Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not a new issue however it has recently started to get more attention. Mostly research has been conducted within the larger companies in many different aspects such as benefits with CSR, its financial impact and the implementation process. Since this is a matter that becomes more and more important in the society of today we wanted to focus our study on small and medium sized enterprises to see how they can take part in the CSR implementation too. Firstly we wanted to examine the small and medium sized companies (SMEs) within the Jönköping region however due to the special conditions of the companies in this region we decided to conduct a case study instead. The case study is conducted with the managing director of Ekenäs Mekaniska AB, the primary information were collected through two face to face interviews. The material was then compiled and analysed. We provide some practical solution to the problems existing within Ekenäs Mekaniska AB and suggest a model for Ekenäs Mekaniska AB as well as for other companies. The purpose of conducting this case study is to make it easier for Ekenäs Mekaniska to implement more CSR in the future as well as it is to serve as an example for other small sized firms that it is possible to still conduct CSR even though you are limited in resources. We also aim at providing a step by step guide on how to implement CSR efficiently that can be used for both small, medium sized companies and large companies however each step needs to be undertaken with the size of the company in mind. The final conclusion of this case study is that the most important stakeholder of Ekenäs Mekaniska AB when implementing CSR is the employees. A clear goal, vision and mission from the top managers are crucial for Ekenäs Mekaniska AB to implement CSR efficiently. The communication with the important internal and external stakeholders and the feedback collected from them are also very important to ensure that everyone in the organization is doing the right things. The employees need to be guided through a systematic guide book to ensure that the current or potential CSR activities satisfy their needs. The strategy of Ekenäs Mekaniska AB should well combine with their CSR agenda by us-ing the model introduced in the thesis. Due to limited financial resource, it is hard for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to implement the whole CSR activities within the organization, therefore, the local government should provide appropriate fund or tax reduction programs to help SMEs implement CSR efficiently.

Doktrin för luftoperationer fastställdes som styrande dokument för alla luftoperationer 2005. Har då doktrinen blivit det styrande dokument i Flygvapnet som den är tänkt att vara? I denna uppsats avser jag undersöka till vilken grad Doktrin för luftoperationer är implementerad i flygvapnets ledning och om doktrinen används som styrande dokument i utformningen av ordrar, direktiv och TOEM. Jag har genom en kvalitativ textanalys granskat två centrala dokument ur olika perspektiv, för att utröna till vilken grad doktrinen används som styrande dokument. Jag har även intervjuat utvalda delar i flygvapnets ledning för att få ledningens uppfattningar av graden av implementering. Jag har i uppsatsen använt mig av en tregradig skala: Inte alls, Till del samt Fullständigt implementerad. Genom dessa analyser har jag kunnat dra slutsatsen att Doktrin för luftoperationer endast till del är implementerad i flygvapnets ledning. / The Swedish doctrine for air operations was released and became effective in 2005. The doctrine was supposed to be a ruling document but is that the fact? The aim of this study is to investigate at what level the doctrine has been implemented in the leadership of the Swedish Air Force and if the doctrine is in use as a ruling document when writing orders, directive and tactical, organisational, economical objectives (TOEM) for the sub-units. The scientific method of this investigation is a qualitative text analysis where I analysed two vital documents in order to measure the level of implementation. For that purpose I have used a three grade scale: not implemented, partly and finally fully implemented. The conclusion I draw after examining the subject is that the Swedish doctrine for air operations is only partly implemented in the Air Force.

The Canadian C-Spine (CS) and CT-Head (CT) Rules are tools aimed at improving the accuracy and efficiency of radiography use in emergency departments. This study evaluated whether the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) could explain the inconsistent results from implementation studies of these two rules at 12 Canadian hospitals, where the same intervention resulted in a significant reduction in CS radiography but not CT radiography. It was demonstrated that the TPB model’s proposed relationships between constructs and behaviour could explain the ordering of CS but not CT radiography. However, after examining longitudinal changes of the TPB constructs, it was clear that these changes could not explain the changes in CS radiography ordering. Overall, TPB is unlikely to suggest important ways by which to improve radiography use, for CT because its constructs are not related to radiography ordering, and for CS because of high baseline levels of intention to clinically clear.

Objective: To investigate and describe how an acute care, multi-site teaching hospital implements a new technology called the Automated Medication Dispensing Cabinet (ADC) that will be used by nurses. Design and methods: Qualitative, descriptive, single-case study method using the Ottawa Model of Research Use as a framework to guide data collection and analysis. The project was evaluated from the beginning, through the planning stages until a cabinet vendor was chosen. Results: A multidisciplinary committee was created to implement the ADCs across the organization. Clinical nurses, the intended users, were not directly involved in the implementation; usability testing was not done; they were not prepared for all the needed training costs and no evaluation was planned. Conclusions: An implementation framework was not used to guide the ADC project and several key area surrounding implementation were missed. Recommendations were made to improve future implementation projects in heath organizations.

In designing a new processor, computer architects consider a myriad of possible organizations and designs to decide which best meets the constraints on performance, power and cost for each particular processor. To identify practical designs, architects need to have insight into the physical-level characteristics (delay, power and area) of various components of modern processors implemented in recent fabrication technologies. During early stages of design exploration, however, developing physical-level implementations for various design options (often in the order of thousands) is impractical or undesirable due to time and/or cost constraints. In lieu of actual measurements, analytical and/or empirical models can offer reasonable estimates of these physical-level characteristics. However, existing models tend to be out-dated for three reasons: (i) They have been developed based on old circuits in old fabrication technologies; (ii) The high-level designs of the components have evolved and older designs may no longer be representative; and, (iii) The overall architecture of processors has changed significantly, and new components for which no models exist have been introduced or are being considered. This thesis studies three key components of modern high-performance processors: Counting Bloom Filters (CBFs), Checkpointed Register Alias Tables (RATs), and Compacted Matrix Schedulers (CMSs). CBFs optimize membership tests (e.g., whether a block is cached). RAT and CMS increase the opportunities for exploiting instruction-level parallelism; RAT is the core of the renaming stage, and CMS is an implementation for the instruction scheduler. Physical-level studies or models for these components have been limited or non-existent. In addition to investigating these components at the physical level, this thesis (i) proposes a novel speed- and energy-efficient CBF implementation; (ii) studies how the number of RAT checkpoints affects its latency and energy, and overall processor performance; and, (iii) studies the CMS and its accompanying logic at the physical level. This thesis also develops empirical and analytical latency and energy models that can be adapted for newer fabrication technologies. Additionally, this thesis proposes physical-level latency and energy optimizations for these components motivated by design inefficiencies exposed during the physical-level study phase.

This qualitative study was conducted to investigate how large publicly listed companies inSweden apply its code of conduct on external parties as well as how such application is bestcarried out. Three overarching steps (implementation, monitoring and actions) weredeveloped from previous research to serve this purpose. Agency and contract theory wereimportant to understand the underlying problems of application of codes of conduct onexternal parties. It was found that companies that adequately address all of the three stepsexperience a successful application of its code of conduct on external parties. Companies thatdo not address the three steps as thoroughly do not experience the same compliance with theircode of conduct. It was further found that many companies fail to adequately address theemphasized areas. Extensive deficiencies put companies in a vulnerable position as externalparties associated with a company might have a negative impact on the company’s brand andreputation. An outlook shows that companies are not prioritizing all of the steps sufficientlyand it is thus suggested that they revise their plans. The project was carried out incooperation with KPMG Forensic and Advokatfirman Delphi. A content analysis and a survey were used to collect necessary data.

Concerned with the question of why governments display varying degrees of success in implementing social reforms, (judged by their ability to arrive at coherent policy outcomes), my dissertation aims to identify the most important factors responsible for the stagnation of social benefits reform in Russia, as opposed to its successful implementation in Kazakhstan. Given their comparable Soviet political and economic characteristics in the immediate aftermath of Communism’s disintegration, why did the implementation of social benefits reform succeed in Kazakhstan, but largely fail in Russia? I argue that although several political and institutional factors did, to a certain degree, influence the course of social benefits reform in these two countries, their success or failure was ultimately determined by the capacity of key state actors to frame the problem and form an effective policy coalition that could further the reform agenda despite various political and institutional obstacles and socioeconomic challenges. In the case of Kazakhstan, the successful implementation of the social benefits reform was a result of a bold and skilful endeavour by Kazakhstani authorities, who used the existing conditions to justify the reform initiative and achieve the reform’s original objectives. By contrast, in Russia, the failure to effectively restructure the old Soviet social benefits system was rooted largely in the political instability of the Yeltsin era, and a lack of commitment to the reforms on the part of key political actors. And when the reform was finally launched, its ill-considered policies and the government’s failure to form the broad coalition and effectively frame the problem led to public protests and subsequent reform stagnation. Based on in-depth fieldwork conducted in Russia and Kazakhstan in 2006 and 2008, my study enriches the literature on the transformation of post-communist welfare regimes, and contributes important insights to the central question in the literature on public policy, that is, when, why and how policies change. It also enhances our understanding of political and public policy processes in transitional and competitive authoritarian contexts.

If the reforms in public education are to be sustained, it is commonly believed that they must be founded in new conceptions of schooling. Recently, to improve school effectiveness and raise students success, educational researchers are devoting increasing attention to research related to transforming our schools into professional learning communities. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of principals concerning the process and dynamics of the implementation of professional learning communities. <p>Qualitative method was used in this study. The perceptions of the principals were explored through six research questions. The research questions addressed the following areas: process and dynamics of the implementation process, challenges to the collaboration and issues of sustainability in professional learning communities. Six principals, four females and two males, from two school divisions were selected and data were collected using semi-structured interviews. The interviews were tape recorded and transcribed. Participants responses were analyzed according to the research questions and recurring themes.<p>The findings of this study revealed that the process and dynamics of implementing professional learning communities, included pre-implementation (self-education), the implementation process itself (training internal stakeholders), teaching the PLC concept to external stakeholders, and facilitating collaboration amongst all stakeholders. Participants emphasized that collaboration was a critical component for the positive development and effectiveness of the professional learning communities. <p> Further analysis of the data indicated that time, funding, diverse interests, preconceived mindsets of stakeholders, constant staff changes, workload, fear of being ridiculed or judged, and evaluation/data collection methods were the major challenges in the implementation process. Regarding sustainability, respondents advocated that it was essential to focus on school vision, create a collaborative culture, provide administrative support to all stakeholders, and retain key people who are self-motivated. <p>In the final analysis, this study determined that the implementation of professional learning communities is a question of will. A group of staff members who are determined to work collaboratively will be able to implement and sustain professional learning communities, regardless of some foreseeable problems.

In the Canadian North, capacity building through post-secondary education is a key policy strategy of territorial and federal governments. However, government support for the University of the Arctic (UArctic), a viable policy instrument that makes an important contribution to the capacity building efforts of the territories, has been inconsistent. This thesis will investigate whether devolution has impacted capacity building through post-secondary education, by using UArctic as a case study.

Introduction: with the expanded application of ERP system, business process model-ing, as an essential part of the ERP system implementation, has already attracted in-creasingly attention from the organizations. However, even though with the great signif-icance, there is no specific guideline to indicate the key factors of a business process modeling within the ERP system implementation context, especially from the supplier, customer and consultancy point of view. Accordingly, the authors are interested in the following two research questions:1. What are the factors that ERP customer. Supplier and consultancy focused on when they do business process modeling for an ERP implementation?2. How these factors are ranked and viewed by ERP customers, suppliers and con-sultants?Purpose: This study is an exploratory study aiming at identifying improvement factors for business process modeling within the context of ERP system implementation. addi-tionally, the authors seek to identify the diverse attitudes from the parties involved in the process of ERP implantation, that are supplier, customer and consultancy, towards the significance level of the improvement factors.Method: This research has adopted an inductive approach due to the nature of its re-search questions. Besides, data has been collected through six interviews in in total. And each supplier, consultancy, customer party has been conducted two interviews respec-tively. The six interview companies are with different cultural background. Additionally, secondary data from books, magazines are obtained through documentation as well.Conclusion: The thesis main results show that there are five improvement factors con-cerning the business process modeling within ERP system implementation, involving correctness, clarity, resource efficiency, cultural specification and relevance. Based upon the suppliers, consultancies and customers points of view, correctness, clarity and cul-tural specification can be categorized into basic factors and resource efficiency, rele-vance are grouped as optional factors. Furthermore, from the customers perspective, correctness and clarity ranks at the top two places among those five factors, while con-sultants focus on correctness and resource efficiency first. Besides, suppliers regard cor-rectness as the most fundamental improvement factors for business process modeling.