In the United States, 99.9% of small businesses, which account for two-thirds of new jobs annually, do not participate in the federal set-aside program. Half of all small businesses will not survive their first 5 years. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies that U.S. small business leaders operating within the greater Colorado Springs metro area used to participate successfully in the federal contracting set-aside program. Von Bertalanffy's systems theory grounded the study. Data collection included semistructured interviews with an intensity purposeful sampling of 3 small business leaders participating successfully in the federal contracting set-aside program while operating within the greater Colorado Springs metropolitan area. Transcription of audio recordings from the interviews ensured data accuracy. Researcher interpretations were member checked to validate the credibility of the findings. Pattern matching and cross-case synthesis techniques facilitated data analysis and helped to identify emergent themes. The 3 themes from the study were (a) strategic management, (b) stakeholder recognition, and (c) value creation. Of these 3 themes, the most prolific was strategic management, as it began with a detailed strategy to target clients, create initiatives, and set priorities. This study may contribute to social change by promoting increased job creation through participation in the set-aside program. Expanded distribution of economic seeding to a broader representation of local communities may contribute to reducing social dependencies for the unemployed and the underemployed in a recovering economy. Small businesses contribute to local jobs, local revenue, and local taxes, all of which drive local economies.

Corporate political connections have been shown to induce preferential treatment towards connected firms. This thesis evaluates whether the effect of connections is reflected in the composition of public procurement suppliers in Czechia, using municipal procurement awarded between 2006 and 2020. In particular, we hypothesise that changes in municipal mayors affected the rate of new procurement suppliers following the elections in 2014 and 2018. The findings show that the rate of new suppliers increased significantly in municipalities that elected a new mayor in the 2014 elections; however, the effects appeared to be negative in 2018. We further hypothesise that these results can be driven by the major success of new political parties in 2014, with a large share of new politicians being elected to office. We specifically examine the case of ANO, the political movement that dominated both elections. We do not find robust evidence of a surge in new suppliers in municipalities where ANO was notably successful, suggesting that the effect was not driven only by this party and pointing to alternative explanations.

In this essay a quantitative empirical study with additional qualitative studies are performed. The purpose of this essay is to study how public procurement is used as a political instrument through the national procurement strategy. Swedish procurement legislation is based on EU directives since January 1, 1994 when the 1992 Act: 1,528 entered into force. The purpose of the provisions was to ensure legal certainty in the purchasing and commercial practices of public authorities. Public authorities spend about 17% of EU gross domestic product on public procurement. The value of purchases covered by procurement laws is estimated at approximately SEK 625 billion, which corresponds to 25% of GDP excluding VAT. This represents just over one-sixth of gross domestic product. Swedish procurement law is based on EU law and lies between administrative and civil law and is often described as commercial administrative law, as public procurement concerns how the public sector will act in commercial transactions. Public procurement has in recent years been the subject of political focus and a way to achieve political goals. The conclusions of this essay are that it is mainly time and human resources that causes a deficient implementation of the national procurement strategy. According to the top-down perspective, there are a number of possible obstacles to the implementation of a policy, lack of time and resources in the state authorities may have contributed to the national procurement strategy not being implemented to the extent that the government probably hoped. The national procurement strategy has had a direct effect on 5 authorities regarding social sustainability. The authorities that have given social sustainability their own heading in the governing documents can, from the top-down perspective, be considered to have had sufficient time to implement the concepts.

Purpose: The study aims to identify essential barriers, enablers, and incentives for including circular requirements in tender specification, to facilitate the transition from linear to circular public procurement within the railway industry, thus enhancing a circular economy. This by answering the following research questions: RQ1: What barriers and enablers for circular public procurement within the railway industry exist, and how can the enablers overcome the barriers to facilitate the transition from linear to circular public procurement to enhance a circular economy? RQ2: How can public procurers be incentivized to undergo a transition from linear to circular public procurement within the railway industry? Method: To fulfill the purpose a qualitative case study has been carried out within the Swedish railway industry, focusing on rail vehicle procurement. The exploratory study is of an abductive approach where data have been collected through 22 semi structured interviews which were analyzed through the use of content and thematic analysis. Findings: The study results in a framework visualizing how identified barriers and enablers correspond, along with identified incentives for circular public procurement. The enablers: increase circular economy awareness, increase collaboration between procurer and supplier, translate circularity to economical terms and develop new approaches to circular requirement management are presumed to not only facilitate transition towards circular public procurement but also enhance a circular economy. Theoretical and practical contributions: This study contributes to the scarcity of literature on circular public procurement, especially within the railway industry. Firstly, by identifying the need for procurers and suppliers to collaborate before the initial stage of the public procurement process to increase awareness of circular economy, thus enabling circular requirement management. Secondly, by identifying incentives for circular public procurement. / Syfte: Studien syftar till att underlätta övergången från linjär till cirkulär offentlig upphandling inom järnvägsindustrin för att främja en cirkulär ekonomi, genom att identifiera barriärer, möjligheter och incitament för att inkludera mer cirkulära krav i kravspecifikationen. Följande två forskningsfrågor ämnas att besvaras: RQ1: Vilka barriärer och möjliggörare för cirkulär offentlig upphandling inom järnvägsindustrin existerar, och hur kan möjliggörarna överbrygga barriärerna för att underlätta övergången från linjär till cirkulär offentlig upphandling för att främja en cirkulär ekonomi? RQ2: Hur kan offentliga upphandlare motiveras att genomgå en övergång från linjär till cirkulär offentlig upphandling inom järnvägsbranschen?  Metod: För att uppfylla studiens syfte har en kvalitativ fallstudie inom järnvägsindustrin genomförts, med fokus på upphandling av spårfordon. Den utforskande studien har en abduktiv ansats, där data har samlats in genom 22 semistrukturerade intervjuer som analyserats genom innehålls- och tematisk analys.  Resultat: Studien resulterar i ett ramverk som visualiserar hur identifierade möjliggörare korrelerar med barriärer, samt de identifierade incitament för cirkulär offentlig upphandling. Möjliggörarna: öka medvetenheten kring cirkulär ekonomi, öka samarbete mellan upphandlare och leverantör, översätt cirkularitet till ekonomiska termer och utveckla nya metoder för cirkulär kravhantering antas inte bara underlätta övergången från linjär till cirkulär offentlig upphandling, utan också främja en cirkulär ekonomi.  Teoretiska och praktiska bidrag: Studie bidrar till bristen på litteratur inom cirkulär offentlig upphandling, särskilt inom järnvägsindustrin. Genom att först identifiera behovet av att upphandlare och leverantörer samarbetar före den inledande fasen av upphandlingsprocessen för att öka medvetenheten om cirkulär ekonomi och möjliggöra hantering av cirkulära krav. För det andra genom att identifiera incitament för cirkulär offentlig upphandling.

The public bidding process is often perceived as cumbersome and time-consuming, leading to low participation. Research indicates that high costs are the main reason for low participation in the bidding process. To reduce time spent on writing bids, one key factor is to reuse information in the creation of new bids. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the key aspects of knowledge management that need to be considered in the development of a public bid writing tool. The research involves a literature study followed by a qualitative empirical study that includes seven semi-structured interviews with different companies offering professional services to the public sector in Sweden. Based on the interviews, 12 different deficiencies related to knowledge management in bid writing were found. The three most frequently mentioned deficiencies were:”Lack of standardised processes for saving useful knowledge”, ”Difficult to find relevant information due to lacking structure or ineffective current system” and ”Long lead times for receiving information”. These findings differ somewhat from previous research, which predominantly has had a holistic focus regarding barriers for suppliers wishing to supply to the public sector. In contrast, this study specifically focuses on deficiencies related to knowledge management. Moreover, the deficiencies identified in the empirical study primarily processes-oriented, a reason for this is that knowledge management is a cyclical process; the output of one process is the input for the next, forming a continuous loop. However, some of the barriers identified in previous research are to some degree related to the findings of this study. For example, respondents mentioned "scarcity of administrative and management resources", as an underlying reason to the deficiency described as "long lead times for receiving information". To mitigate the found deficiencies, the development of a tool specifically designed to support the bid writing process is suggested. Such a tool can improve the quality and relevance of information, encourage more people to contribute to a shared knowledge collection, and create standardized processes. / Den offentliga upphandlingsprocessen upplevs ofta som besvärlig och tidskrävande, vilket leder tilllågt deltagande. Forskning indikerar att höga kostnader är den främsta anledningen till det låga deltagandet i upphandlingsprocessen. För att skriva anbud mer effektivt är en nyckelfaktor att återanvända information vid skapandet av nya anbud. Därför är syftet med denna studie att undersökade viktigaste aspekterna av kunskapshantering som behöver beaktas vid utvecklingen av ett verktyg för att skriva offentliga anbud. Forskningen innefattar en litteraturstudie följt av en kvalitativ empirisk studie som inkluderar sju semistrukturerade intervjuer med olika företag som erbjuder professionella tjänster till den offentliga sektorn i Sverige. Baserat på intervjuerna identifierades 12 olika brister relaterade till kunskapshantering vid upphandling. De tre mest frekvent nämnda bristerna var: "Brist på standardiserade processer för att spara användbar kunskap", "Svårighet att hitta relevant information på grund av bristande struktur eller ineffektivt nuvarande system" och"Långa ledtider för att få information". Dessa resultat skiljer sig något från tidigare forskning, vilken främst har haft en helhetsinriktning gällande hinder för leverantörer som önskar leverera till den offentliga sektorn. I kontrast till detta fokuserar denna studie på brister specifikt relaterade till kunskapshantering. Dessutom är de brister som identifierats i den empiriska studien huvudsakligen processorienterade, en anledning till detta är att kunskapshantering är en cyklisk process; utdata från en process blir indata för nästa, vilket bildar en kontinuerlig loop. Dock är vissa av de hinder som identifierats i tidigare forskning i viss utsträckning relaterade till resultaten i denna studie. Till exempel nämndes "brist på administrativa resurser och ledningsresurser" av flera respondenter somen underliggande orsak till bristen beskriven som "långa ledtider för att få information". För att mildra dessa brister föreslås utvecklingen av ett verktyg specifikt utformat för att stödja anbudsprocessen. Ett sådant verktyg kan förbättra kvaliteten och relevansen av information, uppmuntra fler människor att bidra till en gemensam kunskapssamling och skapa standardiserade processer.

The current focus on sustainability entails an extension of companies focus beyond economicobjectives to an approach that also take into account economic, ecological as well as societal performance (Hollos, Blome and Foerstl, 2012). In this context, purchasing and supply has been transformed to have a strategic role in sustainability (Meehan and Bryde, 2011). The European Union point to a rising interest for policies that aim at a reorientation of public procurement to achieve solutions that promotes consideration of social policies and that supports sustainable innovation (European Commission, 2016).Public procurement processes have according to Oruezabala and Rico (2012) only been studied in a few empirical studies. Furthermore, Rolfstam et al. (2011) emphasizes that diffusion is an area that have been neglected in the public procurement of innovation. The need for sustainable innovations makes it relevant to address a gap in the literature, which beyond exposing hinders for sustainable public procurement accounts for their effect on the diffusion of sustainable innovations. Wastewater treatment is important for public procurement due to its significant environmental impact and therefore the wastewater treatment industry is the focus of this thesis. The importance of the study is supported by actors such as AxFlow that supplies the wastewater treatment industry with technical solutions. This company experiences that hinders in public procurement prevents diffusion of sustainable innovations.The purpose with this research is to investigate what barriers for sustainable procurement that prevents the diffusion of sustainable innovations. To fulfill this purpose a case study was conducted where data was collected through interviews with individuals with varying roles and experiences within public procurement to waste water treatment plants. In order to achieve the purpose it was necessary to determine that public procurement play a role in achieving a sustainable development. It was also crucial to find evidence on the existence of barriers for sustainable procurement and what these are. The results indicate that public procurement could play a significant role in promoting sustainable development. However, it is possible to conclude that the actual contribution is significantly small or nonexistent due to the fact that there are several barriers in place that prevents public procurement from having a significant impact. Findings suggests that barriers to sustainable procurement exists and that these relate to all three pillars of sustainable development, which are the economic, social and environmental pillar. By analyzing barriers to sustainable procurement found in the empirical study it was possible to identify which specific barriers that prevents the diffusion of sustainable innovations. It is concluded that the diffusion of sustainable innovations is prevented by the following barriers: 1. Public procurement failing to create economic incentives for sustainable product development. 2. An insufficient base of stake holders involved in the policy formulation process. 3. Policies not being formed on consensus and dialogue. 4. A lack of policy integration over different environmental media. 5. A lack of a strategic plan in public procurement. 6. Procurers given insufficient support and mutual measures necessary for evaluation.

The economic potential in introducing Artificial Intelligence (AI) into the Swedish Public administration is substantial and it is calculated to be approximately 140B SEK per year[5]. However, without a comprehensive AI strategy and lack of sufficient digital competence, an AI implementation becomes a struggle [9]. According to IBM Research, 120 million people around the world admitted that they may need to upskill due to automation and AI, which has aggravated during the pandemic. However, the lack of digital skills is the biggest barrier to this process. This study analyzes the challenges of an application of the AI technology, Natural Language Processing (NLP), in public procurement. Through a qualitative method with an abductive approach, 10 semi-structured interviews are conducted with experts from the public- and private sector and identify key challenges of NLP in public procurement which are the lack of digital skills, legal-, ethical- and organizational challenges of NLP in the public context and the public sector’s inability to create partnerships and use business networks. This thesis is a case study of IBM that contributes to research on AI in the public sector and aims to help fill the research gap that exists within this field. The study’s purpose is to analyze and provide better insight into public procurement of NLP to increase the use of NLP technologies within public administration in Sweden. / Den ekonomiska potentialen i att införa artificiell intelligens (AI) i den svenska offentliga förvaltningen är stor och beräknas vara cirka 140 miljarder kronor per år [5]. Men utan en omfattande AI- strategi och brist på tillräcklig digital kompetens blir ett AI- genomförande en utmaning [9]. Enligt IBM Research medgav 120 miljoner människor runt om i världen att de kan behöva kvalificera sig på grund av automatisering och AI, vilket har förvärrats under pandemin. Brister på digital kompetens är dock det största hindret för denna process. Denna studie analyserar utmaningarna med en tillämpning av AI- teknologin, Natural Language Processing (NLP), vid offentlig upphandling. Genom en kvalitativ metod som går ifrån en abduktiv forskningsansats genomförs tio semistrukturerade intervjuer med experter från den offentliga- och privata sektorn samt en identifiering av de viktigaste utmaningarna för NLP i offentlig upphandling. Dessa är bristen på digitala färdigheter, juridiska-, etiska- och organisatoriska utmaningar av NLP i det offentliga sammanhanget och den offentliga sektorns oförmåga att skapa, använda och dra fördel av partnerskap och affärsnätverk. Denna rapport är en fallstudie av IBM som bidrar till forskning om AI inom den offentliga sektorn och syftar till att fylla det forskningsgap som finns inom detta område. Studiens syfte är att analysera och ge en bättre insikt i offentlig upphandling av NLP för att öka användningen av NLP- teknologi inom offentlig förvaltning i Sverige.

Выпускная квалификационная работа (магистерская диссертация) посвящена исследованию путей совершенствования финансового механизма управления государственными закупками. Предметом исследования является совокупность экономических отношений, возникающих в процессе организации государственных закупок. Основной целью магистерской диссертации является совершенствование финансового механизма государственных закупок путем модификации его финансовых инструментов на основе теоретически и практически обоснованных экономических решений для оптимизации бюджетных расходов, в частности, и дальнейшего развития системы государственных закупок, в целом. В заключении сформулированы рекомендации по совершенствованию финансовых инструментов государственных закупок. / Final qualifying work (master's thesis) is devoted to the study of ways to improve the financial mechanism of public procurement management. The subject of the study is a set of economic relations arising in the process of public procurement. The main purpose of the master's thesis is to improve the financial mechanism of public procurement by modifying its financial instruments on the basis of theoretically and practically sound economic decisions to optimize budget expenditures, in particular, and the further development of the public procurement system as a whole. In conclusion, the recommendations on improving the financial instruments of public procurement are formulated.

Магистерская диссертация посвящена проблемам и перспективам совершенствования финансового контроля в России. Выпускная квалификационная работа состоит из введения, трех глав, заключения и списка использованных источников. В первой главе рассмотрены теоретические основы финансового контроля. Во второй главе проведен анализ государственных закупок Новоуральского городского округа и Свердловской области в сфере дорожного хозяйства. Третья глава посвящена разработке мероприятий по совершенствованию финансового контроля в сфере государственных закупок. / The master's thesis is devoted to the problems and prospects of improving financial control in Russia. The final qualifying work consists of an introduction, three chapters, a conclusion and a list of sources used. The first Chapter discusses the theoretical basis of financial control. In the second Chapter the analysis of public procurement of the novouralsky city district and Sverdlovsk region in the field of road management is carried out. The third Chapter is devoted to the development of measures to improve financial control in the field of public procurement.

The municipalities in Sweden can use the PBL-legislation to request a land developer to fund new public infrastructure in the dwelling area where the developer are active. The municipality have had two options to choose between. To purchase a contract with an entrepreneur that build the infrastructure paid by the developer, or let the developer both build and pay the infrastructure. The La Scala-judgment came 2001 from the EG-tribunal. This judgment have by many people been interpreted as that as public infrastructure in Sweden should be purchased by the municipalities through LOU. Therefore, the purpose of this report is to discuss how the land development process has changed and which problems that have arisen since 2010, when it became customary that the municipality should procure public streets and sewage facilities under the Swedish Public Procurement Act (“LOU”). The purpose is also to discuss if this way to proceed satisfies the purpose of LOU and also discuss if their can be any alternative interpretations of the La Scalajudgment than have been done so far for Swedish conditions. The questions that became a consequence of the purpose where answered as follow in the report: Changes Today, the general rule is that the municipality is to purchase all public streets itself in the land development process. This rule has replaced the freedom of choosing whether to do so, that previously existed. Necessary land transfers take place today at an early stage of the process, often when the zoning plan becomes valid, as compared to before when it took place late in the land development process. Problems Some problems have arisen in cases when the municipality procures. This leads to the conclusion that the land development process today has become more risky, significantly more expensive, and that it takes longer time before the houses are ready for occupants to move in to, than previously was the case. To what extent does this new procedure implement LOU’s purpose? LOU's purpose, to get an effectively use of tax money, is not fulfilled by this procedure because the municipalities do not have any expenditures, which means that there are no funds which can be considered “effectively used”. As the municipality has no cost, it is questionable whether it really is to the municipality that an entrepreneur sells his services, rather than to the land developer paying for the services. Overall, this means that the purpose is probably not fulfilled by this new procedure. In what situations can the LOU procedure be questioned? The consequences of LOU can be questioned where it leads to major problems that would not occur if the legislation was more flexible. An example of this is when there is a lone land developer, who builds on his own property. If the municipality procures this, as happens today, problems arise in terms of money, time and coordination problems. This because it is more efficient if the developer that are already active in the area build all necessary infrastructure. Can any other interpretations of the La Scala-judgment and it´s relationship to the Swedish development process be found? One alternative interpret is that the municipal should use LOU on this kind of contracts when there is a risk that the municipal lose financial resources if they don´t do it. In the Italian development process there is always a risk that the municipal lose financial resources if they don´t purchase the contracts. The Swedish land development legislation are structured so the municipality never take a risk to lose financial recourses if they let the developer build everything in the area and therefore the municipality never can lose financial recourses in these cases. The Swedish municipalities don’t get any advantages if they use LOU here because the developer pays the real cost for all parts of the contract. Therefore, LOU is irrelevant in this part of the development process