IT outsourcing is a hot topic in today’s demanding environment. Many organizations start to outsource information technology in order to achieve benefits such as cost reduction, improve quality of service, and focus on the core competence. However, IT outsourcing projects are not an easy task to manage and many projects fail even though there exists a lot of research within the area. In order to increase the possibility to achieve project success, today’s literature indicates that trust is an important factor to achieve. This thesis aim is to identify and describe the process of how to achieve trust in IT outsourcing relationships. The methodology is a literature study as its purpose is to cover the aspects of trust and how the literature proposes how to achieve trust in IT outsourcing relationships. Relevant literature has been identified, analyzed, and categorized in order to define the thesis concepts and to create a framework based on critical success factors of how to achieve trust in IT outsourcing relationships. The framework can be used as a guiding principle of how organizations can achieve trust in IT outsourcing relationships to increases the possibility to achieve project success. The framework can also raise the awareness that makes it possible to deal with different IT outsourcing situations.

Communities är ett hett ämne som idag ständigt diskuteras i media. Människor blir mer och mer benägna att interagera online och mängden med online communities ökar i takt med detta. I Sverige finns en community som heter Lunarstorm som har blivit ett fenomen som inte har skådats någon annanstans. Med sina 1,3 miljoner användare är det absolut störst i Sverige idag. Jag har i min uppsats tagit fram ett antal faktorer ur litteraturen som är avgörande för ett online communities framgång. Jag har även gjort en empirisk studie av företaget Lunarstorm och webbplatsen Lunarstorm. Jag har sedan i analysen använt mig av framgångsfaktorerna för att kunna dra slutsatser om hur Lunarstorm har kunnat bli ett sådant fenomen. Det som har framkommit av undersökningarna är att det framför allt är tre faktorer som har givit Lunarstorm den plats i rampljuset som det har idag, nätverkseffekter, att vara först, att de har skapat ett helt koncept och inte bara är en webbplats. / Online communities are today widely discussed in media and a very popular subject. People all around the world are more and more willing to interact online and the number of online communities are rising with this. Today we have a community in Sweden that is called Lunarstorm, this has become a phenomen not seen anywhere else. Whit its 1,3 million users, it is the absolut biggest in Sweden today. I have in my essay found a number of factors in the litteratur that are essential for an online communities succes. I have also done an empirical study on Lunarstorm as a company and Lunarstorm as a webbsite. I have then in my analys part applyed my success factors on Lunarstorm, to be able to make conclusions about why Lunarstorm have become such a success. What I can see from my researches there is especially three things that makes Lunarstorm speciell, and that is networkeffects, to be the first one and the entire koncept of Lunarstorm.

Construction Project Procurement Methods (PMs) define the roles, relationships and responsibilities of project team members and the sequence of the activities required to construct or provide a facility. A number of different PMs have evolved over the years, but each is characterised by a different set of features upon which the criteria for selecting the most appropriate method to procure a given project must be based, if successful project performance (PP) is to be ensured. The use of procurement method selection criteria (PMSC) to inform clients’ decision on suitable PMs to adopt remains a recommended good practice in the construction industry. However, project clients in the Libya Construction Industry (LCI), continue to face great challenges when it comes to selecting the most appropriate PM for its projects. The general practice in this industry is largely dominated by a culture of clients’ reliance on their familiarity and experience with a particular method to inform their PM choice, with no consideration of the plethora of other PMs and use of rational approaches to aid in this decision-making. This procurement issue has long been recognised as a major contributory factor to the frequent time and cost overruns often experienced by projects in the LCI. Although the selection of an appropriate PM to procure any given project is known to result in success PP and (and vice versa), very little is known about the nature of this relationship from literature. Having persistently suffered a great deal of project failures over the years, the LCI stands to benefit from detailed knowledge and understanding of how exactly PM choice do actually influence PP. Stimulated by the dearth of this information, this thesis reports on a research investigation into this relationship with the aim of developing a model to explain the criteria functions in contributing to PP and their implications to PM selection practice in Libya. The methodological approach adopted for this research was the mixed method, i.e., using a combination of both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Following a critical review of the extant relevant literature, a number of relevant hypotheses were first formulated, together with a conceptual framework, to establish the theoretical basis underpinning this research, namely the relationship between the selection of PMs (based on PMSC) and PP. The primary data collection stage involved an initial field questionnaire survey aimed at identifying and confirming the key areas of the research inquiry that needs focusing on. This was followed by a semi-structured questionnaire and interview surveys. With the aid of SPSS and Excel, the collected data were analysed, followed by the development of a mathematical model (based on regression) that demonstrate the influence of PMSC on PP. Finally, the model was validated by expert interviews to test for its validity and reliability. The key findings of the research include the identification of DBB and DB selection criteria that contributes to PP. The distinct contribution to knowledge arising from this research includes the development of a regression model to demonstrate this relationship between PMSC and PP. The benefit of these outputs lies not only in the ability of LCI’s clients to make PM selection decisions much faster by virtue of the need for them to only focus on the criteria with significant influence on PP, they are also able to work out, in quantitative terms, the PP outcomes to be expected for each of the method being considered. This latter information would enable clients to compare the PP outcome values expected from their decisions to select DBB and DB, and then be able to conclude which of these two options represents a better procurement strategy for any given project at hand.

As the world becomes more globalized and information technology develops more rapidly, companies are increasingly exploring the benefits of using virtual teams to work on projects that allow them to achieve their objectives. This phenomenon though keeps raising questions regarding the best practices in selection and management of employees whose work would be mostly conducted in virtual settings instead of traditional co-located teams. We have investigated the conditions of virtuality, identifying its benefits and challenges and came up to a conclusion that in order to be an effective virtual team member, a special set of skills and abilities may be needed. The central question of this study is: What individual knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) that comprise virtual competence (IVC) should the virtual project team members possess, which could contribute to overcoming challenges of the virtual environment? To answer this question a variety of theories on a virtual team, professional competencies, team management and project management were examined. Quantitative research has been utilized to measure the relationship between the conceptualised construct of individual virtual competence and individual work outcomes in a project that is conducted by distributed global teams. Data on the skills of the individuals conducting their work in virtual IT project settings were collected with an online survey which was distributed among the chosen sample. The results of the survey indicated that the most important characteristics that contribute to overcoming challenges of virtuality are self-efficacy, social, and media skills, which also have a positive reflection on the individual work performance and job satisfaction. There are also interesting results regarding the effect of demographic characteristics on variables when compared with the results from the similar study conducted with a different group of respondents. In the end, a revised model of individual virtual competence is proposed that can shed some light on its impact on job performance and job satisfaction of an individual working in virtual project teams.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the technical implementation of common game design theory in successful PC games today. The study uses a quantitative study to analyze 23 modern successful PC games to identify common success factors which are connected to Arrasvuors et al. (2009) theory of the Playful Experiences Framework, Sutton-Smiths (2001) seven rhetorics of play and Max-Neefs (1991) human needs matrix. The results is a practical checklist of 63 success factors for use in game development. These success factors are present in the successful games and described for implementation in game design for the PC platform. These success factors are then divided into the 7 categories: freedom, immersion, challenge, multiplayer, personal, preference and human needs to provide a better overview of the success factor checklist and connect them to proven game design theory.

For many providers of ERP-system, Poland is one of the most valuable markets in Central andEastern Europe. The Polish market for ERP-systems is still a growing market, especially; wecan see the low utilization of ERP-systems among small and medium-sized enterprises. Thisis due to several factors, primarily the cost of implementing the system and the necessary infrastructure.Subsequently due to the lack of knowledge, where there is no sufficientknowledge of the benefits arising from the use of an ERP-system in their business, and thereis a fear within the companies that its business would start stagnating.This paper investigates the implementation process of a Polish consulting company whichworks towards small and medium-sized businesses. The key success factors will be studied inthe implementation of ERP-systems, and the instance factors of the interrelationship betweenthe consultant and client from a consultant perspective. The review of the literature has beenidentified and discussed in relevance to the empirical study. The paper investigates the interplaybetween the client and consultants and how the dynamics between the involved partsaffect the outcome of use of the critical success factors and to which extent the consultingfirm is able to influence during the ERP-implementation process. The paper also scrutinizesimprovement potentials for the relationship process during the ERP-implementation and proposesareas of improvement for the consultant firm. At the same time, the paper can be beneficialas much for the client as for the consultant as an example framework in order to gain adeeper understanding for the interplay and how each actor's behavior affect the outcome andresult of the ERP-implementation.The study revealed that control and influence are shared between the parties involved, however,the following conclusions can be drawn that the consulting company is not in the positionto influence and control the factors that the customer has the final decision on which is; TopManagement Support, Clear Goals & Objectives, Change Management, ERP Teamwork andComposition, User Involvement and Use of Consultants. Based on the empirical data it alsoemerged that the lack of these factors has affected following implementation projects negatively.The factors consulting company can control and influence are; Business Process Redesign,Problem Solving Ability, Technological Infrastructure, Support, User Training, RiskManagement and Experience & Expertise. The client has very little control and influence overthese factors, where they are based mostly on the basis of the consultancies experience andexpertise. There is a complexity in the relationship between the consulting firm and its clientsin its ability to influence and control the critical success factors. Complexity of the extent thatone partner ignorance or unwillingness affects the other partners actions.The result from the control and influence analysis shows that there is a gap between thesmaller and larger regions at the Polish market regarding ERP-implementation. The resultgenerated in this study shows that the ERP-market in the smaller regions still remains underdevelopedand immature. In addition to this, the study shows that there is still a strong hierarchicalpower structure within organizations in the smaller regions. An aspect of the professionalculture in Poland is that those who are more experienced and at senior positions are lesswilling to share their expertise with juniors. The consequences of this emerge very clear duringthe implementation process amongst all critical success factors. The study also shows thatthe main difficulties identified during the implementation process are linked to human resourcesand high project costs. It is clear that clients in smaller regions are struggling with thehigh costs associated with ERP-implementation. The small- and medium sized enterprises inthe smaller regions seldom have the economy to cover the costs without help of EUfunding’s.Furthermore the result of the study also remark on organizational and social prob-lems during the ERP-implementation. The main problems that have been identified with clientsare associated with inadequate training, lack of support from management and users resistanceto a new system and change.

Purpose: the aim of this study is to investigate the relation between audience experience and the success factors of dinner shows. Due to many possible aspects of dinner shows, as part of the audience experience, current study focuses on three concepts - the show, the interaction, and the dinner . The success factors and audience attendance were researched to give the entire study context and are relevant to answer the research questions. Methodology: an approach that can be characterised through an exploratory and abductive nature is used, based on primary data, which results in qualitative data. Interviews were conducted with experts from different companies or shows, different countries (the Netherlands, Ireland, or Sweden) and different point of views (audience member, performer, or manager). Additionally, observations were made at one of the shows studied. Results & Conclusions: the main findings are categorised into three parts: the audience experience (1), the success factors (2), and audience attendance (3). The type of show has no significant influence on the audience experience. Active participation and the quality of the food are recognised as important regarding audience experience at dinner shows. Success factors for dinner shows are: the show, the service, the servicescape and other surroundings, and the interaction between performers and the audience. Audience attendance is broad in terms of age, gender, ethnic background, and social class. Suggestions for further research: further studies are needed to understand the relationship between audience experience and success factors for dinner shows, especially regarding the experience during and after the dinner show. Moreover, other concepts in dinner shows - such as the service/staff and surroundings - are suggestions for further research, as these have been recognised as success factors of such shows. Contributions: the concept of dinner shows has not been much studied. Especially the audience experience, dinner experience, and success factors combined is not to be found in existing literature. The results of this study provide a starting point for further academic investigation regarding success factors and audience experience in dinner shows. The outcome of this study assists managers in working effectively towards performance improvements, regarding positive audience experience and success factors in dinner shows. Limitations: the limited number of interviewees affects the possibility to generalise findings.

Organizations face challenges in terms of costs and resistance when dealing with change. Global organizations face additional challenges with change when dealing with differences in national culture. The purpose of this thesis was to investigate organizational change in an international and multicultural environment. The aim was to discover how global companies can effectively drive change by analyzing perspectives, experiences, attitudes and values of change of employees of different nationalities and positions in a global company. Research questions such as: “What factors enable or prevent the implementation of organizational changes?”, “Which are the success factors for leading change in a global organization?”, “What are the challenges when it comes to leading change in a global organization?” and “Is there a difference in perspectives, attitudes, motivation and values towards change?” Were answered in this investigation. Semi-structured informant and respondent interviews as well as quantitative surveys were conducted. Analysis shows that factors affecting organizational change processes were dimensions of change, structure, time, support, change competencies, clarity and justifications for the change. Results showed that concern for human factors and global/ local awareness were success factors when leading change. Challenges identified included the delivery of a complete communication across the organization, adapting change approach to all cultures and an eagerness to create organizational changes. At last, results showed that respondents differed in perspectives, experiences and motivation for change. Statistical analysis proved that these differences were attributed to nationality but also to age and position. Finally, a discussion of results highlights the importance for organizations to understand and solve the dilemma of doing both, managing and leading change.

Det går inte att undgå att dagens matematikklassrum utgörs av flera olika språk och nationaliteter. Det mångkulturella klassrummet ställer i sin tur höga krav på att läraren tillgodoser varje individs behov. Inom matematik finns det mer kognitivt krävande områden än andra och flerspråkiga elever visar sig ha större svårigheter med de uppgifter som kräver en högre kognitiv förmåga än de uppgifter som är av rutinkaraktär. Eftersom matematik är ett problemlösande ämne innebär det att matematikläraren har en avgörande roll i undervisningen för att flerspråkiga elever ska utvecklas i matematik. Syftet med studien är att klargöra hur flerspråkiga elevers problem och begränsningar i matematikämnet påverkar lärarens undervisning och sätt att hjälpa och stötta vid problemlösningsuppgifter, samt hur lärare tar hänsyn till utforskade framgångsfaktorer i praktiken. Studien utgår från ett etnomatematiskt perspektiv på lärandet och bygger på iakttagande observationer och en semistrukturerad intervju. Studien utgör ett extremfall, vilket innebär att endast en lärare har observerats och intervjuats. Resultatet visar att den observerade och intervjuade läraren i ett flerspråkigt klassrum förhåller sig till de utforskade framgångsfaktorerna både medvetet och omedvetet. Framgångsfaktorerna visar sig genom kommunikativa situationer och resultatet visar praktiska exempel på hur detta tar sig i uttryck i ett flerspråkigt matematikklassrum. Av resultatet framgår det även att undervisningen i större mån påverkas positivt av flerspråkigheten i matematikklassrummet, eftersom det får läraren att reflektera över sin undervisning i större utsträckning. Slutsatsen blir därför att genom kommunikativa och interaktiva miljöer kan flerspråkiga elever komma till sin rätt i matematikämnet. Genom att öppna upp möjligheter för tillåtande och öppna klassrumsklimat kan undervisningen av flerspråkiga elever påverkas positivt. / The modern classroom of mathematic consists of several different languages ​​and nationalities. The multicultural classroom places high demands on the teacher to meet every individual's needs. In mathematics, there are more cognitive demanding areas than others, and multilingual students find themselves having greater difficulties with the tasks requiring a higher cognitive ability than with the routine tasks. Since mathematic is a problem-solving topic, it means that the mathematic teachers have a crucial role in teaching to enable the multilingual students to develop in mathematic. The purpose of this study is to clarify how the problems and limitations of multilingual students in mathematics affect teachers' teaching purpose and ways to help and support problem solving tasks, as well as how teacher consider using the researched success-factors in practice. The study is based on a theoretical perspective of ethnomathematic of learning and it is based on observations and a semi-structured interview of a classroom.  The study is an extreme case, which means that only one teacher has been observed and interviewed.  The result shows that the observed and interviewed teacher in a multilingual classroom relates to the identified success-factors both consciously and unconsciously. Success -factors are evident through communicative situations and the results show practical examples of how this is expressed in a multilingual mathematic-classroom.  The result also shows that education is influenced in a positive way by the multilingualism of the mathematics classroom, as it forces the teacher to reflect more on his teaching.  Therefore, the conclusion is that through communicative and interactive environments, multilingual students can come to their right in the mathematical subject.  The teaching of multilingual students can be positively influenced by opening opportunities for a permitting and open classroom climate.

This thesis aims to explore learning management systems use and usefulness in Higher Education (HE) environments in a Middle Eastern developing country (Saudi Arabia) and gauge what factors influence the attitudes of the learners and by the same token investigate which of these, if any, do affect their performances in such environments. This study intends to delve into these factors and single out any relationships that might exist among these factors. The LMS (learning management system) chosen for the purpose of this research is the „Blackboard‟ LMS. To enable the researcher to look thoroughly at the issue, three separate studies were conducted to achieve comprehensive results. Qualitative and quantitative methodologies were combined for maximum Data collection from participants using questionnaires, interviews and numerical data from the Blackboard tracking system. A framework encompassing all the perceived critical variables that could play a part in affecting students' attitudes in the use of the Blackboard LMS and their overall achievements was designed, developed and then tested. The framework consists of four main parts, 1) Learners interaction with their peers; their ability to use the Internet and associated technologies, named 'learner dimension'. 2) Instructors‟ technical knowledge and competence, the manner in which they deliver lessons to learners using 'Blackboard' and the interactions taking place between the two parties named ' instructor variable or dimension'. 3) The technology itself variable or dimension: usability, flexibility and quality. 4) The HE institution's support dimension: training and technical support. The results have indicated that students were keen to adopt the LMS Blackboard for their courses. Instructor attitudes and behaviours when using Blackboard were found to play a major role in students' attitudes and performances. A major relationship was found in relation to student gender, academic specialization and attitude towards using the LMS, but not in the way the system is used. Students varied and various academic specializations were found to impact positively on their attitude towards the use of the system and in their learning (in terms of performance on a specific course). The learner variable was found to be a good indicator of how students behaved towards VLE and Blackboard and their achievements. The Instructor dimension was also found to be a positive indicator of students' attitudes, their use of Blackboard and achievements in its use. Similarly the technology and the HE institution variables were also found to be sound indicators of their attitudes.