The purpose of this study is to create a deeper understanding of why collaboration projects emerge. The background of the study is the fact that collaboration projects are increasing in the society and being impelemented in the welfare. This is the basis of the researched question, why does Lund municipality tend to start collaboration projects within the welfare for young people? The study is conducted as a case study on a chosen project, ComUng. ComUng is a collaboration project that works with youths who are at risk of alienation. Interviews, text analysis and a web survey have been used as methods to find out why collaboration projects emerge. The results have been analyzed using an analysis tool based on research by DiMaggio and Powell (1983), which attempts to identify why organizations become increasingly alike. This phenomenon is called institutional isomorphism and is analyzed using three mechanisms: coercive isomorphism, mimetic isomorphism and normative isomorphism. The result of the study is that primarily two out of the three mechanisms have influenced the formation of ComUng. These are coercive isomorphism and normative isomorphism. The main difficulty I experienced during the study is the low frequency of answers to the web survey. Despite of this I believe the case study of ComUng can contribute with knowledge about why collaboration projects are formed. The conclusion is that a combination of a mindset shared by the personel and the resource possibilities from an external actor, in this case the European Social Fund, are the primary factors that have enabled this project. Previous research has tended to focus on the external resource. However, I believe that the personel and their opinion on how welfare can be operated are equally important.

<p>The present study explores the relationship between the ‘knowledge-enabling environment’ and the demand for training using a sample of 18 small private companies providing educational and consultancy services in Sweden. In this way, the dissertation is an exploration of the ways Swedish knowledge-intensive companies manage their knowledge. The 18 companies have participated in a European program for developing employee competence, financed by the European Social Fund. As part of this European-financed program companies have evaluated their business activity and determined their training needs in order to remain competitive. The 18 companies, thus, provide a rare opportunity to explore aspects of the demand for training in small enterprises. </p><p>Knowledge is understood here as both the structure and the content of mental schemas. It is embodied in individuals; it differs from information and data; and it can be tacit or explicit. When looking at organizational processes for managing knowledge, it is important to consider formal organized activities for learning, but also informal learning activities, which constitute the main source for tacit knowledge as well as the conditions in place for knowledge creation, what is here called the ‘knowledge-enabling environment’. It is argued that through knowledge management, companies are indeed implementing strategies for the promotion of lifelong learning.</p><p>Each company in the sample is rather unique in their ‘knowledge-enabling environment’. The exploration of the demand for training shows that the selected companies invest only less than half their perceived training needs. In both sectors the working-environment characteristics that according to the theories reviewed, should promote learning, do not necessarily foster a higher demand for learning, with the exception of information technology. Finally, Also interesting is that employees demand more training if their engagement in informal learning is low.</p>

The final thesis focuses on thema education and development of employees. The aim is to define these terms and explain the main theoretical approaches to education and development of employees. The first part of final thesis states new knowledge which were afterwards applied into practice during the research. Research, based on questionnaire completed by employees, is aimed at evaluation of project efficiency in a concrete company. The goal of project is to implement a new education strategy. At the end of practical part the survey results and improvement suggestions to project are described.

The present study explores the relationship between the ‘knowledge-enabling environment’ and the demand for training using a sample of 18 small private companies providing educational and consultancy services in Sweden. In this way, the dissertation is an exploration of the ways Swedish knowledge-intensive companies manage their knowledge. The 18 companies have participated in a European program for developing employee competence, financed by the European Social Fund. As part of this European-financed program companies have evaluated their business activity and determined their training needs in order to remain competitive. The 18 companies, thus, provide a rare opportunity to explore aspects of the demand for training in small enterprises. Knowledge is understood here as both the structure and the content of mental schemas. It is embodied in individuals; it differs from information and data; and it can be tacit or explicit. When looking at organizational processes for managing knowledge, it is important to consider formal organized activities for learning, but also informal learning activities, which constitute the main source for tacit knowledge as well as the conditions in place for knowledge creation, what is here called the ‘knowledge-enabling environment’. It is argued that through knowledge management, companies are indeed implementing strategies for the promotion of lifelong learning. Each company in the sample is rather unique in their ‘knowledge-enabling environment’. The exploration of the demand for training shows that the selected companies invest only less than half their perceived training needs. In both sectors the working-environment characteristics that according to the theories reviewed, should promote learning, do not necessarily foster a higher demand for learning, with the exception of information technology. Finally, Also interesting is that employees demand more training if their engagement in informal learning is low.

This in-depth cross-national case study questions broad assertions made to date regarding the general similarities that can be found in exceptional need systems within social assistance schemes in Britain (the Social Fund) and the Netherlands (Bijzondere Bijstand). Based on qualitative documentary analysis and in-depth interviews with those who administer discretionary payments in both countries the research highlights that these nominally similar schemes serve diverse goals and aims in their national contexts. Reflecting the different traditions of cash and care and the administrative structure of the state in the implementation of policy in this area, the first part of the thesis demonstrates that Bijzondere Bijstand in the Netherlands is firmly situated in an 'activity fare' context whilst the Social Fund remains largely separate from the administration of 'welfare to work' in Britain. The second part of the thesis highlights the empirically observed diversity that follows from these configurations of social assistance. Those who administer these payments have quite different educational and occupational backgrounds that inform the ways they think about poverty and the poor and are related to what they try to do for clients and customers with discretionary payments. The Dutch 'paternalistic' administrator attempts to facilitate paths out of social assistance for clients whilst Social Fund Officers are concerned with 'managerially' processing a large number of applicants in the context of targets and budgets. Organisational contexts are shown to affect the administration of discretionary payments to the 'deserving and undeserving poor', but not the meanings that administrators imbue the forms of payment at their disposal, grants and loans. Configurations of social assistance essentially set the context for the degree to which administrators can award payments in accordance with absolute and relative notions of poverty and human need and the interpretation and construction of needs and wants. In practice, need is a dynamic social construct that is informed by the professionalism of the workers, the ideology of the programme they implement and the structure and constraints of the bureaucracy in which they work.

The aim of the thesis was to analyze current adult education opportunities funded by The European Social Fund, evaluate benefits of this type of education in therms of unemployment. I compared opportunities of adul education in programming period 2004 - 2006 and programming period 2007 - 2013 and suggested some points to improve implementation of projects funded by The European Social Fund.

The biggest problem of any market is its imbalance; such an imbalance in the labour market is called unemployment. The aim of my dissertation is to analyse the labour market in Tábor region, i.e. to assess job opportunities and employment and/or unemployment development and to propose possible solutions resulting in an unemployment decrease. Controlled interviews with the staff of the Tábor Labour Office, the Internet, the Czech Statistical Office information, specialized literature, regulations and laws and annual reports on the situation in the labour market in Tábor were the main information sources for my dissertation. My dissertation contributes to the situation with recommendations regarding an improvement of the labour market in Tábor region, which are based on the data established in my dissertation.

This thesis is focused on the European Social Fund (ESF) and on the administration of this fund in the Czech Republic. The European Social Fund is one of two structural funds which act as financial resources for co-financing, in conjunction with national and private resources, activities that reduce economic disparities between regions. Resources from structural funds allocated to the Czech Republic are, by their character, classified and administered in accordance with particular Operational Programmes, which stem from a national strategic reference framework. Standard documents, approved by the European Commission, always accompany a programme period. In the thesis apriori are described and the administration procedures of selected Operational Programmes financed by the European Social Fund, are collated. Some problems that occurred during the first programme period from 2004-2006 are then highlighted.

This thesis deals with the efficiency of the measures, which are implemented within the projects supported by the European Social Fund and are aimed at the endangered groups of parents (mostly women) on the labour market. The theoretical part introduces the concept of labour market segmentation, theory of human and social capital and finally outlines labour market policies within the framework of the EU and the Czech Republic. Empirical research uses techniques of interviews and a questionnaire in order to evaluate the implementation of the measures and targeting of the funds towards the needs of this specific group of women which is under a long term threat on the labour market. The contribution of this thesis is primarily in a detailed study on the efficiency of the system of subsidies in one part of the support from the ESF from the perspective of non-profit organizations. Key words: Labour market, European Social Fund, evaluation, non-profit organizations, Prague

This diploma thesis is focused on analysis of projects applied in the Human Resource Development Operational Programme. Opening chapter of theoretical framework deals with the European Union Funds and especially the European Social Fund in general way. Later in this framework, there is also closely described the Human Recourses Development Operational Programme and its goals, priorities, measures, implementation and financial principles. Main attention is concentrated on characteristic and description of the Measure 3.1: Enhancing the Quality of Education at Schools and School Facilities and Developing Support Systems for Education, which is actually subject of my analysis. Essential in this work is evaluation of successness of applied projects in aspects of particular calls, regions, evaluation phase, eligible subjects, size of budget, etc. The goal of this diploma thesis is the analysis and evaluation of the process of applying projects in 2004-2006 in the measure mentioned above and also to find out if realized projects met the measure aims.