Aim: The aim of this study is to describe and analyse the factors that are important when entering a regional market, with a new brand name, within the technical consultant business in Sweden. Method: A qualitative research method has been applied to this study. Two interviews with key members of the chosen organisation have been performed. This is to bring a deeper understanding and together with my own experiences will be used as a base for the analysis of the present subject. Result & Conclusions: This study shows that the foundation of success when entering a new market with a new brand name is to focus on the long term building of relationships and personal networks. This has also shown to be a good strategy during an economical recession that recently has been over the last two years. To gain a competitive advantage in a market one has to be present and interact with the market. When competition increases with market threats from countries far away one has to stand out, be different, from your competitors. Relationship marketing and networking could for this reason be a good strategy because being local and visible makes the entry barriers higher for new entrants that are geographically located somewhere else in the world. 3 The downside of relationship marketing is that it‘s hard to use conventional advertisement because building a network of new relations with customers etcetera will take long time because a relation is build with personal interaction between two parties. One can say that when entering a market with a new brand the person that acts in a brand name is more important than the brand name itself because you have a relationship with persons not with brand names. Suggestions for future research: As years go by everything changes. Therefore the development of relationship marketing in the future could be an interesting case to study. When the economical situation now changes from recession to a positive trend this could be such a change to analyse in a study. Another interesting research might be to evaluate the situation in other countries. Is relationship marketing equally important as it is in Sweden today or does its‘ importance change in accordance to what country you analyze? At last, one can analyze if it is a different situation when entering a new market with a new brand if you work with traditionally employed personnel than it is when working with self-employed organizations. If one is to enter a market with traditionally employees are there other strategies that are successful or is relationship marketing important as well? Contribution of the thesis: This study could be useful for entrepreneurs that seek new ways of gaining success in a market. It has pointed out the advantages of relationship marketing and networking and has shown it could be really successful in practice. I strongly believe on the importance of building relationships within all business areas. Being part of a world that more and more goes toward virtual interaction and increased competition within all areas, both local and worldwide, relationships could be a key to success.

The prominent shifts towards greater flexibility in work arrangements as well as in organizational forms have had profound effects on the labor market for engineers, and given rise to the technical consulting industry. The technical consulting firm is becoming increasingly important in many technology-based industries, as a growing number of technology-based firms rely on technical consulting firms to produce their outputs. In that respect, the technical consulting firm is an important actor for the organization and development of engineering knowledge, as well as for the transfer of knowledge to and among technology-based firms. However, despite its growing importance, the technical consulting firm has received scant scholarly attention. Hence, the purpose of this thesis is to enhance the understanding of the roles of the technical consulting firm and the technical consultants for the transfer of knowledge among problem-solving contexts and client organizations. This thesis is comprised of a compilation of three papers and an extended summary. It draws upon a qualitative single-case study in one of Scandinavia’s leading technical consulting firms. This thesis takes a multilevel perspective, and utilizes an embedded case study design to study both the organizational and the individual level of analysis. In total, it builds on 54 interviews with managers and consultants, 14 observations of a competence development program for engineers who are in the beginning of their careers as technical consultants, and 2 workshops with managers. This thesis identifies two primary capabilities, developed through the interaction between the firm and the individual level: swift transition and knowledge cycling. The findings indicate that the link between the respective capabilities creates the foundation for the successful organization of engineering knowledge. Hence, these capabilities illustrate that the technical consulting firm has other roles to play than merely solving the problem of numerical and functional flexibility. Moreover, this thesis develops the process of knowledge cycling. The knowledge cycling process addresses the role of the individual consultant in the transfer of knowledge within and among problem-solving contexts, and consists of three distinct knowledge processes found prominent during the different phases of a consulting assignment: (1) knowledge acquisition, (2) knowledge integration, and (3) knowledge transfer. Furthermore, this thesis provides insight into how formal training affects the technical consultants’ ability to transfer knowledge. The findings suggest that this ability is developed through a three-stage process: (1) identifying the core of an assignment, (2) broadening the scope of action, and (3) becoming more self-confident in the role of consultant.