Knowledge Management in China and in Finland- A cross country comparison

Nowadays, knowledge management (KM) is important for the success of individuals, organizations, and countries. While comparative study approach of knowledge management is a good way to enlarge peoples‘ understandings of KM, how these processes and practices are different across countries is an interesting research topic. The goal of this study is to conduct a cross-country KM comparison between China and Finland. More specifically, the current status of Chinese and Finnish KM will be studied, and then comparisons will be made in three dimensions: knowledge processes, knowledge management practices, and performance and perceptions of KM. A cross-country KM survey was conducted through a well-designed questionnaire. At the end of the study, current Chinese and Finnish KM findings are presented respectively, and a comparison of KM between the two countries is done. From the comparison, it was found that China and Finland have statistically significant differences in several knowledge processes and KM practices. Some detailed information from the comparison is also illustrated. This research partly filled the theoretical gap in understanding contemporary Chinese KM. The KM comparison between China and Finland provides useful information to KM researchers and practitioners.

A multibody dynamic model of the cross-country ski-skating technique

The objective of this thesis is the development of a multibody dynamic model matching the observed movements of the lower limb of a skier performing the skating technique in cross-country style. During the construction of this model, the formulation of the equation of motion was made using the Euler - Lagrange approach with multipliers applied to a multibody system in three dimensions. The description of the lower limb of the skate skier and the ski was completed by employing three bodies, one representing the ski, and two representing the natural movements of the leg of the skier. The resultant system has 13 joint constraints due to the interconnection of the bodies, and four prescribed kinematic constraints to account for the movements of the leg, leaving the amount of degrees of freedom equal to one. The push-off force exerted by the skate skier was taken directly from measurements made on-site in the ski tunnel at the Vuokatti facilities (Finland) and was input into the model as a continuous function. Then, the resultant velocities and movement of the ski, center of mass of the skier, and variation of the skating angle were studied to understand the response of the model to the variation of important parameters of the skate technique. This allowed a comparison of the model results with the real movement of the skier. Further developments can be made to this model to better approximate the results to the real movement of the leg. One can achieve this by changing the constraints to include the behavior of the real leg joints and muscle actuation. As mentioned in the introduction of this thesis, a multibody dynamic model can be used to provide relevant information to ski designers and to obtain optimized results of the given variables, which athletes can use to improve their performance.

Antecedents and Performance Outcomes of Entrepreneurial Orientation: a Comparative Cross-Country Study

Development of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) within a company is considered to be significant for firm performance in a contemporary market society with constantly changing environment. Considered as entrepreneurial, the firm is able to innovate, make risky investments and be proactive. The purpose of the thesis is to investigate factors which influence EO, the impact of EO on firm performance, and a mediating role of EO in developed and emerging market contexts. The empirical research is conducted quantitatively in a form of a survey in Russia and Finland. The results of the thesis have shown that the relationship between antecedents, EO and firm performance outcomes is different in developed and emerging contexts and can be explained by cultural differences and institutional development. The empirical research has both theoretical and practical novelty. It contributes to the existing literature on EO by the usage of comparative cross-country approach and a broader three-way interaction model between the variables. A general practical implication of the research is that managers may benefit from developing entrepreneurial strategic posture in particular contexts.

Maastoajoneuvon korin teräsrakenteiden värähtelyominaisuuksien FEM-analysointimenetelmien kehittäminen

Tämä diplomityö on tehty Patria Vehicles Oy:n toimeksiannosta. Patria Vehicles Oy:n tuotantoon kuuluvat vaativiin maasto-olosuhteisiin soveltuvat sotilasajoneuvot. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli kehittää menetelmäohjeet, kuinka FEM-analyysillä voidaan tutkia tuotekehitysvaiheessa ajoneuvon korin teräsrakenteiden värähtelyominaisuuksia ja dynaamista käyttäytymistä. Tutkimuksessa on käytetty Ideas-FEM-ohjelmistoa. Dynaamisten ongelmien ratkaisemiseksi on ymmärrettävä rakenteiden dynaamista käyttäytymistä. Rakenteiden käyttäytymistä ja muodonmuutoksia on tutkittava kriittisillä ominaistaajuuksilla. Tutkimuksessa on selvitetty, kuinka ajoneuvon elementtimallilla voidaan tehdä ominaisvärähtely- ja vastelaskentaa. Ominaisvärähtelylaskennalla selvitetään rakenteen ominaismuodot ja -taajuudet. Vastelaskennalla tutkitaan erilaisten herätteiden vaikutuksia ajoneuvon dynaamiseen käyttäytymiseen ja määritetään herätteistä rakenteeseen aiheutuvat vasteet ja herätteiden siirtyvyys rakenteessa. Lisäksi tutkitaan herätteiden aiheuttamia todellisia jännityksiä ja siirtymiä, jotta saadaan selville rakenteen todelliset rasitukset. Analyyseillä voidaan tutkia, kuinka ajoneuvon korirakennetta on jäykistettävä ja vaimennettava, jotta siinä ei esiinny haitallista melua ja värähtelyä.

Tuulikuormien vaikutus teleskooppimaston toimintaan

Tämä diplomityö on tehty Patria Vehicles Oy:n toimeksiannosta. Patria Vehicles Oy:n tuotantoon kuuluvat vaativiin maasto-olosuhteisiin soveltuvat sotilasajoneuvot sekä teleskooppimastot. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli mallintaa mastoperävaunusta joustava malli, johon vaikuttavat tuulikuormat. Mallin avulla voidaan tutkia maston siirtymiä, kallistumia sekä kiertymiä. Tutkimuksessa on käytetty ADAMS-simulointiohjelmistoa sekä I-DEAS- FEM ohjelmistoa. Dynaamisten ongelmien ratkaisemiseksi on ymmärrettävä rakenteiden käyttäytymistä. Tuulikuormien mallintamisen edellytyksenä on tuulikuormien syntymisen ymmärtäminen. Tämän työn peruslähtökohtana on mallintaa kaikki maston jäykkyyteen vaikuttavat komponentit joustavina FE-menetelmän avulla. Luodaan superelementit Craig-Bamptonin ominaismuotojen superponointimenetelmällä. Nämä superelementit liitetään toisiinsa ja asetetaan niille tuulikuormat. Luodaan kosketukset puomien, sekä maan ja maston välille. Pienennetään joustavien osien ominaismuotojen määrää, jotta saataisiin nopeammat analyysit. Parametrisoidaan malli, jolloin voidaan analysoida mallilla useampia tapauksia. Verifioidaan malli varmistaaksemme sen oikeellisuuden. Taulukoidaan tulokset.

Stock and Bond Market Integration: Evidence from Russian Financial Markets

Minimizing the risks of an investment portfolio but not in the favour of expected returns is one of the key interests of an investor. Typically, portfolio diversification is achieved using two main strategies: investing in different classes of assets thought to have little or negative correlations or investing in similar classes of assets in multiple markets through international diversification. This study investigates integration of the Russian financial markets in the time period of January 1, 2003 to December 28, 2007 using daily data. The aim is to test the intra-country and cross-country integration of the Russian stock and bond markets between seven countries. Our test methodology for the short-run dynamics testing is the vector autoregressive model (VAR) and for the long-run cointegration testing we use the Johansen cointegration test which is an extension to VAR. The empirical results of this study show that the Russian stock and bond markets are not integrated in the long-run either at intra-country or cross-country level which means that the markets are relatively segmented. The short-run dynamics are also relatively low. This implies a presence of potential gains from diversification.

The role of network coordination in business incubation - Comparative evidence from Finland and Russia

Business incubators (BIs) have an important role in promoting entrepreneurship and innovation. Networks have been identified as one of the main factors influencing business incubation success; however, their management has not been widely covered in previous business incubation research. Therefore, the main objective of this research is to investigate the role of network coordination in business incubation. Thus, the research aims to understand how the BI as a hub firm coordinates, i.e. manages and orchestrates, the business incubation process. As business incubation is also claimed to be affected by country specific factors, a cross-country comparison of Finland and Russia is conducted. Based on previous scientific literature on networks, network management, network orchestration and business incubation, a theoretical model combining business incubation and network coordination is developed. Through a qualitative multiple-case study evidence from a cross-country sample of BI managers and their residents was collected via semi-structured interviews. Based on the empirical data the network coordination mechanisms used by BIs are identified, yet only minor differences in network coordination in different countries are found. The results suggest that network coordination enables value creation in business incubation.