In classical “triple bottom line” sustainability reporting, there have not been any clear guidelines on how companies should report on their environmental footprint. Consequently, the transparency in the environmental reporting has been low, which has resulted in greenwashing. To create reliable reporting and increase the proportion of green loans and green investments, the EU introduced the classification system EU Taxonomy in 2021. The new framework has stricter requirements on companies as they are now obligated to report on specific guidelines. These guidelines will also allow stakeholders to determine how sustainable a company is. Since the EU Taxonomy was recently launched, there has been a knowledge gap in how companies experience the framework. Also, what measures should be considered in the design of the EU Taxonomy for the implementation to be as successful as possible, based on the premise that companies should make their business model as sustainable as possible. This semi-structured interview study examines how Swedish companies experience the EU Taxonomy. The researchers interviewed eight Swedish stakeholders with great insights into the area, from the manufacturing industry (1), the Real Estate Industry (2), the Swedish Corporate Business Organizations (1), the Real Estate Industry Organizations (2), and Auditing Firms (2). The researchers could conclude that being classified as sustainable in the EU Taxonomy does not necessarily mean a company is sustainable from a scientific point of view. Nevertheless, it can be an answer to political interests. The interviewees also felt it was challenging to interpret and understand the framework and that there were necessary clarifications. Further, the EU will have to account for several activities from each industry so that companies can report on their total ecological footprint. Finally, changes in the delegated acts are mandatory for the EU taxonomy to be a successful policy instrument. / I klassisk “triple bottom line” rapportering har det inte funnits några tydliga riktlinjer för hur företag ska rapportera om sitt ekologiska avtryck. Som en följd av detta, har transparensen i hållbarhetsredovisningen varit låg, vilket har resulterat i greenwashing. I syfte att skapa mer tillförlitlig rapportering och öka andelen gröna lån och investeringar, infördes 2021 klassificeringssystemet EU Taxonomin. Det nya ramverket har skapat nya krav på företag då de nu är skyldiga att rapportera på specifika miljöbelastande aktiviteter. Dessa riktlinjer ska dessutom kunna utgöra hur hållbara de rapporterande bolagen är. Eftersom EU Taxonomin nyligen har lanserats, fanns det en kunskapslucka för hur företag upplever ramverket. Även vilka åtgärder som bör övervägas i utformningen av EU-taxonomin för att implementeringen ska bli så framgångsrik som möjligt, utifrån utgångspunkten att företag ska göra sin affärsmodell så hållbar som möjligt. Med detta i åtanke utvecklades denna semistrukturerade intervjustudie som ämnar att undersöka hur svenska företag ser på EU Taxonomin. Forskarna har intervjuat åtta aktörer från svenska: tillverkningsindustrin (1), fastighetsbranschen (2), näringslivet (1), medlemsorganisationer inom fastighetsbranschen (2) och revisionsbyråer (2). Det forskarna kunde konstatera är att det som klassas som hållbart i EU Taxonomin, inte nödvändigtvis ur ett teknikneutral och vetenskapligt perspektiv är hållbart, utan är ett svar på ett politiskt intresse. Aktörerna upplever dessutom att ramverket är svårt att förstå och att det därför är nödvändigt med förtydningar. Till sist kommer även EU behöva ta fler aktiviteter från de respektive branscherna i åtanke i de delegerade akterna, för att företag ska kunna redovisa för sitt totala ekologiska fotavtryck. Slutligen är ändringar i de delegerade akterna obligatoriska för att EU Taxonomin ska kunna bli ett framgångsrikt policyinstrument.

Because of global warming, companies have started to tackle sustainability issues within their operations, but major uncertainties exist on how to establish a quantitative baseline of the current environmental performance of companies. Numerous investigations have been made to assess the carbon footprint of companies with a variety of methods, tools and strategies. However, the lack of transparency in the methods used and the assumptions made could prevent companies to replicate methods and to analyse the results. Because of this, we will investigate how participatory modelling could be used to create a model of the carbon emissions of a company, but also how this method enables the company to understand the methods used and the results from the investigation. By doing this, we also aim to clarify how the process could be set up, which stakeholders that need to be involved and what data sources that could be used. The thesis was conducted as a single case study at a manufacturing company named DeLaval. A participatory modelling process with three major phases was carried out according to proposed methodologies in previous research. In the first phase, a conceptual model of the system accounting for the emissions was created. In the second phase, a quantitative model of the system was developed by gathering data and validating the calculation methodologies with operational stakeholders within the company. In the third phase, the results were verified, and the company could set up sustainability targets based on the findings. The outcomes of the case study showed that there are major benefits with applying participatory modelling because different perspectives throughout the organisation could be gathered efficiently to create a representable model of the company. The modelling strategy had more benefits in organisational areas characterised by high complexity with numerous of different stakeholders with different roles or by geographical distribution. To create the model, primary data consisting of master product data and transactional data was used, together with secondary data, consisting of carbon emission coefficients and gap filling data created by the modellers. By basing the calculations on the methodology set up by the GHG protocol and anchoring the root definition of the system with strategic stakeholders, the results were trusted by the organisation. / På grund av den globala uppvärmningen har företag börjat att hantera hållbarhetsutmaningar inom sin verksamhet, men stora frågetecken kvarstår gällande hur en kvantifierad bild av företagets nuvarande utsläpp ska beräknas. Flertalet studier har genomförts för att undersöka koldioxidavtrycket på företag, med flertalet olika metoder och verktyg. Metoderna och antaganden som gjorts har dock bristande transparens, vilket hindrar andra företag från att replikera beräkningarna och att göra analyser av resultatet. Baserat på detta kommer denna studie att undersöka hur participativ modellering kan användas för att skapa en modell av koldioxidutsläppen från ett företag, men också hur denna metod underlättar för företaget att förstå metoderna som använts och resultaten från undersökningen. Genom detta ämnar vi att bringa klarhet gällande hur processen kan se ut, vilka intressenter som ska vara delaktiga och vilka datakällor som kan vara användbara. Studien genomfördes som en enkel fallstudie på det producerande företaget DeLaval. En participativ modelleringsprocess med tre faser genomfördes i enlighet med etablerade modelleringsprinciper från tidigare studier. I den första fasen utvecklades en konceptuell modell av systemet för estimering av koldioxidutsläppen. I den andra fasen utvecklades en kvantitativ modell as systemet genom att samla in data och validera beräkningsmetoderna tillsammans med operative intressenter på företaget. I den tredje fasen verifierades resultaten och företaget hade möjlighet att sätta upp hållbarhetsmål baserat på resultatet. Utfallet av fallstudien visar att det finns stora fördelar med att använda participativ modellering eftersom olika perspektiv i organisationen kunde inhämtas på ett effektivt sätt för att skapa en representativ modell av företaget. Modelleringsstrategin hade större fördelar i delar av företaget som karakteriserades av hög komplexitet, med många olika intressenter med olika roller eller av geografisk utspriddhet. För att skapa modellen krävdes primärdata innehållande produktinformation och transaktionsdata samt sekundärdata, innehållande utsläppsfaktorer och överbryggande data skapad av modellerarna. Genom att basera beräkningarna på metodiken skapad av GHG protocol och förankra syftet med systemet tillsammans med strategiska intressenter, skapades en tillit till resultaten inom organisationen.

Background: Sustainable organizational change has become one of the greatest challenges facing contemporary businesses. The metal manufacturing industry is important in the transition, due to its impact on global GDP and the climate. SMEs covers a large portion of the metal manufacturing industry, where their transformation is crucial as well. Problem: Despite the importance of sustainable change, there is limited research on how manufacturing SMEs can effectively manage a sustainable transformation. This gap necessitates elucidating the context of SMEs in sustainability, and exploring methods for sustainable change management within these organizations.  Purpose: The aim of this research is to explore sustainability and organizational change in the context of manufacturing SMEs, to provide a deeper understanding on how manufacturing SMEs can sustainably transform their business activities through adequate methods and processes. Method: This research takes on the philosophical position of critical realism and utilizes a qualitative, explorative, and inductive approach. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten managers from manufacturing SMEs. A thematic analysis was also adopted to extend the previous research.  Conclusion: Manufacturing SMEs adopt various sustainability activities, in line with the triple bottom line. They are also going towards a more formal approach for sustainability. Economic performance and sustainability go together for manufacturing SMEs, whereas more knowledge is connected to higher altruistic motivations and clear sustainability strategies. A combination of continuous incremental and transformational change is evident. This research found a six-step process for SMEs sustainable change management, elucidating their more flexible and adaptive culture alongside specific advantages and challenges. Their capabilities of learning and an informal culture facilitates fast decision-making and the continuous improvement of their practices, facilitating economic performance and sustainable change.

Avhandlingens syfte är att beskriva och analysera arbetets betydelse i starta eget–bidragsföretagares liv. Material har samlats in dels genom en omfattande enkätstudie som omfattar hela populationen nuvarande och tidigare företagare från 1995 i Östergötlands län, dels genom en serie livsberättelseorienterade intervjuer med ett urval aktiva respektive före detta företagare med fokus på deras inställning till arbete. Resultaten visar bland annat att etableringsmotiven ofta utgår främst från strukturer och omständigheter utanför individen och att dennes handlande när det gäller att starta eget i mycket bygger på ett oreflekterat förhållningssätt. Analyserna lyfter också fram de identitetsskapande aspekterna av arbete och visar att den del av identiteten som är knuten till arbete i många fall mycket starkt påverkar eller omformar övriga identitetsaspekter. SeB-företagarna kan betraktas som ”nödvändighetsentreprenörer” då de skapar nya arbetstillfällen åt sig själva. Bland nuvarande företagare anser drygt hälften att deras liv tagit en positiv riktning. De mest negativa återfinns i gruppen tidigare SeB-företagare, av vilka drygt en tredjedel anser att deras liv tagit en negativ riktning. Bland fördelarna med företagande framhålls av de studerade personerna framför allt möjligheten till en upplevd egenkontroll i arbetet. Nackdelar som betonas är ekonomisk oro, kompetensbrist och brist på sociala relationer. / The thesis aims to describe and analyze the importance of work for those who start up in business through the active labour market programme – the start-up grant entrepreneur. The material was collected partly through an extensive questionnaire study covering the entire population of current and former entrepreneurs in subsidized enterprises from 1995 in Östergötland, Sweden, and partly by a series of life story-oriented interviews about attitudes to work with a sample of active or former entrepreneurs. The results show, inter alia, that the establishment motives are often essentially based on the structure and circumstances beyond the individual and that his/her actions in terms of starting their own business are largely based on a non reflective approach. The analysis also highlights the identity-building aspects of work and shows that in many cases the part of one’s identity that is associated with work significantly affects other identity issues. Start-up entrepreneurs can be regarded as ”necessity entrepreneurs” when they create new jobs for themselves. Among the current workers, just over half believe that their lives have taken a positive direction. The most negative is the group of former start-up entrepreneurs, in which just over one third indicate that their lives have taken a negative direction. The benefits of entrepreneurship highlighted by the studied subjects include the possibility of a perceived self-monitoring at work. Disadvantages indicated by the same people include economic concerns, skills shortages and lack of social relationships.

The gas leak disaster in Bhopal, India, in 1984 illustrates a situation of catastrophe and mass torts resulting in loss of life and health as well as environmental degradation. The Indian company Union Carbide India Limited, who owned and operated the chemical plant that caused the disaster, did not have sufficient assets to compensate the victims in contrast to its financially well-equipped US parent company Union Carbide Corporation. The courts never reached a decision regarding parent company liability for the subsidiary’s debts arising from tort claims against the subsidiary. However, where the subsidiary cannot satisfy its tort creditors, as in the Bhopal case, questions regarding parent company liability become highly relevant in relation to both foreign and domestic subsidiaries. Therefore, parent company liability for subsidiaries’ torts is discussed in this thesis with reference to Swedish and UK company law and with a focus on the tort creditors’ situation and the business and human rights debate. From limited liability for shareholders and each company being a separate legal entity follows that a parent company is not liable for its subsidiaries’ debts in neither Swedish nor UK company law. These concepts serve the important function of facilitating risk-taking and entrepreneurial activities. However, they also contribute to the problem of uncompensated tort victims arising where a subsidiary is involved in liability- producing activities but lacks assets to compensate the tort victims. Where limited liability and each company being a separate legal entity leads to particularly inappropriate results, the doctrine of piercing the corporate veil in both Sweden and the UK allows the court to disregard the separate legal personalities and hold the parent company liable for its subsidiary’s acts or omissions. The doctrine is characterised by uncertainty and is seemingly only available under exceptional circumstances. The doctrine does little to mitigate the problems for subsidiaries’ tort creditors at large. The business and human rights debate calls for access to judicial remedies for victims of businesses’ human rights violations. As some human rights violations can form the basis of a tort claim, it is relevant to discuss parent company liability according to company law in relation to human rights violations. The United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights emphasise the need to ensure that corporate law does not prevent access to judicial remedies. However, the company law regulation of liability in company groups seems in practice to function as an obstacle for access to judicial remedies for human rights victims, particularly when also considering the inadequate legal regimes in some host states and the hurdles of jurisdiction and applicable law in multinational company groups. It is concluded in this thesis that the company law regulation of liability in company groups is seemingly not equipped to meet the challenges arising with the development of company groups, the global reach of the private business sector, the risks of mass torts and the influence of the business sector on human rights.