This master’s thesis delves into the inner dimension of Sustainability, aspiring to highlight the vitality of Human Values (HV) in creating durable societal change. Its purpose is to identify particular (individual and communal) values that can be vital in transformations, as well as to underline the role of Education in reinforcing them. Guiding questions for the research were the following: i) what sorts of character qualities are beneficial to be stimulated in individuals through pedagogical practices to facilitate Sustainability changes, and ii) how Education for Sustainability can contribute to achieving that mission? To answer the questions, both theoretical literature and a pedagogical application were examined. Firstly, through reviewing relevant texts focused on Human Values (HV), Environmental Ethics (EE) and Sustainability Ethics (SE). Secondly, a two–week ethnographical based research in ‘‘Arillas’’ outdoor pedagogical project on Corfu - Greece, to explore their pedagogical ethos and praxis. Aiming to frame a holistic view of the project’s pedagogical approaches, the ethnographic research was conducted with field–observations, dialogues, a video–stimulated recall with the teacher and official document investigation. Based on the ethnographic findings and the theory of Human Values developed by Shalom S. Schwartz, this study synthesizes and proposes the value framework of Eutopía, consisted by three core egoistic, altruistic and biospheric values: Autenérgeia, Synérgia and Symbíosis.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur införandet av managementkonceptet värdebaserad vård upplevs av vårdgivare respektive patienter. Vi vill även undersöka hur arbetet med värdebaserad vård påverkar kvaliteten av vården. I samband med detta vill vi dessutom studera vad införandet av kundbegreppet har haft för konsekvenser för vårdgivare och vårdtagare. Vi har genomfört en kvalitativ forskningsmetod och genom semistrukturerade intervjuer och genomgång av tidigare forskning, har vi kunnat besvara studiens frågeställningar och uppnått dess syfte. Respondenterna av intervjuerna bestod av fem vårdgivare (läkare) och fyra vårdtagare (patienter). Dessa intervjuer utgör, i kombination med tidigare forskning, datainsamlingen. Vårdgivare drabbas och begränsas dagligen i hur de vårdar sina patienter.  Resultatet visar även att implementeringen av värdebaserad vård är problematisk då konceptet är välbekant, men kan inte alltid tillämpas i praktiken. Både vårdgivare och vårdtagare talar om bristen i värde och kvaliteten av vård, till följd av bland annat personal- och platsbristen som råder. Dessutom har det kunnat slås fast att politiken har en avgörande roll i hur sjukvården styrs, och att politikerna har ett inflytande på sjukvården, utifrån inkorrekta ändamål, det vill säga med ekonomi och siffror i centrum. Slutligen har det likaså påvisats att kundbegreppet inom sjukvården inte nödvändigtvis har påverkat vårdgivarnas synsätt på patienter, däremot har det haft en inverkan på styrsättet. Detta i form av att sjukvården mer likt styrs som en affär i syfte att behålla sina kunder, snarare än en plats för vård av sjuka. / The purpose of this study is to investigate how the introduction of the management concept value-based healthcare is experienced by care providers and patients respectively. We also want to investigate how the implementation of value-based healthcare has affected the quality of care. In connection with this, we also want to study what consequences the introduction of the concept of customer has had for care providers and care recipients. We have implemented a qualitative research method and through semi-structured interviews and a review of previous research, we have been able to answer the study's questions and achieved its purpose. The respondents of the interviews consisted of five care providers (doctors) and four care recipients (patients). These interviews, combined with previous research, forms the basis of the data collection.  Caregivers face limitations in their daily care for patients. The implementation of value-based healthcare has been problematic, as it is talked about much more than it is actually applied. Both caregivers and care recipients have reported a lack of value and quality of care, which can be attributed to staff and space shortages. It was also established that politics plays a decisive role in healthcare governance, with politicians focusing on incorrect objectives such as economics and numbers. Finally, the concept of a customer in healthcare has affected the management approach, but not necessarily the caregivers' approach to patients. Healthcare is now governed more like a business with the aim of retaining customers, rather than a place for the care of the sick.

Real estate professionals, such as investors, owner-occupants, and lenders who are involved in the investment decision-making process are increasingly interested in sustainability and energy efficiency investment. However, current tools and techniques, both technical and financial, typically used for assessing sustainability on their own are unable to provide comprehensive and reliable financial information required for making high-quality investment decisions. Sustainability investment often includes non-cost benefits, value implications, as well as substantial risk and uncertainty that current methods do not simultaneously incorporate in their assessment process. Through a combined quantitative and qualitative approach, this research creates a new systematic assessment process to consider both cost and non-cost savings and therefore the true financial performance of a set of sustainable options in the context of value and risk, while explicitly deriving and including various uncertainties inherent in the process. The framework integrates assessment tools of technical decision-makers with those of investment decision-makers into a single platform to improve the quality of financial performance projections, and therefore, investment decisions concerning sustainable options in real estate. A case study is then conducted to test and demonstrate the numeric application of the proposed framework in the context of a non-green office building. The case study presents how to connect the technical outcomes to financial inputs, present the information, and estimate the true financial performance of a green retrofit option, where incremental value and uncertainty have been modeled and included. Three levels of financial analysis are performed to estimate the distribution of financial outcomes including: 1) Cost-based level-1: only energy related costs savings were considered; 2) Cost-based level-2: the non-energy cost savings, including heath and productivity, were also considered; and 3) Value-based level: the value implications of the green retrofit option were considered in addition to items in level 2. As a result of applying the proposed framework when evaluating sustainability investment options, many investment opportunities that were otherwise ignored may be realized, and therefore, the breadth and depth of sustainability investment in real estate will increase. / Ph. D.

[ES] Según la Organización Mundial de la Salud, la esperanza de vida ha aumentado en seis años en las últimas dos décadas. Esto ha llevado a un aumento de las enfermedades crónicas entre la población. Como consecuencia, los sistemas de salud se han visto obligados a buscar medidas preventivas y de mejora de los procesos de atención para garantizar su sostenibilidad. Factores clave para esta mejora son la seguridad, la eficacia, la eficiencia, la atención centrada en el paciente, la puntualidad y la equidad, los cuales buscan minimizar riesgos y brindar una atención óptima. Asimismo, los Servicios de Urgencias se enfrentan a grandes desafíos debido a la alta demanda a la que están sometidos, lo que resulta en Servicios de Urgencias saturados y errores que pueden derivar en eventos adversos. Por lo tanto, mejorar la seguridad del paciente es crucial para obtener una mejor atención en el Servicio de Urgencias. Paradigmas como el Cuidado de la Salud Basado en el Valor abogan por medir la calidad de la atención, optimizar la asignación de recursos y lograr mejores resultados a través de una mejora continua. Siendo los indicadores de rendimiento tradicionales los que han desempeñado un papel crucial en este proceso, al alinear actividades y objetivos, brindar información sobre las experiencias del paciente y su estado de salud, así como contribuir en la evaluación del rendimiento, la eficacia clínica y la mejora de la calidad. Sin embargo, estos indicadores pueden presentar limitaciones debido a su naturaleza abstracta y la propia complejidad de los datos. Por lo tanto, es posible que el uso de indicadores clave no represente en su totalidad la complejidad de estos procesos. Además, la adaptación de estos indicadores a continuos cambios puede ser un desafío, lo que dificulta la comprensión de los sistemas. Técnicas como la Inteligencia Artificial pueden ofrecer una información valiosa al procesar grandes conjuntos de datos, que son de especialmente interés en el sector de la salud. De esta forma, la Minería de Procesos, un paradigma emergente y que está ganando popularidad en varios dominios incluido salud, ofrece la oportunidad de analizar y mejorar los procesos, contribuyendo a aliviar la crisis a la que se enfrentan los sistemas de salud hoy en día. Esta tesis doctoral introduce nuevos indicadores de proceso basados en técnicas de Minería de Procesos para el proceso de urgencias como solución a cuestiones no cubiertas por las técnicas de medición tradicionales o nuevas tecnologías como la Inteligencia Artificial. Además, esta tesis presenta un método novedoso para medir la Calidad de la Atención, así como comprender el proceso de atención del ictus en los Servicios de Urgencias. Este enfoque ofrece una forma más dinámica e interactiva de analizar los procesos de atención de la salud, lo que permite un mejor entendimiento, además de medir la cadena de valor, lo que ayuda a identificar especificidades en el proceso de atención en urgencias y así descubrir el comportamiento del proceso de la enfermedad de ictus. Por último, en esta tesis se presenta una aplicación basada en Minería de Procesos para soportar este método diseñada e implementada para tal fin. / [CA] Segons l'Organització Mundial de la Salut, l'esperança de vida ha augmentat en sis anys en les últimes dues dècades. Això ha portat a un augment de les malalties cròniques entre la població. Com a conseqüència, els sistemes de salut s'han vist obligats a buscar mesures preventives i de millora dels processos d'atenció per a garantir la seua sostenibilitat. Factors clau per a aquesta millora són la seguretat, l'eficàcia, l'eficiència, l'atenció centrada en el pacient, la puntualitat i l'equitat, els quals busquen minimitzar riscos i brindar una atenció òptima. Així mateix, els Serveis d'Urgències s'enfronten a grans desafiaments a causa de l'alta demanda a la qual estan sotmesos, la qual cosa resulta en Serveis d'Urgències saturats i errors que poden derivar en esdeveniments adversos. Per tant, millorar la seguretat del pacient és crucial per a obtindre una millor atenció en el Servei d'Urgències. Paradigmes com la Cura de la Salut Basat en el Valor advoquen per mesurar la qualitat de l'atenció, optimitzar l'assignació de recursos i aconseguir millors resultats a través d'una millora contínua. Sent els indicadors de rendiment tradicionals els que han exercit un paper crucial en aquest procés, en alinear activitats i objectius, brindar informació sobre les experiències del pacient i el seu estat de salut, així com contribuir en l'avaluació del rendiment, l'eficàcia clínica i la millora de la qualitat. No obstant això, aquests indicadors poden presentar limitacions a causa de la seua naturalesa abstracta i a la pròpia complexitat de les dades. Per tant, és possible que els indicadors clau no representen íntegrament la complexitat d'aquests processos. A més, l'adaptació d'aquests indicadors a canvis continus pot ser un desafiament, la qual cosa dificulta la comprensió dels sistemes. Tècniques com la Intel·ligència Artificial poden oferir una informació valuosa en processar grans conjunts de dades, que són d'especialment interés en el sector de la salut. D'aquesta manera, la Mineria de Processos, un paradigma emergent i que està guanyant popularitat en diversos dominis inclòs salut, ofereix l'oportunitat d'analitzar i millorar els processos, contribuint a alleujar la crisi a la qual s'enfronten els sistemes de salut hui dia. Aquesta tesi doctoral introdueix nous indicadors de procés basats en tècniques de Mineria de Processos per al procés d'urgències com a solució a qüestions no cobertes per les tècniques de mesurament tradicionals o noves tecnologies com la Intel·ligència Artificial. A més, aquesta tesi presenta un mètode nou per a mesurar la Qualitat de l'Atenció, així com comprendre el procés d'atenció del ictus en els Serveis d'Urgències. Aquest enfocament ofereix una forma més dinàmica i interactiva d'analitzar els processos d'atenció de la salut, la qual cosa permet un millor enteniment, a més de mesurar la cadena de valor, la qual cosa ajuda a identificar especificitats en el procés d'atenció en urgències i així descobrir el comportament del procés de la malaltia de ictus. Finalment, en aquesta tesi es presenta una aplicació basada en Mineria de Processos per a suportar aquest mètode dissenyada i implementada per a tal fi. / [EN] According to the World Health Organization, life expectancy has increased by six years in the last two decades. This has led to an increase in chronic diseases among the population. Consequently, health systems have been forced to look for preventive measures and improvement of care processes to guarantee sustainability. Key factors for this improvement are safety, efficacy, efficiency, patient-centred care, timeliness, and equity, all of which pursue to minimize risks and provide optimal care. Likewise, Emergency Services face significant challenges due to the high demand to which they are subjected, which results in saturated Emergency Departments and errors that can lead to adverse events. Therefore, improving patient safety is crucial to obtain better care in the Emergency Department. Paradigms such as Value-Based Healthcare advocate measuring the Quality of Care, optimizing the allocation of resources, and achieving better results through continuous improvement being the traditional performance indicators, those that have played a crucial role in this process by aligning activities and objectives, providing information on the patient's experiences and their state of health, as well as contributing to the evaluation of performance, clinical efficacy and quality improvement. However, these indicators may present limitations due to their abstract nature and the complexity of the data. Therefore, the key indicators may not fully represent the complexity of these processes. Furthermore, adapting these indicators to continuous changes can be challenging, making it difficult to understand the systems. Techniques such as Artificial Intelligence can offer valuable information when processing large data sets, which are particularly interesting in the health sector. In this way, Process Mining, an emerging paradigm gaining popularity in several domains, including health, offers the opportunity to analyze and improve processes, contributing to alleviating the crisis that health systems face today. This doctoral thesis presents a new way to measure the value of the emergency process with interactive process indicators based on Process Mining techniques as a solution to issues not covered by traditional measurement techniques or new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence. In addition, this thesis proposes a novel method to measure the Quality of Care in addition to understanding the stroke care process in Emergency Services. This approach offers a more dynamic and interactive way of analyzing healthcare processes, which allows for a better understanding and measuring of the value chain, which helps identify specificities in the emergency care process and thus discover the behaviour of the stroke disease process. Finally, this thesis presents an application based on Process Mining to support this method, designed and implemented for this purpose. / Ibáñez Sánchez, G. (2023). Interactive Process Mining Techniques to Co-create Interactive Process Indicators to Evaluate and Characterize the Clinical Practice in Emergency Departments [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/202611

How to price your offering is one of the main managerial decision issues today and is alarmingly often not grounded in necessary market and cost research. Pricing is a complex topic, dependent on a multitude of internal and external factors, which makes pricing practice and strategy alignment even more difficult. As a simplifying measure, pricing practices are commonly categorized into three categories: cost-based, competition-based and value-based pricing, of which value-based pricing is considered the superior practice by scholars. Consequently, the issue of how to adopt value-based pricing and how to actually price according to value is pertinent and a main focus of this thesis. What comprises perceived customer value, how a firm creates and captures value, and how a firm chooses to formulate the customer value proposition in order to communicate the generated value are all questions that this thesis investigates and attempts to answer. Furthermore, the effects of the customer-supplier relationship on pricing and change management aspects of a transition to value-based pricing are also investigated and analyzed. In order to answer the research purpose and accompanying research questions, a qualitative single case-study was conducted. The case company was a leading company in the TIC-market, who just recently had started discussing implementing value-based pricing and was therefore deemed as an appropriate case for this study. Empirical data was gathered through semi-structured interviews with the employees as well as the customers of the case company. The analysis of the empirical data in conjunction with the theoretical framework led to a revised analytical model that attempts to explain the relations and correlations of the different concepts discussed in this thesis, as well as conclusions regarding the aforementioned research questions. This study concludes that the common value drivers are Quality, Delivery reliability, Delivery time, Price, Geographical location, Relationship and communication, Customization. Additionally, the study concludes that the alignment of pricing practice and strategy is heavily dependent on internal and external awareness, and it is of utmost importance for a firm engaging in value-based pricing to know not only their customer and market, but also their own capabilities and strengths. Regarding how to formulate the customer value proposition, the study concludes that it should be customized for the specific customer and have a resonating focus with elements of points of difference. Lastly, the study details the challenges that a firm transitioning to a value-based pricing practice might encounter, and the suggestive solutions to these obstacles.

The author explores the traditional approaches to interpretation in a constitutional democracy, with specific emphasis on Bill of Rights interpretation. The approaches adopted by the court in India and Canada, are briefly outlined with a view to gleaning from the experience of these countries, a theory which will inform a proper approach to interpretation in a South African context. He concludes that the value-based approach is most appropriate to concretise the rights entrenched in the Bill of Rights, and specifically the so-called second and third generation rights. Addressing the fear that this may lead to an undisciplined judiciary, he concludes that there are sufficient disciplinning mechanisms to ensure that the courts do not encroach upon the other branches of government. / Constitutional, International & Indigenous Law / LL.M.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2000. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Modern companies need to compete on a global level to obtain sufficient capital from investors. That is why it is becoming increasingly important for companies to concentrate particularly on fulfilling the expectations of the investment community. With this in mind, companies have begun to optimise their operational business processes in order to gain a greater degree of efficiency and in doing so greater security. This movement started in the early nineties with intensive Business Process Reengineering (BPR) exercises. A key enabler for increased efficiency through Business Process Reengineering was the infrastructure provided by the development of integrated software packages called Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. BPR exercises are normally part and parcel of an ERP implementation project. After the implementation of an ERP system in any business, management will also be in a vastly better position to control the business operations through better information delivery. Most companies are still controlled and managed on the basis of historical financial figures such as profit. Traditional financial statements are increasingly being viewed with distrust due to the perceived ease with which they can be manipulated. As many investors value companies and their performance on the basis of expected "future free cash flows" (excess cash after investment in all positive NPV projects), many companies are now switching from profit-based management to the more comprehensive Value Based Management principles, that takes this into account. A key enabler of the Value Based Management approach is the development of a Balanced Scorecard (BSC) that contains the measures whereby the business should be controlled and measured. With the BSC, a business strategy is translated into a strategic measurement system that focuses on more than just the traditional financial aspects by including measures in other areas of a business, such as customer satisfaction or internal efficiencies. In the BSC financial view the primary indicator of business success is Economic Value Created (EVe). Eve is a true indicator of shareholder wealth created and takes the cost of capital into account. EVC performance becomes the ultimate barometer of business success. Value Based Management companies that invested heavily in the implementation of ERP systems want a good return but normally don't know how best to achieve this. They are wondering how to best make use of the wealth of information that is suddenly at their disposal. In driving shareholder value they are faced by the following questions: • How to translate investor expectations into business strategy and how to link this strategy to day to day operations. • How to use the acquired ERP system in support of this Value Based Management approach to enable maximum return on the investment. In this study project a real South African company, XX Automotive (fictitious name), that recently implemented SAP R/3 as an ERP system is covered as an example to illustrate how these questions can be answered. In Part I, this study project begins by describing all the elements and basic principles of a Value Based Management System such as a Balanced Scorecard (BSC) with EVC as prime measure. Part II illustrates how the XX Automotive financial strategy is translated into a Balanced Scorecard with Economic Value Created (EVC) as main financial measure and how these defined measures were represented by SAP reports that were specifically developed for this purpose. The Balanced Scorecard represented by the SAP reports serves only as a one way measurement system. The next critical step is to determine how to influence the results. The information that populates the SAP reports in XX Automotive's Balanced Scorecard is generated all over the business by the end users in their respective departments. The influence on EVC through business actions by these individual units is discussed in depth as it provides the keys that illustrate how the value of EVC can be impacted positive or negatively by each. Giving individuals the power to influence EVC through incentive schemes is crucial for long term success. It is illustrated how improving EVC became the new business focus at XX Automotive and how each individual employee can visually see his role in influencing the outcome. Meeting the value-based "Expected EVC Improvement" targets will generate target level bonus payments. Each XX Automotive employee is encouraged to think and act like an owner because he is going to be paid like one. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Moderne maatskappye moet op globale skaal kompeteer vir genoegsame kapitaal vanaf beleggers. Daarom word dit al hoe meer belangrik vir maatskappye om te konsentreer daarop om aan die verwagtinge van die beleggers gemeenskap te voldoen. Met dit in gedagte, het maatskappye begin om hulle operasionele besigheidsprossesse te optimeer om sodoende 'n beter vlak van effektiwiteit te bereik en daardeur groter sekuriteit aangaande hul eie voorbestaan te verseker. Hierdie beweging het in die negentigerjare begin met intensiewe besigheidsherontwerp, die sogenaamde 'Business Process Reengineering' (BPR) oefeninge. 'n Belangrike katalisator vir verbeterde effektiwiteit deur BPR is die infrastruktuur wat voorsien is deur die ontwikkeling van geintegreerde besigheidssagtewarepakkette nl. 'Enterprise Resource Planning' (ERP) stelsels. Met 'n ERP implementeringsprojek word gewoonlik intensiewe BPR gedoen. Nadat 'n ERP pakket geimplimenteer is behoort bestuur ook in 'n baie beter posisie te wees om besigheidsoperasies te beheer deur die verbeterde inligting verkry uit die ERP sagteware. Dit word ook duidelik dat die meerderheid van maatskappye steeds beheer en bestuur word op die basis van historiese finansiële maatstawwe soos wins in die inkomstestaat. Weens die feit dat baie beleggers maatskappye waardeer op grond van hul sogenaamde "future free cash flows" (oorblywende kontant na investering in alle NPV positiewe projekte), skakel maatskappye oor van 'n winsgebaseerdebestuurstelsel na die meer omvattende' Value Based Management' stelsel, waarvan 'Economic Value Created' (EVC) die hoofkomponent is. 'n Belangrike skakel in die 'Value Based Management' initiatief is die ontwikkeling van 'n 'Balanced Scorecard', 'n bestuurskonsep waarin die maatstawwe opgesluit lê waarmee die besigheid beheer en bestuur moet word. 'Value Based Management' gedrewe maatskappye wat groot investerings gemaak het in die implementering van ERP sagteware wil 'n goeie opbrengs op die belegging hê maar weet gewoonlik nie wat die beste manier is om dit te doen nie. Hulle wonder hoe om die maksimum voordeel te trek uit die skatkis van besigheidsinligting wat skielik tot hulle beskikking is. In 'n strewe om beleggers waarde te verbeter kom hulle voor die volgende vraagstukke te staan: • Hoe om beleggers verwagtinge om te skakel in besigheids strategie en hoe om hierdie strategie te skakel met daaglikse besigheids operasies. • Hoe om die ERP stelsel te gebruik ter ondersteuning van die 'Value Based Management' prinsiep om die maksimum opbrengs op belegging te kry. In hierdie studieprojek word 'n Suid Afrikaanse maatskappy, XX Automotive (fiktiewe naam), gedek wat onlangs SAP R/3 as 'n ERP stelsel geimplimenteer het as 'n voorbeeld gebruik om te illustreer hoe hierdie vrae in die praktyk beantwoord kan word. In Deel I van hierdie studieprojek word al die elemente en basiese beginsels van die 'Value Based Management' sisteem bespreek. Deel II illustreer hoe die XX Automotive finansiële strategie omgesit is in 'n 'Balanced Scorecard' met Economic Value Created (EVC) as die hoof maatstaf en hoe al die finansiële maatstawwe in die Balanced Scorecard deur middel van SAP verslae, wat spesifiek vir hierdie doel ontwikkel is, weergegee word. Die 'Balanced Scorecard', soos voorgestel deur die verslae in SAP, vorm net 'n metings instrument. Wat van groter belang is, is om te bepaal hoe die resultate beinvloed kan word. Die bestuursinligting waaruit die SAP verslae in die XX Automotive 'Balanced Scorecard' bestaan word gevorm deur die besigheidseindgebruiker op die SAP stelsel elke keer wanneer 'n besigheidstransaksie uitgevoer word. Die invloed op EVC deur individuele besigheidseenhede word in diepte bespreek aangesien dit deurslaggewend is ter illustrasie van hoe die EVC waarde positief of negatief geraak word deur hul besigheids aksies. Om individue die mag te gee om die waarde van EVC te beinvloed deur middel van 'n aansporingstelsel is kritiek vir lang termyn sukses. Elke XX Automotive werknemer word aangespoor deur 'n bonus stelsel om soos 'n aandeelhouer op te tree aangesien hy soos een vergoed sal word.

This study examines various approaches used by companies providingsoftware-as-a-service (SaaS) in a business-to-business (B2B) environment to find a pricing strategy. To be able to meet competition in a global market, a good pricing strategy is vital. Pricing is an important part of marketing, which must be congruent with the company's overall objectives. Strategic pricing is made up of different factors represented in the strategic pricing pyramid, which is based on a value-based approach. It is paramount to know your customers and their preferences when designing a pricing strategy and selecting pricing models, price metrics, market segmentation, bundling, and price levels. After having estimated how much value a product or service creates for a customer, this must be communicated to potential customers in order to convince them to purchase your offering. Choosing the right pricing strategy is not a onetime occurrence, but an on-going process. In this qualitative study, three case studies are performed to tie theory to real world practise.

Context: At the core of choosing what features and level of quality to realize, and thus offer a market or customer, rests on the ability to take decisions. Decision-making is complicated by the diverse understanding of issues such as priority, consequence of realization, and interpretations of strategy as pertaining to the short-term and long-term development of software intensive products. The complexity is further compounded by the amount of decision support material that has to be taken into account, and the sheer volume of possible alternatives that have to be triaged and prioritized; thousands or even tens of thousands of requirements can be the reality facing a company. There is a need to develop the functionality that is strategically most significant, while satisfying customers and being competitive, time efficient, cost effective, and risk minimizing. In order to achieve a balance between these factors, all the stakeholders, within an organization, need to agree on the strategic aspects and value considerations to be considered, and their corresponding relative importance. Objective: The objective of this thesis is to provide enhanced decision support for product managers faced with decision-making challenges. This involves, but is not limited to, enhancing the alignment between the product and portfolio management with respect to product strategies, and enabling the use of value as a basis for product management and development related decisions. Method: A number of empirical studies, set in industry, have been performed. The research methods used span from systematic mapping, and systematic reviews to case studies, all aligned to identify possibilities for improvement, devise solutions, and incrementally evaluate said solutions. Close collaboration with industry partners was at the core of the research presented in this thesis. Result: The MASS method presented in this thesis can be used to evaluate strategic alignment and identify possible root causes for misalignment. To strengthen strategic alignment, the Software Value Map and corresponding decision support material, proposed in the thesis, can be used by product managers for making effective and efficient strategic decisions in relation to portfolios, products and process improvement, following a systematic and aligned process. Conclusions: The area of software product management, in the context of market-driven software intensive product development, is a field with unique challenges. The specifics of the solutions are based on industry case studies performed to gauge state-of-the-art, as well as identify the main challenges. The decision support developed takes the form of maps and frameworks that support software product management on product and portfolio level decisions, strategic alignment, value-based requirements selection, and value-based process improvement.

Wertorientierte Unternehmensführung, Wertstromdesign als zentrale Methode des Lean Managements und die Flexibilität von Produktionssystemen haben sich als Managementansätze in der Vergangenheit bewährt. Die Koexistenz dieser Ansätze stellt Führungskräfte vor die tägliche Herausforderung, ihren jeweiligen Beitrag zur wertorientierten Unternehmensführung zu erkennen, operative Entscheidungen zu treffen und auf diese Weise die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit des Unternehmens im Spannungsfeld der Interessen der Anspruchsgruppen sicherzustellen. Unter der leitenden Forschungsfrage, welchen Beitrag das Wertstromdesign als Instrument der wertorientierten Unternehmensführung zum Unternehmenswert unter Beachtung der Flexibilität des Produktionssystems leistet, werden die Einzelkonzepte detailliert betrachtet, wesentliche Einflussgrößen sowie deren durch Reduktion von Komplexität entstehende Wechselwirkungen identifiziert und zur Handlungsorientierung methodisch gestützte Gestaltungsempfehlungen formuliert.