Bakgrund Från och med den 1:a januari 2005 ska alla börsnoterade bolag inom EU tillämpa IFRS. I de flesta länder råder valfrihet för onoterade bolag att tillämpa IFRS eller nationella redovisningsstandards. Det har dock visat sig att SMEs främst väljer att tillämpa de nationella reglerna, då IFRS anses för omfattande och kostsamma att tillämpa. Mot denna bakgrund tog IASB initiativet till ett förslag om ett införande av internationella enhetliga redovisningsstandards för små- och medelstora företag. Syfte Denna uppsats avser att undersöka hur redovisningsstandards som idéer sprids, vilka bärarna av idéerna är samt hur idéerna blir starka och uppnår legitimitet. Vidare avses att utreda vilka institutionella faktorer som kan förklara inställningen till införandet av internationella enhetliga redovisningsstandards för SMEs i olika länder. Avgränsningar Uppsatsen avgränsas till att omfatta länder som tillhör den anglosaxiska och kontinentaleuropeiska redovisningstraditionen samt ingår i EU eller EEA. Metod Syftet besvaras genom att analysera hur IASB gått tillväga avseende SME-projektet samt genom att tolka de yttranden som inkommit till IASB avseende diskussionsunderlaget ”Preliminary Views on Accounting Standards for Small and Medium-sized Entities”. Resultat Redovisningsidéer sprids genom idébärare samt genom tolkningsprocessen där de även blir starka och vinner legitimitet. Vilken redovisningstradition ett land tillhör är avgörande för inställningen till IFRS för SMEs. Beskattningssystemet är av stor betydelse, profession och normgivande organ har också inverkan, medan kapitalmarknadsstrukturen i landet är av underordnad betydelse. / Background All listed companies within the EU are obligated to apply IFRS in their accounting from January the 1st 2005. In most countries, companies are allowed to choose between applying the IFRS or their national regulations. It has shown that SMEs primarly choose to apply the national rules, since IFRS appears to be to complex and expensive. From this background IASB initiated a proposal regarding an implementation of international accountingstandards for small and medium-sized entities. Purpose This paper intends to examine how accounting standards as ideas are spread, who the carriers of the idea are and how the ideas become strong and gain legitimacy. Further, the intention is to examine what institutional factors, which can explain the attitude towards the implementation of international accounting standards for SMEs in different countries. Demarcation This study considers countries that belong to the anglosaxon or continentaleuropean accounting traditions and is a part of the EU or EEA. Realization The purpose is filled through analyzing IASBs line of action regarding the SME-project and through interpretation of the comments received by IASB, regarding the discussionpaper ”Preliminary Views on Accounting Standards for Small and Medium-sized Entities”. Results Accountingideas are spread through bearers of the ideas and by the interpretationprocess, where they get strong and also gains legitimacy. What accountingtradition a country belongs to is crucial in the regards to the attitude towards IFRS for SMEs. Taxsystem is of great importance, profession and standardsetters as well, whereas the structure of the capitalmarket is less important.

La tesi analizza le strategie di internazionalizzazione delle imprese agroalimentari di piccole e medie dimensioni, con particolare riferimento al caso italiano. In particolare, vengono prese in esame diverse forme di alleanze strategiche interorganizzative che tali imprese possono adottare per incrementare l'espansione internazionale e l'ingresso in nuovi mercati. A questo proposito, la tesi è essenzialmente articolata in due studi, uno riguardante il lato "a monte" della catena del valore (ossia il mercato di fornitura), e l'altro il versante "a valle", ossia il mercato del cliente finale. / The thesis analyzes agrifood SMEs internationalization strategies, with specific reference to the Italian case. In particular, the study focuses on the different forms of interorganizational strategic networks to foster geographic expansion and foreign market entry. Regarding this matter, moreover, the thesis is basically articulated in two studies, one concerning the upstream side of the value creation system (i.e. the supply market), while the other the downstream side (i.e. customer market).

Laut dem Weltklimarat ist es zweifelsfrei, dass sich das Klima global ändert. Ein sich veränderndes Klima wirkt sich jedoch nicht nur auf die Umwelt, sondern auch auf Unternehmen aus. Diese Auswirkungen können sowohl positiver als auch negativer Art sein. Um auf diese Auswirkungen adäquat zu reagieren, ist es zunächst von Bedeutung, die positiven als auch negativen Effekte zu identifizieren und diese entsprechend zu interpretieren. Ziel der Befragung ist es daher, zu erfassen, wie sich Unternehmen vom Klimawandel betroffen fühlen und wie diese darauf reagieren. Des Weiteren wird untersucht, welche Faktoren einen Einfluss auf den Anpassungsprozess haben. Für die Befragung wurden im Juni 2012 über 2.000 Handwerksbetriebe angeschrieben, wovon insgesamt 207 Unternehmen antworteten. Zwei Drittel dieser Unternehmen nimmt den Klimawandel wahr. Allerdings fühlte sich in der Vergangenheit die Mehrheit der Unternehmen von Extremwetterereignissen nicht betroffen. Die größten negativen Einflüsse werden gegenwärtig als auch in der Zukunft bei den Kältewellen gesehen. Innerhalb des Unternehmens sind insbesondere die Logistik und der Einkauf in Zukunft negativ betroffen; positive Wirkungen werden sich hingegen beim Absatz erhofft. Insgesamt erwarten die Unternehmen eher negative als positive Effekte aus dem Klimawandel, wobei insbesondere das Nahrungsmittelgewerbe und das KFZ-Gewerbe mit negativen Auswirkungen auf ihren Betrieb rechnen. Da sich nur wenige Unternehmen von Extremwetterereignissen bzw. dem Klimawandel betroffen fühlen, verwundert es nicht, dass fast drei Viertel der Unternehmen keine Anpassungsmaßnahmen planen und der Teil, der Anpassungsmaßnahmen umsetzt(e) bzw. beabsichtigt umzusetzen, eher einen geringen Anteil ausmacht. Dies könnte darauf zurückgeführt werden, dass in etwa jedes zweite Unternehmen die Auswirkungen des Klimawandels gegenwärtig nicht finanziell spürt. Darüber hinaus fehlen finanzielle Eigenmittel, private Finanzierungsmöglichkeiten und öffentliche Fördermöglichkeiten. Des Weiteren besteht eine hohe Unsicherheit, ob Extremwettereignisse überhaupt auftreten, und welche Anpassungsmaßnahmen möglich wären. Basierend auf den Befragungsergebnissen ist zu empfehlen, Unternehmen mit Informationen zur Thematik Klimawandelfolgen und Anpassungsoptionen zu versorgen, Unternehmen zu Risikoanalysen zu motivieren und mögliche finanzielle Unterstützung im Rahmen der Anpassung an die Auswirkungen des Klimawandels anzubieten.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are seen as backbone for economic growth because they are regarded as catalyst for entrepreneurial skills, innovation and employment. Since in Sweden approximately 99.89% of enterprises are SMEs, they take an important role in country’s economic development.        Most of the countries especially EU nations have abolished the statutory audit provision for (SMEs). The new Swedish legislation of statutory audit exemption came into effect on 1st November, 2010. In accordance with this new legislation, (SMEs) within two out of three following criteria; turnovers 3 million Swedish Kronor, balance sheet total 1.5 million Swedish Kronor and 3 total numbers of employees are exempted from statutory audit requirement. Despite the fact that audit exempted SMEs are voluntarily conducting financial statements audited.                       As per above matters, this study finds the expected benefits of audit exempted SMEs in Sweden when they go for voluntary audited financial statements. In order to attain our research findings, this study chooses to conduct qualitative research method by semi- structured interviews with respondents from SMEs. Besides that, bankers’ opinion on audited financial statements and voluntary audits are discussed in order to complement our main research finding.  When it comes to collect empirical data, we use convenient data sampling from Sweden, particularly in Umeå due to the cost and time limitations.            According to our empirical results, the expected benefits for audit exempted SMEs in Sweden voluntarily conducting their financial statements audit are as follow: Security with the audited financial information Right amount of tax paid to tax authorities Easy to get bank loan                 Better relation with creditors, investors and suppliers   In accordance with empirical results of bankers, we can confirm that bank will grant loan easily to clients who have their financial accounts audited. As a contribution of new knowledge we find that in Sweden, banks used credit scoring lending technique when it comes to grant bank loan. The interest rate determination is also relied on credit rating of companies. Companies who have good credit rating will be granted loan with lower interest rate. As for small companies who would like to get external financing from banks, the requirement criteria could describe as; audited financial statements, collaterals, business plan, owners’ grantee for loan repayment and good credit history.

Much research has been conducted within Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), and it is currently a highly debated topic. Today, CSR is not only pursued in response to public pressure, but is also seen as a source of competitive advantage and differentiation. The problem that this thesis deals with is that many SMEs do not use CSR as a proactive competitive tool in a strategic manner. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to develop an evaluation framework for SME‟s CSR projects, and to use this framework to analyze Casall‟s CSR projects in order to provide recommendations for Casall regarding strategic CSR. CSR as a concept is first discussed with the use of previous literature. This leads to the development of an evaluation framework for SME‟s CSR projects. The methodology is carefully considered, and a qualitative case study is chosen to be conducted at Casall. The results and analysis are presented in accordance with the theoretical framework and method. An in-depth analysis is conducted with the help of the evaluation framework. This leads to recommendations on Casall‟s existing and future engagement in CSR projects. The five recommendations are to simplify the guidelines for producers, adapt the guidelines for producers, get engaged in the local community, implement an internal code of conduct, and raise customer awareness of their engagement in CSR. This thesis contributes to the academic society by combining theories into a practical framework for evaluating SMEs‟ CSR projects. More specifically, the framework is used to guide Casall in their future CSR involvement. The framework can also be useful for other SMEs to evaluate and integrate suitable CSR projects into corporate strategy.

During the past decade, advances in information technology have facilitated the rapid international expansion of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Cloud computing has enabled a new wave of firms to offer services on the web regardless of geographic distances. The aim of this study is to explore how cloud computing affect the external variables network and culture in the internationalization process of an SME. In order to explore the impact on these external variables, a qualitative case study is carried out on a business-to-business SME offering cloud services within small and open economies. The findings explain why closeness was important and why the cloud service firm was limited to a gradual internationalization process although the technology has the potential to break this pattern or accelerate it. The results from this study are valuable for scholars since the internationalization process of cloud service firms is an under-researched area. It is also useful for cloud service SMEs when making strategic decisions in the internationalization process.

The world market has during recent decades become an increasingly globalized arena, in which lowered trade barriers, enhanced technology, worldwide communication and containerization have made internationalization an easily obtainable option for companies. The once dominating multinational enterprises are present day challenged by small- and medium sized enterprises as global actors, and competitiveness is an ever-increasing factor, making the pursuit and exploitation of opportunities essential.   The International Entrepreneurship Theory has during the last two decades emerged as a theory explaining the phenomena of small- and medium sized enterprises internationalizing their operations at an early age; a theory comprehending entrepreneurial behavior, the ability to explore and take advantage of opportunities overlooked by others in order to create value in the organization.   The purpose of this thesis is to create an understanding of the emergence, definition and theoretical framework of the International Entrepreneurship Theory. By implementing a deductive research approach and a quantitative research method, empirical data is collected in order to confront the theoretical framework in the analysis. The analysis will further be the basis for conclusions and recommendations that will conclude our thesis.

The most dominating type of company in Sweden is the small-sized business and it usually lacks its own marketing department. The purpose of this paper was to analyze several small Swedish businesses which are specialized in different sectors of the Mechanic/Technology industry but they are similar in terms of having niched products and they are leading companies in the world. The objective was to do research about how small businesses work with marketing despite its lack of resources and capital. This survey has shown that customer contacts, customer relationships and especially for those investigated companies, it was very important to focus on globalization and product development in order to build a Point of Difference.

The increasing impact of mass production and consumption behaviours have made sustainable product design an important issue in design literature in the last two decades. Studies in the early period focussed on research projects carried out in collaboration with multinational large-sized enterprises, owing to pressures from non-governmental organizations. However, recent studies about sustainable development have pointed out that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) rather than multinationals have a greater share of manufacturing and employment in both industrialized and industrializing countries. Unfortunately, in spite of the important role of SMEs, there is inadequate data and literature relating sustainable design practices to these firms. A lack of information and collaboration, caused partially by communication problems, has resulted in an absence of proper sustainable product design tools for these companies. Furniture enterprises in Ankara are the focus of this study because of the impact of product design in market possibilities and the spread of employment of product designers in the sector. Attitudes of staff and consultants of furniture SMEs regarding barriers and opportunities of sustainable product design are explored, and contrasted with overlapping points of existing product development methods and strategies in the literature. This work is intended to contribute to improved understanding and application of sustainable product design among furniture sector SMEs. To this end, interviews were conducted with 16 furniture manufacturing enterprises from the furniture industry, based in Ankara region and 5 freelance furniture designers cooperating with these enterprises. According to the results of the study, furniture sector SMEs are interested more in economic opportunities of sustainable product design rather than environmental and social aspects. Furthermore, a lack of information about environmental issues is observed in micro and small-sized enterprises / to overcome this situation, it is recommended that training sessions are organized to bring together researchers and practitioners.

In Paper [I], we theoretically assess green public procurement (GPP) as an environmental policy instrument and its ability to lead to the achievement of environmental objectives. Central to our analysis is the extent to which polluting firms choose to adapt to the public sector's environmental requirements and to invest in greener technologies. Our main finding is that the potential of GPP to function as an objective-effective instrument of environmental policy is limited and can actually be counterproductive. From an environmental policy point of view, it is crucial that GPP aims for environmental standards beyond just the technology of the polluting firms and that it is designed with reference to defined environmental objectives. In Paper [II], we use data on Swedish public procurement auctions for internal regular cleaning service contracts to provide novel empirical evidence regarding GPP and its effect on the potential suppliers' decision to submit a bid and their probability of being qualified for supplier selection. We find only a weak effect on supplier behavior, and this suggests that GPP, as used in practice, does not live up to its political expectations. However, several environmental criteria appear to be associated with increased complexity, as indicated by the reduced probability of a bid being qualified in the post-qualification process. As such, GPP appears to have limited or no potential to function as an environmental policy instrument. In Paper [III], I examine how GPP is organized in Sweden and how the potential suppliers respond to varying buyer market shares using data on Swedish public procurement auctions for internal regular cleaning service contracts. The level of GPP stringency is found to vary systematically across authority types, buyer market share, and political coalition in the relevant council or in Parliament. The results also indicate quite a substantial dispersion in GPP stringency, suggesting a low degree of coordination among contracting authorities when implementing the policy. After controlling for GPP stringency and other covariates, increased buyer market share is associated with a significant increase in the probability of potential suppliers submitting a bid. The European Commission encourages public authorities to split procurement contracts into multiple contracts in order to increase the competiveness of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). In Paper [IV], I use data from Swedish public procurement auctions for internal regular cleaning service contracts to study the effect of contract size and number of contracts on SME participation and probability of winning. The results indicate that SME participation is negatively related to both contract size and the number of contracts in the procurement. A possible interpretation is that reduced contract size in order to stimulate SME participation is counteracted by reduced incentives for them to enter into procurements with multiple contracts. Medium-sized firms are also more successful when bidding for smaller contracts relative to large firms. Nevertheless, the results indicate that the award rate for SMEs is positively correlated with the number of contracts in the procurement. / Green Public Procurement: An Efficient Environmental Policy Tool?