The main purpose of this study is to enhance the analysis of the impact of R&D expenditure on firms’ growth. This study adopts an OLS regression for a data sample of 46 firms listed on Nasdaq Stockholm for the 2006-2019 period. We present models with R&D expenditure and R&D intensity as the main mechanisms of firm growth, defined as sales growth in this study. Furthermore, firm size, firm age and sector belonging determining the R&D and sales growth relationship are also investigated. We find that R&D intensity has a statistically significant negative impact on firm growth, while R&D expenditure does not show a statistically significant relationship to firm growth. Thus, the results of this paper suggest that devoting a higher proportion of your sales to R&D activities does not translate into firm growth.

It is not uncommon for graphic scenes of violence and death to infiltrate our timelinesfrom retweets, reposts, and shares. I often question how much control do we really have over the images that enter our feed? In what ways are we affected and influenced by these images? How do we relate to these images and video clips that are played and replayed before us? In what ways are these images evoking or are related to past scenes of racist violence? In what ways are these racially violent moments captured in photos and videos and shared online speaking to a Black consciousness? This project comparatively researches and examines the relationship between past modes and methods of Black trauma curation in the past, to contemporary modes of dissemination on social media in order to argue that contemporary uses of spaces such as Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter serve as an extension of previous scrapbooking methods. By comparing The Emmet Till Generation and their curation of trauma via scrapbooks which were used to galvanize social movements, and impact organizing efforts of the youth, The Trayvon Generation today uses social media in a similar fashion; to bear witness, to organize, and to curate digital memorials for the dead. Witnessing is further extended and complicated on digital platforms, providing an abundance of visual evidence that has proven to be vital in leading tp prosecutions and arrests of violent state officials, and perpetrators of extrajudicial violence. These live or recorded moments of witnessing are used not only as evidence, but to inform the public. However, we have always known that it’s always happening somewhere, even if we aren’t around to witness it. With that said, what are the effects of having the duty, and the responsibility to bear witness? Paying particular attention to Black youth, this project examines their presence and usage of social media spaces. By analyzing young Black people’s use of social media platforms in relation to Darnella Frazier’s strategic use Facebook, this project examines how Black youth and witnessing is currently driving a cultural shift in entertainment media that highlights witnessing death as a significant milestone for Black youth that marks the transition between childhood and adulthood. It is also impacting entertainment media that is not marketed towards Black people, further highlighting Black witnessing of racialized violence at the intersection of technology as both a contemporary and future issue through its inclusion in contemporary media.Witnessing for Black people is framed as being both necessary and traumatic. This project concludes with an in depth examination of speculative media to reveal the implications of both the present and the future intersections of race relations, state violence and technology. Through analyses of interviews, image circulation and dissemination, magazine articles, social media platforms, visual and speculative media, this dissertation works to address and attempts to answer the aforementioned questions.

This study seeks to show how Nike, Inc. has effectively followed a strategy to increase the sale of its products that can be characterized as propaganda. Regarding method, this is a qualitative study which applied the propaganda analysis plan developed by Jowett & O'Donnell (1992) to examine and describe (1) Nike's ideology, (2) corporate structure and culture, (3) purpose, (4) targeted audiences, (5) the dissemination of the propaganda, (6) techniques for increasing its effectiveness, (7) existing counterpropaganda and contradictions, and (8) the effectiveness of the campaign. The study provides evidence that Nike engages in propaganda through an organized, systematic, and deliberate attempt to influence the beliefs, attitudes, perceptions, and actions of specific audiences for the purpose of accomplishing fixed objectives.

Innovation strategy has been playing an important role on innovation development in industrial firms. Extant studies have investigated in particular open innovation strategy.  By using a qualitative case study, I have conducted a research in an Indonesian R&D firm that has implemented an open innovation strategy. The purpose of this research is to add more information and confirm existing knowledge by exploring challenges and opportunities during the implementation of an open innovation strategy. I identify many challenges which are found in several aspects of innovation development such as collaboration management, assets protection and accessing external knowledge. Furthermore, the opportunities that I found are related with enhancement of license strategy, nurture of employee’s loyalty and establishment of various collaboration forms. These challenges and opportunities occurred due to the influence of the openness paradigm. The results of this study also confirm previous research result on the adoption of the partly open innovation scheme and the layered collaboration scheme. RQ: what are the firm-level challenges and opportunities with using an open innovation strategy?

This paper investigates the impact of diversification and the financial crisis on firm performance in India.The dataset of this paper is focused on Indian publicly listed firms between 2006 and 2012. By analyzingaccounting-based and market-based measures of firm performance, this study tries to explain the factorsthat influences the costs and benefits of diversified firms compared to non-diversified firms. This studyfound that diversified firms have on average a higher firm performance than non-diversified firms.During the global financial crisis, the performance of both diversified and non-diversified firms in Indiadeteriorated caused by a meltdown of global economic activities. This study does not find evidence thatdiversified firms perform relatively better than non-diversified firms during crisis times. Diversification isexpected to be more beneficial in the absence of well-developed and integrated capital markets due theeffects of “more money” and “smarter money”, arising from an increased efficiency of the internalcapital market. The analysis gives an impression that the total number of diversified firms increased afterthe crisis.

Wage structure has shown to be crucial for firms and workers. However, there existwage dispersion for identical workers in labor markets. The paper measures the effectof industry and firm size on wages in Sweden. The results show that both industry andfirm size have significant effects on wages. Regarding the explanation factors, thefinding is that human capital factors can explain a portion of the industry wagedifferentials, but have less impact on wage differentials across firm size. However,compensating differentials and union organization are not the determinants of theindustry wage differentials and firm size-wage effects. In addition, unobservedindividual characteristics can partly explain firm size effect on wages, but cannotexplain industry wage differentials based on our samples.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2001. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This assignment is a case study for Strategic Management and based on a South African company. The company is SASOL Ltd, one of South Africa's leading companies regarding to technological resourcefulness and diversification. The first chapter of this assignment will give a small introduction and explain why SASOL was chosen for this project, as well as the methodology used. Chapter two covers the development of SASOL from a state owned company in the 1950's, to a global player in the field of fuel and chemicals. Included in this chapter is the industry analysis of the fuel and chemical markets. In this chapter, it becomes apparent that SASOL has built its status on the modified Fisher-Tropsch process. Using the process by-products, SASOL was able to penetrate various chemical markets to form a portfolio of different products. In chapter three, a strategic evaluation was done as part of the requirement for this paper. A model of Thompson and Strickland, the prescribed handbook for Strategic Management students, were used as part of the evaluation. The following chapter contained more information on the different business units and the last five years' financial results. These chapters are included to supply additional information that may not have been covered in the broader view of chapter two. To complete the paper a chapter of questions and answers was included, which contains twenty generalised questions asked specifically around SASOL's strategy and information that is contained in this paper. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die opdrag is 'n saak studie vir die vak Strategiese Bestuur en is gebasseer op 'n Suid Afrikaanse maatskappy. Die maatskappy is SASOL Bpk, en is een van Suid Afrika se mees vooraanstaande maatskappy ten opsigte van tegnologies innovering en diversifisering. Die eerste hoofstuk gee 'n kort verduideliking waarom SASOL gekies is asook die metodiek wat gebruik sal word. Hoofstuk twee handel oor die ontwikkeling van SASOL vanaf 'n Staats besitte maatskappy in die vroeë 1950's tot en met waar die maatskappy 'n wereld speler is op die gebied van brandstof en chemikalië. Ingesluit in die hoofstuk is die industrie analiese van die brandstof en chemikalië markte. Dit word hier duidelik dat SASOL sy huidige posisie bereik het op die Fisher- Tropsch proses en deur die gebruik van die proses se byprodukte was SASOL daartoe in staat om verskeie nuwe markte te penetreer. In hoofstuk drie is 'n strategiese evaluasie gedoen aan die hand van 'n model wat beskryf word in Thompson en Strickland, 'n handboek vir Strategiese Bestuurs studente. Die daarop volgende hoofstukke is daartoe gewy om die student meer inligting te gee van die verskillende besigheidseenhede en het ook die finasieële resultate van die afgelope vyf jaar ingesluit. Om die werksopdrag af te sluit is twintig vrae en antwoorde wat betrekking het op SASOL se strategie en algemene inligting in die laaste hoofstuk.

Good working conditions have become one of the most important factors in today’s Swedish workplaces. The impact that culture has on companies and their atmosphere is of great importance for overall productivity. Existing research has mainly focused on large established businesses. As a consequence, the work that has been conducted on small entrepreneurial companies is limited. There are studies highlighting the difficulty of transitioning from a small firm to a large entrepreneurial firm. Still, there is a lack of studies investigating this process in depth. Gaining insight into this process is highly relevant for practitioners, policy makers and researchers alike. Therefore, we have chosen to study this field closer. In order to explore this field and to dive deeper within the concept of organizational culture, a shadowing method has been used on a newly started growth oriented company. The company is founded by two opportunity driven leaders who strongly believe in a happy workplace where the focus lies on the individual and where problems are met with a “how hard can it be” attitude. We followed the firm for 8 weeks. During that time we were present full time in their facilities, conducted formal interviews, informal interviews, interacted with employees and the entrepreneurs during lunches and small gatherings. In order to develop an entrepreneurial culture they follow an ideology that is based on a few cornerstones; they strive to have short decision paths, a familial atmosphere, individual focus, strong commitment mixed with a fun factor. When investigating how the culture expresses itself we have found four different forums of particular interest; the office where the decision process takes place, the group meetings where beliefs and values are shared, the individual meetings where feedback is provided and the recruitment process where the cultural marketing takes place. Our conclusion is that these forums work together in a circular motion that expresses – shapes - shares - aligns the organizational culture of this small and young company.

The shift from an industrial-based to a knowledge-based economy has impacted market conditions and created a demand for a talented and skilled workforce in knowledge-intensive industries. This paper investigates what the role of talent is, when firms decide for a location by carrying out two studies. Firstly, an extensive literature review was conducted where three factors of firm location decision were identified as: clustering, soft and hard factors, and personal networks. The role of talent continuously emerged in the literature in regards to the three firm location decision factors and appeared to be intertwined in these. Consequently, these factors and the role of talent were conceptualized in an analytical framework. Thereafter, the analytical framework was applied to the second study when conducting a multiple-case study of three clean-tech firms in Uppsala, Sweden. This was done in order to investigate the role of talent in the firms’ location decision. The findings of the multiple-case study revealed that the role of talent was important during the location decision of all three firms where talent was intertwined with the identified location factors. Thus, the multiple-case study confirms that the role of talent impacts firm location decision through being intertwined in the identified firm location decision factors.

This dissertation consists of two essays on housing, the first on estimation strategies for the valuation of a local disamenity and the second on the structure of the market for the services of real estate brokers. The purpose of the first essay is to apply hedonic and quasi-experimental methods to measure the value of any disamenity caused by communication antennas. Crucial to unbiased estimates is accounting for both endogenous antenna location and changes in unobservable housing and neighborhood characteristics. Spatial fixed effects are used to control for unobservable characteristics that can influence the location decisions of residents and the location of antennas. Panel data techniques are used to address both time invariant and time varying unobservables and to account for possible changes in the hedonic price function after construction of a nearby antenna. The estimates indicate that houses near communication antennas sell less than comparable houses not located near a communication antenna, and also highlight a shortcoming of applying the difference-in-differences technique to value a local disamenity when houses are affected by the presence of multiple sites. The second essay compares the performance of brand name franchised and independent real estate brokers with respect to list price, sales price, time on the market, and prevalence in areas with more out-of-state buyers using techniques that control for the different types of agents that choose to affiliate with franchised real estate brokerage firms. The results indicate that most of the difference in the sales price and the time it takes to locate a buyer can be explained by the types of agents that choose to affiliate with franchised brokerage firms, and that on average weaker agents choose to affiliate with franchised real estate firms. In addition, there is an indication that properties in areas with larger shares of out-of-state residents are more likely to be sold by a franchised broker. This result is consistent with the industrial organization literature on franchising that says franchising should be more prevalent in areas where consumers are less familiar with the local market.