A qualitative study of the relationship between external agents and policy professionals within the Swedish administration. The thesis has its starting point in the study "Makt utan mandat" and strives to explain what happens with the political process when more external agents enter the political market. The theoretical base is the policy process and lobbying researchers Hall & Deardorffs model which argues that when external agents exist on the political scene, the influence of political appointees decreases. The model is tested against empiric material, derived from nine qualitative interviews performed on individuals who, in different ways, participate in the policy process. The interviews were conducted during the autumn of 2015. In summary one may argue that the political power in Sweden has changed due to the fact that more external agents and the policy professionals, has entered the political market, and the thesis proves, with limited empiric material, that political appointees and lobbyists participate in the same phase of the policy process.

Contemporary companies work in complex environment comprising many simultaneous running projects, i.e. multi-project settings. To a large extend those projects are interdependent and are multi-professionally constituted of representatives from customers, suppliers, other business partners and researchers from academia. The success of projects, particularly in the multi-project setting, is dependent of the collaboration and interaction among those actors involved. The aim of this article is to explore the dynamics of interactions with external actors, such as customers, suppliers, other business partners and academia and investigate the effect of interactions on performance in multi-project settings. The methodology is based on a mixed-method approach, comprising a quantitative survey and a complementary case study. The quantitative survey questions are based on the extended literature study of project management interactions. The case study was selected in order to create a deeper understanding of the processes of interaction, barriers to interactions and the outcome in terms of project performance. The results show that interactions with external actors positively influence performance in terms of estimated quality, time, and cost, innovations and actor satisfaction. / no

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La combinaison de différents facteurs économiques, sociaux, politiques, managériaux ont amené de nouveaux modes relationnels entre les organisations et les acteurs affectant ainsi les processus de réflexion, la prise de décision et la mise en œuvre de la stratégie. Les chercheurs qui étudient les décisions stratégiques sont confrontés à prendre en considération la complexité de l’élaboration de ces processus ainsi que les multiples acteurs internes et externes pouvant y participer. Au travers de ce travail de recherche, nous cherchons à comprendre comment les acteurs externes participent à la construction de la décision stratégique. Nous avons élaboré théoriquement deux conceptions de l’ouverture des processus de décision stratégique aux acteurs externes. Nous qualifions la première perspective d’« outside-in ». Ceci souligne un comportement qui résulte d’une réflexion appropriée. La rationalité procédurale, terme emprunté par Herbet Simon à la psychologie, dépend du processus qui l’a généré. Le manager va ainsi devoir s’adapter à l’environnement et à ses propres limites cognitives afin de délibérer de la façon la plus satisfaisante. La seconde perspective, que nous avons qualifiée d’« inside-out », est guidée selon une rationalité des jeux consistant à ce que des acteurs se regroupent à partir de leurs intérêts individuels, formant ainsi une coalition, pour tenter d’influencer la décision finale. L’opposition à première vue de ces perspectives ne tient pas lorsque l’on adopte une lecture dynamique de l’ouverture des processus. Nous mettons donc en avant les proximités entre ces deux perspectives et la nécessité de les penser ensemble dans notre grille de lecture. Nous distinguons dès lors trois dimensions communes à ces deux perspectives : l’ouverture des processus de décision stratégique aux acteurs externes est ainsi composée de « finalité », d’« une nature des relations », et de « caractéristiques du processus ». Ce travail doctoral a été réalisé au travers de dix études de cas pour confirmer empiriquement notre construction théorique et préciser les modalités de fonctionnement des managers avec les acteurs externes. Une synthèse de sept pratiques a été développée, à partir de nos analyses, pour permettre de mieux comprendre comment chaque forme d’ouverture se produit et à quel moment dans le processus les managers les utilisent. L’exposition de ces pratiques nous a également permis de préciser le passage d’une forme d’ouverture à l’autre. Trois modalités contribuent dès lors à réaliser le basculement de la perspective « outside-in » à celle « inside-out » et inversement. Une attention variant selon la rationalité recherchée par les acteurs, une volonté de conservation des ressources et du pouvoir, ainsi qu’une obligation de traduction de la part des managers sont des éléments centraux pour expliquer ces alternances entre les formes d’ouverture.Enfin, la mise en évidence d’actions structurantes a contribué à proposer une conceptualisation de la construction de la décision stratégique et de l’ouverture du processus aux acteurs externes en s’appuyant notamment sur le travail de Mintzberg et al. (1976). Nous prolongeons ainsi leur travail en expliquant ce qui guide les managers à interagir avec les acteurs externes et comment ils utilisent cela ensuite dans leur réflexion personnelle ou avec les autres managers en interne pour élaborer la décision stratégique. / Combination of different economic, social, political and managerial factors have developed new relational modes between organizations and managers affecting in this way strategic thinking process, decision-making process and its implementation. Researchers must integrate the complexity of constructing process and considering internal and external actors. In this thesis, we want to better understand how external actors participate to the elaboration of the strategic decision. Thus, we have built theoretically two conceptions of the openness of decision-making process to external actors. We consider the first perspective as “outside-in”. It underlines a behaviour resulting of an appropriated reflection. Procedural rationality, term borrowed by Herbert Simon to psychology, depends of the process that has generated it. Manager will have to adapt to the environment and to his cognitive limits in order to deliberate satisfactorily. The second perspective, considered as “inside-out”, is characterized by a game rationality. This consists of individuals who act in relation to each other intelligently to pursue individual objectives by means of individual calculations of self-interest in order to influence final strategic decision. The apparent contradiction between these two perspectives does not hold when we enter into the process dynamic. Consequently we highlight similarities and insist on the interest to consider together these two perspectives in our framework. We distinguish three similar dimensions: the openness of strategic decision-making process to external actors is thus composed of “purpose”, “character of relationships”, and “process characteristics”. This thesis has been realized through ten cases studies to empirically confirm our theoretical building and to explain managers’ functioning modes with external actors. A typology of seven practices is developed, thanks to our analysis, to better understand how each form of openness happens and when managers use it to interact with external actors. Exposition of these practices has permitted to explore the passing of one form of openness to the other. Three notions contribute to explain it. An attention varying according to the rationality looked for managers, a will of conserving resources and power, and an imperative to translate for managers are central elements to precise these changes. To conclude, we put in evidence structuring actions and propose a conceptualization of strategic decision-making process and openness to external actors by leaning on the work of Mintzberg et al. (1976). We extend its research by explaining what led managers to interact with external actors and how they use it for their personal reflection or with others internal managers to build the strategic decision.

This thesis examines how Afghan women from the professional social class have negotiated the patriarchy in that country and claimed their agency and public life during different political regimes. Resisting the Western representation of Afghan women as passive victims, it uses the life story method, based on interviews with a wide range of women in public life during the period of US-sponsored democracy and intervention, to analyse the complex factors involved in enabling women to access public life. From a historical sociological viewpoint it examines the shifts in the forms of patriarchy and their sustaining gender regimes from 19th century to the present, and draws on Walby’s six structures of patriarchy in order to understand how those shift affected the ability of women to access public life and employment. Those structures – culture, religion, education, employment, family – are explored through the experiences and life histories of my interviewees. The thesis also pays attention to the involvement of external, foreign actors in the affairs of Afghanistan and the impact of those interventions on the possibility for women’s agency and participation in professional and public life through different political regimes. It thus challenges a simplistic view 9/11 was a water-shed moment for women’s empowerment, and notes that the economic is-sues, an aid-dependent economy and political regimes, security and safety, poverty and psychological trauma, corruption and power struggles among different forces (local and foreign) in many ways undermined women’s prospects in public life. The finding of the research shows that the rights and position of women in Afghanistan have fluctuated over the last 100 years depending on the patriarchal cultural, political and religious ideology and practice of the political regimes, and in no small part due to the influence and interference of external actors in the country.

Submitted by William Justo Figueiro (williamjf) on 2015-07-08T20:39:25Z No. of bitstreams: 1 01b.pdf: 2119244 bytes, checksum: 602de758dff9b7e00a3b45ff92be7875 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-07-08T20:39:25Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 01b.pdf: 2119244 bytes, checksum: 602de758dff9b7e00a3b45ff92be7875 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / Nenhuma / O processo de desenvolvimento de novos produtos apresenta-se como uma prática cada vez mais colaborativa. A partir de um modelo de inovação aberta que reconhece o valor das ideias geradas fora dos seus limites, as empresas passam a inserir participantes externos em diversas etapas da cadeia de criação de valor. Nesse sentido, o objetivo deste trabalho é discutir a interação entre atores externos e organizações que ocorre especificamente na etapa de design do desenvolvimento de novos produtos, no processo denominado codesign. Para tanto, é desenvolvida uma pesquisa-ação no âmbito de um projeto de codesign entre uma empresa do setor calçadista, usuários dos seus produtos e outros atores externos, focando na atuação do designer e no seu papel de mediação nas interações projetuais. Os principais resultados obtidos são a discussão da geração coletiva de conhecimento em um processo de codesign realizado em âmbito organizacional, da identificação dos atores e de seus papeis, da função de plataformas on-line, do uso de ferramentas projetuais. Finalmente, a pesquisa aponta para a possibilidade do codesign assumir um valor estratégico para o desenvolvimento organizacional. / The process of new product development is presented as a more collaborative practice. From an open innovation model that recognizes the value of ideas generated outside its limits, companies come to insert external participants in various stages of the value creation chain. From this, our goal is to analyze the interaction between external actors and organizations that occurs specifically in the design stage of new product development, in a process called co-design. For this, is developed an action research that involves a co-design project between company, users of their products and other external participants, focusing into the involvement of the designer and its role in mediating project interactions. The main results are the discussion of the collective generation of knowledge in a co-design process performed in the organizational context, the identification of the actors and their roles, the role of online platforms, the use of projective tools. Finally, the research points to the possibility of co-design assuming a strategic value for organizational development.

In recent years, pressures for making society more sustainable have been on a constant increase, and many of the new green technology solutions which will facilitate this change are likely to originate from small high-tech firms. However, young technology-based firms often fail to successfully bring their products to the market – a process known as commercialization. The purpose of this study was to from a managerial perspective contribute to narrowing the gap between practice and academia in the largely unexplored area of commercializing green tech. A qualitative study using an abductive research approach was conducted based on semi-structured interviews carried out at five Swedish green tech companies, followed by an analysis based on grounded theory. From this, four main challenges of green tech commercialization in Sweden were identified, including the reliance of green tech firms on external actors, challenges related to attracting employees and partners, the risk of green tech markets not materializing, and difficulties related to securing financing. Additionally, four underlying themes connected to these challenges were discussed, including issues related to the apparent interrelatedness of green tech markets, the importance of policy support to green tech viability, the importance of investor support, and issues related to gaining trust.

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Ett framgångsrikt innovationsarbete möjliggör för framtagningen och utvecklingen av nya och befintliga digitala produkter och tjänster. Digital innovation driver ett behov av att agera och samarbeta med andra företag och organisationer, vilket innebär att involveringen av externa aktörer kan leda till att utmaningar uppstår. Genom vår litteraturstudie har vi identifierat utmaningar, och undersökt hur dessa kan hanteras genom en kvalitativ intervjustudie, syftet med studien blir därför att genom en litteraturstudie skapa förståelse för vilka utmaningar som finns, samt identifiera hur dessa utmaningar kan hanteras genom en intervjustudie. De primära deltagarna i studien är anställda på ett etablerat och ledande företag som arbetar med digital innovation. Vi kommer att studera hur dessa utmaningar kan hanteras utifrån följande frågeställning: Hur kan utmaningar med involveringen av externa aktörer i digital innovation hanteras? Studiens resultat bidrar med föreslagna angreppssätt för att hantera utmaningar med involveringen av externa aktörer. / Successful innovation work enables the development of new and existing digital products andservices. Digital innovation drives a need to act and collaborate with other companies andorganizations, which means that involving external actors can lead to challenges. Through ourliterature study, we have identified challenges and investigated how these can be handledthrough qualitative interview studies. The purpose of the study is to create an understanding ofthe challenges that exist through a literature study, and to identify suggestions on how thesechallenges can be handled through interview studies. The primary participants in the study areemployees of an established and leading digital innovation company. We will study how thesechallenges can be addressed based on the following question: How can challenges with theinvolvement of external actors in digital innovation be handled? The study's results contributewith proposed approaches to succeed in dealing with challenges in the involvement of externalactors.