Thesis purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the interdependencies within the process of partner selection in the fashion and design sector and the emanating criteria for finding the ideal co-branding partner in order to use co-branding as a strategic brand activation tool. Methodology: Multiple Case Study Theoretical perspective: Brand Building and Brand Activation, Relationship Marketing, Strategic Alliances, Affinity Partnering, Co-Branding, Consumer-Brand Relationships Empirical data: Interviews with expert consultants and company representatives (adidas, BMW, BMW MINI, Diesel, H&M, Opel, Philips, Sharp, Volkswagen) Conclusion: Partner selection depends decisively on the different co-branding aims and incorporates the crucial step when using co-branding as a tool for strategic brand activation. The co-branding aim and the corresponding partner lead to various types of relationships, which, in this study, are anthropomorphized to connect the world of marketing and branding to real life. Fashion and design brands have proven to be particularly eligible as co-branding partners for brand activation due to their innovative and trend-oriented nature..

This study aims to examine how the students ethnic background affects them in their social relationships at school. The main research questions in this study have been: How does the ethnic background of students affect there social relationships with their friends at school?How does the identity creates and develop in the context of social relationships? What significance does the language that is spoken hold in the social relationships of the childrenThe main research questions have been investigated based on the students perspective, where the two main methods were individual interviews and observation on the schoolyard during recess. The interviews and observations where carried out at eight informants with three different ethnic backgrounds. The three ethnic backgrounds were Swedish, Somali, and Syrian.           The results of the study showed in the interviews that no one of the informants differentiated themselves from their friends who came from different ethnic backgrounds from which they did, they did not categorize themselves based upon their ethnicity.

På dagens hårt konkurrensutsatt marknad är inte bara priset en viktig konkurrenskraft, även relationen mellan kund och leverantör kan spela en avgörande roll för om det blir en affär eller inte. Möjligheten att låta kunden vara delaktig i produktutvecklingsprocessen är även ett sätt att stärka kundrelationerna. Uppsatsens syfte har därför varit att undersöka kundrelationerna både från leverantörens och kundens perspektiv. Avsikten med uppsatsen var även att undersöka hur kundrelationer och kundinvolverad produktutveckling kan användas för att skapa konkurrensfördelar inom Business-to-Business. Almedahls var även intresserade av att närmare undersöka möjligheterna för digitaltryck, vilket är en ny tryckprocess för företaget.Vi gjorde därför en fallstudie på Almedahls, ett tillverkande företag inom textilbranschen.

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the concept of a work and the problems with its definition and will also examine bibliographic relationships. The main question is what are the boundaries of a work and at what point a work becomes another. What is the meaning of the concept of a work within the context of the library? What are the solutions of bibliographic relationships and the concept of a work in KRS and FRBR? The thesis is based on a literature review. In the literature I have examined the discussions of the work and bibliographic relationships.

There have been significant changes in the agricultural sector during the past 20 years (Jordbruksverket, 2008). The development of today is towards deregulation and adaption to global market conditions. As farmers try to adapt to the changed and more competitive market conditions investments are often necessary (LRF Konsult et al, 2012). Loans to agriculture and forestry businesses have increased to record levels and debt has doubled over the past years. The financial turbulence of the past years has contributed to an increase of the meaningfulness and willingness of the banks to be able to understand and handle risks associated with agriculture and forestry (Breiding, 2010).

The purpose is to illustrate the phenomenon of self-harm from a social psychological and sociological perspective. The purpose is furthermore to examine the role social relationships play in the individuals´ self- imagine and what role does identification play for anyone who harm themselves? We want to examine in what way social relationships are important and how they function for individuals who harm themselves, both once they have started to harm themselves, and if the relationships in any part caused the cutting to begin with.Questions:How do individuals shape their identity based on self- harm? Which self-image do individuals have who self-harm? Is there anything in the person's previous social relationships that have caused them to begin to hurt themselves?Method:In this paper we have analyzed five autobiographies. We have used open coding from grounded theory as analytical method and subject positions based on discourse analysis.Theory:We have used the Cooley concepts looking glass self, Foucault's theory of power, Giddens' concept of ontological security and existential anxiety.Results and Analysis:We found six different categories that we thought were central. These were negative self-image, guilt, lack of family support, negative experiences of others' views, the protective identity as self- harmer and insecure social relationships in school.Conclusion:The self-harming is a very complex behavior.

The purpose of this study is to investigate how the major swedish banks look upon and promote student profitability as well as long-term relationships within the student segment from a CRM point of view. The study incorporates a qualitative course of action with an abductive research approach which has been carried out by conducting personal and telephone interviews with representatives from three out of the four major swedish banks Nordea, Swedbank and Handelsbanken. Our research finds that the banks appear to regard their relationships with students as long-term investments, but that they simultaneously seem to lack distinctive, clear and procreative strategies for securing these relationships. Furthermore, the development of profitability within the student segment is considered an informal process that does not necessarily need to be computed through the use of quantitative estimates. Also, educational variables does not influence the banks as they segment their customer base and the student-centred offerings within the banking industry is to be deemed as being standardized rather than differentiated..

This thesis concerns the control of outsourced interorganizational buyer-supplier relationships in the low-price fashion industry. A qualitative case study has been performed on two supplier relationships of a low-price fashion company. By identifying specificities of the industry and relating them to control problems and their implications on control solutions, the thesis has established a relation between industry specific characteristics and the way companies in the industry control their supplier relationships. The analysis is based on a theoretical framework created by Dekker (2004). Amongst other factors, the difficulty to define, quantify and measure the design variables of a fashion good, the high heterogeneity between individual products and the difficulty to predict the trend based demand, create high coordination requirements as well as appropriation concerns solved through extensive formal control.

The aim of this study was to investigate whether there is a social-psychological relevance in allowing animals to be involved in therapy work. I have examined if the animals may contribute to effects on human relationships between caregivers and patients, and if the animals can contribute to helping patients to achieve better well-being. Through previous research and a quantitative interview I have received answers to the following questions: How are animals used in the treatment work? How do animals affect the relationship between caregiver-patient? In what ways do animals in treatment affect relationships between people? How do the professionals who work with animals believe that animals can affects the patient? I have interviewed people working in different kinds of treatment work using animals. The areas examined include work with animals at youth care, police, disability care, elderly care and school.

This study aims at investigating the spousal relationships of persons who have been diagnosed with dementia and are living in a nursing home. Eight spouses? descriptions of their relationship, spousal interaction and the relationship´s impact on the spouse´s life were captured through qualitative interviews. The results show three main types of interaction patterns: one of spousal joy and happiness; a combination of both happiness and sadness; and a pattern of no positive reactions. The strength of the relationship was based on the analysis of trust, intimacy and commitment to the relationship.

Quality is the key to a well executed product or service. The construction industry hasn?t highlighted the quality in recent times which have contributed to the construction industry receiving much criticism in the field. The public sees it as an offhanded industry where errors and delays are common.The reason for this is considered to be primarily the lack of time, constant pressure to reduce costs and skills and the ability to communicate between the parties about what the correct quality really means. The industry has begun to realize that it must start setting clearer standards and that there are great opportunities for improvement.This report will give Peab an opportunity to develop their quality work.

I denna uppsats har vi beskrivit och analyserat befintlig traditionell ekonomistyrning hos små och medelstora svenska business-to-business tjänsteföretag och diskuterat förutsättningar för utformning och implementering av en modern verksamhetsstyrning. Undersökningen genomförts som en fallstudie av sex företag och presenteras med hjälp av en enklare modell, som återger företagets syn på strategier och ledningsfilosofi, organisationsstruktur samt ekonomistyrning.Vi har kommit till slutsats att storleken och tjänsteinriktningen är avgörande faktorer inom gruppen vid val av ekonomistyrningsmodell. Det förefaller så att företagen använder sig av den traditionella ekonomistyrningen, vilket ger ett stort utrymme för implementering av nya utvecklingslinjer. Avslutningsvis föreslår vi de moderniseringar, som skulle kunna leda till modern verksamhetsstyrning..

Near Field Communication, NFC, is a short-range wireless communication technology that enables data exchange between devices in a secure way. A NFC phone has the potential to enable the convergence of wallet, phone and keys, but as many other technological innovations, the launch is struggling. We have discovered that technological innovation is only the first step. For an innovation to be adapted, there need to be business model innovation too. Many actors form the ecosystem of NFC and the business model for each service is still an unsolved problem.

In recent years, customer profitability has become a focal point of academic discussions on business performance. However, researchers remain divided as to how evaluation of customers ought to be conducted, resulting in uncertainty of how accounting systems should be adapted to prevailing conditions. This paper aims to investigate the application of customer accounting techniques and the role they play in the organisational and commercial context in which they take place. In a case study of Billerud, a Swedish company providing materials and services for packaging solutions, the interplay between customer accounting techniques and customer relationship characteristics has been examined through the application of a theoretical framework developed by Lind and Strömsten. Particular emphasis has been put on deviations from the prescribed pattern of the framework.

This is a study of the way power relationships change when women start to play candombe in Montevideo, Uruguay. Candombe is a type of music, which is traditionally played by men within the black minority in the country. This study has been done with an intersectional point of view, taking the social categories gender, class and ethnicity in account. The method used was participatory observation in a field study made in Montevideo between November 2008 and February 2009.This study?s main conclusions are that the power relationships change with the participation of women in candombe in several important ways: The women legitimize an alternative way to be a woman when they take the men?s role as a drum player.