Harsh competition influence the profit margins of Swedish banks, where mortgages are some of the most profitable products. Unfortunately, mortgages also happen to be the most influential products when it comes to customers’ willingness to switch banks. Currently, the four largest banks in Sweden are losing both customers and mortgage market shares to smaller firms at an increasing rate. One of the big four face greater problems acquiring new credit market shares when compared to its three competitors. In this study, actions taken in order to keep existing customers are central and the bank finding it particularly troublesome to acquire new credit market shares out of the big four is therefore examined. Through a qualitative study, mortgage advisors at the bank in question are asked to explain how they handle theoretical concepts such as post-purchase feelings, repurchase behaviour and customer loyalty in practice. Answers from the interviews are then analysed and compared to existing theory, where the results show that practice is not always executed as expected from a theoretical perspective. The purpose of the study is to better understand how the advisors work with the theoretical concepts, in order to fathom why the customers are leaving. The results show that mortgage advisors at the bank in question worked inconsistently with customer’s post purchase feelings. This was due to the advisors having free reins over how to process their own customer base with a lack of system support. Consequently, some of the advisors worked with direct post purchase activities whilst some did not get in touch with their customers at all. In addition, loyalty was an aspect that customers often thought to be of great importance for the bank. However, loyalty was not a determining factor in the calculations made by the advisors in order to present the customers with interest offers. Though it could be of some importance for the small mandate every advisor had over the final interest discount, where satisfaction with a customer could grant a more generous proposition. / Den svenska bankmarknaden kännetecknas av en hård konkurrens, där bolån är en av de mest lönsamma produkterna. Dessvärre är bolån även den produkt som har störst inflytande när det kommer till kunders benägenhet att byta bankaktör, och länge har de fyra största aktörerna på den svenska bankmarknaden tappat kunder till mindre aktörer i en allt ökande omfattning. En av dessa storbanker har även visat sig ha det mer problematiskt än sina tre likar att ta nya marknadsandelar på kreditmarknaden vilken vidare undersöks i denna studie där åtgärder utförda i syfte för att behålla kunder är centrala. Genom en kvalitativ studie har bolånerådgivare vid banken i fråga ombetts förklara hur de arbetar med de teoretiska koncepten efterköpskänsla, återköpsbeteende och kundlojalitet i praktiken. Svaren har sedan analyserats och jämförts ur ett teoretiskt perspektiv, där resultatet visar att arbetssätt och teori inte alltid överensstämmer med varandra. Syftet med denna studie är att bättre förstå hur bolånerådgivare arbetar i förhållande till teoretiska koncept, för att skapa en bättre förståelse för varför det sker ett så kontinuerligt och tilltagande kundtapp. Resultatet av studien visar att bolånerådgivarna på banken i fråga arbetade på ett inkonsekvent sätt med kundernas efterköpskänsla. Något som var till följd av att arbetssättet med den egna kundstocken var individuellt konstruerat av varje rådgivare och att en avsaknad av systemstöd förelåg. Som en konsekvens, gjorde vissa rådgivare direkta efterköpsutskick, när andra inte hörde av sig till sina kunder över huvud taget. Vidare var lojalitet en aspekt som kunderna kunde tro var av stor vikt för banken. Men i själva verket var detta inte en variabel alls i de kalkyler som rådgivarna nyttjade för att ge ett så rättvist erbjudande som möjligt. Däremot kunde lojalitet ha en liten betydelse för det mandat varje rådgivare hade över den slutliga ränterabatten, där en bra kund kunde få ett mer generöst förslag.

Wetlands are commonly known for providing a number of key functions. In the context of Swedish agricultural landscapes, the ability of wetlands to enhance nutrient retention and provide habitats for biodiversity has long been recognized. Nevertheless, many wetlands in Sweden have been lost or damaged due to drainage activities, and there is a need for scaling up the implementation of wetlands. The possibilities to reach wetland implementation goals in Sweden highly depend on voluntary participation by farmers and landowners. In order to enable and encourage landowners and managers to create and manage wetlands, the access to information, support and advice is considered to be vital. One way to provide support is through farm advisory services, such as the project ‘Greppa Näringen’ (GN) in Sweden, in which advice on, among other things, wetland creation and maintenance is offered. However, to date there is relatively little research on how such advisory systems work in practice and what potential barriers there are to their success. This thesis aims at investigating how wetland advisors perceive their role in enabling and encouraging landowners in wetland implementation. It also aims at revealing what barriers the advisors experience and what potential improvements they believe are necessary in order to aid them in their mission and, in turn, promote wetland implementation. This is achieved by conducting semi-structured interviews with 14 wetland advisors within GN. The findings are then analyzed in relation to ideas on knowledge, motivation, dialogue, mutual learning and trust, which previous scholars have identified as key components in the interaction between advisors and farmers. The results show that the wetland advisors draw and refine their knowledge from an array of sources, such as written articles and reports, interaction with other stakeholders, and personal experience of wetland creation and maintenance. Moreover, in their mission to enable and encourage landowners and managers in wetland creation and management, the wetland advisors are required to consider a number of aspects, including landowners’ interests, opportunities for financial support, and environmental conditions. The establishment of relationships between advisors and landowners is of utmost importance, in which dialogue, respect, mutual learning and trust are key components. Furthermore, the study reveals a number of barriers and potential improvements. These regard the need for a longer support-chain, less complex and more reliable systems for financial support, more coherent administrative processing of notifications and permits, and more knowledge and experience on handling opposing interests. It is also vital to further acknowledge wetland functions beyond the current focus on nutrient retention in both financial support systems, research and focus areas within the advisory system of GN, and, finally, to further communicate the opportunity to receive wetland advice both within and beyond GN. This could aid advisors in their mission to transfer knowledge to landowners as well as heighten the quality of the advisory visits, and in turn motivate more landowners and farmers to participate in the implementation of long-term sustainable wetlands in Sweden.

This paper investigates the relationship between business developers and start-ups in the field of sustainability. More specifically, the study analyzes how and why Swedish business developers, in terms of incubators, financiers, and advisors, implement sustainability in their cooperation with start-ups. Each year, thousands of businesses are founded which need support in various ways, it could be anything from advising to financial help. Ever since the UN launched Agenda 2030 and the Government of Sweden launched its new climate policy, it is clear that everyone needs to do something to help the world towards a better future. This study is based on qualitative interviews with six different business developers and applies the theories: stakeholder and shareholder theory, triple bottom line, creating shared value, green growth, and open innovation. The result showed that how business developers implement sustainability in their cooperation with start-ups varies, but is based on economic, social, and environmental sustainability. Some developers work more actively than others, but it is done through an exchange of knowledge between business developers and start-ups. Further, why business developers use sustainability is either as a tool to gain a competitive advantage and help start-ups grow or to increase their profits.

Living in the modern world is an energy-intensive activity. The residential sector accounts for almost a quarter of Sweden's total energy consumption and many buildings in Sweden are not as energy efficient as they could be. Estimations indicate that the energy consumption of the entire residential sector could be halved if improvements such as improved isolation and updated heating systems were implemented. About 65% of the total energy consumption in apartment buildings comes from heating and water heating. This makes it difficult to influence on an individual level since these systems are managed on a building level. In housing cooperatives which is common in Sweden, such changes take long time and the board managing the building usually lacks relevant competence. All Sweden's municipalities offer free and objective energy advisors to both individuals and companies. This paper examines, through interviews and a field study, how these energy advisors work towards housing cooperatives and if digital tools could in any way facilitate their working process. Four major areas of concern have been identified and a design concept that addresses these issues will be presented. The results indicate that digital tools could lead to more time and resources being put on housing cooperatives that have high potential to make energy savings and help to create longer relationships and offer the right kind of support at the right time. / Att leva i den moderna världen är en energiintensiv aktivitet. Vårt boende står för nära en fjärdedel av Sveriges totala energiförbrukning och många byggnader i Sverige är inte så energieffektiva som dom skulle kunna vara. Beräkningar visar att hela bostadssektorns energiförbrukning skulle kunna halveras om effektiviseringar i form av förbättrat klimatskal och uppdaterade värmesystem genomfördes. Värme och varmvatten står för runt 65% av den totala energiförbrukningen i flerbostadshus. Det gör det svårt att påverka på individnivå eftersom man behöver se på byggnaden som helhet. I Bostadsrättsföreningar går en sådan process långsamt och oftast saknas relevant kompetens för att genomföra de nödvändiga förändringarna. I Sveriges alla kommuner erbjuds kostnadsfri och objektiv klimat- och energirådgivning till både privatpersoner och företag. Denna uppsats undersöker, med hjälp av intervjuer och en fältstudie, hur dessa klimatrådgivare jobbar gentemot bostadsrättsföreningar samt om digitala verktyg på något sätt skulle kunna effektivisera processen. Fyra större övergripande problemområden identifieras och ett designkoncept som angriper dessa problem presenteras. Resultaten indikerar att digitala verktyg skulle leda till att mer tid och resurser läggs på bostadsrättsföreningar som verkligen har potential att göra energibesparingar samt hjälpa till att skapa längre relationer och erbjuda rätt typ av stöd vid rätt tidpunkt.

Increased life expectancies and a significant reduction in the number of corporate pension plans nationwide have made the prospects of retirement a challenge for many of us. The burden of funding retirement will move from the corporation or government to the individual. Those individuals with limited financial experience will most likely need the guidance of a financial advisor. Can we trust and rely upon them? Following the 2004 late trading scandal and the 2008 financial meltdown, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") implemented Continuing Education requirements at the advisor level. The intent was to improve the quality and integrity of advisors' interaction with clients. I have interviewed forty-one advisors at four separate financial services firms to examine the impact of this training on the moral obligations and responsibilities of financial advisors.

Many medical school admissions personnel and pre-health advisors advise premedical students not to take the medical school prerequisite courses at two-year colleges because they believe the courses are less academically rigorous than the same courses at four-year institutions (Losada, 2009; Marie, 2009; Thurlow, 2008, 2009a, 2009b). According to this belief, premedical students who complete the medical school prerequisite courses at a two-year college could be at a disadvantage in regard to medical school admission compared to those students who complete the medical school prerequisite courses at a four-year institution. In an effort to analyze these perceptions, this study examined factors pertaining to the enrollment of premedical students in the medical school prerequisite courses at two-year colleges. This research study examined the enrollment statuses and grades of matriculants to medical school from the University of Central Florida between 2007 and 2011. Specifically, the type of student enrollment of the matriculants who completed any of the medical school prerequisite courses at a two-year college was examined, and both their type of institutional enrollment and grades in the organic chemistry courses were also examined. The results indicated that there were significant differences in types of student enrollment in most medical school prerequisite courses at two-year colleges, and based on these differences, the researcher identified whether completing certain prerequisite courses as certain types of enrollment were either “more acceptable” or “less acceptable” for premedical students. In addition, the results indicated that there were not significant differences in organic chemistry grades based on the type of institution where the courses iv were taken. Based on these results, the researcher could not categorize the courses at either type of institution as “more rigorous” or “less rigorous” than the other, but the researcher also recommends that these results should be perceived cautiously until additional, more in-depth research can be conducted on this topic. Finally, recommendations and implications for premedical students, pre-health advisors, medical school admissions personnel, two-year colleges, and four-year institutions were discussed.

Article Excerpt: The Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020, enacted on Jan. 1, 2021, contained the first-ever federal requirement for certain legal entities to identify and report their beneficial owners, also known as the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). The CTA was designed to “prevent wrongdoers from exploiting United States corporations and limited liability companies for criminal gain, to assist law enforcement in detecting, preventing, and punishing terrorism, money laundering, and other misconduct.” As trusted advisors, CPAs should consider informing clients of the new reporting requirements and advise them on the best option to pursue, even if they do not file the reports for their clients [...]

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