Background: Establishing closed-loop supply chains is essential for the development of a future circular economy. This concept not only applies to the products within the supply chain but also to their packaging. Presently, traditional packaging follows a linear disposal approach, leading to waste production and a heightened environmental impact in numerous supply chains. Consequently, it is critical to examine the factors influencing current decisions on Returnable Transport Packaging (RTP) and to identify factors that can support its adoption while incorporating its context. Purpose: This thesis aims to explore the barriers, drivers, and enablers of the implementation of RTP in the information and communication technology (ICT) industry. Method: In this research, an interpretivist inductive research approach is employed. The study involves conducting qualitative semi-structured interviews across five distinct cases. These interviews are meticulously analyzed following the methodology outlined by Gioia et al. (2013), dividing the findings into 1st order categories, 2nd order themes, and aggregate dimensions. Conclusion: This study provides a comprehensive analysis of the factors influencing the implementation of RTP in the ICT industry. It identifies a majority of barriers over drivers, with 13 barriers across six categories and seven drivers in three categories. These findings emphasize the need for supply chain managers to address challenges such as process and flow control, environmental issues, cost considerations, company priorities, stakeholder pressure, and decision-making. Additionally, the research highlights the importance of environmental benefits, stakeholder pressure, and competitiveness as drivers for RTP adoption. Key factors for effective RTP implementation include infrastructure, technology, human resources, consistent demand, and appropriate stakeholder engagement. The study underlines the critical role of technological context as a supportive element in integrating RTP within various aspects of the supply chain. This research offers valuable insights for managers seeking to balance environmental, economic, and managerial perspectives in implementing RTP in ICT supply chains.

Global Warming is accelerated by human activity since the industrial revolution. We are currently experiencing the 4th industrial revolution with recent breakthroughs and rapid developments in digitalization, Industry 4.0 and Internet of Things (IoT). The environmental impact of the information and communication technology (ICT) industry will increase up to 3.9 % of the global environmental impact by 2030. At the same time, ICT products are able to avoid environmental impacts by almost ten times their impact. The ICT industry is undergoing a transformation influenced by scientific research and industry standards initiatives that support developments of European policies and directives, as well as increasing user demand for environmentally friendly products. As a consequence, companies are required to account and report environmental impacts along their value chain and reduce impacts by implementing environmentally conscious design such as EcoDesign.  However, integration among companies in the sector is insufficient. This is partly due to the complexity and lack of experience in accounting and reporting greenhouse gas emissions and implementing EcoDesign tools. Additionally, research on the life cycle environmental impacts of ICT companies and products is limited. Therefore, this study aims to minimize the gap between research and practice by assessing the carbon footprint of an Internet Service Provider (ISP), calculating the carbon footprint of a residential router from a life cycle perspective and exploring reduction potentials through the application of EcoDesign.  The assessment of the value chain carbon footprint of the ISP identifies that roughly 74 % is attributed to the so called indirect emissions (Scope 3), in particular category 3.11, the use of products. This is also reflected in the carbon footprint of the router. Since it is constantly in operation mode, the use phase causes up to 90 % of its carbon footprint. Different carbon footprint reduction scenarios are explored, showing that reductions are achieved through the use of new manufacturing methods, recycled materials, low-power technology, green electricity and changes in user behavior. It is concluded that EcoDesign is useful to reduce the carbon footprint of a residential router and Scope 3 of an ISP. Therefore, companies in the ICT industry that aim to reduce their carbon footprint are advised to use EcoDesign in combination with complementary environmental impact assessment tools. / Den globala uppvärmningen påskyndas av mänsklig aktivitet sedan den industriella revolutionen. Vi upplever för närvarande den fjärde industriella revolutionen med de senaste genombrotten och den snabba utvecklingen inom digitalisering, industri 4.0 och „sakernas internet“. Miljöpåverkan från informations- och kommunikationsteknikindustrin (IKT) kommer att öka upp till 3,9 % av den globala miljöpåverkan fram till 2030. Samtidigt kan IKT- produkterna undvika miljöpåverkan med nästan tio gånger sin påverkan. IKT-industrin genomgår en omvandling som påverkas av vetenskaplig forskning och initiativ för industristandarder som stöder utvecklingen av EU:s politik och direktiv, samt av den ökande efterfrågan på miljövänliga produkter. Som en följd av detta måste företagen redovisa och rapportera miljöpåverkan längs hela värdekedjan och minska påverkan genom att införa miljömedveten design, t.ex. ekodesign.  Integrationen mellan företagen i sektorn är dock otillräcklig. Detta beror delvis på komplexiteten och bristen på erfarenhet när det gäller redovisning och rapportering av växthusgasutsläpp och genomförande av EcoDesign-verktyg. Dessutom är forskningen om IKT-produkters miljöpåverkan under hela livscykeln begränsad. Denna studie syftar därför till att minska klyftan mellan forskning och praktik genom att bedöma koldioxidavtrycket hos en Internetleverantör, beräkna koldioxidavtrycket hos en router för hushållsbruk ur ett livscykelperspektiv och undersöka möjligheterna till minskning genom tillämpning av EcoDesign.  Bedömningen av Internetleverantörens koldioxidavtryck i värdekedjan visade att 74 % av koldioxidutsläppen hänförs till de så kallade indirekta utsläppen (scope 3), särskilt kategori 3.11, användning av produkter. Detta återspeglas också i routerns koldioxidavtryck. Eftersom den ständigt är i drift är det användningsfasen som står för upp till 90 % av dess koldioxidavtryck. Olika scenarier för att minska koldioxidavtrycket undersöks och visar att minskningar kan uppnås genom användning av nya tillverkningsmetoder, återvunnet material, energisnål teknik, grön el och förändringar i användarnas beteende. Slutsatsen är att EcoDesign är användbart för att minska koldioxidavtrycket från en router för bostäder och Scope 3 för en internetleverantör. Därför rekommenderas företag inom IKT-branschen som vill minska sitt koldioxidavtryck att använda EcoDesign i kombination med andra verktyg för miljökonsekvensbedömning.

<p>Labour mobility can in theory be an efficient channel for knowledge transfer between cluster firms, thus contributing to growth and competitiveness. In the thesis labour mobility in two Swedish ICT clusters is studied. The purpose of the thesis is to develop an understanding of processes of labour mobility in clusters and to investigate whether mobility can be regarded as a cluster advantage. Both interview data and extensive registry data are used in order to analyse processes of mobility at three levels: individual, firm and cluster level.</p><p>The results show that labour mobility can to some extent be considered a cluster advantage for Swedish ICT firms, since cluster firms are likely to experience a higher level of labour mobility. It is also shown how mobility to and from the clusters contributes to the upgrading of formal competencies within cluster firms. However, the firms themselves are shown to rather focus on staff retention than turnover. </p><p>To some degree, labour mobility in the Swedish clusters in focus is presumably constrained by the formal institutional framework, as well as by informal rules and agreements between cluster firms. It is argued nonetheless that the sheer potential for mobility and the viability of informal hiring practices in clusters may be viewed as cluster advantages, besides the actual extent of labour mobility.</p>

Labour mobility can in theory be an efficient channel for knowledge transfer between cluster firms, thus contributing to growth and competitiveness. In the thesis labour mobility in two Swedish ICT clusters is studied. The purpose of the thesis is to develop an understanding of processes of labour mobility in clusters and to investigate whether mobility can be regarded as a cluster advantage. Both interview data and extensive registry data are used in order to analyse processes of mobility at three levels: individual, firm and cluster level. The results show that labour mobility can to some extent be considered a cluster advantage for Swedish ICT firms, since cluster firms are likely to experience a higher level of labour mobility. It is also shown how mobility to and from the clusters contributes to the upgrading of formal competencies within cluster firms. However, the firms themselves are shown to rather focus on staff retention than turnover. To some degree, labour mobility in the Swedish clusters in focus is presumably constrained by the formal institutional framework, as well as by informal rules and agreements between cluster firms. It is argued nonetheless that the sheer potential for mobility and the viability of informal hiring practices in clusters may be viewed as cluster advantages, besides the actual extent of labour mobility.

創新是廠商生存於快速全球化及競爭激烈的環境中的關鍵。而廠商創新績效的影響因素可以分為外部因素與內部因素進行探討。就外部因素而言，本研究同時從經濟地理學門的區域聚集效果與社會學門的研發網絡關係探討外部環境對廠商創新績效的影響。並探討地區產業聚集現象是否會增加區域內廠商形成研發網絡的可能性。而除了廠商外部環境會影響廠商創新績效外，管理學門提出廠商的內部吸收能力也同樣重要。吸收能力定義為廠商對外部知識的認識、吸收和應用的能力。吸收能力除了會對創新績效產生直接影響之外，也會對由網絡中所獲得的外部知識的認知、吸收和利用產生調節效果。 本研究以台灣的ICT產業為研究對象，而空間單位劃分則依據工業區分布情形與天然及人為界線分佈，將台灣劃分為39個空間分析單元，以供實證分析所需。研究結果發現，廠商所處地區之聚集效果確實會對廠商研發網絡的形成產生影響，進而影響廠商所能吸收的外部知識流的多寡，最終造成不同區域的廠商創新績效的不同。廠商的研發網絡會隨群聚內的社會經濟狀況、產業組成和多樣性等不同而有所不同。此外，本研究同時從廠商外部環境的聚集效果、研發網絡關係以及廠商內部的吸收能力探討對廠商創新績效的影響，以期更全面地了解創新績效的影響因素。本研究的實證結果證實了聚集效果、研發網絡與廠商內部吸收能力確實對廠商創新績效產生影響，而內部吸收能力確實會對經由研發網絡所獲取的外部知識和創新績效產生調節效果。 / Innovation is the key of the firm to survive in a rapidly globalizing and competitive environment. The factors affecting firms’ innovation performance can be divided into external and internal factor. For the external factors, this studies use the view of regional agglomeration effects and R&D networks to study the impact of external environment on innovation performance. In the same time, we also discuss whether the regional agglomeration effects affect the firms’ R&D networks. Aside from the external environment, the internal absorption capacity is also important for innovation performance. Absorption capacity is defined as the capacity of firm to recognize, absorb and apply external knowledge. Absorption capacity has not only direct impact on innovation, but also adjusted effects between the knowledge acquired from R&D networks and innovation performance. The object of this study is the ICT industry in Taiwan, and Taiwan was divided into 39 spatial units for empirical analysis. The empirical results indicate that the regional agglomeration effects of firms indeed influence the firms’ R&D network ,and then affect the amount of the external knowledge that the firm can absorb, ultimately result in different innovation performance. Firms’ R&D networks will vary depends on the cluster’s socio-economic conditions, industry composition and diversity. Besides, this study also discusses the impact factor of firms’ innovation performance from the external agglomeration effects, R&D networks, and internal absorption capacity to have a more comprehensive understanding of the relationship between those factors and the innovation performance. The empirical results indicate that agglomeration effects, R&D networks, absorption capacity do affect the firms’ innovation performance, and the internal absorption capacity do have adjusted effects between the knowledge acquired from R&D networks and innovation performance.

Innovation has become of increased importance to a company’ competitive advantage during the past years. Over the years, the importance of services has increased. Information and Tele- Communication Technologies (ICT) have become a supportive role in almost any type of industry. The ICT market is continuously changing at a very high pace. In order to cope with these changes, companies active within the IT and software industry needs to unceasingly maintain their solutions up to date. This thesis provides a case study on Digital Marketing AB, a small company active in the ITindustry, delivering tools for planning, sending, and analyzing digital marketing campaigns. Digital Marketing AB operates within a market that is changing rapidly. As new technologies emerge, existing technologies becomes known, and low-cost versions of the present technology appears in the market, eroding revenues from more differentiated services. Furthermore, if the companies are small, and do not have the same financial resources as bigger actors, it is important for these companies to rely on other types of strengths. Companies also need to make sure that they are able to sell the new technology in a way that is attractive to their customers, but at the same time profitable for the company. In other words, they need to integrate the new technology in a business model. The thesis concludes that Digital Marketing AB needs to develop new technology with regards to a specific target customer group, but also to work together with the customers in order to develop an attractive and competitive business model. Furthermore, the thesis concludes that how the business model will be designed will determine the success of adopting a new technology. Other issues that arise who have to do with the design of the business model are how to package and position the new technology. / Under de senaste åren har innovation har blivit ett allt viktigare bidrag till ett företags konkurrensfördelar. Betydelsen av tjänster har dessutom ökat. IT och telekommunikation (ICT) har kommit att spela en viktig roll i nästan alla typer av industrier. Denna marknad ändras mycket snabbt och kontinuerligt. För att bemöta dessa förändringar måste företag som är aktiva inom IT- och mjukvaruindustrin ständigt hålla sina lösningar uppdaterade. Detta examensarbete består av en fallstudie utförd på ett litet företag aktivt i IT-branschen, referat till som Digital Marketing AB. Företaget levererar ett system för att planera, sända och analysera digitala marknadsföringskampanjer. Digital Marketing AB konkurrerar på en marknad som förändras i mycket hög takt. Då nya teknologier växer fram blir de existerande lösningarna kända vilket ger utrymme för lågkostnadsalternativ som eroderar intäkter från mer differentierade tjänster. Om dessa företag vars intäkter eroderas dessutom är mindre företag som inte har samma finansiella resurser som de större företagen, måste de förlita sig på andra typer av styrkor. Företag måste även se till att kunna sälja tekniken de producerar på ett sätt som är attraktivt för kunden, men som samtidigt är lönsamt för företaget. De måste integrera sin teknik i en affärsmodell. Examensarbetet visar på att Digital Marketing AB bör utveckla sin affärsmodell dedicerad åt en specifik målgrupp, och dessutom göra det tillsammans med potentiella kunder för att affärsmodellen skall bli attraktiv och konkurrenskraftig. Dessutom visar arbetet på att beroende på hur affärsmodellen utformas, kommer att avgöras hur pass framgångsrik affärsmodellen kommer att vara. Andra frågor som uppstår i samband med utvecklingen av affärsmodellen har att göra med hur tekniken skall paketeras och positioneras.

Ambient Intelligence (AmI) refers to a vision of the information society where everyday human environments will be permeated by intelligent technology: people will be surrounded and accompanied by intelligent interfaces supported by computing and wireless networking technology that is ubiquitous, embedded in virtually all kinds of everyday objects. These computationally augmented, smart environments - composed of a myriad of invisible, distributed, networked, connected, interactive, and always-on computing devices - are aware of human context; sensitive to people's needs; adaptive to, and anticipatory of, their behavior; personalized to their requirements; and responsive to their emotion and presence, thereby intelligently supporting their daily and social lives by providing limitless services in a seamless and unobtrusive way. The vision of AmI assumes a paradigmatic shift in both computing and society – far-reaching societal implications. The challenge lies in developing AmI forms that acclimatise to societal change and the diversity of European socio-cultural life. Indeed, one of the most fundamental views in the prevailing AmI vision is a radical and technology-driven change to social environments and people’s lives. Research emphasizes the fundamental role the ISTAG, a group of scholars and ICT industry experts, plays in the reproduction of AmI as a positive force for societal change. Therefore, the objective of this study is to carry out a critical reading of the scholarly and ICT industry’s construction of AmI in relation to societal transformation. To achieve this objective, a discourse analytical approach was employed to examine the selected empirical material: three reports published by the ISTAG in 2001, 2003 and 2006. The approach consists of seven stages: (1) surface elements and organizational structure, (2) discursive constructions, (3) social actors, (4) language and rhetoric, (5) framing as power and operation, (6) positioning and legitimation, and (7) ideological viewpoints.The AmI discourse (vision) construction tends to be deterministic, i.e. it assumes that the ‘amization’ of society will lead to radical social transformations, and has an unsophisticated account of how social change occurs. It is also inclined to be rhetorical - it promises revolutionary social changes without really having a holistic strategy for achieving the goal. Moreover, topicalization is accomplished in correspondence with the preferred mental models and social representations. Furthermore, the discourse is exclusionary: many issues (pertaining to trust, social sustainability, human-centred design, healthcare, and community life) are left out with the intention to advance the idea of the eventual societal acceptance of AmI. It additionally plays a role in wider processes of legitimation of social agents and structures on the basis of normative and political reasons, and it offers different subject positions: between ISTAG and Europe and European citizens, and between citizens and ICT designers and producers. Likewise, it plays a major role in constructing the image of social actors – ISTAG, ICT industry, research community and EU – as well as in defining their relations and identities in ways that reallocate roles and reflect new attributes. A great highlight and space is awarded to represent these actors, and their views dominate the reports. They are the prime definer of the represented reality. As to ideological reproduction, the discourse perpetuates power relations, serves the interest of certain stakeholders in European society, and reconstructs ideological claims. This discursive endeavor provides a valuable reference for social researchers or scientists in related research communities. Until now, there has been, to the best of one’s knowledge, no comprehensive discursive research of AmI in relation to societal transformation, more specifically the potential of AmI in modernizing the European social model and in shaping Europe’s future.

ICT has become so deeply embedded into the fabric of European society – in economic, political, and socio-cultural narratives, practices, and structures – that it has been constructed as holding tremendous untapped and inestimable potential for instigating and unleashing far-reaching societal transformation, addressing key societal challenges, and solving all societal problems. It has recently been seen, given its ubiquity, as a critical driver and powerful catalyst for sustainable urban development due to its potential to enable substantial energy savings and GHG emissions reductions in most urban sectors, especially buildings. However, related to this ubiquity, there are also a lot of visions (of limited modern applicability), hopes, myths, fallacies, and oxymora, which applies for the environmental subsystem of information society where debates focus on whether ICT can advance environmental urban sustainability. There are intricate relationships and tradeoffs among the multidimensional effects of ICT for the environment that flow mostly from the use and application of ICT – e.g. energy efficiency technology - throughout the urban sphere. Regardless, the technological orientation and framing of the sustainable city and the green economy has gained dominance in European society and become prevalent in what has come to be identified or known as the discourse of ICT for sustainable urban development (ICT4SUD). The aim of this study is to carry out a critical reading of the social construction of ICT4SUD, the underlying ideology about the ICT potential in advancing environmental urban sustainability. To achieve this aim, a Foucauldian-Faircloughian discursive approach is employed to examine the selected empirical material. This approach consists of nine stages: (1) surface descriptors and contextual elements; (2) historical-diachronic dimension; (3) epistemic and cultural frames; (4) discursive constructions and discourses; (5) social actors and framing power; (6) discursive strategies; (7) discursive mechanisms; (8) political practice, knowledge, and power; and (9) ideological standpoints.As a scholarly discourse, ICT4SUD is inherently part of and influenced by economic, societal, and political structures, and produced in social interaction. ICT4SUD is thus neither paradigmatic nor value-free, but rather socio-politically situated. It is shaped by cultural frames that are conventionalized by European society and attuned to its values, and it is a matter of a pre-intellectual space where ICT and sustainability constitute salient defining factors of the dominant configuration of knowledge, institutions, and material forces of European society. Indeed, ICT4SUD is impacted by earlier representations of reality and how they were reproduced in relation to the significance of discursive constructions of ICT and sustainability issues in the broader context of European culture. Moreover, the ICT4SUD discourse plays a major role in (re)constructing the image of the ICT industry as a social actor and in defining its identity and relation with other constituents of society, in that it is relocated new roles and attributed new societal missions. The dominant framing of the reports is clearly the one advanced by the ICT industry: it is constituted into the main definer of the represented reality. Further, positioning the ICT industry as the driver of the low-carbon city/economy aids the construction of an image of leadership in creating a low carbon society. The reports’ construction of energy efficiency technology is a powerful legitimation of the ICT industry’s views and actions. In addition, the ICT4SUD discourse is exclusionary, namely a number of facts and issues pertaining to structural, indirect, and systemic effects of ICT and the associated rebound effects are left out, concealed, or neglected. Also, the discourse is inclined to be deterministic, i.e. it postulates that ICT, supported by policy, will achieve SUD while it falls short in considering social behaviour and socio-economic relationships. It moreover tends to be rhetorical – that is, it promises environmentally SUD without really having a holistic strategy to achieve that goal. Furthermore, given the scientific discourse and the legitimation capacity of computing, climatology, and sustainability indicators, one can subsume a range of social and political effects under the category of discourse mechanisms through which ICT4SUD operates, which both show the power of discourse and potentially empower the ICT industry and its cohorts. There are different justifications for the development of energy efficiency technology in relation to decision-making processes. Plus, politics, as a consequence of its interaction with ICT4SUD, forces, though different mechanisms, the emergence and development of the ICT4SUD discourse, which is, simultaneously, influenced by the power/knowledge relations established in European society that bounds or expands its success. Finally, as to ideological reproduction, the ICT4SUD discourse reconstructs cultural claims, conveys ideological messages, and reproduces and legitimizes power structures.

With global emissions of human activities that drive climate change on the rise, global institutions and authorities are trying to introduce new regulations in the industry, in order to accomplish a significant reduction of carbon emissions. In order for companies to be more effective in reducing carbon emissions, not only from their products but also along their value chains and product portfolios, it is of vital importance to understand and quantify them. Following that need, tools that can measure the carbon footprint of various corporate operations (carbon calculators) have risen in popularity in the latest years. A sector in which companies can significantly improve their environmental impact is their IT equipment portfolio. WeCycle, as developed by Greener Scandinavia AB (partner of this project), is a platform that facilitates reselling of old IT equipment, while aiming to reduce its environmental impacts. This project then, in cooperation with WeCycle, aims to develop a software tool that calculates the environmental benefits (kg of CO2 eq. avoided) when reusing old IT equipment. This can help clients estimate this benefit, while also providing a CSR incentive. The specific methodological steps needed in order to complete the project included literature review concerning the state of e-waste and initiatives to minimize its environmental impacts, guidelines, and procedures related to LCA of IT equipment and various other carbon calculators, developing calculation model and assumptions in order to compile the database, interface design, and finally using and testing the software tool against a real case scenario - case study provided by WeCycle. The results, and design process of the project, were enlightening in the matter of understanding potential benefits of reusing IT equipment, but also in identifying the “hotspot” stages of an electronic device’s lifecycle. Even though variations were noticed depending on the type of the device (e.g. smartphones vs desktop computers), it is evident that the emissions that occur during the production phase are considered of major importance (ranked either 1st or 2nd most important/emission heavy stage), and therefore the benefits of reusing are of a high relative magnitude. All in all, this project resulted in a useful tool for WeCycle to measure the benefits of their practices, as well as for any user or company that would like to measure the carbon emissions that can be avoided when they give their old IT equipment up for resell. Hopefully, by easily quantifying these benefits, this tool can motivate both a behavioral change in the industry, as well as researchers to expand it in order to cover all sectors of the industry and everyday life. / När globala utsläpp av mänskliga aktiviteter stiger, försöker globala institutioner och myndigheter att införa nya regler för att minska koldioxidutsläppen. För att företagen ska vara mer effektiva när det gäller minskade koldioxidutsläpp, inte bara från sina produkter men också med sina värdekedjor och produktportföljer, är det viktigt att förstå och kvantifiera dem. För att uppnå detta, har verktyg som kan mäta koldioxidavtrycket av olika företagsverksamheter (kolkalkylatorer) ökat i popularitet de senaste åren. En sektor i vilken företag kan förbättra sin miljöpåverkan är deras IT-utrustning. WeCycle, ett projekt som utvecklats av Greener Scandinavia AB (partner för detta projekt), är en plattform som underlättar återförsäljning av gammal IT-utrustning medan den siktar på att minska miljöpåverkan. Projektet, i samarbete med WeCycle, syftar till att utveckla ett mjukvaruverktyg som beräknar miljöfördelar (kg CO2-ekv.) vid återanvändning av gammal IT-utrustning. Detta kan hjälpa kunder att uppskatta denna fördel, samtidigt som de ger ett CSR-incitament. Projektets resultat var till hjälp för att förstå de potentiella fördelarna med att återanvända IT-utrustning, men också för att identifiera "hotspot" -stadierna i en elektronisk apparats livscykel. Även om det märktes variationer beroende på enhetens typ (t.ex. smartphones jämfört med stationära datorer) är det uppenbart att utsläpp som uppstår under produktionsfasen är av stor betydelse (rankad antingen viktigaste eller näst viktigaste fasen) och därför ger återanvändning relativt stor miljönytta. Förhoppningsvis, genom att kvantifiera dessa fördelar med ett lättanvänt verktyg, kan detta projekt motivera både en beteendemässig förändring i branschen och forskare att vidareutveckla verktyget till att omfatta alla industrisektorer och hushållens konsumtion.