In  turbulent  environments,  the  infused  marketing  function  has  become  an  essential and natural part in the firms’ new product development (NPD). Some scholars define NPD as the transformation of a market opportunity into a product  as a result of the coupling of market assumptions with technological possibilities. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the role of market orientation in NPD, with the specific focus on how market orientation is carried out in NPD and how it affects NPD. This study is built  on  a  conceptual  framework  and  a  tool,  both  are  formed  from  literature.  The authors use the case study to conduct this research, and one company’s (Tylö’s) data is  gathered  through  the  semi-structured  interview.  Some  findings  are  obtained  from analysis: Firstly, market orientation contains two approaches, one is the market-driven approach and the other is the driving-market one, and firm could choose one of them according  to  the  new  product  features.  Secondly,  there  are  four  areas  in  market orientation, for each approach, the specific content in each area is different. Thirdly, the    four    areas    are    identifying    customers’    needs,    collecting    information, inter-functional  coordination  and  taking  action  and  they  move  on  sequentially.  In addition, two crucial factors-time and cost should be paid much attention in NPD.

In this master thesis problems in a small market-driven software development company are discussed. Problems such as fast changes in the company are a result of the constantly changing market. The fast changes must be managed within the company with tailored process covering the needs like short time-to-market. Misunderstandings when managing ideas from marketing and challenging issues such as communication gaps between marketing staff and developers are discussed. These problem areas are identified by the case study through interviews of selected staff. The problems adhere from fast changes and lack of processes and structures. This paper has recommended several points influenced by agile software development with Scrum and XP. The recommendations are chosen to fit the problem areas identified by the interviews. They will work as a starting point for the company to improve the situation and to use XP and Scrum for further improvements.

Context. Compare with bespoke RE, market-driven requirements engineering (MDRE), has manyclassical requirements engineering activities of bespoke RE. Elicitation is one of these activities. Thisprocess is to capture, extract and obtain needs from stakeholders. And there are many techniques toguide MDRE elicitation, and some techniques for bespoke RE are also used in MDRE contextnowadays. However, not all of these techniques are suitable for MDRE due to the difference betweenMDRE and bespoke RE, for example, in MDRE context, there is no specific customers’ participation.Meanwhile, there is a lack of studies that compare elicitation techniques by evaluating theircompetence of mitigating MDRE challenges. Objectives. In this study, we investigate and collect techniques which can be used for MDREelicitation. We also identify challenges of MDRE elicitation practice from literature as evaluatingcriteria. Then, we evaluate elicitation techniques’ competence of mitigating these challenges. Finally,we discuss with some interviewees to validate our result with real-world MDRE context. Methods. We use literature review and snowball sampling to investigate and collect MDRE elicitationtechniques and challenges. Next, we summarize elicitation techniques’ advantages and limitationsfrom literature and compare these techniques by evaluating whether they can mitigate MDREchallenges we find. Next, we conduct interview with 8 interviewees who are practitioners or havedeveloping experience in order to find out and discuss the difference between academic and realworldMDRE. Results. We identify 6 elicitation techniques which can be used in MDRE to compare. We also collect6 challenges which may happen in MDRE elicitation process. We compare them by literature studyand interview with practitioners and find that although some interviewees’ opinions are similar withliterature, there are still many different cases we need to consider before choosing elicitationtechniques. Conclusions. In this research, we fill the gap that there is a lack of studies about the comparison ofelicitation techniques in MDRE context. We also find 4 factors which should be studied in-depth inthe future MDRE elicitation techniques research, and validate our result with practice and discuss thereason of differences. Our result can help requirements engineers to choose suitable elicitationtechniques in MDRE projects.

No / The belief in market-driven ideology and the assumption that new business ventures create jobs and foster innovation has embedded entrepreneurship into political discourse. Academics have analyzed government policies on entrepreneurship, but they have tended to share the same underlying beliefs in the function of entrepreneurs within the economic machine. This article explores selected dimensions of the impact of those beliefs by using critical discourse analysis to show how government websites around the world portray entrepreneurs and their role in society. Discourses of government power and self-legitimization are revealed that manifest themselves in a colonizing discourse of entrepreneurial subjugation. The article concludes by challenging government rhetoric on entrepreneurship and questioning the motives underpinning the agenda of government involvement in supporting entrepreneurs.

Med utgångspunkt i en kritisk debatt gällande medias bristfälliga bevakning av EU är syftet med studien är att ta reda på hur den Europeiska unionen skildrades i svensk nyhetspress under 2000-talets första decennium. För att studera EU-journalistik tillämpas en kvantitativ innehållsanalys. Med hjälp av ett kodschema registreras variabelvärden för artiklar från 20 slumpmässigt utvalda veckor mellan åren 2001–2010, i tidningarna Aftonbladet, Dagens Nyheter och Svenska Dagbladet. För att förstå resultaten tas hjälp av ett teoretiskt ramverk med fokus på tidigare forskningsdiskurs samt resonemang kring en marknadsstyrd journalistik och nyhetsvärdering. Genom rubriker och artikelinnehåll identifieras även förekomsten av fördefinierade nyhetsramar i EU-journalistiken: ”Nationellt perspektiv” och ”EU-nyheter utan kontext”.  Totalt registrerades 923 artiklar från de tre tidningarna under given period. Rapporteringens omfattning skiljer sig tydligt mellan åren, 2001 års rapportering står för majoriteten av artikelmängden. Det finns vissa inslag av nyhetsramen ”nationellt perspektiv” i svensk medias EU-bevakning. Nyhetsramen ”EU-nyheter utan kontext” stämmer väl in på materialet. Den marknadsstyrda journalistiken fungerar som en tänkbar förklaring till den bristfälliga EU-bevakningen. Vad som bör eftersträvas i större utsträckning är uppföljning av ämnen som exponeras för media för att läsare på så sätt ska få mer kontinuitet och ökad förståelse för EU:s verksamhet. En framtida undersökning skulle kunna inkludera radio- och tevenyheter eller en undersökning av bevakningen under 1990-talet.

La publication de sondages et d’études sociologiques depuis le début de la crise économique en 2008, montre que la crainte d’entrer en situation de précarité est largement répandue au sein de la société française. Même si les fournisseurs d’énergie historiques (EDF et GDF) ont mis en place depuis longtemps des systèmes de solidarité destinés aux plus démunis, ils ne semblent pas avoir pris en compte, pour le moment, la crainte potentielle d’une partie des consommateurs en situation ordinaire de tomber en situation de précarité. Ce constat nous a amené à poser la question de recherche suivante : quelle(s) posture(s) stratégique(s) pourrait adopter EDF face aux craintes de précarité de ses clients non précaires ? Pour répondre à cette question nous avons mobilisé trois champs théoriques. Le premier, autour du concept d’orientation marché défini par Day (1990) comme la capacité à comprendre et satisfaire les besoins des clients, distingue deux types de stratégies : les stratégies de type market driven destinées à réagir aux mouvements du marché, et les stratégies de type market driving consistant à créer un nouveau marché. Or, il n’existe pas aujourd’hui de réponse de la part des fournisseurs d’énergie à cette crainte de la clientèle non précaire vis-à-vis de la précarité. Nous nous sommes attaché à étudier la possibilité de définir une nouvelle stratégie de type market driving. Ceci nous a conduit à étudier un deuxième champ théorique portant sur l’émergence des besoins. Afin d’anticiper la réaction des consommateurs face à une certaine posture d’un fournisseur d’énergie, nous nous sommes porté sur un dernier volet théorique traitant du comportement de réaction des consommateurs face aux offres des entreprises. Afin de savoir si une posture était envisageable sur la crainte d’entrer en précarité, nous avons cherché à savoir si des besoins liés à cette crainte existaient. A cet effet, nous avons utilisé la méthode projective des récits immersifs, consistant à immerger le sujet interrogé dans le récit d’un personnage fictif confronté à une succession d’évènements l’introduisant dans une situation précaire. Cette recherche a fait ressortir l’existence de trois groupes d’individus caractérisés par des besoins particuliers : les familles avec enfants, les retraités et les jeunes actifs. Nous avons également montré que l’attitude des consommateurs face à une posture simulée d’un fournisseur d’énergie sur cette crainte était très nuancée, voire négative. Ceci pourrait laisser envisager des marges de manoeuvre restreintes dans la définition d’une posture des fournisseurs d’énergie sur cette question. / Since the beginning of the economic crisis in 2008, poll and sociological studies have shown that the fear of entering into a precarious situation is widespread in French society. Ever though, historical energy suppliers (EDF and GDF) have established systems of solidarity for poor people, they do not seem to have taken into account, for the time being, the potential fear of some consumers to fall into precarious situation. This observation has led us to pose the following research question: what strategic position(s) could EDF adopt in order to deal with the customer’s fear to fall into precariousness? To answer this question, we have mobilized three theoretical fields. The first one concerns the concept of market orientation defined by Day (1990) as the ability to understand and satisfy customers ‘needs. The market orientation is divided into two types of strategy: the market driven type for reacting to market movements, and the market driving type for creating a new market. Considering that energy supplier do not take any action regarding the fear of non precarious customer, related to precariousness, we are committed to studying the possible existence of a new market. This led us to study a second field of theory on the emergence of needs. To anticipate consumer reaction toward a certain position of an energy supplier, we focused on a last theoretical part dealing with the behavior of consumer response to companies offers. To determine whether a position in relation with the fear of entering in precariousness would be possible, we investigated whether needs linked with this fear exist. To this purpose, we used the projective method of narrative immersion. This method consists in immersing the person in the story of a fictional character facing a series of events introducing him in a precarious situation. This research has highlighted the existence of three groups, characterized by special needs: families with children, retired and young workers. We also showed that consumer attitudes to a simulated position of an energy supplier about this fear were nuanced, even negative. This could leave little scope for defining the position of energy supplier on this issue.

This study examines how journalistic content can be affected when a local newspapers website changes its business model to what is commonly known as a premium paywall. This study is based upon data provided by the local newspaper Barometern. The data concerns the number of online articles included in fifteen subject and geographically defined categories. The data was collected from two three month long periods, one before and one after the introduction of the news paper paywall that was installed in October of 2014. The study finds that the total number of articles published after the introduction of the paywall was significantly higher than before but that the share of articles included in the different subject categories did not change considerably for paying readers. For non- paying readers however, the data show that the share of articles for the different subject and geographical categories changed significantly. Even though the data from this study cannot confirm a correlation, it does highlight a possible connection between media competition in different local markets and subject matters and the amount of articles that are placed behind the newspapers online paywall in that category. This means that non-paying readers in this case got access to a large number of articles included in some categories and only a small portion of articles included in some other categories. Non-paying readers not only got access to a smaller number of articles but also to a different content profile than paying readers.

The aim of the research is to identify, evaluate and develop service quality measures/dimensions – from the students’ point of view – at independent Colleges in the UK. The primary objective of the study is to determine whether private higher education providers in the UK meet student expectations. In order to achieve the primary objective, the research identified two secondary objectives as: what are the areas of service quality that are most important to students, when choosing to study at a private college in the UK; and does their chosen private college meet student expectations in all these areas? The research consists of three stages: 1) an extensive analysis of literature followed by discussions with industry experts to map recent developments within independent colleges in the UK, 2) an analysis of a student focus group discussions as well as an expert panel review, of the focus group findings, in order to develop the initial conceptual model and the development of the measurement instrument i.e., online questionnaire, and 3) the online questionnaire link was then promoted to qualifying participants internationally using the official website (www.service-quality.co.uk) as well as social media, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. In addition, links to the survey and the progress have been listed at several discussion groups as well as included in online press releases. The online questionnaire was made available from 1st June to 30th November 2013, to ensure sufficient time was given to promote the survey and attract a good number of responses. 12,775 completed questionnaires were gathered during the six months period. The sample data was analysed for the normality of distribution followed by assessment of validity and reliability, using parametric statistical analysis tools. Finally, the research concluded that students chose to study at independent colleges as they offered five service quality dimensions as: flexible, market driven, assurance, customer focus and focus practitioners. The participants also agreed that their chosen independent college either met or exceeded their expectations. The research findings were inconclusive in terms of the order of importance of these service quality dimensions. The service quality and performance model for independent colleges in the UK requires these three components: service quality dimensions, measures, and implementation points, to continuously refine and develop. Following such a model, the organisation will continuously identify and refine the service quality dimensions and measures to meet changing student expectations on a continuous basis, whilst sustaining positive service gaps, thriving to remove negative service gaps and by converting neutral areas to positive service gaps.

Student Number : 0413406F - MA dissertation - School of Journalism and Media Studies - Faculty of Humanities / This study examines the rise and fall of ThisDay newspaper by examining its strategies to break into the South African media market. The study places ThisDay in the context of certain factors of the political economy of the South African media and examines how the dynamics of advertising contributed to the collapse of the newspaper. By analysing perspectives from Bagdikian (1983) among others, that the success and failure of the media depends on its success or failure to attract advertising revenue. The study examines the specific strategies used by ThisDay’s management to attract advertising as a key source of revenue to determine how the failure or lack of such strategies could have played a contributory role in the collapse of the newspaper. Among the factors examined is the further consolidation of ownership in the competing media companies. The intricacies and complex relationships that existed between the South African media its owners and advertisers are examined, to determine whether the actions of the competition contributed to ThisDay’s failure. The findings of this study show that ThisDay’s entry met what was arguably a major need for quality news in South Africa’s daily newspaper market; this however, did not prevent its closure. It had to grapple with too many challenges, most of them internal. The underlying reason for most of the problems management encountered was the unavailability of financial resources to run a paper of ThisDay’s magnitude. However the strategies that its management adopted as well as the business plan were way off the mark. The demise of ThisDay newspaper is a loss to South African journalism in two aspects; the industry lost a quality newspaper which greatly improved the level of South African journalism (the quality of which many now say is in a decline). Secondly, its failure will serve as a deterrent to any aspiring entrepreneur who would like to put together a quality product, the perception being that quality newspapers are not profitable. With the demise of ThisDay newspaper and recently the Nova, it seems that the South African print media environment has closed its doors to new entrants.

<p>In today’s competitive environment, companies compete for the same customers. Therefore, it is important to be able to satisfy the ever changing needs of customers. Companies can satisfy customer demand by learning about the customer and by alternating offerings in accordance to changing needs. These are actions undertaken by market driven companies. Alternatively, market driving companies satisfy customer demand by being creative and by focusing on customers’ future needs, an action which implies educating customers. However, there are also companies which pursue both of these strategies simultaneously. The purpose of this dissertation is to examine how companies implement a dual-market strategy, and how the strategy is incorporated into the business. Based on literature on closely related research fields, a framework is developed. This framework suggests that certain components influence a dual-market strategy. A study is conducted on the luxury fashion company Burberry. Through semi-structured interviews with employees at Burberry, this study investigates how the company’s use of a dual-market strategy affects the organisational culture and vision. The results indicate that the phenomenon of duality is noticeable in the company’s culture and vision. Due to the lack of research on a dual-market strategy, this study attempts to provide a deeper understanding of the phenomenon of duality. Companies can use the conclusions drawn from this study, as guidelines for how to pursue a dual-market strategy. However, more research is necessary before any generalisations can be made.</p>