Background: Marketing communication is the process of communicating with the customer, this is all communicative materials that are produced by the firm in order to influence the consumer. Regulations are all the rules, instructions, memos issued by a market authority that dictate the ways a firm may present their brand. Important to gain the firm's understanding of regulations and the ways to work within them. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore how external regulations impact marketing communications from the firm's perspective. Research Question: How do companies understand the impact of regulations on marketing communications and work within them? Theoretical framework: The theoretical framework was established using the marketing communications mix in combination with institutional theory, investigating the research question through the lens of institutional pressures. Methodology: This study used a qualitative and inductive approach, using a case study on the Canadian cannabis industry. Using purposive sampling and semi-structured interviews with three respondents to collect data. Analysing the collected data with a systematic coding process to objectively interpret meaning from the respondents perspectives. Conclusion: The conclusions of this paper were threefold. First, coercive pressure is the most observed form of isomorphic pressure as there has not been enough industry maturity to establish normative pressures which leads to a hesitancy of mimetic behaviour. Secondly, there are multiple layers of institutional pressures from various dominant actors within the shared organisational environment, which leaves firms feeling incapable of marketing. Lastly, personal selling is the most effective tool from the marketing communication mix due to the impacts of the regulations and the infancy of the market.  Contribution: Study confirms the findings of Asquith’s (2021) research. Multiple layers of institutional pressure in the industry. Infant markets are more susceptible to coercive pressure.

Abstract The purpose of the study is to identify the backlog in invoicing within BAS-väg and be able to identify what it is due to. Furthermore, we also want to study whether Trafikverkets structure affects the backlog of invoicing. The organization that has been studied is Trafikverket which is responsible for a large proportion of Sweden's total road network. The study is based on a qualitative method and the results of conducted interviews with semi-structured questions. The study illustrates explanations from six project managers at Trafikverket and two site managers at their contracting services within BAS-väg. Material from the informants have been studied in connection with the study's questions formulation and illustrate this based on four different themes. All the informants had to answer the same main questions, however, the explanations for the backlog of invoicing is varied. The results of the study illustrate the main reason why the backlog is due to the contractor's subcontractor's delaying invoicing. The second explanation given by both parties is that there are different combinations of resource shortage, for example lack of time, financial resources and lack of competence. The informants also believe that there are contributing negative factors within the authority that affect the invoicing process. Reasons described are lack of system programs, inadequate financial forecasting methods and tough requirements of verifications from preformed jobs. In summary, the study has helped to illustrate various explanations for why the invoicing backlog is significantly larger in the last two months of the year. Both Trafikverket and the contractors have arrangements that need to be taken in order for the entire invoicing process to be smoother and faster.

Product Costing in the Swedish Engineering Industry - a survey  This thesis is about product costing in the Swedish engineering industry. The thesis is empirical and consists of two studies, one descriptive and one explanatory study. The purpose of the descriptive study has been to make a survey of which product costing methods are used, which elements of product costing that are considered to be problematic and what companies spend time on related to product costing. The purpose of the explanatory study has been to compare and analyze the correspondence between literature and practice regarding design aspects of product costing, by using a contingency theoretical approach. The research method that has been used to collect data has been an e-mail survey. In the 90s, a dissertation was written by Urban Ask and Christian Ax in the area, but since then no major survey has been made either in Sweden or in any other country. Since the 1990s, the production environment has been developed and new production strategies have been implemented, which has contributed to new perspectives on product costing. The results of the descriptive study show that the recommendations given in "Enhetliga principer för självkostnadsberäkningar" (EP) in 1936 still have a large impact on Swedish product costing practices. On the other hand, a trend can be noted which indicates that companies choose to work with new product costing systems such as target costing, activity based costing, value stream costing and kaizen costing. With regard to the allocation of indirect costs, the results show that the companies focus on ensuring that the allocation takes place in an appropriate manner. The outcome of the results shows that the distribution of indirect costs is differentiated, in the majority of cases a number of allocation bases, overhead components and cost centers are used. The product costing elements that are perceived to be most problematic to perform in practice are to: determine causal relationships, determine what deviations from standards are due to and calculate costs for future products. Overall the findings in the descriptive study indicate on a technically speaking well-developed Swedish costing practice. The explanatory study lends support to the hypotheses that the design of cost systems depends on contingency factors. Strongest support for the hypotheses was found between two factors (production strategies and company size) and cost system aspects. Weaker support was found between six other factors (manufacturing complexity, number of products, kind of product, the degree of automation, high- vs low-tech companies and the degree of competition) and cost system aspects. Overall the findings in the explanatory study indicate that companies do not shape their product costing according to the recommendations made in the literature.

Background: In recent decades about as many women as men have been recruited to the auditing industry. On the other hand, it seems difficult for women to reach higher positions and they are underrepresented in certain ways. Due to the importance of the social dynamics, one could argue that a need to investigate which roles women receive in the firms and why from a visionary perspective.  Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to explore the development of the construction of women’s roles in auditing firm's financial reports.  Method:  The method that we used in this thesis is both qualitative and quantitative methods as we found it to be most appropriate for the study. Also, an abductive research approach that uses a string of previous theories within visual accounting to form a theoretical framework of roles assigned to women in auditing is used. Moreover, this was later used to code and analyze the images found in annual reports in order to be able to answer our research question, and purpose of the study. Findings: Because of institutional events that hinders women from advancing in their career as well as male-dominated hierarchy the major finding of this thesis demonstrates that women are undervalued in several roles. The consistent high role development in subordinate versus the lack of presence in leadership role as the major finding. Moreover, the symbolic role development reinforces expression of inclusivity that women carry in the organization, while other role development were volatile.

The new trends and challenges are transforming the traditional way of thinking and planning transport systems, with concepts like mobility as a service (MaaS) developing as a result of these transformations. Whilst, the concept of MaaS is still considered new, it is attracting attention from both researchers as well as actors involved within the transport sector. Countries are investigating, testing, and developing the MaaS concept, and Sweden is an active participant in this process with leading pilot projects and other initiatives in metropolitan areas of Stockholm and Gothenburg. However, the definition and ideas about this mobility solution are still not fully defined, and it is not clear how the implementation of the new ideas could and should be institutionalized in the real-life practices. Therefore, this thesis explores and discusses the institutionalisation of MaaS in the public sector in the Stockholm region. The theoretical approach of this thesis is based on institutional theory, which is used to guide the collection of data and analysis of the gathered dataset. The study utilises the method of document analysis and semi-structured interviews to collect information and abductive reasoning for further investigation. The empirical analysis draws attention to three overall aspects of ongoing institutionalization of MaaS: 1) the explanation of the process and drivers of it; 2) the emergence of new challenges; 3) and the impact of the institutionalization of MaaS to the public organizations. The final discussion suggests that in the Stockholm region the institutionalisation of MaaS is still nominal and uncertain when considered in general transport planning between the public organisations. However, the actors discussed are in the process of identifying the core challenges and are working to address them. These actions and changes manifest in the transforming roles and positions with the actors' network; in the development of new collaborations; and in the altering of future ambitions in the transport planning and the linkages to the long-term spatial infrastructural planning, which still lacks attention. The study outlines key areas of future research, including issues with the evolving requirements MaaS can bring to the transport infrastructure and the need for short- and long-term analysis of the MaaS impact to the sustainable transport system. / Nya trender och samhällsutmaningar har skapat ett förändringstryck gentemot den traditionella transportplaneringen, vilken i sin tur har banat väg för nya begrepp och lösningar – t ex mobilitet som tjänst (MaaS). MaaS är ett relativt nytt fenomen, som har rönt stor uppmärksamhet bland forskare, myndigheter och privata aktörer inom transportsektorn. Flera länder och stadsregioner undersöker, testar och utvecklar just nu olika typer av MaaS lösningar. Sverige är en aktiv aktör på området, och sjösätter pilotprojekt och andra initiativ bl. a. i storstadsområdena Stockholm och Göteborg. Samtidigt är det fortfarande inte helt tydligt vilken roll MaaS kan ha i det urbana transportsystemet, och det finns betydande osäkerheter gällande hur MaaS skulle kunna genomföras i större skala, i praktiken. I denna uppsats undersöks den pågående institutionaliseringen av mobilitet som tjänst hos aktörer inom offentlig sektor i Stockholmsregionen. Uppsatsen grundas i institutionell teori, som tillämpas i en analys av policydokument och intervjuer med nyckelaktörer från offentliga organisationer inom transportplanering. I den empiriska analysen riktas uppmärksamhet mot tre övergripande aspekter av vikt för den pågående institutionaliseringen av MaaS: 1) viktiga steg och drivkrafter i institutionaliseringsprocessen hittills; 2) samtida utmaningar och problem; 3) konsekvenser för offentliga planeringsaktörer. Studien visar sammantaget på att det pågår en institutionalisering av MaaS i Stockholmregionen, men att den   fortfarande är nominell och osäker – inte minst med tanke på den blygsamma roll som MaaS ännu spelar i transportplaneringen som helhet. De nyckelaktörer som uppmärksammas är emellertid redan på väg att identifiera och ta sig an de utmaningar som de har mött hittills, där de svåraste rör förändringen av roller och positioner, behov av att utveckla nya samarbeten samt förändrade ambitioner och mål för transportplaneringen i stort där konsekvenserna för långsiktig infrastrukturplanering fortfarande inte uppmärksammas i någon större utsträckning. Studien identifierar ett antal problem som behöver undersökas ytterligare, t ex konsekvenserna av MaaS för långsiktig transportinfrastrukturplanering och behovet av kort- och långsiktiga analyser av vad MaaS kan bidra med i arbetet för ett långsiktigt hållbart transportsystem.

As popularity of online banking services has grown exceedingly among Finnishconsumers, it has become necessary for banks to provide their customers withsafety advice against the emerging threat of card-not-present fraud (CNP) in orderto protect them from monetary losses. However, it is unclear how effective thisadvice is and how well it is filling its purpose. This study aims to fill this gap andexamines the advice provided by Finnish banks in order to protect their customersfrom CNP-frauds by applying an economical approach to the criminological field.A multilayered approach including a literature review, a web page qualityassessment and a qualitative interview was used for this purpose. Contributing toexisting literature on the enabling and constraining influences within the financialindustry, this study increases the understanding of why Finnish banks’ arehomogenously tilting the balance towards their own private interests rather thanpublic good.

Den etiska redovisningen går även mot en negativ trend, där anmälningar i samband med oetisk redovisning ökat markant de senaste åren. En redovisningsekonom har i uppgift att ta hand om bokföringen samt upprätta redovisningen. Redovisningsekonomer har ansvaret att kontrollera samt redovisa ett företags finansiella situation. Detta betyder att redovisningsekonomer har ett stort ansvar då deras redovisning visar hur framgångsrikt ett företag driver sin verksamhet. Därför kommer studien studera vilka bakomliggande faktorer som har en inverkan på hur etiskt redovisningsekonomer upprättar redovisningen. Syfte och frågeställning: syftet med föreliggande studie är att utforska samt identifiera vilka bakomliggande faktorer som har en inverkan på den etiska redovisningen. Vidare syftar studien även till att bidra med förståelse kring vad som har en inverkan på hur redovisningsekonomer bemöter etiska utmaningar samt hanterar dessa situationer vid upprättandet av redovisningen. Studiens frågeställning blir därmed följande: vilka bakomliggande faktorer har en inverkan på hur etiskt redovisningsekonomer upprättar redovisningen? Metod: studien utgår från en kvalitativ metod som består av semistrukturerade intervjuer med sex olika redovisningsekonomer. Valet av forskningsmetod syftar till att få en förståelse kring möjliga bakomliggande faktorer som har en inverkan på hur etiskt redovisningsekonomer upprättar sin redovisning. De redovisningsekonomer som intervjuades valdes utifrån deras erfarenhet inom yrket. Slutsats: studien anger de bakomliggande faktorer som har en inverkan på hur etiskt redovisningsekonomer upprättar redovisningen. Resultat från föreliggande studie visar på hur externa, personliga och organisatoriska faktorer har en inverkan på den etiska redovisningen. Föreliggande studie indikerar även att erfarenhetslängden har en inverkan gällande hur redovisningsekonomer hanterar de bakomliggande faktorerna vid upprättandet av den etiska redovisningen. / Ethical reporting is moving towards a negative trend, where reports in connection with unethical reporting have increased significantly in recent years. An accounting economist is tasked with taking care of the bookkeeping and preparing the accounts. Accounting economists are responsible for controlling and reporting a company's financial situation. This means that accounting economists have a great responsibility as their accounting shows how successfully a company runs its business. Therefore, the study will study which underlying factors have an impact on how ethically accountants prepare the accounts. Purpose and question: the purpose of the present study is to explore and identify which underlying factors have an impact on ethical reporting. The study also aims to contribute with an understanding of what has an impact on how accounting economists respond to ethical challenges and handle these situations when preparing the accounts. The study's question thus becomes the following: which underlying factors have an impact on how ethically accountants prepare the accounts? Methodology: the study is based on a qualitative method consisting of semi-structured interviews with six different accounting economists. The choice of research method aims to gain an understanding of possible underlying factors that have an impact on how ethical accounting economists prepare their accounts. The accounting economists who were interviewed was chosen based on their experience in the profession. Conclusion: the study indicates the underlying factors that have an impact on how ethically accounting economists prepare the accounts. Results from the present study show how external, personal and organizational factors have an impact on ethical reporting. The present study also indicates that the length of experience has an impact on how accounting economists handle the underlying factors when preparing the ethical accounting.

Digitalisering anses vara den enskilt största förändringsfaktorn i världen och har medfört betydande utveckling i samhället. Den svenska arbetsmarknaden har påverkats i stor utsträckning av digitaliseringen, då den lett till radikala förändringar för organisationer samt yrkesroller, däribland redovisningskonsulter. Tidigare forskning redogör för att digitalisering medfört både möjligheter och utmaningar för redovisningsbranschen. Studiens huvudsakliga syfte är att undersöka hur digitalisering inom redovisningsbranschen påverkar redovisningskonsulters yrkesroll. Studiens avsikt är att bidra till ökad förståelse för den inverkan digitaliseringen har haft på redovisningskonsulters verksamheter, arbetssätt, arbetsuppgifter samt kompetenser och därmed vilka möjligheter respektive utmaningar som uppkommit för yrkesrollen. Studien utgår ifrån en kvalitativ metod där 14 semistrukturerade intervjuer med redovisningskonsulter från diverse byråer har utförts. Det empiriskt insamlade materialet har jämförts med institutionell teori och legitimitetsteori samt tidigare forskning för att nå en slutsats. Studiens slutsats är att digitaliseringen har medfört en rad olika möjligheter samt utmaningar kopplade till redovisningskonsulters arbetssätt, arbetsuppgifter, kompetenser samt deras verksamheter. Ett förslag till vidare forskning inkluderar att studera förändringen digitaliseringen har haft på redovisningskonsultens yrkesroll över tid. Studien är skriven på svenska. / Digitalization is considered to be one of the most significant advancements in modern society. The Swedish labor market has been greatly impacted by the radical changes brought forth by digitalization as it continues to shape processes within organizations and professional roles, particularly in the field of accounting. This study aims to investigate the impact of digitalization in the accounting industry and its effects on the role of accounting consultants. The study also seeks to further the understanding of existing literature and their explorations of how digitalization influences the work procedures, job assignments, and competencies of accounting consultants' and their companies. In addition, data gathered during this study will evaluate any challenges highlighted by digitalization within the accounting profession. The study will utilize qualitative research methods by analysis of 14 semi-structured interviews. The participants of the interviews include accounting consultants from various agencies in Sweden. Empirically gathered material will be compared to institutional theory and legitimacy theory along with previous research to reach a conclusion. The study concludes that digitalization has resulted in various opportunities and challenges linked to accounting consultants' work procedures, job assignments, competencies, and operations. A suggestion for further research includes studying the change digitalization has had on the accounting consultant's professional role over a period of time. This study is written in Swedish.

Talent Management (TM) is of growing interest within academia and in the strategic HRM literature in particular. Despite many attempts to study TM from different perspectives, it remains an ambiguous and elusive concept that is difficult to define and hence challenging to explore and address. Studies on TM are based within Western contexts and therefore it is questionable whether TM models and theories are transferable to other nations and contexts. This research examines the nature of TM in the Middle Eastern context of Oman, from the perspective of Institutional Theory. Through a qualitative, multiple case-study approach, data was collected from four banking and petroleum-sector organisations through semi-structured interviews. The findings suggest that the different influences of institutional pressures (e.g. nationalisation, competition, organisational characteristics) have significantly shaped TM in these organisations. The findings show that TM effectiveness and sustainability depends upon a range of factors including: generational differences, employee expectations, the role of expatriates and national culture. Thus, TM and its approach has to be understood and framed within the context of institutions which interact with organisational characteristics; this shapes the way in which the organisations define their TM approach in order to seek legitimacy, business continuity and effectiveness. / Ministry of Manpower (Singapore)

Companies face strategic trade-offs and contractual challenges in collaborative and competitive settings within the framework of institutional theory. Institutional theory focuses on the influence of formal and informal rules and norms that shape organizational behavior. This dissertation encompasses three distinct domains: co-creation in a multi-vendor setting, luxury e-commerce, and social media marketing. Drawing from the lens of institutional theory, the research explores how collaboration, competition, and isomorphism influence decision-making and outcomes in these domains. Each domain presents unique business problems, which are formulated into research questions, supported by relevant theories and literature, and addressed through analytical or empirical models. The findings from each chapter provide valuable managerial insights. In the first chapter, the focus is on collaborative value co-creation. The growing complexity of consulting, new product development, and information technology projects has led firms to increasingly adopt the strategy of collaborative value co-creation with their vendors. By analyzing the strategic interactions among a client, a primary vendor, and a potential secondary vendor, the research uncovers the trade-offs and dynamics that arise in these complex co-creation environments. Building on institutional theory, the study highlights how collaborative relationships in co-creation differ from traditional sourcing models. It reveals that the inclusion of a secondary vendor, even with lower efficiency, can be strategically beneficial for the client in certain scenarios. Conversely, there are situations where involving a more efficient second vendor may not be advantageous. These findings shed light on the institutional factors influencing decisions in collaborative environments. In the second chapter, I investigate the realm of luxury e-commerce and explore the pricing strategies adopted by luxury brands on multi-brand platforms. The study investigates the competition dynamics between luxury brands and e-commerce platforms.It addresses the optimal pricing strategies for luxury brands and examines whether allowing platform discounts aligns with institutional pressures. Luxury brands face a difficult trade-off between offering online discounts and maintaining their high-end brand image, which is often associated with price consistency across channels. On the other hand, e-commerce platforms struggle to assert control over pricing, which affects their ability to thrive in the market. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the research demonstrates that participating in platform discounts can be a viable strategy for luxury brands, even for high-valued products. Moreover, the analysis reveals the potential for pricing coordination across different channels. By considering market conditions and customer preferences, the study identifies factors that impact decision-making and profitability, contributing to the understanding of institutional influences in luxury e-commerce. In the third chapter, the research explores social media marketing in the context of the luxury fashion industry, focusing on the influence of isomorphism between competing brands. Grounded in institutional theory, the study employs machine learning techniques to analyze data from the social media platform of two prominent luxury brands. By examining content features and engagement rates, the research investigates the existence of isomorphic behavior among competing brands. The findings highlight similarities in content structures, approaches, and messaging strategies, indicative of isomorphism. However, the study also emphasizes the importance of differentiation in content strategy to create unique and distinctive brand identities. These insights offer valuable implications for firms seeking to enhance their social media marketing strategies within the institutional context. Overall, this dissertation integrates the perspectives of institutional theory across three interconnected chapters. By examining collaboration, competition, and isomorphism in co-creation, luxury e-commerce, and social media marketing, my research provides a comprehensive understanding of how institutional factors shape decision-making and outcomes in these domains. The findings contribute to the existing literature on institutional theory, offering practical insights for managers in navigating the complexities of collaborative and competitive environments, while aligning with prevailing institutional pressures. Additionally, the research opens avenues for future exploration into the interplay between institutions and strategic decision-making in various business contexts. / Business Administration/Marketing