Syfte: Syftet med studien är att belysa faktorer som påverkar SMF:s marknadsföring samtidigt som studien söker att kartlägga innehållsmarknadsföringens tillämpningsgrad hos studieobjekten. Metod: I studien används den kvalitativa forskningsmetoden. Tio telefonintervjuer ut fördes på hälsokostbutiker i Stockholm, Göteborg och Malmö. Urvalsgruppen valdes utifrån ett bekvämlighetsurval. Slutsatser: Innehållsmarknadsföring tillämpas av tre av dem tio SMF inom urvalsgruppen. Metoden anses ha en låg tillämpningsgrad. Studien har framgångsrikt belyst faktorer som påverkar urvalsgruppens marknadsföring med hjälp av den teoretiska referensramen. Dessa faktorer är närverkande som marknadsföringsverktyg, empirisk omvärldskontakt som inlärningsprocess för marknadsföring, slumpmässighet i marknadsföringsplanering och resursknapphet som påverkande kraft i marknadsföringsplanering.

This research aims at understanding how business networks influence the commercialization of emerging technologies. It focuses on small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the field of nanotechnology in the UK and aims to identify what types of networks they use for commercialization. It also examines how different types of networks can explain success or otherwise in commercialization with respect to the position of the SME in the value chain and the type of resulting innovation. Various streams of literature including debates on SMEs and innovation, open innovation, the innovation systems literature, and the industrial networks approach are used to develop a conceptual framework that guides this research. Using a case study approach, 23 Nanotech SMEs in the UK are investigated. Secondary data on firms are gathered from various sources including company websites and the FAME database. Primary data are collected through 40 semi-structured interviews with SMEs’ senior managers and key informants. Data analysis is based upon thematic analysis. The findings present a typology of networks based on a combination of network structure and actor roles, including six network types: incumbent-oriented network with reactive SME, incumbent-oriented network with proactive SME, SME-oriented network, broker-oriented networks, hybrid networks and interrupted networks. The findings indicate that a reactive approach towards networking is less conducive to commercialization, regardless of the innovation type or value chain position. SMEs can proactively create incumbent-oriented, SME-oriented or broker-oriented networks to facilitate commercialization. Incumbent-oriented networks with proactive SMEs are conducive to commercialization of both nanomaterials and nano-intermediate products and can facilitate commercialization of moderately and highly radical nanotechnology. SME-oriented networks are also conducive to commercialization of moderately and highly radical nanotechnology, but have been used for commercialization of nano-enabled products. Broker-oriented networks can facilitate commercialization of technologies or products developed in the upstream part of the value chain and are more influential in the commercialization of moderately or highly radical nanotechnology. Some Nanotech SMEs are simultaneously involved in more than one network type, i.e. have hybrid networks, pursuing multiple strategies for commercialization. All SMEs with hybrid networks have broker-oriented networks in common and in some cases the broker-oriented network has caused formation of other network types. Finally, the findings show how interrupted networks pose the biggest challenge for commercialization. The thesis contributes to the debates on SMEs and innovation and the gap on how open innovation is implemented within the context of SMEs and emerging technologies. This research also informs SME managers' strategies and choices related to participation in business networks. It provides further insights for policy makers regarding the networking behaviour of SMEs and contribution of various network actors to commercialization and in this way assists with devising policies for encouraging and facilitating collaboration for commercialization.

This thesis focuses on how small to medium-sized management consultancies internationalise, as this is an under-researched area. Investigation focuses on identifying the factors that facilitate international market success for these small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the challenges they encounter, and how those challenges have been overcome. The relevance of SME internationalisation theories is explored for SME management consultancies in the UK. The study is exploratory, phenomenological and framed within an interpretive research paradigm. Primary data was gathered qualitatively using multiple (9) case studies, collected principally through semi-structured interviews. This empirical research, one of the first to focus solely on SME management consultancies, finds the owner/founders as the key driver of internationalisation. Their past experience enables an international outlook and brings established networks to firm formation. The findings highlight the relevance of intangible resources: the firms’ skills, competencies and networking capabilities, as integral to successful internationalisation. Additional key critical success factors are niche market specialisation, firm reputation, firm location, ability for service provision modification and the role of technology. There are observed firm size-related differences in the challenges these firms face, with smaller-sized firms being more vulnerable to challenges from the external environment, including the 2008 financial crisis. Firms are able to overcome these challenges with the help of their networks. Other challenges stem from the firm’s service provision: difficulty in finding skilled staff and communication with clients. The findings suggest applicability for other knowledge-intensive firms. The research contributes to closing the gap in literature on how firms successfully provide services internationally and in so doing advances theoretical understanding of SME service internationalisation. This theory-building research demonstrates partial relevance of Stage Theory, Networking Theory, and Born Global Theory, but overall the resource-based view was found as the most relevant to understanding the internationalisation process of SME management consultancies. This sets a foundation for further research on the internationalisation process of other knowledge-intensive firms.

Background: Existing literature suggests research about sustainability and Small- and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) to be limited. SMEs tend to have less resources than large companies and as a result of this sustainability integration may be challenging. Despite these resource restrictions, some SMEs still succeed in integrating sustainability. Some literature suggests that organisational culture could influence the integration of sustainability. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to investigate how organisational culture attributes influence the integration of sustainability in Swedish SMEs. Method: To fulfil the purpose of this thesis, a multiple case study consisting of six SMEs in the Jönköping region is performed. Qualitative semi-structured interviews are conducted with the manager and/or head of sustainability. Furthermore, structured interviews are conducted with managers and employees, in an attempt to gain insights into the values and cultural attributes of the organisational culture of the SME.   Main Findings: The results reveal that an organisational culture which emphasises internal relationships, stability and goal-setting and planning seem to facilitate the integration of sustainability. SMEs with the attribute of valuing internal relationships are aided in the integration of sustainability through the existence of tightly knit groups that work together toward the long-term goal of integrating sustainability. The positive influence of stability stems from the fact that the attribute provides structure, economic stability, and a stable employee base. A high focus on goal-setting and planning may enable the integration of sustainability through providing clear missions and objectives which the company strives toward.  Managerial Implications: This study urges three implications for managers of SMEs; 1. It provide managers with some understanding of how their organisational culture may affect sustainability integration. 2. It provide insight into the challenges companies may face as the result of lacking certain cultural attributes. 3.  It provide indications of which attributes that could be beneficial to develop or incorporate into the organisational culture in order to aid the integration of sustainability.

Background: Blockchain is a technological innovation, and its benefits such as decentralized transactions without a trusted third party, improvements in traceability and efficiency can potentially facilitate complex challenges faced by supply chains (Hughes et al., 2019; Saberi et al., 2019). However, solutions are rather in a demonstration stage, which raises the question of what barriers prevent organizations from adopting blockchain (Kouhizadeh et al., 2021). Especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) have been neglected in blockchain adoption studies (Wong et al., 2020). However, research recognizes that they should be considered separately because of their specific needs (Chouki et al., 2020). Moreover, the pre-decision stage of the adoption is of interest, as blockchain applications for the supply chain are still in a pilot phase (Y. Wang, Singgih, et al., 2019). Research Question: What barriers do SMEs face during the pre-decision stage of blockchain adoption for supply chain? Theoretical Framework: A framework developed by Kouhizadeh et al. (2021) containing barriers that impede blockchain adoption for supply chains is contextualized in the pre-decision phase and focused on SMEs. Methodology and Data Collection: This thesis follows a qualitative, deductive approach. An exploratory single case study was conducted to collect data through semi-structured interviews. This sheds light on the blockchain adoption from the perspective of a Swedish SME in the pre-decision stage that intends to use blockchain for sustainable water management in an agricultural supply chain. Complementary to this, blockchain experts are interviewed to enrich companies' responses that cannot fully illuminate the barriers due to their limited knowledge. Findings: Supply chain barriers emerged as the most important, especially 'SC2- Problems in collaboration, communication, and coordination in the supply chain', and 'SC1- Lack of customers' awareness and tendency about sustainability and blockchain technology'. Furthermore, four characteristics were identified that significantly influence the perception of the barriers in the setting studied: The proactive commitment to adopting blockchain, the affinity and attitude toward information technology (IT), trust, and financial support. Conclusions: Several managerial and theoretical implications result from the study, as well as suggestions for further research. These include that SMEs and consultants should consider the characteristics that influence perceptions of barriers in order to prioritize the barriers, and also in research they should be more emphasized to enhance transferability of blockchain adoption research. Limitations include that the case study was conducted on a single SME in Sweden, therefore a validation of the results in other SMEs would be beneficial. In addition, a longitudinal study could shed light on how the barriers change during the adoption process, and further research could reveal the strategies that SMEs use to overcome the barriers.

Background: Existing literature implies research about Sustainability reporting and SMEs to be limited. SMEs are more vulnerable to economic pressure which may result in enhanced challenges in integrating sustainability practice. Because of SMEs’ vulnerability to financial pressures, and the law’s burden, the Swedish government, has excluded them from the law of sustainability reporting. Despite being excluded from the law, some SMEs are communicating on sustainability anyway, and the literature suggests that indirect forces could influence the strategies of sustainability performance.   Purpose: This thesis aims to explore the underlying rationale of why SMEs in Sweden communicate on their sustainability performance, through a lens of stakeholder engagement.   Method: The study is built upon enterprise occurrence, where four SMEs based in the Jönköping region has been interviewed with open- and semi-structured questions. The study follows an interpretivism approach with an exploratory nature of discovering the topic of SME and sustainability communication.   Conclusion: This study has shown that the answer to why SMEs communicate on their sustainability performance is rather complex as it is hidden behind enterprise’s unique institutional structures with internal and external influences that shape decisions and attitudes. Throughout this study, it has been recognised that SMEs’ sustainability communication is performed beyond legal borders due to various reasons, and in particular the following; pressure from surrounding institutional structures; stakeholder relationships; and visions based on personal values and strong organisational core beliefs.

Background: CSR has become an integral part of most businesses during the years, however, it has not necessarily happened by choice for every company. Stakeholders have become aware of the negative impact ofcorporations’ operations and actions on the planet and on society, consequently, they started to pressure companies to be more responsible when conducting business. However, facing financial shortages might interfere with the accomplishment of these practices and corresponding activities. Furthermore, as differently sized and differently located companies might practice CSR in a different way, size and geographical location might also have an influence on these CSR practices and activities. Purpose: The purpose of this research is to explore the influence of size and geography on CSR practices and activities adopted by SMEs and large corporations in Sweden and in Hungary when facing shortage in their financial resources. Method: In order to achieve the purpose, a qualitative research method has been used. Multiple case studies were conducted with two Hungarian SMEs, a Hungarian large enterprise, a Swedish SME and a Swedish large firm. The empirical data was collected with the help of semi-structured interviews as well as data from corporate websites, annual reports, sustainability reports and social media. Conclusion: The results of this thesis show that the approach each company takes to practicing CSR seems to influence all of their activities. The size of the company appears to influence fewer practices, while geography comes across as having the least influence among these factors.

I Sverige är 99.9 % av alla företag SME-företag. I dagens samhälle har förändrade förutsättningar och globala marknader ändrat kundkraven på exempelvis ledtid. Svenska tillverkande SME-företag kräver således ett sätt att anpassa sin produktion till dessa förändrade förutsättningar. VSM är en metod där current- och future-state mappas för att tydliggöra hur produktionen ser ut idag och hur det ska se ut imorgon. Det påvisas dock i tidigare studier att det finns hinder med VSM som motverkar framtagning av FSM. Det ska dock noteras att merparten av de studier som tidigare utförts har gjorts vid utländska företag eller företag större än SME. Dessa studier har dessutom genomförts i syfte att observera VSM i helhet och de fördelar som metoden har, eller undersöka vissa få hinder. Syftet med arbetet är därför att undersöka vilka hinder som kan försvåra för svenska SME-företag att designa future-state värdeflödeskartor som är lämpliga sett till deras verksamhet. Detta för att bättre möjliggöra för VSM implementation hos dessa företag. Detta har utförts genom att jämföra tidigare litteratur med en fallstudie på ett svenskttillverkande SME-företag inom metallindustrin och undersöka de mönster i hindren som observerats. Resultatet av arbetet var en modell av hinder som kan komma att försvåra försvenska SME-företag att designa future-state värdeflödeskartor som är lämpliga sett till deras verksamhet. Från denna modell tydliggörs ett stor överlapp mellan det empiriska resultatet och resultatet från tidigare studier. Ett hinder från tidigare litteratur motbevisas även och exkluderas från modellen. Detta medför att framtida utövare på svenska tillverkande SME-företag aktivt kan göra sig medvetna om de hinder som de kan tänkas stöta på samt vad dessa kan ha för påverkan på deras FSM, och genom detta förbereda sig för att möta dessa hinder. Framtida studier skulle kunna undersöka hinder vid användning av VSM-metoden på flera olika svenska tillverkande SME-företag och således skapa en bredare bild av hinder med VSM för framställning av en FSM / In Sweden, 99.9% of all companies are SMEs. In today's society, changing conditions and global markets have altered customer requirements, such as lead time. Therefore, Swedish manufacturing SMEs require a way to adapt their production to these changing conditions. Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is one such method that maps the current and future states to clarify how production looks today and how it should look tomorrow. However, previous studies have shown that there are obstacles with VSM that hinder the development of Future State Maps (FSMs). It should be noted that the majority of previous studies have been conducted in foreign or larger-than-SME companies. These studies have also been carried out to observe the entirety of VSM and its benefits or to investigate a few specific obstacles. The purpose of this study is to examine the obstacles that may hinder Swedish SMEs from designing future-state value stream maps suitable for their operations, in order to better enable VSM implementation in these companies. This has been accomplished by comparing previous literature with a case study conducted at a Swedish manufacturing SME in the metal industry and examining the patterns observed in the obstacles. The result of this work was a model of obstacles that may hinder Swedish SMEs from designing future-state value stream maps suitable for their operations. This table clearly shows a significant overlap between the empirical findings and the results from previous studies. Additionally, one obstacle from previous literature is contradicted. As a result, future practitioners in Swedish manufacturing SMEs can actively become aware ofthe obstacles they may encounter and understand their impact on their FSMs, thereby preparing to address these obstacles. Future studies could investigate obstacles in the use of the VSM method in several different Swedish manufacturing SMEs to create a broader understanding of obstacles with VSM for the development of an FSM.

<p dir="ltr">Small and medium enterprises generally employ the use of custom developed quoting programs to bid on goods and services. Custom bid programs (e.g., Microsoft Excel) are used to capture the company-specific costs of production. The inputs of variable costs, such as machine rate and scrap rate, are critical to get correct (Brassington & Pettitt, 2013); however, companies often rely on educated guesses and industry expertise to quote packaging products to end-users. Due to the guesswork involved there can be a financial difference between the quoted costs and actual costs. This variance is often the cause of significant lost dollars. Price, if not determined correctly, could negatively impact both the company’s and the product’s profitability (Helna, 2020). Predictive analytics can be used to support quoting activities by providing a future value based on previous job performance. The purpose of the present study is to identify whether predictive analytics can be used to predict machine rate and scrap rate to give more accuracy to quoting estimation.</p>

The pharmaceutical sector is important for human health due to the increasing demand for medical products but is also a pollution and waste intensive industry. There is an urgent need for the industry to review its environmental footprints and simultaneously consider the industrial transformation called Industry 4.0. This is especially true for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). To achieve these objectives, it is presumed that artificial intelligence (AI) will have an important role.  This thesis sets out to identify barriers that pharmaceutical SMEs may encounter when implementing AI to improve environmental efforts. Furthermore, due to the lack of efficient tools the Green Performance Map is analyzed to see if additional value in the design phase and running of a production system can be obtained. Semi-structured interviews were conducted as this thesis is a case study and follows an inductive process. Other qualitative data and literature were used to investigate the research questions. The results indicate that organizational, resource, regulatory and knowledge specific factors can create barriers. Furthermore, there are indications that the Green Performance Map will be useful in both the design phase and running of a production system, this is however dependent on the resources. / Läkemedelssektorn är viktig för människans hälsa på grund av den ökade efterfrågan av medicinska produkter men bidrar även till stora mängder avfall och föroreningar. Det finns ett akut behov att industrin granskar sina miljöavtryck och samtidigt överväger den industriella omvandlingen som kallas Industri 4.0. Detta gäller särskilt för små och medelstora företag. För att uppnå dessa mål kan Artificiell Intelligens (AI) komma att ha en betydelsefull roll.  Detta examensarbete syftar till att identifiera de hinder som små och medelstora läkemedelsföretag kan stöta på när de implementerar AI för att förbättra sitt miljöarbete. På grund av brist på effektiva verktyg analyseras dessutom Green Performance Map för att se om ett mervärde i designfasen och under driften av produktionssystemet kan erhållas. Semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes då examensarbetet är en fallstudie och följer en induktiv process. Kvalitativa data och litteratur användes för att undersöka forskningsfrågorna. Resultatet indikerar att organisatoriska, resurs-, reglerings- och kunskapsspecifika faktorer kan skapa barriärer. Dessutom, finns det indikatorer på att Green Performance Map kommer vara användbart både i designfasen och när produktionssystemet är i drift, detta är dock beroende på nivån av resurser.