Bakgrund och problemdiskussion: Företag behöver anpassa sig till förändringar i omvärlden för att överleva och för att fortsätta växa. Denna typ av anpassning benämns som strategisk förändring. År 2010 avskaffades revisionsplikten för mindre bolag i Sverige. Nu, sex år senare står branschen inför ytterligare en förändring. Att revisionsverksamheten minskat och att konsultverksamheten inom revisionsbranschen kommit att ta större plats sedan avskaffandet av revisionsplikten kan tydas som en slags förändring, men hur har egentligen The Big Four som dominerar inom revisionsbranschen upplevt denna förändring? Är det en förändring som skett per automatik i samband med lagändringen eller ligger ett strategiskt agerande till grund och kan det således betraktas som att revisionsbyråerna genomgått en strategisk förändring sedan avskaffandet av revisionsplikten? När branschen står inför ytterligare en lagändring 2016 frågas hur The big Fours revisorer förväntar sig att lagändringen kommer påverka byråerna och vilken typ av förändring som revisionsbyråerna kommer genomgå i samband med lagändringen? Syfte: Syftet med uppsatsen är att redogöra för hur The Big Fours revisorer i Sverige upplever att revisions- och konsultverksamheten har påverkats sedan lagändringen 2010 samt hur revisorerna förväntar sig att revisions- och konsultverksamheten kommer påverkas i samband med lagändringen 2016, för att vidare analysera revisorernas upplevelser samt förväntningar för att bidra med kunskap om byråerna har eller kommer genomgå en strategisk förändring i samband med lagändringarna. Metod: Uppsatsen är kvalitativt uppbyggd och en flerfallsstudie har använts. Primär datainsamling har skett genom semi-strukturerade intervjuer. Respondenterna var 10auktoriserade revisorer från åtta av The Big Fours kontor. Slutsats: Uppsatsens författare har genom sitt analysarbete dragit slutsatserna att revisionsbyråerna har genomgått strategiska förändringar sedan lagändringen 2010 och att revisionsbyråerna kommer genomgå ytterligare strategiska förändringar i samband med lagändringen 2016. För att behålla sina positioner på marknaden behöver revisionsbyråerna genomgå strategiska förändringar i samband med att omvärlden ständigt förändras. / Background and problem discussion: In 2010, Sweden abolished the audit requirement for small companies. Now six years later, the industry is facing further adjustments. Companies need to adapt to changes in the environment to survive and continue to grow. This type of adjustment is referred to as strategic changes. That the audit activity is decreasing and consulting activities in the auditing industry have come to take more space since the removal of the audit requirement can be interpreted as a kind of change, but how have The Big Four that dominate the auditing profession experienced this change? Is it a change that has taken place automatically in connection with the amendment or is it a strategic action and can it thus be considered that firms have undergone a strategic change since the abolition of the audit requirement? Objective: The purpose of this thesis is to describe how The Big Four’s auditors in Sweden feel that audit and consulting business has been affected since the amendment in 2010, the auditors’ expectations of how auditing and consulting operations will be affected in connection with the amendment 2016, and to further analyse the auditors’ experiences and expectations to contribute knowledge regarding if the agencies have, or will undergo, a strategic change associated with changes in the law. Method: The essay is qualitatively constructed and multiple case study was used. Primary data collection took place through semi-structured interviews. Respondents were ten accountants from eight of the Big Four’s offices. Conclusion: The essay writers have through their analysis concluded that accounting firms have undergone strategic changes since the amendment in 2010 and that accounting firms will undergo further strategic changes in connection with the amendment in 2016. In order to maintain their positions on the market, accounting firms need to undergo strategic changes when the world is changing.

Inledning: På senare tid har mer uppmärksamhet dragits till fördelarna med fysiska butiker, speciellt nu med en ökad konkurrens på nätet. Det har lett till att företag har gått från att enbart bedriva e-handel till att även komplettera med att etablera fysisk butik; clicks to bricks. När företag förändrar sin strategi måste de också anpassa sin ekonomistyrning.   Syfte: Syftet med studien är att bidra med kunskap genom att hitta mönster i hur ekonomistyrningen förändrats i samband med etableringen av fysiska butiker hos företag som startat som e-handelsföretag.   Metod: Två företag som genomfört förändringen clicks to bricks har legat till grund för denna studie. För att bringa klarhet i vår frågeställning har semistrukturerade intervjuer genomförts med respektive företag.   Slutsats: Företag som har genomgått clicks to bricks har upplevt både interna och externa förändringar som resulterat i ett ökat behov av formella styrmedel, där budget och kortsiktig planering har varit extra framträdande. MCS har blivit mer öppet för att snabbt kunna hantera förändringar som sker. Somliga verktyg i ekonomistyrningen, såsom företagskultur, har inte av vad som framkommit i denna studie förändrats efter etableringen av fysisk butik. I andra verktyg har det tillkommit moment; bland annat kräver fysisk butik andra mätsystem samt används verktyg i ekonomistyrningen i andra syften än tidigare.   Nyckelord: clicks to bricks, ekonomistyrning, situationsanpassning, MCS-paket / Introduction: Lately, more attention has been drawn to the benefits of physical stores, particularly now with an increased competition on the web. This has led companies to go from only selling online to also complement the e-commerce by establishing physical stores; clicks to bricks. When companies change their strategy, they also have to adapt their MCS. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to contribute knowledge by finding patterns in how the MCS has changed companies going from clicks to bricks. Methodology: Two companies that’ve gone from clicks to bricks have been the basis for this study. To clarify our issue, semi-structured interviews were conducted with each company. Conclusion: Companies that’ve gone from clicks to bricks have experienced both internal and external changes that resulted in an increased need for formal controls, where budget and short-term planning have been particularly prominent. The MCS has been more open to be able to quickly handle sudden changes as they occur. Some controls in the MCS, such as the business culture, hasn’t from this study's findings been affected. In other controls elements have been added; physical stores' requires other measurements, among others. Also some MCS controls are now used for other purposes than before clicks to bricks.   Key words: clicks to bricks, management control systems, contingency, MCS as a package

Thesis (MScEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study entails the appraisal of the constitutive models available for the non linear finite element analysis of reinforced concrete, using the DIANA finite element package and following generally accepted guidelines for non linear finite element analyses. The constitutive models considered are plasticity and total strain based (fixed and rotating crack) models. The appraisal consists of the analysis of various experiments performed on reinforced concrete beams that are governed by compressive, shear and tensile dominated failures. The investigation is not limited to the accuracy of the results obtained using these models but also of the consistency of the results obtained with regard to various mesh types and sizes, as well as a study of the individual influence of several material parameters. The intention of the study was to provide the reader with an indication of the performance capacity (accuracy and consistency) of the available constitutive models, where the notion of the use of the results obtained from non linear finite element analyses for design purposes is considered. The results obtained were varied. The models performed reasonably well in the compressive and tension dominated studies, with the importance of accurate material parameters being emphasized especially for the more advanced cementitious materials investigated. The total strain rotating crack model also showed a proclivity of simulating incorrect failure modes as well as exhibiting reluctance towards stress redistribution. All models used for the shear dominated study yielded mostly inaccurate and inconsistent results, but it was found that the four node quadrilateral element with selective reduced integration performed the best. The plasticity model did not capture shear failure well, and convergence was often not attained. The constant shear retention factor of the total strain fixed crack model was found to yield more detailed response curves for the smaller mesh sizes. The results of the tension dominated beams inspired more confidence in the models as quite accurate values were attained, especially by the plasticity model used. The ability of the available models to simulate realistic structural behaviour under various failure modes is very limited, as is evident from the results obtained. The development of a more advanced and robust model is required, which can provide consistently accurate results and failure modes, and even ‘anticipate’ potential failure modes not considered by the user.

Chip-package interaction (CPI) has become a critical reliability issue for flip-chip packaging of Cu/low-k chip with organic substrate. The thermo-mechanical deformation and stress develop inside the package during assembly and subsequent reliability tests due to the mismatch of the coefficients of thermal expansion (CTEs) between the chip and the substrate. The thermal residual stress causes many mechanical reliability issues in the solder joints and the underfill layer between die and substrate, such as solder fatigue failure and underfill delamination. Moreover, the thermo-mechanical deformation of the package can be directly coupled into the Cu/low-k interconnect, inducing large local stresses to drive interfacial crack formation and propagation. The thermo-mechanical reliability risk is further aggravated with the implementation of ultra low-k dielectric for better electrical performance and the mandatory change from Pb-containing solders to Pb-free solders for environmental safety. These CPI-induced reliability issues in flip-chip packaging of Cu/low-k chips are investigated in this dissertation at both chip level and package level using high-resolution Moiré interferometry and Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Firstly, the thermo-mechanical deformation in flip-chip packages is analyzed using high-resolution Moiré interferometry. The effect of underfill properties on package warpage is studied and followed by a strategy study of proper underfill selection to improve solder fatigue life time and reduce the risk of interfacial delamination in underfill and low-k interconnects under CPI. The chip-package interaction is found to maximize at the die attach step during assembly and becomes most detrimental to low-k chip reliability because of the high thermal load generated by the solder reflow process before underfilling. A three-dimensional (3D) multilevel sub-modeling method combined with modified virtual crack closure (MVCC) technique is employed to investigate the CPI-induced interfacial delamination in Cu/low-k interconnects. It is first focused on the effects of dielectrics and solder materials on low-k interconnect reliability and then extended to the scaling effect where the reduction of the interconnect dimension is accompanied with an increased number of metal levels and the implementation of ultralow-k porous dielectrics. Recent studies on CPI-induced crack propagation in the low-k interconnect and the use of crack-stop structures to improve the chip reliability are also discussed. Finally, 3D integration (3DI) with through silicon vias (TSV) has been proposed as the latest solution to increase the device density without down-scaling. The thermo-mechanical reliability issues facing 3DI are analyzed. Three failure modes are proposed and studied. Design optimization of 3D interconnects to reduce the thermal residual stress and the risks of fracture and delamination are discussed. / text

Electromigration (EM) and thermomigration (TM) reliability of Pb-free solder joints are emerging as critical concerns in advanced packages. In this study, EM and TM phenomena in Sn-2.5Ag solder joints with thick Cu or thin Ni under-bump metallurgy (UBM) were investigated. A series of EM tests were performed to obtain activation energy (Q) and current density exponent (n), and to understand failure mechanisms. Joule heating was also taken into account. Q and n values were determined as follows: for Cu UBM solders, Q = 1.0 eV and n = 1.5; for Ni UBM solders, Q = 0.9 and n = 2.2. Important factors limiting EM reliability of Pb-free solder joints were found to be UBM dissolution with extensive intermetallic compound (IMC) growth and current crowding. IMC growth without current stressing was found to follow the parabolic growth law whereas linear growth law was observed for Cu₆Sn₅ and Ni₃Sn₄ under high current stressing. For Cu UBM solders, the apparent activation energy for IMC growth was consistent with the activation energy for EM, which supports that EM failure was closely related to IMC growth. In contrast, for Ni UBM solders the apparent activation energy was higher than the EM activation energy. It was suggested that the EM failure in the Ni UBM solders could be associated with more than one mass transport mechanism. The current crowding effect was analyzed with different thicknesses of Ni UBM. It was found that the maximum current density in solder could represent the current density term in Black's equation better than the average current density. FEM studies demonstrated that current crowding was mainly controlled by UBM thickness, metal trace design, and passivation opening diameter. A large temperature gradient of the order of 10³ °C/cm was generated across the sample to induce noticeable TM and to compare its effect against that of EM. TM-induced voiding was observed in Ni UBM solders while UBM dissolution with IMC formation occurred in Cu UBM solders. However, the relative effect of TM was found to be several times smaller than that of EM even at this large temperature gradient. / text

The subject of this dissertation is the development of three-dimensional (3D) surface profilers for semiconductor back-end inspection. The value of this study is: 1) to provide a new phase-to-height relationship for Fourier Transform Profilometry (FTP) that is universal as it allows alternate FTP system architectures for a micrometer scale object measurement, and 2) to provide a new method for full field substrate warpage and ball grid array (BGA) coplanarity inspection using machine vision. The desire to increase electronic device performance has resulted in denser and smaller IC packaging. As the dimensions of the devices decrease, the requirements for substrate flatness and surface quality become critical in avoiding device failure. For a high yield production, there is an increasing demand in the requirement for the dimensional verification of height, which requires 3D inspection. Based on the current demands from the semiconductor industry, this dissertation addresses the development of fast in-line surface profilers for large volume IC package inspection. Specifically, this dissertation studies two noncontact surface profilers. The first profiler is based on FTP for measuring the IC package front surface, the silicon die and the epoxy underfill profile. The second profiler is based on stereovision and it is intended for inspecting the BGA coplanarity and the substrate warpage. A geometrical shape based matching algorithm is also developed for finding point correspondences between IC package images. The FTP profiler provides a 1 σRMS error of about 4 μm for an IC package sample in an area of 14 mm x 6.5 mm with a 0.13 second data acquisition time. For evaluating the performance of the stereovision system, the linearity between our system and a confocal microscope is studied by measuring a particular IC sample with an area of 38 mm x 28.5 mm. The correlation coefficient is 0.965 and the 2σdifference in the two methods is 26.9 μm for the warpage measurement. For BGA coplanarity inspection the correlation coefficient is 0.952 and the 2difference is 31.2 μm. Data acquisition takes about 0.2 seconds for full field measurements.

Nowadays, packaging design is seen as a competitive tool and its importance for corporations is becoming increasingly apparent. The rivalry within homogeneous markets puts high demands on differentiation and the ability to create something more than the product itself. With this fundamental question, the soft drink industry has been examined and a case study of the brand Coca-Cola has been performed. The aim is to investigate how packaging design is used as a tool for strengthening a brand and to explore which additional values this contributes. In addition, the study observes the most important factors in the development of packaging design. A theoretical work of reference, consisting primarily of theories related to branding, design development and visual identity, has been developed to support the study. The thesis has been carried out using two semi-structured interviews with companies that think of packaging design as a vital part of their business: Designkontoret Silver and Amore Brand Identity Studios. The question formulations in this thesis are answered by describing the research front to the matter and to inquire how packaging design has made its mark in the Coca-Cola brand in the years 1886-2014. In this essay, the iconic Coca-Cola bottle plays a central role, as it sets an example of a successful design, along with the campaign “Share a Coke”. The study’s findings show that the phenomena of packaging design and branding are inseparable and require a strategic anchor between them. Packaging design is an effective means to create a good image of your company in the consumer’s mind. Important factors in the design development are recognition, color and shape, and consistency. These are highly characteristic marks of Coca-Cola who over a century stringently has maintained the brand’s well-known design language. The company has historically used design as an innovative tool, not least at the launch of the Contour Bottle in 1916, and has only performed minor changes since then.

Afin d'étendre la diversité des composants intégrables dans un System in Package (SiP), il apparaît nécessaire de développer l'intégration de composants hétérogènes. Cette étude présente une solution par report avec un scellement en polymère. L'utilisation de ces matériaux entraîne des problèmes de fiabilité thermomécanique. Grâce à un prototype virtuel, il est possible d'évaluer les sollicitations et de comprendre ce comportement de la structure. Cela permet de mieux appréhender les mécanismes de défaillance et d'optimiser la structure avant sa fabrication. Pour démontrer la faisabilité, nous avons utilisé des filtres à ondes acoustiques de surfaces (SAW filters). Nous avons étudié trois types de polymères (BCB, SU8 et TMMF) pour réaliser le scellement et protéger le filtre. Différents tests mécaniques, électriques et de fiabilité ont permis de valider cette solution. Nous avons réalisé un SiP comprenant un tuner et un filtre SAW dans un même boîtier pour de la télévision sur mobile

This study analyzed President Gerald Ford's efforts in selling his energy package in February, 1975. Six major speeches and news conferences were examined in terms of Richard Weaver's rhetorical theory. Five criteria of this theory were studied: appeals to man's good values, choice of argumentation, use of "god" and "devil" words, adaptation to the historical setting of the speech, and ethical character of the speaker. This analysis concluded that Ford was a good Weaverian rhetorician because he appealed to good values in language well adapted to each audience, adapted well to historical settings, and elevated his ethos considerably. However, Ford sold himself but not his program because he relied too heavily on his own ethos and circumstantial argumentation and slighted refutation arguments

Marketing research of reasons of companies to sports sponzorship in times of economic crisis Objectives: The aim of this work is using marketing research to determine how reasons of companies to sports sponsorship are changed in times of economic crisis. In assessing the reason of companies we observe whether size and regional focus of the company have an impact on sports sponsorship. Work shows differences in sponsorship of sport before the crisis and during crisis. Methods: Gain of necessary information has been made by questionnaire. Questionnaires were sent by emails to participated companies. Results: Financial crisis didn't touched sport branch so much how it was expected. Results show that companies sponsored more sport branches than in past. This doesn't mean there were more financial resources in sport. For smaller companies amount of money increased in percent for sponsoring, but for bigger companies is situation opposite. We can say just the same in absolute amount also. It's thus possible that sport gained less financial resources during financial crisis, because degradation affected bigger companies. We can say smaller companies were hit by crises in smaller extent than bigger companies. Key words: marketing communication, communication mix, sponsorship, sports advertising,...