The frequency of innovative procurement is currently very low in Sweden. Innovative procurement is to procure unknown solutions to a defined problem or need for which it sometimes has not yet been established on the market.  Current Swedish procurement legislation does not prevent innovation procurement, however, it limits official authorities to actively work with innovative companies to develop new solutions. Furthermore, some conflicts arise between the Swedish procurement legislation and the basic principles concerning public procurement developed under EU law, which must be considered in all procurements. Additionally, there is not a specific procurement procedure designed for innovative solutions in the current legislation.On the 15th of January 2014 three new directives on procurement rules were adopted with the general objective to simplify the procurement process and to make the whole system more flexible. A new procurement procedure has also arisen called innovation partnership.

Abstract The purpose of this study is to identify how Swedish clothing companies strategically communicate CSR ? the issue being that CSR communication is frequently scrutinized and criticized. This is examined using semi-structured interviews with six company representatives. The result is presented thematically, dealing with (1) conditions for CSR and CSR communication, (2) how to manage the issue with criticism and (3) which communication strategies companies use. Following conclusions are drawn: the companies can be divided into Mirvis and Googins phases integrated or engaged/innovative, with conditions characterizing these phases.

Abstract Over the years the consciousness of risk has grown. It?s hard to influence risks, therefore there are guidelines stating that significant risk must be included in the annual report. This paper is a case study; the purpose was to examine how four Swedish listed companies chose to disclose their internal and external risks. Risk is initially described in general sense and then it figures to what constitutes an economic risk.Through a case study of four Swedish listed companies? annual reports we have, through qualitative methods found how the companies chose to disclosure their risks.

AbstractTitle: The Swedish real estate companies choices of valuation within investment properties and its further effects on the qualitative characteristics of accounting.-A study of the Swedish real estate companies listed and non - listed on the stock market, after the application of the international rule board.Background and Problem: From January 2005, all companies, listed on a stock market within the European Union, are required to prepare their consolidated accounts using common set of International Accounting Standards, IAS/IFRS. In Sweden, this opportunity has also been given to non-listed companies, to voluntary implement these rules in their consolidated accounts. One difference between Swedish accounting rules and contemporary International rules, deals with the accounting treatment of investment properties, which foremost affects the real estate market?s accounts. In contrast to the Swedish Financial Accounting Standards Council?s recommendation RR 24, the new standard, IAS 40, permits a choice between different accounting alternatives.

The aim of this study is to find out if there is any difference between how a state-owned company and a publicly listed private company communicate its sustainability performance in its sustainability report. It also aims to find out if the communication regarding sustainability has changed over time. The poll was conducted in two Swedish companies, Sveaskog AB and AB SCA, operating in the forestry industry and through a quantitative content analysis, the companies' sustainability reports from 2005 and 2010 were examined. To get a result, the reports has been examined by the GRI framework (Global Reporting Initiative) and an assessment of the communication was made based on a scale of 0-3. The results has been evaluated based on stakeholder theory, legitimacy theory and the growing interest in CSR. The analyses found evidence that there is a link between the form of ownership of the company and how it communicates regarding sustainability.

Recent studies made by Margaritis and Psillaki,have shown that a lower debt ratio and higher efficiency are correlated in their studies performed oncompanies in New Zeeland. Other researchers have been able to show a connection between other industries than the one used in our studies,among these are Titman and Wessler. These studies have been done with a great selection of companies in different industries and time periods. However most of these researchers have used traditional ratios and variables.This study aims to find and analyze connections between returns and lower debt ratios in real estate companies listed on the Stockholm stock exchange. Instead of the traditional debt-equity ratio we will construct our own taking long term debts and property assets.

In order to drive innovation and growth in a nation is it important to have innovative companies. Many of those innovative companies are smaller companies, which are in need of capital injections for expansion of its operations or to be able to produce a commercial product. In many cases the banks will not lend because they believe there is too great a risk that they will not get their money back. It is in this situation venture capital becomes interesting. Venture capitalists? see the potential the product and/or entrepreneur possesses and are therefore more willing to take the risk in investing in these companies.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the qualitative aspects of IASB?s Exposure Draft of Proposed Amendments to IAS 37 and to evaluate what quantitative effects an implementation would have on the capital structure of listed companies in Sweden. The major changes of the proposed amendments compared to the current IAS 37 are that the terms ?provision? and ?contingent liability? are eliminated and instead a new term called ?non-financial liability? is introduced. Furthermore, the valuation in current IAS 37 based on a best estimate is replaced by a fair value valuation.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between IPO and revenue growth of primary-listed companies on Nasdaq OMX Stockholm. The study is limited to examining the listing?s impact only on sales growth, during a period of seven years.Theoretical Framwork: The theoretical framework applied in the study aims to answer the purpose and research questions. In this study previous research is of great importance.Methodology: The study is based on a quantitative research approach with statistical elements. The study is conducted through the collection of annual reports of listed companies from the database Retriever Business.

The recent development in several countries? legislation and best practice recommendations in relation to corporate governance in general and audit committees in particular have affected Swedish listed corporations in the form of the Swedish Corporate Governance Code and the coming EU-directive. This paper aims to discover what factors affected Swedish listed companies to form audit committees when this was entirely voluntary. We collected data from the annual reports of 121 Swedish listed companies and formed eleven hypotheses as to what factors we believed affected the voluntary formation of audit committees based on Agency Theory, economies of scale and circumstances specific to the Swedish environment. We then analyzed the data through the use of a multivariate logistic regression model.

Background and problem - Integrated reporting is a hot topic today and is predicted to be the future of companies? external reporting. In December 2013 a new framework on integrated reporting was released and one part of the framework concerns governance and how it supports the organization?s value creation. A recent study on integrated reporting in Sweden showed the area of governance to be poorly reported.

The first of May 2005 changes were made in the Annual Accounts Act. The 2006 Annual Report of companies with more than ten employees or assets over 24 million SEK must include environmental information in the directors' report if it affects the company's development, result or position. A survey made by KPMG 2007 investigating the environmental information of companies listed on Large Cap Segment of the OMX Stockholm exchange showed that only a third of the companies, included in the survey, complied with the new law requirements. I have examined how the environmental information in the directors' report is formulated and why the information is formulated in that fashion. I have examined seven companies listed on the Large Cap Segment of the OMX Stockholm exchange. Four companies from the materials sector and three banks from the financials sector were included in the survey.

Introduction: This thesis is about how the accounting entry provisions are linked to corporate market value. By statistically examining accounting and share data for 56 companies listed on NASDAQ OMX Stockholm, the question of whether accounting information regarding provisions are value relevant for investors is studied. Listed companies shall follow the rules of IAS 37 ? Provisions, Contingent liabilities and Contingent assets, when preparing financial statements.Aim: The purpose of this thesis is to examine the relationship between reported information about provisions and investors assessment of listed companies that comply with IFRS-regulations, by statistically testing the value relevance of the accounting entry.Method: The study is based on a quantitative, deductive methodological approach. The value relevance of provisions is examined by statistically testing the collected empirical data based on the two models that is described in the reference frame.Results: The conclusion to be drawn from the study is that reported provisions have no statistically significant association with return on shares and thus is not value relevant.

This thesis describes how large Swedish companies finance their debt and identifies some factors that affect their decisions. The study is based on 10 well-known companies of which 9 are listed on Nasdaq OMX Nordic. The results show that the companies display several similarities concerning their debt structure and the factors which their choices are based upon. All companies in this study primarily use corporate bonds for their long-term borrowing, commercial papers for the short-term borrowing, and bank-facilities as back-up. There is a tendency that smaller companies in larger extent use bank-loans for long-term borrowing due to larger emissions costs when using market financing.

The problem area was identified due to the fact that research within internal audit is fragmented and insufficient, simultaneously to internal audit becoming more common in the public debate. Crises and scandals in companies such as Enron in the US and Skandia in Sweden have resulted in new regulations regarding how companies should be governed. These regulations have been established in Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX) in the US, and in Sweden the Swedish code for corporate governance will be implemented in 2005. The regulations imply that companies must provide sound internal control and to accomplish that, companies should have an auditing and consulting internal audit function. The Swedish code for corporate governance denotes that companies can decide to comply or explain why the code is not complied.