Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited / The identification, selection and employment of better resource allocation models or practices is the aim of this research. As nations seek to employ their resources in a more efficient manner while deriving more effective outputs, those elected to public office must be willing to involve other members of the society in their decision-making. National security is one such area that is in need of a shared vision if it is to achieve the desired results. This paper examines the resource allocation process for national security in Jamaica. The purpose of this study is to establish whether the current process is adequate for addressing this aspect of the country's expenditure, as it impacts upon every citizen and every other area of the nation's affairs. In establishing whether the Jamaican model is adequate, a study of the processes used in three developed countries, namely Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States is done with a view of identifying the strengths and weaknesses of each process. The understanding of best practices in the field of national security is important, since after all, foreign trade and hence economic prosperity are more likely to be associated with nations that create secure environments. How much to allocate to defense and the consideration of all other viable alternatives is crucial. Only then can the nation look objectively at its unique situation. / Major, Jamaica Defence Force

I denna uppsats studeras investeringsprocesser i det divisionaliserade företaget Södra Skogsägarna ekonomisk förening. Studiens syfte är att beskriva och förklara företagets investeringsprocesser och i vilken utsträckning dessa processer är standardiserade. I studien analyseras dessa investeringsprocesser utifrån befintlig teori. Studien visar att investeringsprocesser initieras i den operativa verksamheten för att sedan drivas fram i den operativa verksamheten och i ledningen på enhetsnivå. Beslut fattas på alla nivåer i företaget efter investeringars storlek. Vidare visar studien att det både finns stora likheter och skillnader mellan divisionernas investeringsprocesser. Likheter har ofta sin grund i företagets investeringsinstruktioner medan skillnader ofta har sin grund i divisionernas olika egenskaper och förutsättningar. / This essay studies the capital resource allocation process in the divisionalized company Södra Skogsägarna ekonomisk förening. The study aims to describe and explain the company's capital resource allocation processes and to describe and explain to what extent these processes are standardized. The study analyzes these processes using existing theory on the subject. The study shows that the capital resource allocation process is initiated by the operational levels of the firm and then integrated by the operational levels and the business unit management. Decisions are made at all levels of the company based on the capital expenditure. The study also shows that there are both major similarities and differences between the divisions’ capital resource allocation processes. The similarities are often a result of the company's capital budgeting manual while the differences often due to the different characteristics and environments of the divisions.

This thesis addresses important operational aspects relating to fundamental components of any successfully executed NPD strategy: the processes, incentives and structure of decision rights that should be implemented given the objectives and capabilities of the firm. The first chapter outlines when a firm might prefer to compensate members of a NPD project team either, as individuals (e.g. based on their functional contribution to overall value) or as a team (e.g. based on the overall profit generated). We find that neither team nor individual based compensation is preferred for all types of projects. Specifically, when there is higher uncertainty, the firm can benefit by employing team-based compensation. We discuss the implications of our findings towards the firm's ability to pursue different types of projects. In Chapter 3, we look at the strategic resource allocation processes that are employed by firms in order to decide whether NPD initiatives get funded or not. We find that there is not a "one size fits all" resource allocation process that all firms should employ. Furthermore,we extend this finding by further by providing a rationale explaining why even a single firm could benefit by employing multiple processes internal to the firm. Finally, in Chapter 4, we empirically explore how key managerial levers of the firm (i.e. incentives, tolerance for failure, and project management structure) affect an individual's propensity to invest in a project. Our analysis brings forth several under-explored and novel aspects. We examine how multiple managerial levers work in concert with one another (revealing interactions that, to our knowledge, have not been exposed). We also recognize an important aspect of most (if not all) NPD contexts: the probability of success is strongly tied to the level of resources that are invested.