In January 2005 the emission allowance system was introduced within the European Union and the first period ends at the end of 2007. The system was introduced in order to decrease the wastes of carbon dioxide and the system is a part of ratifying the Kyoto ?protocol which first period runs between 2008-2012.The idea of the system is to reduce the wastes of carbon dioxide where it costs less to do so and the expenses for the society therefore are as diminutive as possible. Different theories explain that companies can benefit from environment legislation and can depending on the company?s attitude gain competitive advantages improve its productivity and thereby increase its profitability.With this in mind, the study aims at examining how the introduction of the emission trade system has influenced Swedish smaller companies in the distant heating industry, with focus on the factors attitude, innovation, competition and profitability.

The purpose of this thesis is to examine and analyse which effects a service strategy has on the control system of an organisation. The thesis takes a service perspective, and it is assumed that a service strategy gains competitive advantage and that the goal of the service strategy is to increase the customers? satisfaction level. A qualitative in-depth case study was performed on a Swedish beauty company. The organisation?s vertical structure was examined, from central to local level.

This thesis examines why working time preferences differ between workers and nations, and explains the effect of working time regulation and working time flexibility on negotiating work-life balance. In five separate sections the following working time issues are examined: the number of hours worked by workers in Europe; factors affecting individual working time preferences; how working time preferences are negotiated in the national industrial relations systems of Sweden, France and the United Kingdom; how the institutions of the European Union have influenced working time negotiations through the Working Time Directive; and the benefits and practices available to organisations implementing working time flexibility. Broadly this paper views working time preferences as being a highly personal and influenced by factors such as wages, taxation, culture (national and workplace) and non-work responsibilities. It is argued that negotiating a preferred working time pattern is essential to achieving work-life balance and when such a balance is achieved, workers are more healthy, motivated and committed to their employer. Essentially this provides an incentive for businesses to voluntarily implement working time flexibility beyond the regulatory standards..

The acquisition process as an object for research and empirical studies have increased in importance during the past decade. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate this process further. This was done by reviewing previous research covering the area of mergers and acquisitions. Seven key factors that should be considered in an acquisition process emerged; acquisition project management, planning, communication between the acquirer and the potential target, goal alignment within management, company-cultures, a trade-off between a certain speed in integrating the companies and consideration of the employees, and finally the follow-up. These factors have been shown to increase the likelihood of value creation in acquisitions.

Background: The use of reward systems can be of strategic importance as well as an affective mean of control for the organization in its work to achieve its goals. The municipal sector is characterized by its transparency and its responsibility for the taxpayer?s money. We therefore wonder which possibilities the municipal sector has to use reward systems as a men of control. Purpose: We intend to research the possibilities that the reward system offer as a mean of control for employees at the higher municipal level, with a special focus on commitment and motivation.

Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka om det finns ett samband mellan lönsamhet och storlek på rörlig samt total VD-ersättning i de största svenska aktiebolagen. I uppsatsen diskuteras även funna samband samt bakomliggande teoretiska förklaringar till VD-ersättningens storlek. För att undersöka om VD-ersättning och företags lönsamhet korrelerar utförs kvantitativa undersökningar med hjälp av regressionsanalyser för respektive år mellan 2002 och 2007. Populationen som undersökningen baseras på är de företag som i september 2009 var registrerade på Stockholmsbörsens segment Large och Mid Cap.Undersökningen resulterade i slutsatsen att inget samband mellan vare sig rörlig eller total VD-ersättning och lönsamhet kunde styrkas. Istället gavs indikationer om andra faktorer som påverkade VD-ersättningens storlek.

There are changes in Sweden's foreign policy, and Sweden is no longer a non-aligned and neutral nation. Sweden has expressed a willingness to actively participate in creating peace and stability in the world by giving and receiving military assistance in case of war, crisis or disaster. This is described as complete turnaround in Swedish policy compared to the neutrality and non-alignment during the Cold war.However new research shows that defence cooperation is not new in the Nordic region. Sweden cooperated secretly with Denmark and Norway, two NATO countries, about co-operative defence of Scandinavia during the Cold War.Is our historical picture wrong and what we perceive as new and revolutionized not particularly new? Is today's open Nordic defence cooperation a continuation of what was done in secret during the Cold War? The essay investigates and compares two different Swedish defence cooperation?s where one was previously secret and the other is open.

The aim of this thesis is to examine how teachers use computer based assessment in their work and what user barriers they experience while working with computer based assessments. The result of the thesis is meant to provide an understanding of which factors affect the use of computer based assessments and how a company who provide computer based assessments applications can increase the rate of use amongst teachers.To investigate this, the author examined a company in Sweden who provide a computer based assessment application for both universities and high schools. The study was carried out at two different schools, a university and a high school, both located in Stockholm. In total nine teachers were interviewed. The author also conducted observations at the company whose computer based assessment application was examined.The author?s findings suggest that a lack of functions within the application and lack of costumer support from the company all negatively impacted the teacher?s use of the application.

The aim of this Masters thesis is to examine the use of IT, that is the Internet and other applications of personal computers, among seniors 65+. It also deals with issues of access to IT for seniors in public libraries. The theoretical background of the study consists of Rogers "Diffusion of innovations", Hektors categories of information activities, and the Swedish IT-commissions categories of motives and prerequisites for the use of IT. The research questions focus on factors motivating the use of IT, the extent and the purposes of IT use, the consequences and the barriers that IT-users experience, and views on IT in public libraries and IT courses, respectively. Qualitative interviews were carried out with nine senior IT-users.

The subject of motivation and feedback is something that the literature regarding management treats as significant. Therefore we have investigated how managers work with feedback in motivational and development purposes within union companies in Gothenburg. According to the existing theory it is important that feedback is given correctly and with relevant content, and thus affect both the recipient's own development and the growth of the business. Earlier authors also discuss the complexity of feedback that it is important to consider all of the surrounding aspects, and that it is important to be aware that there is no single approach that can be directly applied on all types of organizations.To investigate how the managers within the union companies motivate their employers without access to monetary incentive, we conducted a qualitative study with in-depth interviews with four respondents. The respondents were decision makers at their respective union company with the roles as CEO or deputy CEO.

This bachelor thesis describes why investors should invest in environmentally certified buildings instead of non certified buildings. The report provides an overview of possible factors influencing an investor in the investment process of an environmentally certified building. The report explains why building companies find incentive to build green buildings and how a cash flow method can be adapted so it can be used in the valuation process of an environmentally certified building. Environmentally certified buildings are used as a strategy to reduce emissions that threaten the environment as well as a strategy to obtain market shares for the building companies. This report focuses on the economic advantages of an environmentally certified building.The construction- and real estate industry stands for approximately 40 percent of the energy consumption in the world.

The thesis has investigated the use of templates in timber framing, a field where there has previously been a lack of comprehensive and clear information. The main goal was to map and describe the various types of templates, their appearance, usage, and function, in order to make this traditional craft more accessible to both professional craftsmen and DIY enthusiasts. The project also aims to contribute to the preservation of traditional building crafts, in alignment with UNESCO's Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage. The methodology used in this study was a literature review, where relevant templates were gathered and analyzed. The templates were then categorized using a system developed by the author, which helped simplify the understanding of the templates functions and uses.

The translation of financial records of foreign subsidiaries gives rise to currency translation adjustments that affect total group equity. If unwanted, fluctuations in translation adjustments can be avoided using net investment hedges. This study aims to find the extent of net investment hedging in Sweden today and in a short historical perspective, and find explanations to varying levels of hedging and firms' decisions to hedge. Based on annual reports, we determine Swedish firms' net investment hedging policies and their level of hedging. The 32 largest companies listed on the Stockholm stock exchange in the years 1993, 2004, 2006, and 2009 are studied.

Title: Relationship building and management ? Aligning the Advertising Agency-Client Relationship Seminar date: 2006-01-13 Course: Bachelor thesis in Business Administration 10 Swedish credits. Authors: Ryan Eriksson, Louise Hagströmer, Peter Irinarchos. Advisors: Christer Kedström, Catharina Norén. Keywords: Relationship building and management, Transaction cost, Network theory, Resource based theory and Advertising agency.

Uppsalahem is the leading housing corporation in Uppsala with its over 160 real estate properties. Uppsalahem is owned by the municipality of Uppsala, which has a climate and energy goal that aims for 100 MW of solar energy to be installed in Uppsala by 2030. The 100 MW goal, combined with Uppsalahem?s environmental policy, is a strong incentive to investigate the possibility of installing PV modules on the many available roof areas that Uppsalahem possesses. The objective of this thesis is to create a foundation for future decisions regarding PV systems for Uppsalahem.