Earlier, sustainable development was perceived as a hindrance to economic growth. This seems not to be the case today because strategies towards sustainable development are becoming more common, especially in nonprofit organizations. Sustainable development is about creation of strategies that include wellbeing of present and next generations. This shows that it is important for today’s organizations to be sustainable. However, stakeholders have a part to play in this since they are capable of influencing organizations towards sustainable development. To these influences organizations respond either in a proactive or defensive way. As a result the purpose of this study is to investigate the stakeholders’ influences on sustainable development in a nonprofit organization and how this nonprofit organization responds to these influences strategically. After looking at previous literature about relevant concepts, three research questions were formulated. This study is a case study where in five in-depth interviews have been carried in a Swedish nonprofit organization with an ongoing project about sustainable development. In the course of the study it became clear that there are several important aspects to consider when thriving for sustainability. Furthermore, some stakeholder groups possess more power to influence sustainable development and the organizational response might not have to be exclusively proactive or defensive. Lastly results of this study show that important identified factors of sustainability in this organization are economic, environmental and social. The internal stakeholders are the ones influencing sustainable development in this particular organization and the organization responds by creation of proactive strategies.

This study discusses possible effects on investment decisions among Gotland enterprises from the ongoing public discourse over the present and future Gotland ferry traffic to mainland Sweden. Central topics are a substantial freight cost disadvantage, level and classification of state funding. By way of critical discourse analysis of statements from the most visible, powerful and persistent stakeholders surrounding the Gotland ferry issue are two major discursive thrusts identified. The level of enterprise awareness of the ferry discourses is investigated in a survey and correlated to perceived political uncertainty. Also is uncertainty related to investment reluctance. Further is the share of mainland marketed products related to the share of value-added products, and finally are enterprises asked whether they have invested to enhance the share of value-added products or if such investments are planned. The findings indicate that enterprises are well aware of the ferry discourse which is bringing about a high level of political uncertainty, while the level of investment hesitancy is somewhat more modest. Still a majority of enterprises are postponing or even refraining from investments. Also of interest is the high degree of consistency between enterprises with a high share of mainland marketing and high share of value-added products. A minority of enterprises has chosen the strategy to enhance their share of value-added products or is planning investments to that end in order to compensate for the higher transport costs. Longitudinal studies comparing the transport cost share of overall turnover for Gotland enterprises and their mainland competitors in the agriculture/food, manufacturing and tourism sectors are suggested, together with a study whether a more strategic investment pattern might evolve among Gotland enterprises.

Waterfront development has been an issue of wide concern and extensive discussion since the 1970s. This study provides more insight into the phenomenon by applying the existing knowledge to a different political and economic context. A ?phased model? is proposed as a ?prototype? of waterfront development. It analyzes waterfront development as a series of five temporal stages, i. e. pre-start-up, start-up, early development, mega projects and maturity. Each of the phases is characterized by the involvement of specific stakeholders, issues and events, and outcomes. A trend in the input of stakeholders is discerned: Trends in the inputs of three stakeholders, the municipal government, the special purpose agencies and the private sector, are discerned whereby initial government investments are complemented and eventually exceeded by investments from the private sector. Analyses of three sites in Dalian?s (in Northeast China) waterfront development suggest that all three sites fit appropriately into the phase model. This suggests the applicability of western theory to cases elsewhere in a different political and economic context. The hypothesis on the evolutionary trend of stakeholders? inputs is tested, rendering generally confirmative results that: (1) the <b><i>municipal government?s</i></b> input followed a first increasing and then decreasing trend; (2) <b><i>special purpose agencies?</i></b> input intensity showed a rising pattern, exceeding that of the municipal government in later phases; (3) The <b><i>private sector</b></i> was seldom involved in waterfront development until the mega projects phase but their investments rose sharply after that. Finally, applying criteria for success gleaned from the literature, the overall evaluation of Dalian?s waterfront development can be viewed as being a success. However, the seasonality of tourism, the lifecycle of tourism products and the insufficient respect paid to local residents? interests are pointed out as possible deficiencies.

The overall aim of this thesis is to explore how evaluation can support higher education development. The thesis addresses the current use of evaluation machines (Dahler-Larsen, 2012b) in relation to the distinctive features of higher education development. Evaluation and educational change are discussed from a social constructivist perspective. Key concepts are: evaluation as a context sensitive process with the purpose of understanding and assessing the value of education (Elliott &amp; Kushner, 2007), participation (Whitmore, 1998) and deliberation (Gutman &amp; Thompson, 2004). The thesis rests on a collection of four articles, three of them based on data originating from a longitudinal case study. This case study explores a participative stakeholder evaluation that was employed as a strategy to support the development of an undergraduate medical programme at a Swedish university. Empirical data were gathered through a literature review, interviews with ten stakeholders, logbook notes from the evaluation and development process and lastly evaluations conducted of the study programme. By highlighting the complexity of educational work and the expectations of the medical profession, the evaluation strategy studied contributed to the creation of a qualified and nuanced development process. It also illuminated an evaluation process that is more associated with learning than with quality enhancement. The practice-near and language sensitive process supported the creation of a community of practice promoting dialogue, critical enquiry, educational conversations and enlightenment. The commitment to cooperation, dialogue and enlightenment was, however, constantly threatened by a higher education culture that is increasingly characterized by productivity and efficiency. The analysis suggests that the complex context of higher education calls for more varied evaluation strategies characterized by holistic perspectives, enlightenment and local ownership. Evaluations that provide answers to crucial questions are a prerequisite for change in higher education. Giving teachers responsibility for the process should develop both their ability to conduct educational evaluations, to work with educational development and ultimately facilitate definitions of educational quality specific to education.

The authors of this paper will identify the main stakeholders in the energy intensive industry in Sweden. Moreover, this paper will examine in what way these stakeholders affect the environmental strategy of the firm. A case study was performed at Pilkington, a float glass manufacturer in Halmstad. The findings show that government, top management, shareholders and employees represent the main stakeholders influencing the firm’s environmental strategy. The authors of this paper did not find any data supporting NGO’s (Non-Governmental Organizations) as a stakeholder influencing the firm. However, the findings indicate that the firm’s perceptions of stakeholders affect the environmental strategy of the firm. Moreover, this thesis empirically investigates how stakeholders can influence to a more or less proactive or reactive environmental strategy.

Waterfront development has been an issue of wide concern and extensive discussion since the 1970s. This study provides more insight into the phenomenon by applying the existing knowledge to a different political and economic context. A ?phased model? is proposed as a ?prototype? of waterfront development. It analyzes waterfront development as a series of five temporal stages, i. e. pre-start-up, start-up, early development, mega projects and maturity. Each of the phases is characterized by the involvement of specific stakeholders, issues and events, and outcomes. A trend in the input of stakeholders is discerned: Trends in the inputs of three stakeholders, the municipal government, the special purpose agencies and the private sector, are discerned whereby initial government investments are complemented and eventually exceeded by investments from the private sector. Analyses of three sites in Dalian?s (in Northeast China) waterfront development suggest that all three sites fit appropriately into the phase model. This suggests the applicability of western theory to cases elsewhere in a different political and economic context. The hypothesis on the evolutionary trend of stakeholders? inputs is tested, rendering generally confirmative results that: (1) the <b><i>municipal government?s</i></b> input followed a first increasing and then decreasing trend; (2) <b><i>special purpose agencies?</i></b> input intensity showed a rising pattern, exceeding that of the municipal government in later phases; (3) The <b><i>private sector</b></i> was seldom involved in waterfront development until the mega projects phase but their investments rose sharply after that. Finally, applying criteria for success gleaned from the literature, the overall evaluation of Dalian?s waterfront development can be viewed as being a success. However, the seasonality of tourism, the lifecycle of tourism products and the insufficient respect paid to local residents? interests are pointed out as possible deficiencies.

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Internal communication is pivotal for the effectiveness of company procedures and ultimately the success of the company. Understanding more about the communicative needs of different employee groups is therefore important in order to convey a message in a satisfying manner to those employees. This explorative study is investigating communication preferences from a stakeholder perspective to find out what influences the appropriateness of using different communication channels when transmitting information to different stakeholder groups. Interviews with employees at different levels and functions at PostNord were conducted and analysed. We conclude that the top level stakeholder prefers face-to-face communication due to complex topics being discussed with a high need for feedback. The stakeholder at the middle organisational level preferred e-mail due to being constantly interrupted and therefore need to access information at later times. The bottom level consisted of two stakeholder groups that had high degree, respectively low degree of customer interaction. They both preferred face-to-face, for reasons that had grounds in strict working schedules and work tasks - they were not given time to take in information properly in any other way than scheduled meetings, and the stakeholder with low customer interaction mostly worked alone which made this stakeholder value meetings with other colleagues.

Corporate social responsibility is a widely discussed concept in today’s business, with different perceptions as well as explanations regarding the meaning and impact of the concept. Organizations are becoming more aware of the concept as well as their responsibilities to the society, which in turn results in organizations devoting more resources into CSR related activities. Nowadays, it is significant to establish a proper CSR performance while also having a solid financial foundation in order to reach a long-term sustainable success. The purpose of this study is to describe how CSR is connected to firm performance, in terms of market share and market growth. While a growing number of studies have been made regarding investigating CSR and its various dimensions, it is still unclear what the underlying factors that tie the relationship together are. This purpose was tested on a company in southern Sweden; this company Emballator Lagan Plast (ELP) produces plastic packaging solutions for a number of industries. Alongside the literature research, a case study with semi-structured interviews was conducted at ELP in order to collect data needed to answer the purpose and research questions. One of the essential findings of the study revealed from the literature, which was also proven in the case study, was that CSR is a fundamental element in an organization and it should be implemented throughout the entire organization to gain maximum effect. Moreover, the findings indicate that CSR has a positive impact on ELP’s performance. Even though the relationship is not direct, it still exists through mediating roles, and it has played an important role in the company’s growth and success. Keywords:Corporate social responsibility, firm performance, stakeholders.

Mining has always played an important role in human development. The growing demand for miningnowadays puts under threat biodiversity and ecosystem services, which leads to many conflicts based on choicebetween environment protection and social and economical development. Studying a case of a limestone quarryon Northern Gotland as one of the most representative cases of such conflict, gave an opportunity to investigateand analyze the cost of the decision-making in mining as well as interaction between stakeholders affecting andbeing affected by the decision from the perspective of the group opposing to mining. The research showedweakness of communication between the stakeholders; the weakness of the argument supporting social andeconomical development and giving it higher priority than the environment; and the best possible solution whichwould be turning the whole area of interest into a national park, even though such solution would not fulfilltheinterests of the mining company.