Multi-branch companies are facing many challenges in order to become successful. Competitive advantages can be gained through a unified strong brand, standardised products and economies of scale. This normally calls for centralisation. On the contrary is decentralisation, which is said to improve work motivation and local market orientation, which are also competitive advantages. The focus of this thesis is to study how local branch managers want their companies to be structured in accordance with this dilemma.

Background: Operating on the stock market is associated with risks. If a particular asset is not traded with the same frequency as the average market asset, this particular asset is exposed to a liquidity risk. It means that the investor might not be able to sell the asset at a desired time without incurring expensive transaction costs. The query is whether or not the investor is compensated with a liquidity premium for bearing the extra risk. Earlier studies on the Stockholm Stock Exchange have failed to prove that there is a relation between stock return and liquidity.

Since the 1950s new laws on higher education have led to a ?mass education phenomenon? in Sweden. This has led to a surplus of people with a university degree measured against available positions on the labor market. As a result of that development it must be assumed that in this over qualified society it is not anymore the degree but additional factors which are decisive for getting a job. In this respect the importance of the class background for getting a jobb that is equal to once level of education shall beexamined.The research was carried out by means of a Quantitative Analysis based on data from anational database called Undersökningar av Levnadsförhållanden (Survey of LivingConditions).

This study is about job training for people with psycho-social problems without income. The purpose with this sort of job training is to bring these people back to the regular labor market as well as the experience of having a job. In the labor market situation in Sweden today there?s no guarantee that the individual will return to the labor market after having undergone job training. The aim of this study is to understand how supervisors at job training activities experience that the organizations of the activities and resources affect their work.

Today we see a fast developing of the market for mobile communication, both in an increased and changed mobile use, but also in the development of new technologies and services. Much that can be performed on Internet/Intranet today with a PC will in some years also be possible to do with a mobile terminal. Mobile Internet will probable take place when new technologies as GPRS, EDGE and UMTS will be in use. These technologies in combination with the development of new terminals and services will bring new capabilities for both companies and private users. This report describes how a portal should be designed in order to meet the needs on the market.

This thesis examines the deregulation reform of the Swedish railroad industry, focusing on passenger transport between 1988 and 2005. The purpose of the thesis is to examine the effects from the deregulation reform on prices, market concentration and to determine whether SJ (the state owned incumbent) has been conducting strategic behaviour in order to prevent new entrants to the market. The chosen method consists of interviews with the MD at SJ between 1988 - 1998 Mr Karl-Erik Strand, the transportation researcher at SSE Mr Gunnar Alexandersson. Statistical sources and companies financial reports have also been used. The results that I have found were besides the fact that the market concentration is still significant high and the profitability among the operators low, is that the prices has increased more than CPI during the period but the competitive tendering has resulted in lower government subsidies after the deregulation.

The vegetable production in Sweden is concentrated to the very southern parts of the country. This is also were the major wholesalers are located. In recent years, there has been an extreme focus on price on the food market. As there are only a few big wholesalers and also very few food retail chains, these have a great impact on the producers. The pressure from prominent vegetable-producing countries, providing low price products, such as the Netherlands and Spain is strong.

This paper was written at the Baltic Business School in Kalmar. The purpose was to analyze and determine the importance of packaged holidays within the tourism and travel sector and how value can be created for the customer. This have been done with a focus on the chosen parts; customer needs and how packaging can create value, how companies can work to give the customer increased value through packaging, last but not least how companies segment the market and if there are specific segments that prefer packaging. We have applied the qualitative method through conducting four face-to-face interviews and one phoneinterview. The purpose of this paper is not to generalize, but to show patterns in the chosen subject.

A tight economy and a keen competition force the Swedish agricultur to do a structural rationalization. The quantity of farmers is less but the units are growing. How to make money I think some kind of niche is necessary. In my examwork I have locked how to farm herbaceous plant and the marking of herb to feedstuff for horses. Today health food and alternative medicine are accepted to use and there is an increase in demand. The Swedish market for herbaceous plants to horses is small and the products are mostly imported. But there is a group of consumers who is willing to pay a higer price for Swedish cultivated herbs. The only way to find out which herbaceous plants I could cultivate is to make a test cultivate. I think that the market for herbaceous plants is growing.

Recent years have been very turbulent for most private equity firms. Especially the financial meltdown in global economy has affected the industry, but also the public pressure has made private equity houses change their control strategies towards more conventional methods used in public companies. This thesis aims to put light on the control methods used in listed private equity houses which use a buyout strategy. The paper describes how the control methods change over the different phases the asset experience and how different value generating strategies use altered control methods. Using Merchant's (2003) framework for management control systems and Berg and Gottschalg's (2004) research on value generating strategies in buyouts the thesis shows that action controls as designing instructions for the board and a business plan, together with goal alignment is the commonly used control strategy directly after the acquisition.

Problems:How would a decision model that takes into account more aspects and dimensions than just the financial aspect look for smaller service compa-nies? What aspects are important to consider in such a decision model?Purpose:The purpose of this master thesis is to develop a decision model based on previous research, to improve decision making in smaller service com-panies ? by considering perspectives that traditional investment calcula-tions ignore.Method:The study was qualitative and was based on both primary and secondary data. As data collection method for the development of the model we used literature search on previous research. The study?s primary data consisted of responses from five smaller service companies.

Background: One of the largest direct selling companies Amway "AmericanWay", which has its foothold in the market economy by means of direct trade. This means that the marketing is in the form of a network made up of various individuals who work together to advertise the company on to various potential customers.Aim: The survey aims to study the factors that are affecting the company Amway's growth.Completion: The survey is based on analyzing the interviews. The authors have relied on the qualitative method, where they have focused on how growth has increased the company Amway.Results: The results of this study are that Amway gradually managed to establish themselves globally thanks to the quality of the products they sell in a functioning market. The study also shows that all member customers are satisfied with the goods they buy from ABO groups, and that Amway's structure is not based on a pyramid scheme..

With a shifting world market and periodically profitability issues, Swedish farmers seekalternative ways to enhance their profitability. One interesting alternative to get a highervalue and enhance products is biodiesel, a way to improve the profitability on a farmscale.The diesel that is produced and sold, already have a mixture of 5% biodiesel, andthere is a possibility to add more biodiesel to it. By developing new engines severalengine-manufacturers now allow a mixture up to 100% biodiesel in their engines. Hencethere is a market for an increased production of biodiesel. The aim of this study were toinvestigate the possibilities and the problems related to farm-scale production ofbiodiesel, and to study the profit margin in the production.

After a series of corporate scandals around the world the trust in the business world was damaged, probably most in the United States but also in Sweden. Voices were raised for an increase in the openness and insight into the affairs of the company whereupon different corporate governance codes were developed in a majority of countries. A Swedish corporate governance code was issued in December 2004 with the purpose to re-establish the damaged trust for the companies and the business world. The Swedish code was accepted by the Stockholm Stock Exchange as an exchange rule for A-listed and larger O-listed companies as of July 2005. The purpose of this essay is to study how the Swedish corporate governance code in fact leads to an increase in trust in the stock market and to study the companies? attitudes towards this code.To fulfil the purpose of this essay, the authors have carried out a survey among the concerned companies where the companies? attitudes towards the Swedish code were collected.

Title: Globalization ? Meeting a new market Author: Anna Nubäck Supervisor: Anders Nilsson Institution: School of Management, Blekinge Tekniska Högskola Course: Master in business administration, 15 credits (FED006) Purpose: The purpose of this essay is partly to create an understanding of the decision to establish a branch in Japan and especially to look at if and how the Swedish company in this study has adjusted its corporate culture to suit the Japanese market. Method: Data is collected thru a number of semi constructed interviews. A first telephone interview was followed by an interview made face to face that was also followed up by interviews performed over telephone. E-mails have been used to clear and correct collected data. I have also studied company reports, closely related literature, articles and papers on the Internet. Conclusion: My conclusion is that the company in this study based the decision to open a branch in Japan on the demand from one big customer and the potential to grow globally.