Forskningsfråga: Vilka är nyckelfaktorerna som påverkar småföretags beslut att delta eller avstå från frivillig revision?  Syfte: Syftet är att undersöka de faktorer som påverkar småföretags beslut att delta eller avstå från frivillig revision och att undersöka de potentiella för- och nackdelar förknippade med sådana revisioner. Metod: I denna studie används en kvalitativt ansats, där data samlas genom semistrukturerade intervjuer med tolv småföretag. För att analysera insamlade data strukturerades det empiriska materialet i olika kategorier baserad på studiens teoretiska ramverk. Insamlade data utifrån studiens intervjuer jämfördes med den teoretiska referensramen för att avslöja likheter och skillnader. Slutsats: Resultatet av studien visar att de främsta motiven för småföretag som avstod frivillig revision är att kostnaden ansågs vara onödig och alltför hög. Dessa företag är mer intresserade av andra ekonomiska tjänster så som upprättande av bokslut samt rådgivning. De företagen som genomgår frivillig revision gör det främst för att säkerställa kvaliteten på årsredovisningen, samt för rådgivning. / Research questions: What are the key factors influencing small firms’ decisions to participate or forgo voluntary auditing?  Purpose: The purpose is to examine the factors that influence small firms’ decisions to participate or forgo voluntary auditing and to explore the potential benefits and costs associated with such audits.  Method: In this study a qualitative approach is used, collecting data through semi-structured interviews with twelve smaller companies. To analyze collected data, the empirical material was structured into different categories based on the study’s theoretical framework. Collected data based in the study’s interviews were compared with the theoretical frame of reference to reveal similarities and differences.  Conclusion: The results of the study show that the main motives för small companies that refrained from voluntary audits are that the cost was considered unnecessary and too high. These companies are more interested in other financial services such as preparing financial statements and consulting. The companies that undergo a voluntary audit do so primarily to ensure the quality of the annual report, as well as for advice.

Corporate social responsibility has attracted broad attention of scholars and practitioners over the past decades. However, organizations are at the same time frequently exposed for acts of corporate misconduct, accompanied by media coverage, public disapproval and financial penalties. This master thesis attempts to connect these two concepts by explaining changes in corporate social responsibility as a consequence of preceding irresponsibility. Based on a sample of misconduct events that were disclosed and penalized in the United States between 2010 and 2017, this work focusses on two factors that are argued to stimulate higher CSR performance. First, it is reasoned that the height of imposed financial penalties from governmental agencies leads to more responsible practices, as their unmediated effect sensitizes managers to increase measures against transgressive behavior, which aims to prevent reoccurrence and further penalties in the future. Second, the misconduct causes damage to stakeholders and thereby impairs the overall corporate reputation. Since firms are dependent on stakeholder goodwill, they will consequently increase their CSR performance to repair the reputational losses. Results from empirical data analyses confirm the positive effect of reputational damage, but give no support to the hypothesized impact of legal penalties on CSR enhancement. When assessing the effect of both factors on the subsequent behavior of the respective parent organizations, mixed and non-significant results indicate that there is no negative legitimacy spillover within the intrafirm network. The findings provide valuable implications for managers and promising directions for future research.

Korruption är ett problem som påverkar samhällen över hela världen. Företag spelar en viktigroll i kampen mot korruption. För företag är hållbarhetsredovisningen ett sätt att visa ochförklara vad företaget har åstadkommit i sitt arbete för en långsiktigt hållbar utveckling.Tidigare studier tyder på att det finns en brist på transparens och att sekretessnivån är höggällande korruption. Studierna tyder även på att olika faktorer kan påverka mängdenantikorruption som avslöjas inom hållbarhetsredovisningarna. Denna uppsats syfte är därföratt ta reda på vilken information om antikorruption som upplyses i hållbarhetsredovisningarinom företag som är noterade på Nasdaq Stockholm samt att utforska hur olika faktorerpåverkar mängden information som avslöjas i företagens hållbarhetsredovisningar. För attförklara avslöjanden om antikorruptionsupplysningar används legitimitetsteorin ochintressentteorin som synsätt. Uppsatsens metodologiska tillvägagångssätt baseras på enkvantitativ innehållsanalys med en deduktiv forskningsansats och genomfördes med ettslumpmässigt urval på 96 företag som tillämpar GRI-standards i sin hållbarhetsredovisning.Resultatet visar transparens när det gäller att företag informerar och utbildar omantikorruption, men det finns brister i transparens när det gäller riskanalyser och åtgärder somföretaget skulle ha tagit vid korruptionsrelaterade aspekter. Vidare konstaterar uppsatsen attföretagsstorleken är en betydande faktor på mängden antikorruptionsupplysningar somavslöjas, detta innebär att större företag redovisar mer och mer utförligt information.Uppsatsen bidrar till forskning om kampen mot korruption i företagets sociala ansvar.Dessutom bidrar uppsatsen med kunskap om antikorruptionsupplysningar som är en del avhållbarhetsrapporteringen inom svenska företag, som är kopplat till GRI 205-standarden.Uppsatsen tillhandahåller nya empiriska data. / Corruption is a problem that affects societies all over the world where companies play animportant role in the fight against corruption. Sustainability reports are a way for companiesto show and explain what they have achieved in their work for a long-term sustainabledevelopment. Previous studies indicate that there is a lack of transparency and that the levelof secrecy regarding corruption is high. They also suggest that different factors can influencethe amount of anti-corruption that is disclosed in the sustainability reports. This essaytherefore aims to find out what information about anti-corruption is disclosed in sustainabilityreports within companies that are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm and to explore how differentfactors affect the amount of information disclosed in the companies' sustainability reports. Toexplain disclosures of anti-corruption information, the legitimacy theory and the stakeholdertheory are used as approaches. The paper's methodological approach is based on aquantitative content analysis with a deductive research approach and was carried out with arandom sample of 96 companies that apply GRI standards in their sustainability reporting.The result shows transparency when it comes to companies informing and educating aboutanti-corruption, but there are gaps in transparency when it comes to risk analyzes andmeasures that the company would take in the event of corruption-related aspects.Furthermore, the paper states that company size is a significant factor in the amount ofanti-corruption information that is disclosed, this means that larger companies report moreand detailed information. The paper contributes to research on the fight against corruption incorporate social responsibility. In addition, the paper contributes knowledge ofanti-corruption disclosures as part of sustainability reporting within Swedish companies,which is linked to the GRI 205 standard. Hence, the paper contributes by providing newempirical data.

What human rights or fundamental rights of stakeholders do insolvency norms and laws affect? Will a human rights perspective help in striking a balance between the affected stakeholders? These are the primary questions addressed in this thesis. The idea that human rights values are relevant to he theoretical discussion about insolvency policy is relatively novel. Insolvency after all conjures images of banks and other creditors who are simply attempting to recover their investment. A thorough examination of the dynamics of insolvency however reveals that insolvency is not just about debt collection. It is a complex process that also implicates interests and stakes beyond the interest of banks and other creditors. Globalization further exacerbates this complexity, more so under circumstances of economic decline in the world economy. Using literature review and interdisciplinary or critical legal analysis as methods, the thesis analyzes the axiology of corporate insolvency. While “law and economics” has been identified as an influential value in policy formulation, normative values like human rights were identified to be equally relevant. The thesis draws upon stakeholder theory and corporate responsibility vis-à-vis human rights law to lay the foundation for stakeholder conflict analysis in the context of corporate insolvencies. Concluding that the likely conflict situations in corporate insolvency involve human rights, the thesis suggests the use of the proportionality principle as a balancing tool. In the functional part of the thesis, the author analyzes the relevant provisions of the Philippine insolvency law and singles out the conceptual disconnect of the law with mainstream stakeholder theory in the way it defines the term “stakeholder.”

Background: Due to the expansion of the mine in Kiruna, a large part of the city, including the city center, needs to be relocated. The town's foundations will become fragile and collapse.  Purpose: This study will explore how Kiruna’s corporate social sustainability strategies align with sustainable development so that the new society will benefit the stakeholders. It will look at this from an organizational perspective and see how the Municipality in Kiruna and the local mining company LKAB have handled it.  Method: An interpretative and inductive approach has been used to combine exploratory and explanatory methods to collect qualitative data through semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders. A thematic analysis is employed to identify patterns in how the various challenges are addressed, how the municipality and LKAB perceive the situation, and areas for potential improvement in the future.  Conclusion: The study focuses on effectively integrating CSR, Stakeholder theory, and Sustainable Development theory to address complex sustainability challenges. The study focuses on the importance of stakeholder engagement, strategies, and comprehensive CSR practices to ensure the three pillars of sustainability. This research provides valuable insights for future urban relocation projects, focusing on collaboration of sustainable planning.

Background: Women’s football is in an intense growth phase both internationally and nationally. More and more men’s clubs are establishing themselves in the market while many women’s clubs struggle financially. Previous research shows that football clubs have a combination of sporting, financial, and social demands, which makes it difficult to achieve balance in their operations. Swedish women’s football has unique conditions, which, together with the fact that it is a fragmented research area, shows the need to study the subject more closely. Purpose: Our study aims to identify and analyze how organizations with elite activities in women's football navigate the complex landscape of stakeholder requirements in their long-term business governance. By shedding light on these trade-offs, we aim to contribute to the understanding and improvement of women's football governance. Method: The study is a qualitative multiple-case study with an interpretive perspective. The study has been based on an inductive research approach with purposive sampling. The empirical material has mainly been collected from eleven semi-structured interviews with representatives from clubs in OBOS Damallsvenskan and Elitettan. Conclusion: The study shows that the associations studied find it challenging to balance finances, organization, and sporting objectives. They are dependent on external funding, which is difficult to forecast, making long-term planning difficult. Many stakeholders have similar demands and expectations of the organization. As a result, fewer trade-offs between stakeholders are necessary, increasing the potential for synergies in value-creating activities. Thus, organizations should focus on creating value for as many stakeholders as possible by following these steps: classification, internal & external needs, shared values, implementation and follow-up, and collaboration. / Bakgrund: Damfotboll befinner sig i en stark tillväxtfas både på ett internationellt och nationellt plan. Fler och fler herrklubbar etablerar sig på marknaden, samtidigt som många damklubbar har det svårt ekonomiskt. Tidigare forskning visar att fotbollsklubbar har en kombination av sportsliga, ekonomiska och sociala krav, vilket gör det svårt att uppnå balans i verksamheten. Svensk damfotboll har unika förutsättningar, vilket tillsammans med att det är ett fragmenterat forskningsområde visar på behovet av att studera ämnet närmare. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att identifiera och analysera hur organisationer med elitverksamhet inom damfotboll gör avväganden mellan intressenters krav i sin långsiktiga styrning av verksamheten. Metod: Studien är en kvalitativ multipel fallstudie med ett tolkande perspektiv. Studien har utgått i från en induktiv forskningsansats med ett målstyrt urval. Det empiriska materialet har huvudsakligen inhämtats från elva semi-strukturerade intervjuer med representanter från klubbar i OBOS Damallsvenskan och Elitettan. Slutsats: Studien visar att de undersökta föreningarna har svårt att skapa balans mellan ekonomi, organisation och sportsliga målsättningar. Föreningarna är beroende av svårprognosticerad extern finansiering, vilket försvårar möjligheten till en långsiktig planering och styrning. Många intressenter har liknande krav och förväntningar på verksamheten. Detta leder till att färre avvägningar mellan intressenter är nödvändiga och ökar möjligheten för synergier i värdeskapande aktiviteter. Därmed bör verksamheterna fokusera på att skapa värde för så många intressenter som möjligt genom att utgå från följande steg: klassificering, interna & externa behov, gemensamma värden, genomförande och uppföljning samt samverkan.

The concept, sustainability, has developed throughout the years and has become an important part for different actors around the world. Due to many organizations like the United Nations acknowledging this aspect together with governments, initiatives and laws have been implemented for businesses to follow. This forms the basis of what is now called ESG which includes three individual aspects: environment, social responsibility and governance. One of the actors includes investors who have now started to shift their focus onto sustainable investments. In order for them to make decisions about the company's way of working towards a sustainable business, analytics began to measure both each individual aspect of ESG and as a whole. Therefore, ESG rating has become a well-known way of measuring how companies perform when it comes to environment, social responsibility and governance. The pharmaceutical industry in Europe is the second largest in the world and has become acknowledged due to the covid-19 pandemic. It has not only faced criticism and uncertainties both during and after the pandemic, but also faces problems in each individual aspect of ESG. When it comes to environmental issues, the pharmaceutical industry stands for 55% more of carbon emissions than the automotive sector due to non-sustainable supply chains. For the aspect, social responsibility, their main problems include addiction, antibiotic resistance and accessibility of pharmaceuticals. Further, governance issues include illegal marketing and fraud. Due to this, governments and organizations have put pressure on businesses to work towards a sustainable industry. Therefore, ESG ratings have become an important measurement for investors. The aim of the study is to analyze the relationship between ESG and financial performance in the pharmaceutical industry in Europe with a time period of 2018-2022. The results will indicate if the Shareholder’s theory or the Stakeholder’s theory is more applicable for this industry. The result shows a negative significant relationship between the overall rating of ESG and Tobin’s. When it comes to the individual aspect, governance is statically proved to have a negative significant relationship with Tobin’s Q. This concludes that the Shareholder’s theory is more aligned with the results meaning that the pharmaceutical industry may focus on profit maximization for shareholders. Since there was a non-statically proven relationship between ESG and ROA, the study suggests further research within this topic.

Petroleum discovery has been described as a ‘blessing’ and a ‘curse’ for Nigeria. Whilst oil wealth has been a boon to the economy, oil-companies' unwillingness to be ‘sustainably responsible’ to their resource-host-communities has resulted in multiple problems. This study, focusing on Nigeria's petroleum industry, confirms a framework with genuine potential to favourably impact the industry by validating shared dependency and exploring the relationship between two knowledge areas: corporate governance and sustainability. From the standpoint of resource-host-community ‘risks-and-impacts’, the study's overarching goal is to strengthen the oil-companies'/industry's ability to deliver their businesses on time, within/on budget, and at design capacity. A case study of three oil-companies was used, adopting a qualitative (interpretive) research technique. Study finds that in a turbulent business environment, aligning corporate governance with sustainability and managing oil-companies and their resource-host-community relationships is one attempt to deal with the induced-risks. By analysing the distinction between academic and practitioner research, as well as the tensions from this division, the study shows that a hybrid research merging theoretical and practice-guided study is feasible. The study also contributes to stakeholder theory by offering an empirical description of how resource-host-communities’ impact oil-companies decision-making processes with the potential for collaboration, and to breed and engender trust and unanimity. The findings show that stakeholder theory could be used to solve a variety of organisational problems plaguing the industry. This is the first study in the industry emphasizing the relevance of involving resource-host-communities in Joint-Management-Stakeholder-Committees (JMSCs) concept, demonstrating the influence and practical significance in governance.

This study investigates the integration of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) priorities into Employer Value Propositions (EVPs) within the context of higher education institutions, specifically focusing on Swedish universities. The research aims to explore how ESG priorities are perceived and experienced by faculty and staff, and how these priorities align with employees' personal values and expectations. By addressing this gap, the study seeks to understand the impact of ESG integration on employee perceptions and the overall attractiveness of the university as an employer.The study employs a qualitative methodology, utilizing in-depth semi-structured interviews with faculty and staff members across multiple campuses of Luleå University of Technology (LTU). The interviews provide rich, contextual insights into the participants' views on the university’s ESG initiatives, including comprehensive environmental programs, strong social responsibility efforts, and ethical governance practices, along with the effectiveness of communication strategies in conveying these priorities.The findings reveal that these ESG initiatives significantly influence employees' perceptions of their university’s commitment to sustainable and ethical practices. Specifically, the integration of ESG priorities not only enhances employees' sense of pride and commitment but also fosters a positive work culture when these initiatives align with their personal values and expectations. The study identifies key areas where ESG efforts can be strengthened to further align with employee values, thereby shaping a compelling EVP that attracts and retains environmentally, socially, and ethically conscious talent.Theoretical implications include enhanced stakeholder alignment, while practical implications highlight improved employee engagement and satisfaction through ESG initiatives. The research contributes to the existing literature by filling the gap regarding the qualitative exploration of ESG integration in EVPs within the higher education sector from an employee perspective. Furthermore, it offers practical recommendations for university administrators to effectively communicate and implement ESG priorities, ensuring alignment with employee expectations and enhancing overall organizational attractiveness.

Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to show how management control systems are used in sustainability reporting.   Theoretical perspectives: Stakeholder theory, agency theory, and institutional theory have, together with earlier literature, been applied to the empirical findings to fulfill the purpose of this thesis. Methodology: A keyword frequency analysis based on annual reports from four Swedish retail firms have been analyzed over a five-year period. In total, 18300 words have been coded and analyzed based on seven concepts. The concepts are based upon Malmi and Browns' (2008) MCS framework and consist of financial controls, budgeting, non-financial controls, planning, governance structure, rewards and compensation, and cultural controls. In addition, two interviews were held to gain additional insights into the portrayal in the sustainability reports presented by their companies. Findings: The findings show that the portrayal of MCS in sustainability reporting is more complex than previous literature suggests and that there are more ingredients that affect sustainability reporting. The results presented also indicate that companies communicate differently with their stakeholders and that some stakeholders seem to have greater importance compared to others. It is also found that some companies find it difficult to provide a sustainability report even though they practice sustainability efforts because there are no clear regulations on what to report. This study also finds that companies choose to exclude some parts and include others to present themselves as good as possible although institutional pressures limit the extent of this.