Zambia is a highly urbanized country with 60% of its urban population residing in low cost areas also called peri-urban, slum or informal settlements. The increase in urban population attributed to rapid migration and urbanization due to political and economic changes has taken a toll on service provision as the infrastructure development and service provision has failed to meet the demand. For the 33 peri-urban areas in Lusaka, the water supply and sanitation has been poor, inadequate and unreliable with the coverage being slightly above 50% for water while 90% of the urban population does not have access to the much needed sanitation. The low coverage is a result of lack the financial capacity on the part of the service providers to extend services to un served areas. This research focuses on the strategies to provide sustainable water and sanitation services to peri-urban areas to ensure improved accessibility through the expansion of infrastructure and attainment of full cost recovery. In this era of increasing migration to unplanned settlements where the services are inadequate, alternatives to public provision of water and sanitation services need to be put in place. One of the alternatives is the public-private partnership which encompasses the society, private and the civil society. As has been found in the study the best alternative should not only be completely bottom up but should also be more demand driven and be able to provide for reater contributions from the affected communities. The hypothesis of the study is to ascertain if provision of water supply to the Peri-Urban Areas (PUAs) can be achieved through the partnership between the water utility and the small scale water providers. Therefore, the objectives of the research are to: evaluate and compare the current service provision to the peri-urban areas by the utility and small scale providers in terms of technical, social and institutional arrangements and determine the best way of ensuring sustained service provision to peri urban areas and show how partnership can be the best solution to improving service delivery to these areas. Service provision in PUAs can not be achieved without the involvement of all the stakeholders especially the community who are also the users and whose major role is paying for the service to enhance sustainability. In this study the Small Scale Water Providers (SSWP) users were found to be satisfied with the service provided than the utility users who felt that more needed to be done. The two providers are found to have different strengths which when combined would enhance service provision. The collaboration between utility with its competence in water supply, technical installations, water quality testing and SSWP with theirs in community involvement, cost recovery, effective operation and maintenance and demand driven water schemes have to be merged to achieve the intended goal and it is also an indication that the two can complement each other. Utility should therefore consider opening investment accounts for all the areas so as to detach PUAs needs from the general plan and eventually budget as they would be self sustaining and enhance  illingness to pay for the users. The SSWP should therefore be viewed as partners by all and licensing should be considered by the government for the benefit of the urban poor.

The thesis is focused on consumer loans either from a regulatory standpoint including comparison of two legislative resources and from practical view focusing on real-life examples from Czech banking and non-bank providers. The main focus of analysis is to determine the impact of credit parameters on the APRC. Considerable portion of the thesis is dedicated to a specific area of consumer loans, microcredits. Even here the primary aim is the regulation of microcredits, the providers participating in the administration of microcredits and the calculation of the impact of principal, maturity and costs of credit on the APRC.

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Sammanfattning Inom byggbranschen är det viktigt att ständigt utveckla och förbättra bygglogistik avseende kostnad, effektivitet och klimatavtryck för att behålla företagens konkurrenskraft. Denna studie syftar till att undersöka tjänster och komponenter som ingår i bygglogistikerbjudandet från logistiktjänsteleverantörer (LSP), som hyr ut maskiner, utrustning och hyresrelaterade tjänster. Målet är att beskriva erbjudandet, beställarens behov samt effekterna av bygglogistik på ett byggprojekt. Byggprojekt kännetecknas av temporaritet och materialintensitet. Material och tjänster utgör 60–80% av den totala projektkostnaden, där logistikkostnader står för 40% av den totala kostnaden. Det är därför viktigt att prioritera bygglogistik för att hålla nere kostnader. Traditionellt har logistiktjänsteleverantörer anlitats för enbart leveranser och inte som en strategisk resurs för att förbättra byggprojektens resultat. På senare tid har bygglogistik fått ökad uppmärksamhet. Beställare och entreprenörer har insett fördelarna med effektiv bygglogistik. För att implementera LSP-tjänster krävs ökad kunskap om deras roll och funktion. Studien visar att det är viktigt att involvera LSP redan i projekterings- och planeringsfasen för att uppnå bästa möjliga effekt. Detta kan leda till effektivare produktion och minskade kostnader under byggprojektets produktionsfas. Om LSP-tjänster implementeras i ett senare skede kan det vara svårt att hitta optimala lösningar och många problem kommer att behöva lösas på plats, vilket kan skapa ökade kostnader, ökat klimatavtryck och minskad total effektivitet. Studien indikerar att beställarens behov kan beskrivas i form av processer, verktyg, arbetsmetoder, checklistor och rutiner. För att effektivisera byggprocessen behöver varje byggprojekt tillämpa bygglogistiklösningar som är anpassade till det specifika projektet, i och med att varje projekt är unik på sitt sätt.  Genom att modularisera tjänster som korresponderar till beställarens behov blir det enklare för beställaren att välja rätt tjänster för det unika projektet och känna sig trygg i processen Genom att överlåta hela logistikansvaret till LSP frigörs tid för beställaren, som då kan fokusera på sin befintliga verksamhet och optimera projektets övriga delar. Studien visar exempelvis att logistikcentret möjliggjorde för verksamheten att fortsätta parallellt med byggnationen. Det är viktigt att kontraktet är fullständigt och innehåller beskrivningar av alla övergripande tjänster för att undvika extra kostnader och tvister när logistikansvar överlåts.  För att utforma ett logistiklösningserbjudande inom byggbranschen rekommenderas maskinuthyrare, baserat på fallstudien, att följa de rekommenderade stegen som har presenterats i rapporten  Sammanfattningsvis indikerar studien att LSP-tjänster är effektiva och fungerar väl. Alla modultjänster inom LSP är viktiga, och det behövs ytterligare tjänster och verktyg för att komplettera LSP och bidra till lyckade projekt. Att öka kunskapen om och involvera LSP tidigt i projekt kan leda till bättre effektivitet och minskade kostnader. / Abstract In this study, construction logistics modules (services and components) are evaluated to the needs of the construction industry. These modules need to be constantly developed and improved in terms of cost, efficiency, climate footprint, etc. to be part of the constant development. The purpose of the study was to investigate which services and components can be included in the construction logistics offer from lessors of machinery, equipment, and rental-related services, also known as Logistics Service Providers (LSP). The goal was to describe the offer, what client needs are met, and what effects construction logistics can create. Construction projects are characterized by an element of temporality with new production facilities in each new project, as production is carried out at the final point of assembly. Construction is material-intensive and costs for materials and services constitute to 60–80 percent of the total project cost, where the project cost constitutes 40 percent of all supply chain management costs. This means that construction supply chain management should be prioritized in the construction industry. Logistics management companies have traditionally been hired precisely for their purpose, i.e., to only carry out deliveries and not as an opportunity to improve the results of construction projects. Construction projects have instead solved their day-to-day supply needs and have not had an overarching logistics plan that covered the entire project's continuum, especially during the production phase. Recently, construction supply chain management has received more attention from both the construction industry and the scientific community. The contractors have begun to see the benefits of managing logistics in an efficient manner. In the construction industry, outsourcing is a standard concept and construction projects rely heavily on having a subcontractor and suppliers procured for each project. One of the disadvantages in the construction industry is the view of supply chain management and the knowledge of the modules' efficiency in production. To be able to implement this, knowledge of LSP needs to be increased and where the included modules are used in all parts of the construction industry. Results from the study indicate that it is important to involve LSP in a project already in the design and planning phase, to get the best effect of the LSP service It can contribute to achieve an efficient production and reduce the costs of the project in the production phase. When applying the LSP service at a later stage in a project, it entails certain difficulties in finding the most effective solutions, where many problems need to be solved ad hoc. This way of working is not the most efficient and is usually costly compared to if you had tried to solve such problems already in the design phase. It is difficult to subsequently introduce the LSP service in an ongoing project that is about to fail or is not going well. It works to apply LSP at a later stage, which will also have an effect. In summary, one based on the study that the LSP is an efficient way of working. All module services within LSP are important and additional services/tools are needed to supplement LSP that contribute to a successful project

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Purpose - The objective of this study is to explore how Data-Intelligence Service-Providers (DISP) can adapt existing Business Model (BM) dimensions to leverage the potential value and mitigate the emerging challenges Open Data (OD) introduces. Method – By developing a multiple case study, we intend to qualitatively explore what BM practices DISPs employ when incorporating OD. Interviews are conducted in multiple phases with a total of 25 interviews and results generated using a thematic analysis. Findings – Through empirical investigation and analysis of DISPs actions and strategies, the study uncovers how these firms navigate challenges and opportunities presented by OD. By portraying the strategies across three BM dimensions—value creation, delivery, and capture—this study identifies six key practices that help DISPs competitively differentiate themselves in the OD environment. The identified practices include Use-case understanding and Data-driven Service Innovation for value creation, Enhanced Data Delivery and Collaborative Data Optimization for value delivery, and AdjustedRevenue Model and Market Expansion for value capture. Implications – In our contribution to existing literature, we present empirical evidence spanning across all dimensions of the BM, shedding light on the competitive advantages facilitated by OD. Additionally, through identifying key practices, this thesis uncovers several areas where there is a lack of understanding on ODs impact in a commercial context. Specifically, by solely focusing on the perspective of DISPs, we offer detailed insight into how these practices are practically unfolding. Furthermore, the thesis presents a framework categorizing practices based on priority and ecosystem dependency. This framework delineates certain practices that are considered fundamental when incorporating OD while also recognizing their intricate requirement of involving external parties, offering managers a visual overview of how to systematically adapt their BMs to incorporate OD into their services. In addition, we manage to address the common distortions about OD by offering a thorough theoretical foundation and defining it clearly within a commercial context, making this complex topic more accessible and better understood. Limitations and future research – As this study is limited to data-providers and DISPs, this thesis advocates for exploring end-user perspectives in future research deemed crucial for gathering a comprehensive understanding of their needs and interactions with OD solutions to solidify findings in this study. Additionally, it is encouraged that future research should investigate misalignments between data-providers and DISPs (e.g. regulatory and technical matters) which currently, are leading to massive inefficiencies in data supply chains. Understanding these issues and implementing strategies to address them can optimize OD resource utilization, thereby facilitating greater innovative potential for service-providers leveraging it.

This thesis investigates how data sources, message queues, and messages can be generalized in such way that it allows for easy configuration and setup in a frontend visualization application. It also includes increasing the productivity of the application testers and the usability of the user interface. An analysis of one of Dewire’s test tools gave insightful information to identify what was needed in the proof-of-concept application and resulted in a list of requirements. The information gained from Dewire also indicated what technologies to use and resulted in a research phase. Different design proposals were presented and one was chosen to be implemented. An agile approach was chosen as method for the implementation phase to emphasize flexibility. It was set to be iterative and in close communication with people at Dewire. The implementation resulted in a proof-of-concept application with a GUI that allows user to configure data sources, message queues and messages. The messages are uploaded in XML format and the GUI allows for modification through HTML forms which mir-rors the XML files. The user is also able to send these messages as JMS mes-sages. Responses to these JMS messages are also shown in the GUI and saved in a database. The results suggest that accomplishing the common task to select a connection tree and send a message takes 45% less time in the proof-of-concept application compared to Dewire’s tool. To accomplish the common task to alter a message and send it takes 79% less time in the proof-of-concept appli-cation compared to Dewire’s tool. The results also suggest that theory of com-puter-human interaction have been applied during the implementation to ac-complisha usable UI. It is assessed that data sources, message queues and mes-sage can be easy configured in a GUI. Further, it is assessed that the productivi-ty has been increased compared to the former tool used.

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects approximately 26 million individuals in the United States and is a top priority in the objectives for Healthy People 2020. Despite efforts to improve awareness, discussion of CKD is often minimal or ineffective in the primary care setting. This leads to a lack of patient awareness and knowledge of self-care skills to prevent or slow progression of the disease. A lack of communication of has been attributed to the provider's lack of confidence and knowledge to discuss CKD and to avoid unnecessary stress. Purpose: The purpose of the DNP project is to provide a systematic review of patient-provider communication processes used to influence self-management or behavioral change in primary care and propose a tool to enhance communication and slow progression of CKD. Methods: A systematic review was conducted following the method guidelines of the Cochrane Collaboration. Six electronic databases were searched. Inclusion criteria were adult humans, primary research studies, systematic and literature reviews, focus on communication of self-management or behavioral change strategies, primary outcomes of improving self-management and/or patient outcomes and availability of full-text online or by request. Outcomes: Of the 5765 articles initially identified, 28 studies met inclusion criteria. The studies revealed a lack of evidence directed towards CKD and communication was not directly addressed in a majority of the studies. Interventions most successful in improving patient outcomes were individualized, elicited collaboration or interaction with the patient and provider, were motivational or encouraging and aided in barrier identification and problem solving. A communication tool was developed from the evidence in order to stimulate more meaningful conversation between the patient and provider.

The main aim of this thesis, „An Examination of the Marketing and Relationship Marketing Concepts, by Analysing Power, Disciplining and Compliance in Customer-Provider Relations‟, is to expand knowledge and thinking in the subject area of marketing by researching power, disciplining and compliance in relations between customers and providers. As such, it is part of current developments in marketing theory, as the following discussion will illustrate. Marketing is a dynamic and evolving discipline (Saunders and Lee 2005) and has been enriched by the introduction of significant new topics such as consumer passion, longing, gift giving, and history of ownership (Belk et al. 2003; Lowrey et al. 2004). The „variety and eclecticism‟ in current marketing research (Saunders and Lee 2005) have been achieved partly by drawing on frameworks, concepts and models developed in other disciplines (Baumgartner 2002). In recent years, „a more open minded attitude to research‟ and „methodological relaxation‟ have been encouraged (Tapp and Hughes 2008), and new methodological approaches have been explored (e.g. Thompson 1998, 2002; Sherry and Schouten 2002). Moreover, the supremacy of experimental-nomothetic methodological positions of quantification is being questioned (Fournier and Glenn Mick 1999) and, even though quantitative research continues to dominate (Hanson and Grimmer 2007), previously „unconventional‟ methodologies such as narrative analysis and hermeneutical frameworks demonstrate the growing acceptability of a wider range of methodologies (Saunders and Lee 2005). Such developments in marketing thought and approaches result from the identification of weaknesses or gaps in the conventional received wisdom on the subject (Wells 1993), and so place existing interpretations under scrutiny (Dawes and Brown 2000). However, commentators suggest that further growth and development are required. For instance, while Svensson (2006) argues that traditionalism still predominates, Tapp and Hughes (2004) and Katsiekas et al. (2007) invite scholars to analyse new topics and areas which are pertinent to practitioners and which contribute to a better understanding of marketing practice. At stake is the degree to which marketing research offers practitioners and society something „novel‟ and „of relevance‟ (Gummesson 2005). For marketing thinking to develop further, topics which are as yet inadequately researched need to be analysed more systematically (Katsiekas et al. 2007). An example of such a topic is the expression of power, influencing, disciplining and relational problems during interactions between customers and providers (Brown et al. 2000; Keysuk 2000; Ivens and Blois 2004). Though present in marketing theory, there are aspects of power which deserve greater attention. Examples of such issues are the types of power applied by providers and the ways in which providers design and carry out the disciplining of consumers during interactions in order to make them more compliant. These are the issues addressed in this thesis.

HIV is one of the world’s most potent killers. It’s a name we have most likely heard of before, and yet there are aspects of this disease that do not get as much of the spotlight. One such aspect of HIV is adherence. Adherence is a colossal issue when dealing with anti-retroviral (ART) medications. A lack of adherence to ART dosage can lead to viral immunity and even AIDS if not treated. Despite many attempts from providers to solve the issue of adherence, studies tell us that the challenges of adherence lie within deep-seeded sociocultural and economic backgrounds. As a result, an anthropological approach seems necessary in order to grasp these challenges. Overall, I believe that adherence is learned and innate. I aim to prove this by exploring the various provider discourses regarding HIV adherence by delving into the history of AIDS, the patient/provider hierarchy, and media representations of HIV.