Syftet med studien är att beskriva och analysera privata företag, som inte skulle omfattas av revisionsplikt enligt EU:s gränsvärden, och revisorernas inställning till revision och non-audit services [NAS]. Vidare analysera hur NAS påverkar förhållandet mellan revisorer och företag. Även få en bild av framtida inställning till revisionspliktens gränsvärden. Detta återkommer i slutsatsen för att bevisa att vi uppfyllt syftet. En kvalitativ komparativ design, utförd genom semi-strukturerade intervjuer har använts för att besvara dessa forskningsfrågorna. Denna studie är gjord på fem revisorer och hos fem medelstora företag för att få bådas perspektiv och sedan kunna se liknelser och skillnader mellan dessa. Den framställda empirin av de gjorda intervjuerna kopplades samman med relevant teori, som var uppdelad i de tre forskningsfrågorna som präglar denna studie. De övergripande teorierna har varit efterfrågan på revision, NAS och oberoende, samt revisionspliktens gränsvärden. Under varje övergripande teori kompletteras dessa med teorier som bygger upp för en starkare analys. Slutsatserna med studien är att företag är positivt inställda till revision eftersom det ger dem trovärdighet och legitimitet, vilket underlättar relationer med intressenter. Även att det råder delade meningar mellan företagen och revisorerna ifall nyttan med revision överstiger kostnaden. Företagen anser detta, men revisorerna hävdar att det oftast inte överstiger. Angående NAS vet inte företagen om vilka tjänster som finns eller vad de har behov av. Proaktivitet är viktigt hos revisorerna och följden av att branschen gått mot mer rådgivning och NAS har bidragit till större öppenhet hos företagen. Men bidrar inte till att oberoendet rubbas eller att en social sammanhållning där företagen tillfredsställts i försa hand uppstått. Vidare har inte priset sjunkit för revisionen, men att revisionsprocessen blivit mer utförlig. På senare år har även revisionsbyråer sålt sina redovisningsdelar vilket har gett en positiv aspekt sett till oberoendet. Slutligen att det fortfarande råder fördröjningar i slopandet av revisionsplikten år 2010. Företagen skulle fortsätta med revisor oavsett vilka gränsvärden det är, men att efterfrågan styrs av den upplevda nyttan. Revisorerna ser överlag positivt på en höjning av gränsvärdena då större företag får mer nytta från revision. En höjning skulle inte leda till att yrkesrollen skulle förändras, men att mindre kontor hade behövt läggas ned, försämrad kvalitét, minskad efterfråga och ökat osäkerheten i samhället. / The purpose of this study is to describe and analyse private companies, which not have audit requirement according to European threshold, and auditors’ attitude towards audit and non-audit services [NAS]. Moreover, analysing how NAS affects the relationship between auditors and companies. Additionally, obtain an understanding of their attitude towards threshold for audit requirement. This will be answered in the conclusion to prove the fulfilment of the purpose. A qualitative comparative design, with semi-structured interviews has been accomplished in order to answer the questions. This study is constructed by interviews from five auditors and five medium sized companies in order to capture both their perspectives, similarities and differences. The empirical results from the interviews have been attached with relevant theory, which is divided in three different questions, which characterized this study. The overall theories in this study are; demand for auditing, NAS and independent, and audit threshold. To these overall theories there are additional theories in order to develop deeper analysis. The conclusion of this study shows that companies have a positive attitude towards audit because of the credibility and legitimacy, which enable the relationship with a company’s stakeholders. Even though, the opinions are separated between auditors and companies if the benefits are exceeding the cost of audit. Regarding to NAS, companies cannot see their needs or services available. Proactivity from auditors is important and a reason for more consulting and NAS in the audit branch, which have contribute to openness in the companies. But not in a way so independent have been affected or a social cohesion have occurred, where satisfying companies are prioritized before the society. Moreover, the price for audit has not decreased, but the audit process has been more complex. Recently, audit companies have sold their accounting parts and that is positive from an independent perspective. Finally, there is a delay from the 2010 abolishment of the audit requirement. The companies in this study would continue with audit regardless the threshold for audit requirements and the demand comes from the experienced benefits. The auditors have an overall positive view on higher threshold when larger companies get more benefit from the audit. Higher thresholds will not contribute to a change in auditor’s work on bigger firms. However, such a change would result in less demand for auditing, more uncertainties in society, decreasing quality of the financial information and would mean that smaller audit firms would have to close.

Alternatyvioji vertybinių popierių rinka yra aktualus ekonominių – finansinių studijų objektas, ypač besivystančių finansų rinkų kontekste. Šio baigiamojo darbo tikslas yra atlikus teorinę AVPR analizę bei atsižvelgus į jau veikiančių jų patirtį, įvertinti AVPR Lietuvoje veiklos prielaidas, jas įtakojančių aplinkos veiksnių ir potencialių šioje rinkoje kotiruotis įmonių atžvilgiais. Pirmojoje darbo dalyje atskleidžiami AVPR teoriniai aspektai, antrojoje – atliekamas AVPR veiklos prielaidų vertinimas Lietuvoje bei pristatoma jų tyrimo metodologija. Paskutinė darbo dalis skirta metodologiškai pagrįstam Lietuvos įmonių struktūros projektui pateikti ir kitiems sėkmės veiksniams, t.y. kaip AVPR - First North Lietuvoje veiklos prielaidoms, įvertinti. Taip pat suformuluojamos išvados ir rekomendacijos. Apibendrinant rezultatus galima teigti, jog įmonių veiklos rūšys, siekiant optimaliai diversifikuotos AVPR pagal du nagrinėtus scenarijus yra: transportas, maisto ir gėrimų pramonė, informacijos ir ryšių technologijos bendrovės, kelionių organizavimas ir agentavimas. Pagrindinės AVPR šalyje sėkmingos veiklos prielaidos yra perspektyvių įmonių pritraukimas, diversifikuota AVPR įmonių struktūra, investuotojų pritraukimas, tinkamas reguliavimas, sertifikuotų patarėjų vaidmuo. / Alternative market is a relevant subject of economic and financial research., especially in the context of emerging financial markets. The objective of the final paper is to evaluate practice assumptions of alternative market, in respect of environmental influences and enterprises that may be potencial for quoting in the market. In the first part of the paper the theoretical aspects are revealed, and in the second the evaluation of practice assumptions, including good case practices, of alternative market as well as the methodology of research are provided. In the last part the project of Lithuanian enterprises‘ structure in First North is presented and good practices assumptions need to be evaluated. Summing up the results of the research the diversified enterprises‘ structure in respect of the number and variety of sectors according to two scenarios included industrial transportation, food and beverages, information technologies, travel agencies may be constructed. Then recommendations are provided.

Bakgrund Forskningen kring kapitalstrukturens påverkan på lönsamhet har fått vitt skilda resultat, en del resultat pekar på att en högre andel lån är fördelaktigt och andra resultat tyder på det motsatta. Orsaker till detta kan bero på exempelvis olika förutsättningar i olika länder, branscher och företagsstorlekar. Medelstora företag har ofta ingått i undersökningar tillsammans med små, men forskning har sällan skett koncentrerat på medelstora företag. Studien har valt att göra en undersökning fokuserat på medelstora företag eftersom de är relativt outforskade. Syfte Syftet med denna studie är att dels beskriva sambandet mellan kapitalstruktur och lönsamhet bland svenska medelstora kapitalintensiva företag och dels förklara sambandet utifrån pecking order och trade off theory. Metod En kapitalintensiv bransch valdes ut dels för att göra företagen i urvalet mer jämförbara med varandra och dels för att kapitalintensiva företag möter finansieringsfrågor i större grad. Metallindustri valdes ut som en representant för kapitalintensiva företag. Årsredovisningar från samtliga företag som uppfyllde kriterierna kring företagsstorlek undersöktes. Linjär regressionsanalys användes för att studera sambanden mellan kapitalstruktur och lönsamhet. Resultat och Slutsats Resultatet av studien visade att ROA är negativt korrelerat med total skuldandel och kortfristig skuldandel, dock kunde inget samband påvisas mellan ROA och långfristig skuldandel. Det kunde inte påvisas något samband mellan ROE och total skuldandel, kortfristig skuldandel eller långfristig skuldandel. Studiens resultat visar att företag med högre andel lån tenderar prestera sämre mätt i ROA, men ROE påverkas inte. / Background Research on the impact of capital structure on profitability has shown very different results, some results show that a higher ratio of debt is beneficial and other results suggests the opposite. The reasons for this may be due, for example, to different conditions in different countries, industries and company sizes. Medium-sized companies have often been involved in surveys together with small ones, but research has rarely been concentrated on medium-sized companies. The study focused on medium-sized companies because they are relatively unexplored. Purpose The purpose of the study is to describe the relationship between capital structure and profitability among Swedish medium-sized capital-intensive companies and explain the relationship with pecking order and trade off theory. Method A capital intensive industry was chosen partly to make the companies in the sample more comparable to each other and partly because capital intensive companies encounters more financing decisions. Metal-industry was chosen as a representative of capital intensive companies. Annual reports from all companies that met the criteria for company size were examined. Linear regression analysis was used to study relationships between capital structure and profitability. Result and Conclusion The result of the study showed that ROA is negatively correlated with total debt ratio and shortterm debt ratio, but no correlation between ROA and long-term debt ratio could be found. There was no correlation between ROE and long-term debt ratio, short-term debt ratio or long-term debt ratio. The results show that companies with higher debt ratio tend to perform worse when measured in ROA. However, ROE was not affected by debt ratio.

The diploma thesis deals with the niche market strategy as one of the marketing strategies used mainly among small and medium-sized companies. The aim of the thesis is to analyze successful Czech firms that indicate the occurrence of characteristics of the studied direction, and to determine the key factors that influenced their success. In the research, primary data obtained through on-line questionnaires and interviews with company representatives as well as secondary data downloaded from the Internet were used.

This thesis is focused on the issue of ensuring sustainable development through ICT, especially focusing on the subsequent use of the theoretical knowledge in the implementation of Green ICT practices in small and medium-sized companies in the Czech Republic (SME). This work aims to achieve five specific side objectives, which are: Theoretical anchoring the Green ICT in relation to SME, the analysis of the potential impact of ICT on environmental sustainability, analysis of the available methodologies and ways of implementation of Green ICT and principles of sustainability, rating of Green ICT steps from different perspectives in order to select appropriate steps for the implementation and subsequent determination of methodical progress with implementing the most Green ICT steps into practice. Reaching these milestones is subsequently indicated achieve the main objective of the paper, which is a specification of a methodological framework for the selection and evaluation of appropriate Green ICT steps and a procedure for its subsequent implementation in practice. The primary tool for achieving the objectives of this paper is analysis of available and adequate current information resources focusing on the Green ICT and sustainable development, which is complemented by the author's expert reviews of Green ICT steps. This paper is possible to divide into two parts. The first part is contents of thoroughly analysis of information sources and based on them is subsequently implemented theoretical grasp of Green ICT. The second part is then specified own benefit of the paper through analysis and evaluation of Green ICT steps, accompanied by their methodology implementation.

Deutsche Unternehmen sind seit Beginn der 2000er Jahre mit zwei entscheidenden technischen Veränderungen konfrontiert: Web 2.0 und Internet der Dinge. Die zunehmende Nutzung mobiler Endgeräte wie Smartphones und Tablet Computer sowie der Einsatz von Social Media im Unternehmensumfeld steigt stetig an (ACC1, BIT2). Aus diesen beiden Entwicklungen ergibt sich neben neuen technischen Möglichkeiten, auch ein Verhaltenswechsel der Mitarbeiter. Durch die verstärkte Anwendung von Social Media-Technologien innerhalb der Unternehmen werden die Mitarbeiter und ihre Vorgesetzten vor neue Herausforderungen gestellt.

Die Förderung von Innovation und Kreativität, und die gezielte Entwicklung innovativer Dienstleistungen stellt insbesondere kleine und mittelständische Unternehmen (KMU) vor Herausforderungen, da sie oft über begrenzte Ressourcen (Kapital, Personal, Zeit) und unstrukturierte Innovationsprozesse verfügen (Disselkamp, 2015). Dies gilt gleichermaßen für den spezifischen Fall von industrienahen Dienstleistern (IND), bei denen es sich in erster Linie um KMU in einer Business-to-Business (B2B)-Umgebung handelt. Ein prominenter Ansatz für Innovationsentwicklung ist Design Thinking (DT), ein explorativer, lösungsoffener Prozess, der die Benutzerperspektive zur Entwicklung innovativer Produkte auf der Grundlage heterogener Teams und Kreativität einnimmt (Brenner, Uebernickel, & Abrell, 2016; Brown, 2008; Johansson-Sköldberg, Woodilla, & Çetinkaya, 2013). Bislang gibt es wenige Beispiele, wie DT durch IND in der Praxis eingesetzt werden kann (Joyce, 2017). Eine mögliche Erklärung hierfür ist, dass der DT-Ansatz in erster Linie für Produktinnovation entwickelt wurde (Disselkamp, 2015; Matthing, Sandén, & Edvardsson, 2004). Insbesondere die Prototyp-Entwicklung, als eine Phase im DT-Prozess, zeigt deutlich, dass der DT-Ansatz und seine kohärenten Methoden auf die spezifischen Bedürfnisse von IND erst noch angepasst werden muss. Dieser Beitrag weist das bisher nicht ausgeschöpfte Potential von DT für IND auf, und dient somit als Handlungsempfehlung für die Wissenschaft.

Background: Investments are a prerequisite for companies to maintain their competitiveness andtherefore vital for their survival. Investments are input of resources that are made with the hopethat it will generate value over time, which exceeds the invested resources. A central aid ininvestment decisions are investment calculations that are used to evaluate potential investments.This is generally done by companies when conditions are known and predictable to a certaindegree. On the other hand, previous studies have not examined how companies reason aboutinvestment decisions when these external conditions become unpredictable when the company isexposed to a challenging situation. A considerable threat to which a business must adapt to, canbe called a crisis. Today's situation in society with two recent crises, covid-19 and the war inUkraine, creates the conditions to examine how a crisis affects a company's investmentdecisions. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to gain a deeper understanding of what effect crisis haveon investment decisions in medium sized industrial companies. Furthermore is the purpose alsoto create an understanding of how calculations are used to make decisions about investmentsduring a crisis. Method: A qualitative research approach with an abductive methodological view has beenchosen to enable achieving the purpose of this study. Semi-structured interviews has been carriedout at ten medium sized industrial companies. The gathered empirical information is togetherwith the theoretical reference frame analyzed in order to answer the formulated questions toachieve the purpose of this study. Conclusion: The majority of companies' investments and investment processes have remainedunchanged despite being affected by a crisis. However, it can be noted that the majority ofcompanies are working more meticulously with investment calculations and are conducting morecalculations to ensure reliable results in times of crises. / Bakgrund: Investeringar är en förutsättning för att företag ska behålla sin konkurrenskraft och därför vitala för deras fortlevnad. Investeringar är resursinsatser som görs med förhoppning om att det kommer att generera nytta över tid, vilken överskrider grundinvesteringen. Ett centralt hjälpmedel i investeringsbeslut är investeringskalkyler som tas till hjälp för att utvärdera potentiella investeringar. Detta görs vanligtvis av företag då förutsättningarna är kända och beräkneliga till en viss grad. Det är däremot inte undersökt av tidigare studier hur företag resonerar kring investeringsbeslut då dessa externa förutsättningarna blir oberäkneliga i samband med att företaget sätts i en utmanande situation. Ett betydande hot, vilket en verksamhet måste ta ställning till, kan benämnas som en kris. Dagens läge i samhället med två inträffade kriser i närtid, covid-19 och kriget i Ukraina, skapar bra förutsättningar för att undersöka hur en kris påverkar ett företags investeringsbeslut. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att få en djupare förståelse av hur kris påverkar investeringsbeslut i medelstora industriföretag. Syftet är även att skapa förståelse för hur man arbetar med kalkyler för investeringsbeslut under kriser. Metod: För att uppfylla syftet har en kvalitativ forskningsansats använts med en abduktiv metodologisk utgångspunkt. Semistrukturerade intervjuer har genomförts på tio medelstora industriföretag. Den insamlade empirin tillsammans med den teoretiska referensramen har analyserats för att kunna besvara problemformuleringens frågeställningar och uppfylla arbetets syfte. Slutsats: Majoriteten av företagens investeringar samt investeringsprocesser har varit oförändrade trots att de har påverkats av en kris. Det går dock att konstatera att majoriteten av företagen arbetar mer noggrant med investeringskalkyler samt att fler kontrollberäkningar görs vid kriser.

In this thesis, we present a review of the current practices of user involvement. Different methods and tools have proliferated for user-involvement, however, to comprehend the explicit features of a small and medium-sized web-based platform service companies, we contrast our findings with previous experiences and research of user involvement in big companies. In the basis of the aforementioned, we identify methods and contexts that may be appropriate in the context of small and medium-sized web-based platform service companies. Mainly, we reviewed the research field of: user-involvement and new service development.   The central purpose of this study is to determine how do small and medium-sized web-based platform service companies utilize the process of the user involvement across the stages of new service development. Building on previous researches, we suggested that there are different methods to consider under the service development stage (i.e. ideation, development and testing). These methods are grouped under the following terms user-involvement ecosystem, user-involvement interactions, user-involvement platform and user-involvement personnel. The aforementioned methods are suggested to help web-based platform service companies utilize user involvement across the new service development stages. This study is of qualitative nature with a deductive approach. We conducted eight semi-structured interviews in order to get insights from high-level managers responsible of the user-involvement process. All the small and medium-sized companies operated in the service sector and provided a web-based platform. The theoretical framework was utilized in order to analyze the empirical data gathered. We used thematic analysis for our deductive study approach, to interpret the gathered material in order to conclude the results and answer the research question.   Our results revealed that in the ideation and development stages the following is vital: involving lead-users or those who are tech-savvy and tolerant to ambiguity, educating users to familiarize them with the company’s system, moderate rules and structure, mixing focus groups, encouraging user-to-user communication, small number of participants, multi-media approach and online tools, and encouraging idea hunting culture among company’s staff. However, in testing the following is recommended: involving average-users or those who are open-minded and tolerant to risk and innovation, unifying goals and common view by tangibilizing the service, setting rules and regulations for testing the service, having permanent interactions with users, and large number of participants. Finally, it is important to ensure a close relationship, transparency, motivation, face-to-face interactions, and to have an entrepreneurial leader to oversee the whole process across all the former three stages of NSD. To improve on this study, we would recommend the investigation on the user perspective to gain insights on their views of the process of user-involvement across the NSD, as they are directly involved in the development of a new service. Hence, a more extensive research on the user-involvement in web-based platform service companies on both, internal and external facets instantaneously would be of great significance.

Made available in DSpace on 2010-04-20T20:20:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 180970.pdf: 542308 bytes, checksum: 93ebbbbebb4eb4c1d146f6bedde46447 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-05-07T00:00:00Z / Internationalization is an increasingly important subject for many companies and their managers. It is nearly impossible to remain unaware of globalization and its consequences; even if a company decides to remain in its original market, it must acknowledge the possibility of competition based abroad. Today, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as well as large ones, are engaging in international activities. Professional service companies, such as engineering consultants, are no exception. A few factors contribute to the interest in studying the engineering consultancy sector. First, there is its importance to society, especially in developing countries, which are often plagued by infrastructure deficiencies. Second, analogies can be made between this specific sector and other consulting businesses, such as those established by lawyers, accountants, and management experts. Finally, there is the fact that the most valuable asset of these companies is knowledge, which is increasingly important to most companies and tends to become a key performance driver. The purpose of the research undertaken here was to explore the internationalization process of Brazilian engineering consulting companies, identifying the main obstacles, constraints, and sources of competitive disadvantage faced by these companies in their internationalization processes. Efforts were also made to identify possible sources of competitive advantage that could compensate for these constraints. To achieve this goal, a case study, focusing on a company with a dozen international projects, was carried out. This allowed for interesting insights; it is hoped that the information obtained and the resulting managerial recommendations will contribute to future internationalization initiatives of small and medium-sized professional service companies. / A importância do tema da internacionalização é crescente, tanto para empresas quanto para seus administradores. É praticamente impossível permanecer alheio à globalização e às suas conseqüências; mesmo que uma empresa opte por permanecer em seu mercado local, pode ser necessário considerar os efeitos de concorrentes baseados no exterior. Hoje, além de grandes corporações, pequenas e medias empresas também tem se internacionalizado. Empresas prestadoras de serviços profissionais, como consultoria de engenharia, não são exceção, e alguns fatores contribuem para o interesse em estudar este setor específico. Em primeiro lugar, deve-se considerar a sua importância para a sociedade, especialmente os países em desenvolvimento, os quais frequentemente sofrem com a carência de investimentos em infra-estrutura. Além disso, existe também a possibilidade de estabelecer analogias entre este e outros serviços de consultoria, como os de advogados, contadores e administradores. Finalmente, contribui para o interesse o fato de que o ativo principal destas empresas é o conhecimento, o qual tem se tornado cada vez mais um aspecto chave para o desempenho e lucratividade das empresas. O objetivo deste estudo é explorar o processo de internacionalização de empresas brasileiras de consultoria de engenharia, identificando os maiores obstáculos, dificuldades e fontes de desvantagem enfrentados por estas empresas na sua internacionalização. Paralelamente, foram realizados esforços para identificar vantagens competitivas que pudessem compensar estas dificuldades. A fim de atingir este objetivo, foi realizado um estudo de caso, focado em uma companhia com uma dúzia de projetos internacionais. Este procedimento permitiu constatações interessantes; espera-se que as informações obtidas e as recomendações decorrentes possam contribuir para iniciativas futuras de internacionalização de pequenas e médias empresas de serviços profissionais.