Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are big contributors to today’s business environment and the society as a whole, and their contributions are highly valued. Gazelle companies can be seen as the most successful SMEs and hence the interest to analyze them. Far from all companies succeed to maintain a profitable growth and recieve the Gazelle title sequential times. Due to this, this research aims to answer the question what differentiates sequential Gazelle companies from one time Gazelle companies. In Sweden, the Gazelle title is announced to companies who fulfill certain criteria, meaning that they are homogenous in many ways. However, there must be some differences since some succeed to maintain the title whereas others do not. By the following research question, this research intends to identify some of these differentiating attributes. Is there a difference between sequential Gazelle companies and one time Gazelle companies regarding the chosen firm attributes? Existing research show that one common factor behind maintained profitable growth is the ability to ask for help in fields where management competence is lacking. It is argued that this help can be in form of external professional business services and hence this research intends to answer this second research question: Do usage of external professional business services contribute to sequential Gazelle title? Since the ability to maintain profitable growth is discussed to depend on internal competence and knowledge, or lack thereof, Resource-Based Theory is found to be an appropriate explanation tool. This theory is supported by the Stages of Growth model to further explain the development of the firms. This research had a quantitative method where a survey was used to collect data. In order to accept/reject the formed hypotheses, the data was imported to SPSS where it was statistically tested in two separate logistic regressions. The results of this research statistically show that the mixture of the included firm attributes do differ between sequential Gazelle companies and one time Gazelle companies. However, the test proved nonsignificant when examining the usage of external professional services. This means that even though there were indications of high importance, one cannot statistically argue that usage of external professional business services leads to sequential Gazelle title.

The study aims to create a deeper understanding and gain more knowledge about the complex and dynamic management processes in gazelle companies, in relation to both social- and financial aspects. We argue that financial challenges, such as funding and cash flow controls, are closely connected to social dimensions as human resources and company-specific strategies. Thus, it is not sufficient to handle them separately, since both social- and financial processes are closely connected and influenced by different stakeholders. The research displayed that human resources management practices and finance practices were more important than the other three dimensions. The companies that participated in our study also seem to have different attitudes towards external investors/stakeholders, depending on if they were founded before or after the financial crisis in 2008.

Bakgrund: Corporate Social Responsibility har haft stor genomslagskraft de senaste decennierna. Inom fältet har tidigare studier primärt fokuserat på den miljömässiga och ekonomiska aspekten samtidigt som social hållbarhet givits mindre utrymme. Tidigare forskning visar att verksamhetsstyrning spelar en central roll vid implementering av CSR-relaterade aktiviteter, vilket gör det intressant att undersöka företags arbete med social hållbarhet utifrån ett styrningsperspektiv. Social hållbarhet anses vara en viktig faktor för tillväxt vilket gör Gasellföretag, små snabbt växande företag, till intressanta subjekt för en studie inom detta område. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att bidra till ökad förståelse om och hur Gasellföretag säkerställer intern social hållbarhet genom sin verksamhetsstyrning Metod: Studien är en flerfallstudie och antar en kvalitativ metod med en induktiv ansats. Då tolkning varit av central betydelse vid studiens genomförande har hermeneutiken utgjort den filosofiska utgångspunkten. Empirin utgörs av semistrukturerade intervjuer med sju Gasellföretag, vilket kompletteras med dokumentstudier samt observationer. Slutsats: Gasellföretag arbetar aktivt med intern social hållbarhet. Primärt sker arbetet genom aktiviteter som främjar anställdas välmående och kompetensutveckling. Arbete med intern social hållbarhet har även en positiv inverkan på nyrekrytering och bibehållande av personal. En av de viktigaste styrverktygen för främjande av intern social hållbarhet är kommunikationsverktyg. Belöningssystem är också en form av verksamhetsstyrningsverktyg som anses vara betydande för intern social hållbarhet. Kunskapsbidrag: Denna studie bidrar med ökad förståelse för hur Gasellföretag arbetar med intern social hållbarhet samt vilka verksamhetsstyrningsverktyg som används för att göra detta. / Background: Corporate Social Responsibility has had a great impact in recent decades. Within this field of research, previous studies have primarily focused on the environmental and economic aspect, while less space has been given to the aspect of social sustainability. Previous research shows that operations management plays an important role in implementing CSR-related activities, which makes it interesting to examine companies’ work with social sustainability from a governance perspective. Social sustainability is considered an important factor for growth, which makes Gazelle companies, small and fast-growing companies, interesting subjects to study within this field of research. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to contribute to an increased understanding of and how Gazelle companies ensure internal social sustainability through their operations management. Method: A multiple case study has been carried out using a qualitative method with an inductive approach. Interpretation has been important when executing this study, hence hermeneutics has been the philosophical starting point. The empirical work consists of semi-structured interviews conducted on seven Gazelle companies, accompanied by document studies and observations. Conclusion: Gazelle companies work actively with internal social sustainability. Primarily, the work is performed through activities that promote the well-being and professional development of employees. Work that is related to internal social sustainability also has a positive impact on recruitment and maintaining staff within the company. One of the most important tools for promoting internal social sustainability is communication tools. Reward systems are also considered to be tools with great significance for internal social sustainability. Science contributions: This study contributes with an increased understanding of how Gazelle companies work with internal social sustainability and which operations management tools that are used to perform this work.

Budget har länge varit en stor del av verksamhetsstyrningen i företag och organisationer. Kritik har dock riktats mot budget och dess oförmåga att fungera på ett effektivt sätt för företag som verkar i föränderliga miljöer. Gasellföretag är företag med kraftig tillväxt. Dessa företag växer i sådan takt att förändringar sker frekvent vilket enligt kritiker gör att budget har svårt att klara av sina syften. Den kraftiga tillväxten ställer krav på hög flexibilitet hos Gasellföretagen samtidigt som de måste kunna anpassa sig efter sin miljö. Genom att studera budgetstyrningen i olika Gasellföretag är uppsatsens syfte att förstå hur planeringsverktyget budget operationaliseras i tillväxtföretag som är verksamma i en föränderlig miljö. Detta genom att jämföra mot den teori som finns kring ämnet och hur den kan kopplas och ställs i förhållande till ett företag med hög tillväxt. Uppsatsen är en kvalitativ flerfallsstudie på Gasellföretag. Empirin utgörs av fem semistrukturerade intervjuer med olika Gasellföretag som är verksamma inom olika branscher. Det empiriska materialet har analyserats för att urskilja likheter och skillnader mellan företagen för att kunna besvara uppsatsens frågeformulering. Studien visar att Gasellföretag väljer att budgetera när de upplever att de inte längre har samma kontroll över verksamheten. Den visar också på att en budget i ett tidigare stadie kan hjälpa till att minska risken för oförutsedda kostnader. Budgeten fyller flera funktioner för Gasellföretagen där kontroll, planering och ansvarsfördelning är några av de viktigaste faktorerna. / Budget has been a big part of the management control system in companies and organizations for a long time. Budgeting has been the target of critic due to being incapable of fulfilling its purposes for companies that works in a changing environment. Gazelle companies are companies with high growth. These companies grow in such pace that the environment of the company constantly changes, which makes it hard for the budget to work properly according to critics. The high growth puts great demands on flexibility for the gazelle companies, while they at the same time need to be able to adjust themselves to their environment. By studying the budgeting control system in different gazelle companies, the purpose of this study is to understand how budget as a planning tool is operationalized in high-growth companies which works in a changing environment. This is done by comparing existing theory and see how this can be applied to a high-growth company. The study is a qualitive multiple case study on gazelle companies. The empirical material is based on five semi structured interviews with different gazelle companies, working in different industries. The material has been analysed with the intention to identify similarities and differences between the companies in order to answer the problem of the thesis. The study shows that gazelle companies choose to make a budget once they feel that they no longer have control of all the tasks in everyday work. The study also shows that budget can help avoiding unforeseen costs. The budget serves many purposes for the gazelle companies. Control, planning and distribution of responsibilities are some of the most important factors.

This thesis establishes the basic images of the gazelle in ancient Egyptian art and their meaning. A chronological overview of the categories of material featuring gazelle images is presented as a background to an interpretation. An introduction and review of the characteristics of the gazelle in the wild are presented in Chapters 1-2. The images of gazelle in the Predynastic material are reviewed in Chapter 3, identifying the desert hunt as the main setting for gazelle imagery. Chapter 4 reviews the images of the gazelle in the desert hunt scenes from tombs and temples. The majority of the motifs characteristic for the gazelle are found in this context. Chapter 5 gives a typological analysis of the images of the gazelle from offering processions scenes. In this material the image of the nursing gazelle is given particular importance. Similar images are also found on objects, where symbolic connotations can be discerned (Chapter 6). References to healing and regeneration are found, particularly in relationship to the context of the objects. The gazelle is found in a divine context in a limited material (Chapter 7). A discussion of these sources sees a focus on the gazelle as representative for the desert mountains as the setting for death and rebirth. This relates to the gazelle as a feminine image with a connection to the models of female divinity (Chapter 8).

Background: In Sweden, only 652 companies have managed to reach the criterions stated by Dagens Industri in their ranking of the Swedish gazelle compa-nies. Rapidly growing companies are very important for the creation of job opportunities and economic wealth. Growth is associated with significant costs, especially for a manufacturing company, and capital is therefore vital for a company’s prosperity. Capital can be either internally generated or externally provided. Previous research has shown that companies firstly prefer internally generated funds, then debt and last new equity. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to describe, analyze and provide examples on how Swedish gazelle companies have financed their growth, what financing options they have and for what purposes they needed finance. The thesis will also examine the importance of external financer’s contribution with financial and human capital for the growth of the gazelles. Method: A qualitative approach has been used to meet the purpose of the thesis. 12 in-depth, unstructured phone interviews have been conducted with some of the fastest growing gazelle companies in Sweden. Conclusions: A company can finance its growth using owner’s equity, retained earnings, leasing, factoring, public subsidies and loans, bank loans, venture capital and business angels. All these sources of finance are represented in the empirical findings except for factoring. Internally generated capital has mainly been used to cover working capital and to some extent smaller in-vestments. The externally provided capital has mainly been invested in larger investments like machines, property and product development. The financial capital has been the main contribution by external financers except for business angels, where the human capital was most important.

Abstract Background - Not all companies choose or are able to grow, especially not in an unstable economic climate. However, fast growing organizations (gazelles) have managed to grow with a significant pace. As researchers claim control to be one factor in developing an organization, this lead the authors to question whether these gazelle organizations perceive control systems to contribute to their rapid growth. Purpose - The authors wish to investigate whether strategic planning, enterprise resource planning and management system, as three different components of control, are present in gazelle organizations, and if they are perceived as contributors to growth. Method - The authors use a quantitative research approach and used a survey in order to capture the wider perspective of control. The chosen population is Swedish medium sized gazelle organizations. In order to analyze the findings, modified 6-point Likert-scale statements are included in the survey, where the authors interpret whether the respondents agree or disagree to the chosen statements, which are incorporated through the literature review. In addition to this, ANOVA tests are included to establish if there are significant differences among users and nonusers of the different control systems. Conclusion - The conclusions drawn from this study is that the usage of strategic planning and an enterprise resource planning system is common among the participating organizations. However, the majority do not use a management system. Despite the level of usage of the three different control systems, they are all perceived as beneficial for the organizations, and the respondents do believe that the systems contribute to their growth. In addition, there is no significant proof that there is a relationship between growth and using the control systems, when comparing the percentage increase in growth with using the different control systems.

Goitered gazelle (Gazella subgutturosa) is an Asian antelope species and it is classified as Vulnerable by IUCN. They have an economic, esthetic and cultural value / therefore, they had been hunted and domesticated for a long time. Additional human disturbance over years nearly led goitered gazelle populations in Turkey to extinction. Today in Turkey, only natural population of goitered gazelle lives in Sanlurfa. In this theses, demographic structure and population parameters of natural population goitered gazelle in Sanliurfa is studied. Line transect and regular surveys are performed to collect data about demographic structure of the population such as sex ratio and group composition. Line transect sampling, which is a distance sampling technique, is used to estimate population size and density of the population. GPS collared goitered gazelles are monitored for fecundity and survival rate. Data is collected for 18 from July 2008 to December 2009 during 32 field surveys. Four main transect samplings have been performed and including transect samplings that are done during regular surveys, 90 line transects are walked. Population sizes and densities were estimated to be (average &plusmn / standard error) 242 &plusmn / 184 and 2.302 &plusmn / 1.590 individual per km2 for July 2008 / 365 &plusmn / 179 and 3.476 &plusmn / 1.707 individual per km2 for January 2009 / 319 &plusmn / 111 and 3.039 &plusmn / 1.059 individual per km2 for June 2009 and lastly, 317 &plusmn / 243 and 3.019 &plusmn / 2.315 for November 2009. Survival rate is estimated to be 0.276, 0.540 and 0.585 for calves, 1 year old and 2+ years olds respectivelty, and fecundity is estimated to be 0.4. This preliminary study shows that according to Population Viability Analysis results, natural goitered gazelle population in Turkey will be extinct in next 10 years if more effective conservation is not performed.

<p>Background: In Sweden, only 652 companies have managed to reach the criterions stated by Dagens Industri in their ranking of the Swedish gazelle compa-nies. Rapidly growing companies are very important for the creation of job opportunities and economic wealth. Growth is associated with significant costs, especially for a manufacturing company, and capital is therefore vital for a company’s prosperity. Capital can be either internally generated or externally provided. Previous research has shown that companies firstly prefer internally generated funds, then debt and last new equity.</p><p>Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to describe, analyze and provide examples on how Swedish gazelle companies have financed their growth, what financing options they have and for what purposes they needed finance. The thesis will also examine the importance of external financer’s contribution with financial and human capital for the growth of the gazelles.</p><p>Method: A qualitative approach has been used to meet the purpose of the thesis. 12 in-depth, unstructured phone interviews have been conducted with some of the fastest growing gazelle companies in Sweden.</p><p>Conclusions: A company can finance its growth using owner’s equity, retained earnings, leasing, factoring, public subsidies and loans, bank loans, venture capital and business angels. All these sources of finance are represented in the empirical findings except for factoring. Internally generated capital has mainly been used to cover working capital and to some extent smaller in-vestments. The externally provided capital has mainly been invested in larger investments like machines, property and product development. The financial capital has been the main contribution by external financers except for business angels, where the human capital was most important.</p>

<p>In Sweden, only 652 companies have managed to reach the criterions stated by Dagens Industri in their ranking of the Swedish gazelle companies. Rapidly growing companies are very important for the creation of job opportunities and economic wealth. Growth is associated with significant costs, especially for a manufacturing company, and capital is therefore vital for a company’s prosperity. Capital can be either internally generated or externally provided. Previous research has shown that companies firstly prefer internally generated funds, then debt and last new equity.</p><p>The purpose of this thesis is to describe, analyze and provide examples on how Swedish gazelle companies have financed their growth, what financing options they have and for what purposes they needed finance. The thesis will also examine the importance of external financer’s contribution with financial and human capital for the growth of the gazelles.</p><p>A qualitative approach has been used to meet the purpose of the thesis. 12 in-depth, unstructured phone interviews have been conducted with some of the fastest growing gazelle companies in Sweden.</p><p>A company can finance its growth using owner’s equity, retained earnings, leasing, factoring, public subsidies and loans, bank loans, venture capital and business angels. All these sources of finance are represented in the empirical findings except for factoring. Internally generated capital has mainly been used to cover working capital and to some extent smaller investments. The externally provided capital has mainly been invested in larger investments like machines, property and product development. The financial capital has been the main contribution by external financers except for business angels, where the human capital was most important.</p>