This thesis studies the concept of balance in the management control systems (MCS) of a small Swedish company within the IT-sector. The aim is to evaluate the importance of balance and dynamics in MCS and investigate which factors affect them. The frameworks used are Simons (1994) four levers of control, and the five-factor model for balance and dynamics by Mundy (2010). The small IT company - the object of the case study - has grown extensively in the last years and needs to develop more formal MCS without losing efficiency and creativity in their fast-moving industry. The case study reveals that balancing MCS is important also in smaller companies with less formal MCS.

Purpose: The purpose of this essay is to describe the social media usage of five European official national tourism organizations (NTO). The essay proceeds to discuss and evaluate the findings, whilst reflecting on the advantages of social media usage from the point of view of an official national tourism organization.Method: The authors used three different methods of research: one structured observation to study the national tourism organizations? everyday work in social media, one field stimulation to study if and how different NTO respond if a prospective visitor makes them a direct question via social media and finally an email interview to gain insight into NTO?s underlying strategies and policies about social media usage.Theoretical framework: The theories that have been used in this paper include the Uses and gratifications model, theories of one-way and multi-way communication, theories of social media and relationship marketing.Conclusion: By making use of social media the company releases some of its control to the customers as the latter can express their opinions freely in this type of media. One of the advantages of social media is that the platform favors dialogue and feedback. Social media can be used for traditional one-way communication, but works best as a supplement to the regular marketing activities, allowing the activities on social media platforms to focus on branding and building long-term customer relationships.

Marknadskommunikationens syften kan vara många, men att bygga företagets varumärke starkare kan vara en av anledningarna till kommunikation med omvärlden. Att som företag inneha ett start varumärke är en fördel på en allt mer globaliserad och konkurrensintensiv marknad. Det är därmed av vikt för företag att på ett tydligt sätt kommunicera sin identitet för att differentiera sig mot andra varumärken. En möjlig positioneringsstrategi att använda sig av för företag är att kommunicera varumärkets country-of-origin, något som enligt tidigare forskning kan vara extra gynnsamt för designrelaterade företag. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka svenska modeföretags användning av country-of- origin i sin marknadskommunikation.

The purpose of this study is to examine the experiences and perceptions of children`s librarians regarding floating collections in public libraries in Gothenburg. In focus for the study are the experiences and perceptions that exist among children`s librarians when it comes to children as library users, the librarian`s working tasks and the professional role as a librarian. The empirical material has been collected through semistructured interviews with six children`s librarians. The material has been analyzed twice. The first analysis has been conducted through qualitative content analysis.

The competition between the Swedish municipalities has increased as the world has become more globalized, which means that they need to become more attractive for sustaining sound finances and not to find themselves to have a downward trend. One possibility to show the attractiveness of a place is by using place marketing and therewith attaining a stronger brand position. There are 20 suburban municipalities in the county of Stockholm, of which six are multicultural or are having a minimum of 20 percent immigrants among the residents. These immigrant areas are segregated based on class, income and culture. Problems associated with these areas have historical aspects that dates further back than modern immigration does.

Problem: When opening a newspaper today there is a good chance that the headlines have something to do with recent developments in the global climate debate. This development is forcing companies to take action. The problem for many companies, including Thule, is that they are unaware of the environmental work conducted throughout their value chain and also what they need to do to become green. Thule, a company with a strong focus on profitability and growth, will not make environmental issues a part of their core strategy unless it can be shown that economic incentives exist. With this thesis we will try to build a case that will help Thule, and also other companies, see the possibilities a green venture brings with it.

Along with the increasing trend of online advertising comes an increasing avoidance behaviour from the observers. The marketing communication now requires a valuable content, which leads to the creation of new online advertising forms; including content marketing, advertorials, online ads and the latest rising star - Native Advertising. The last-mentioned also constitutes the basis and object of study for this paper. The purpose of this study is to shed light into this relatively unexplored topic and concretize the true effects. There are many examples of how Native Advertising is framed and implemented, but little hard facts and real figures.

The primary purpose of this paper is to find the determinants of first-day returns on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. Our research will cover the 1996 ? 2004 periods. Our secondary purpose is intended to find a profitable trading strategy with regard to future IPOs on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. By using regression analysis, focusing on company specific factors and the IPO process, we hope to find a function exhibiting statistical significance, determining future first-day returns from which construction of a profitable trading strategy will be possible.

The Sister Kenny Research Center is part of the Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute locatedat the Abbott Northwestern hospital in Minneapolis, USA. The Sister Kenny RehabilitationInstitute provides rehabilitative services, treating more than 70,000 patients a year.The Sister Kenny Research Center strives to optimize the service to patients by nurturingnew innovations in rehabilitation care and treatment. Research projects are conducted ininterdisciplinary so-called Clinical Innovation Teams. As the Sister Kenny Research Center isrecently started, it did not prior to this thesis project have a design process or structured way ofworking in design projects.The outcome of this thesis project is a comprehensive innovation strategy package with a set oftools to enhance the innovativeness at the Sister Kenny Research Center. The strategy packageconsists of three interlinked parts:?A design process adapted to the work environment at the Sister Kenny Research Centerensuring projects are conducted in a structured and innovative manner.?An Innovation Handbook describing the design process to the Clinical Innovation Teamsand providing step-by-step guidance to designing.

The fashion market is highly dynamic, and characterized complexity, abstract phenomena and creativity. Further, differences between factors such as gender, countries and social classes pose increasing challenges to fashion companies and researchers active within this area. In light of these facts, the value of creating tools that help companies and professionals active within this industry becomes evident. Much research has been focused on creating a more thorough understanding of its underlying logics and its main drivers from a business perspective, whereas knowledge regarding fashion consumers and what drives their behavior are more limited. Through this study, insights about the Swedish fashion market and its consumers are generated.

In June 2006 the Council of the European Union agreed on the review of the EU sustainable development strategy. This renewed strategy voices a commitment to sustainable development that includes a diverse list of safeguarded interests. Sustainability is to be attained in the spheres of democracy, solidarity, the rule of law, gender equality and at the same time it should promote a dynamic economy. Given this multifunctional application of sustainable development, curiosity may soon give rise to questions such as; What is the legal significance of the concept? Is it to be considered a general principle of Community law? And can it be used as an instrument in adjudication and legal reasoning? Anyone who looks deeper into the concept of sustainable development is soon to find a labyrinthine complex of ideas, expressions and opinions.

Health and physical exercise has a become trend in today's society and the work with health promotion has increased in organizations. This is not only a way for organizations to get healthier and more efficient employees, but also a way to regulate the employee?s identity by getting them to identify with the organization. This bachelor essay studies how health promotion can be used as a management strategy. This is done by interviews and by performed observations at the recruitment company, Adecco, in the Stockholm region.

In recent years e-commerce has experienced a big increase in usage. Internet however, cannot offer the same level of personal contact as traditional shops can.E-commerce is characterized by impersonal and standardized web shops that do not stimulate any emotional connection between the customer and the company. Without this personal contact with the customer the possibilities for the company to stimulate loyalty decreases. Loyalty however, is as important in e-commerce as it is in traditional commerce. The authors of this paper chose the following problem for the study:What marketing strategies are fortunate for e-commerce companies to use to create loyal customers?To research this subject the authors saw it fit to combine qualitative and quantitative research methods.

This essay is based on a mission from Anna Schibli, Director of Tourism at Solliden Palace. The thesis aims to investigate the image that Solliden Palace has, and the picture that local and regional tourist offices have of the Sollidens Castle brand and what position Solliden include in these markets. A total of six in-depth interviews with tourist offices, at local and regional level, has been carried out and an initial in-depth interview with Anna Schibli of Solliden Palace. The responses of the respondents have since been interpreted and processed based on an inductive approach, in order to interpret the image that Solliden Palace has. Scientific papers have been studied and analyzed in order to generate an explanation and understanding of the research area.

The purpose with this project has been to investigate how a company`s marketing and product development can adapt to a specific target group..