R&D Performance Analysis: Case Studies on the Challenges and Promotion of the Evaluation and Measurement of R&D

Due to the intense international competition, demanding, and sophisticated customers, and diverse transforming technological change, organizations need to renew their products and services by allocating resources on research and development (R&D). Managing R&D is complex, but vital for many organizations to survive in the dynamic, turbulent environment. Thus, the increased interest among decision-makers towards finding the right performance measures for R&D is understandable. The measures or evaluation methods of R&D performance can be utilized for multiple purposes; for strategic control, for justifying the existence of R&D, for providing information and improving activities, as well as for the purposes of motivating and benchmarking. The earlier research in the field of R&D performance analysis has generally focused on either the activities and considerable factors and dimensions - e.g. strategic perspectives, purposes of measurement, levels of analysis, types of R&D or phases of R&D process - prior to the selection of R&Dperformance measures, or on proposed principles or actual implementation of theselection or design processes of R&D performance measures or measurement systems. This study aims at integrating the consideration of essential factors anddimensions of R&D performance analysis to developed selection processes of R&D measures, which have been applied in real-world organizations. The earlier models for corporate performance measurement that can be found in the literature, are to some extent adaptable also to the development of measurement systemsand selecting the measures in R&D activities. However, it is necessary to emphasize the special aspects related to the measurement of R&D performance in a way that make the development of new approaches for especially R&D performance measure selection necessary: First, the special characteristics of R&D - such as the long time lag between the inputs and outcomes, as well as the overall complexity and difficult coordination of activities - influence the R&D performance analysis problems, such as the need for more systematic, objective, balanced and multi-dimensional approaches for R&D measure selection, as well as the incompatibility of R&D measurement systems to other corporate measurement systems and vice versa. Secondly, the above-mentioned characteristics and challenges bring forth the significance of the influencing factors and dimensions that need to be recognized in order to derive the selection criteria for measures and choose the right R&D metrics, which is the most crucial step in the measurement system development process. The main purpose of this study is to support the management and control of the research and development activities of organizations by increasing the understanding of R&D performance analysis, clarifying the main factors related to the selection of R&D measures and by providing novel types of approaches and methods for systematizing the whole strategy- and business-based selection and development process of R&D indicators.The final aim of the research is to support the management in their decision making of R&D with suitable, systematically chosen measures or evaluation methods of R&D performance. Thus, the emphasis in most sub-areas of the present research has been on the promotion of the selection and development process of R&D indicators with the help of the different tools and decision support systems, i.e. the research has normative features through providing guidelines by novel types of approaches. The gathering of data and conducting case studies in metal and electronic industry companies, in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector, and in non-profit organizations helped us to formulate a comprehensive picture of the main challenges of R&D performance analysis in different organizations, which is essential, as recognition of the most importantproblem areas is a very crucial element in the constructive research approach utilized in this study. Multiple practical benefits regarding the defined problemareas could be found in the various constructed approaches presented in this dissertation: 1) the selection of R&D measures became more systematic when compared to the empirical analysis, as it was common that there were no systematic approaches utilized in the studied organizations earlier; 2) the evaluation methods or measures of R&D chosen with the help of the developed approaches can be more directly utilized in the decision-making, because of the thorough consideration of the purpose of measurement, as well as other dimensions of measurement; 3) more balance to the set of R&D measures was desired and gained throughthe holistic approaches to the selection processes; and 4) more objectivity wasgained through organizing the selection processes, as the earlier systems were considered subjective in many organizations. Scientifically, this dissertation aims to make a contribution to the present body of knowledge of R&D performance analysis by facilitating dealing with the versatility and challenges of R&D performance analysis, as well as the factors and dimensions influencing the selection of R&D performance measures, and by integrating these aspects to the developed novel types of approaches, methods and tools in the selection processes of R&D measures, applied in real-world organizations. In the whole research, facilitation of dealing with the versatility and challenges in R&D performance analysis, as well as the factors and dimensions influencing the R&D performance measure selection are strongly integrated with the constructed approaches. Thus, the research meets the above-mentioned purposes and objectives of the dissertation from the scientific as well as from the practical point of view.

Democracy begins at home : parenting, empathy, and adolescents' support for democratic values

Bakgrund Demokratiska samhällen är sårbara och historiskt sett sällsynta. Förutsättningarna för en fungerande demokrati innefattar mer än formella institutioner eller enbart frånvaron av diktatorer och extremgrupper. För att en regim skall fungera enligt demokratiska principer behövs medborgare som stöder demokratiska värden. Därför är det av vikt att förstå de processer som får individer att känna tilltro till demokratiska värden. Trots att man kan anta att stöd för sådana värderingar utvecklas som ett resultat av social inlärning är de konkreta omständigheterna som leder till ett dylikt lärande mindre uppenbara. Den klassiska litteraturen beträffande politisk socialisation lyfte fram föräldrarna som avgörande för de ungas medborgerliga fostran, men i moderna samhällen har föräldrarna sällan som en uttalad målsättning att försöka påverka sina barns nuvarande eller framtida politiska preferenser. Den föreliggande studiens mål var att fördjupa diskursen kring politisk socialisation gen om att analysera föräldraskapets betydelse för demokratiska värderingar hos ungdomar. Metod Den föreliggande studien utgick från två slumpmässiga urval. Det ena omfattade 1341 studerande, 17 år gamla, inom andra stadiets utbildning i tre regioner i Finland (södra, syd-västra och västra) och det andra 678 studerande, 16 år gamla vid studiens inledande, från den flamländska delen av Belgien. Studien innefattade frågeformulär som besvarades under skoltid. Resultat De centrala resultaten från studien kan sammanfattas i fyra punkter. För det första kunde empatiskt tänkande konstateras vara en god förklarande variabel för ungdomars demokratiska värderingar (Artikel 1). För det andra gav studien stöd för antagandet att stödjande föräldraskap är av betydelse för utvecklingen av empati under ungdomsåren (Artikel 2). För det tredje utvärderades empati, i relation till andra betydelsefulla variabler, som förklarande variabel för demokratiska värderingar (Artikel 3). För det fjärde gav den föreliggande studien bevis för att demokratiskt föräldraskap, både direkt och indirekt, är relaterat till demokratiska värderingar hos ungdomar. Sammanfattning Sammanfattningsvis visade den föreliggande studien hur föräldraskap både direkt och indirekt kan påverka demokratiska värderingar hos ungdomar och hur dessa resultat kunde användas för demokratisk samhällsfostran.

The role of public export promotion in Finland Industry view of public export promotion in Southwest Finland

The role of the public export promotion in Finland needed more research. The part of the public sector export promotion in the overall export is significant. In an ever more global world not only the companies but also the counties compete against each other and the governments have an interest to boost their economy as much as they are able to. Every industrialized country has export promotion services in some form or another. In the 21st century the tendency has been the bundling of the services and this has also been done in Finland with Team Finland. The role and the efficiency of the services provided deserve more research. The research question of this study is: What is the role of the public export promotion services in Finland? The question is researched primary by expert interviews conducted for this study. The situation in Southwest Finland is studied from the viewpoint of the companies of the region by conducting a survey aimed to the successfully internationalized companies of the region and asking them on their views on the impact and role of public export services in their internationalization. The theory base is formed out of various export promotion studies, studies monitoring the effects of the promotion and theories of the internationalization process of companies. The primary material for the study are the three expert interviews conducted and the answers to the survey conducted. The research method in the first part is a constructive qualitative research. The research approach in the second part, where the views of the companies in Southwest Finland are studied, is quantitative. The study findings from the expert interviews: the aligning of the public export promotion done in Finland to the previous research and the addition of the role of the public sector in classical frameworks. The study findings from the survey: the utilizing of the public export promotion services is heavily delayed and the internationalizing companies start to utilize the services very late in their internationalization process, the average being 10,3 years from the beginning of the internationalization. Another central finding from the survey is that the successfully internationalized companies see the public export promotion services generally as highly beneficial but in the light of the answers the effect on their own company is not as significant. Concluding can be stated that the public export promotion is seen as beneficial, but the monitoring of the efficiency is complicated in the case of services. Getting the companies to start utilizing the services earlier in their internationalization needs attention from the service providers. By communicating the achieved results and benefits better to the potential users of the services the internationalization process of the companies could be accelerated