja moniulotteinen rooli liiketoiminnassa. Tutkimusalana tuotehallinta on aikaisessa kehitysvaiheessa, mutta pitkä teollinen perinne asemoi tuotehallinnan kokonaisvaltaiseksi liiketoiminnan johtamiseksi käsittäen tuotteet kaikkine osineen läpi niiden elinkaarten. Jatkuvasti muuttuva liiketoimintaympäristö ja ulkoiset sidosryhmät vaikuttavat tuotehallinnan päätöksentekoon. Yhtä kaupallisesti menestyvää uutta tuotetta kohden yritys voi joutua käymään läpi jopa satoja uusia ideoita ja mahdollisuuksia. Samalla tuotteen luomisen alkuvaiheessa tehtävät päätökset voivat vaikuttaa merkittävästi tuotteeseen, sen arvoon ja kustannuksiin koko elinkaaren aikana. Tämä väitöskirja pyrkii vastaamaan kysymykseen, miten tuotehallinnassa voidaan analysoida sidosryhmiä ja liiketoimintamahdollisuuksia systemaattisella tavalla tuotteen luomisen alkuvaiheessa. Tutkimus toteuttaa laadullista tutkimusstrategiaa käyttäen konstruktiivista lähestymistapaa tutkimusprosessissa. Alkuperäiset julkaisut keskittyvät sidosryhmien ja liiketoimintamahdollisuuksien analyyseihin. Ensimmäinen julkaisu tarkastelee ulkoisia sidosryhmiä liiketoimintaekosysteeminä yhteistyössä tehtävän tuotekehityksen kannalta, toinen julkaisu käsittelee sisäisten sidosryhmien tärkeyttä tuotteen luomisessa. Kolmas ja neljäs julkaisu keskittyvät systemaattisiin tapoihin toteuttaa tapauskohtaista liiketoimintamahdollisuuksien analysointia tuotteen luomisen alkuvaiheessa. Analysoimalla systemaattisesti ulkoisten sidosryhmien liiketoimintamalleja voidaan konkreettisesti hahmottaa liiketoimintaekosysteemi. Sidosryhmien tärkeyden, salienssin, arviointi selittää, miten eri sisäisten sidosryhmien äänet otetaan huomioon tuotehallinnan päätöksenteossa. Systemaattinen menettely tapauskohtaiselle liiketoimintamahdollisuuksien analysoinnille tuottaa tiedollisen perustan tehdä johdonmukaisesti perusteltuja tuotehallinnan päätöksiä tuoteprojektien käynnistämisestä. Menettely kerää, käsittelee ja yhdistelee tietoja eri osa-alueilta, kuten asiakas, markkina, tekninen toteutettavuus, talous ja strategia.

This diploma thesis is centred on the importance of State support for exports. It defines the international rules which must be respected by State export policies, and deals with the basic principles and activities of institutions which together form the integrated system of State support for exports in the Czech Republic. Within this overall context, the practical component of this diploma thesis examines the work of the Czech State Export Credit Agency (EGAP), and describes their newly created Export Promotion Effectiveness methodology (EPE) which aims to evaluate the economic risk-benefit of a each business case. It goes on to describe the phases and steps of the underwriting process which every business case must go through. The underwriting process is illustrated with the help of a process map, and defines points at which the EPE model can be used. An important part of this diploma thesis represents a case study which demonstrates the application of the EPE model to a real business case.

El objetivo del presente trabajo de investigación es proponer herramientas y procedimientos para aplicar la gestión de riesgos durante la Construcción de Líneas de Transmisión de Alta Tensión para la empresa Transporte de Energía SAC, basándose en las buenas prácticas del Practice Standard for Project Risk Management (Project Mangement Institute, 2009); de esta guía se han tomado conceptos, técnicas y herramientas que han permitido a elaborar la presente propuesta. Asimismo, se han tomado conceptos de la guía para la elaboración de caso de negocio A Guide to Structure and Content (Schmidt, 2003). Este trabajo de investigación ha tomado como referencia a una empresa peruana llamada Transporte de Energía SAC especializada en ejecución de obras y servicios de operación y mantenimiento de líneas de transmisión, subestaciones y equipos de alta tensión en todo el país. Asimismo, Transporte de Energía SAC posee conocimiento del mercado local y cuenta con experiencia en desarrollo de proyectos en Perú y otros países del mercado de Sudamérica. Además, cuenta con personal con la experiencia necesaria para trabajar bajo una nueva gestión de riesgos. Para culminar, es preciso indicar que la propuesta se elaboró teniendo como referencia información histórica de la organización, la que se analizó para, finalmente, proponer el presente trabajo de investigación. / The objective of this research work is to propose tools and procedures to apply risk management during the Construction of High Voltage Transmission Lines for Transporte de Energía SAC, based on the good practices of the Practice Standard for Project Risk Management (Project Mangement Institute, 2009). Concepts, techniques and tools have been taken of this guide, that have allowed to elaborate this proposal. Also, concepts have been taken from the guide Business Case Essentials: A Guide to Structure and Content (Schmidt, 2003). This research work has taken as a reference the Peruvian company Transporte de Energía SAC, this company is specialized in operation and maintenance services for transmission lines, substations and high voltage equipment throughout the country. Transporte de Energía SAC has knowledge of the local market and has experience in developing projects in Peru, and other countries in the South American market. In addition, it has a staff with the necessary experience to work under a new risk management To conclude, it is necessary to indicate that the proposal was elaborated taking as reference historical information of the organization, which was analyzed to, finally, propose the present research work. / Tesis

This thesis explores whether dialogue between a company and a non-profit organisation (NPO) can influence a company’s way of working towards being more conflict sensitive. As a case-study I analysed the dialogue between the French oil and gas company, Total S.A. (Total), and the US based NPO, CDA Collaborative Learning Projects (CDA) relating to the company’s operations in Myanmar/Burma. The objectives of the research were to ascertain if dialogue had a positive impact, and if so, what it was about the dialogue that enabled change, what was the process of change that could be observed and how embedded such change was. Drawing on post-modernism, systems thinking and complexity thinking, I have built on organisational change, conflict transformation, dialogue and cross-sector partnership literature to examine the role of dialogue as an enabler of change. While highlighting parallels in the discourses, I analyse the process and degree of change within the company through two conflict transformation models, one by Lederach (1997) and the other by Lederach, Neufeld and Culbertson (2007), which I feel best synthesise these parallels. The research is a longitudinal case-study (2002-2012), based on semi-structured interviews and document analysis. The study adds to the limited academic research on conflict sensitivity in general, and on the implications for a company’s way of working in particular. Although I find that within the business sector, the notion of conflict sensitivity is assumed in the wider concept of corporate social responsibility, noteworthy is the relevance of dialogue in change processes. Dialogue is an essential enabler as it sparks transformational levers also recognised in the literature reviewed. However it is not sufficient. The research illustrates that the dialogue between CDA and Total has played a critical role in facilitating a shift in the company’s way of working, with the contribution of other influences at play. As such, I draw attention to the complexity of the change process and discuss the current nature of the drivers of change within Total.