Vapaaehtoinen tilintarkastus pienissä yrityksissä - empiirinen tutkimus

Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli löytää ne tekijät, jotka vaikuttavat vapaaehtoisen tilintarkastuksen valintaan pienissä yrityksissä. Pienen yrityksen rajat määriteltiin noudattaen tilintarkastuslaissa säädettyjä rajoja tilintarkastusvelvollisuudesta. Empiirinen osuus suoritettiin kvalitatiivisena usean tapauksen tutkimuksena haastattelemalla kuutta eri pienyrityksen johtoon tai omistukseen kuuluvaa henkilöä. Aineisto kerättiin puolistrukturoidun ja teemahaastattelun välimaastoon sijoittuvilla haastatteluilla. Tulokset analysoitiin kokoamalla litteroiduista haastatteluista kokonaisuudet teemoittain. Tutkimuksessa haastateltiin myös tilintarkastajaa sekä pankin edustajaa puolistrukturoidulla haastattelulla lisäämään tulosten luotettavuutta. Tutkimuksen tulosten perusteella tilintarkastuksen valintaan vaikuttavia tekijöitä löytyi useita, sekä negatiivisia että positiivisia. Aikaisemmista tutkimuksista tuttujen ulkoisen rahoituksen, verottajan, ulkoistetun taloushallinnon sekä omistusrakenteen lisäksi uudeksi tilintarkastuksen valintaan vaikuttavaksi tekijäksi löydettiin toimiala. Yritysten välisen kaupankäynnin toimialoilla näyttäisi tutkimuksen perusteella olevan vaikutus tilintarkastukseen, mutta tutkimuksessa käytetyn pienen yritysjoukon takia tarvitaan lisätutkimuksia tekijän vaikutuksesta.

The Finnish Paper Workers' Union at a crossroads: Labor union representativeness in a changing environment, 1980-2008

This thesis consists of four articles and an introductory section. The main research questions in all the articles refer to the changes in the representativeness of the Finnish Paper Workers' Union. Representativeness stands for the entire entity of external, internal, legal and reputational factors that enable the labor union to represent its members and achieve its goals. This concept is based on an extensive reading of quantitative and qualitative industrial relations literature, which includes works based on Marxist labor-capital relations (such as Hyman's industrial relations studies), and more recent union density studies as well as gender- and ethnic diversity-based 'union revitalization' studies. Müller-Jentsch's German studies of industrial relations have been of particular importance as well as Streeck's industrial unionism and technology studies. The concept of representativeness is an attempt to combine the insights of these diverse strands of literature and bring the scientific discussion of labor unions back to the core of a union's function: representing its members. As such, it can be seen as a theoretical innovation. The concept helps to acknowledge both the heterogeneity of the membership and the totality of a labor union organization. The concept of representativeness aims to move beyond notions of 'power'. External representativeness can be expressed through the position of the labor union in the industrial relations system and the economy. Internal representativeness focuses on the aspects of labor unions that relate to the function of the union as an association with members, such as internal democracy. Legal representativeness lies in the formal legal position of the union – its rights and instruments. This includes collective bargaining legislation, co-decision rules and industrial conflict legislation. Reputational representativeness is related to how the union is seen by other actors and the general public, and can be approximated using data on strike activity. All these aspects of representativeness are path-dependent, and show the results of previous struggles over issues. The concept of representativeness goes beyond notions of labor union power and symbolizes an attempt to bring back the focus of industrial relations studies to the union's basic function of representing its members. The first article shows in detail the industrial conflict of the Finnish paper industry in 2005. The intended focus was the issue of gender in the negotiations over a new collective agreement, but the focal point of the industrial conflict was the issue of outsourcing and how this should be organized. Also, the issue of continuous shifts as an issue of working time was very important. The drawn-out conflict can be seen as a struggle over principles, and under pressure the labor union had to concede ground on the aforementioned issues. The article concludes that in this specific conflict, the union represented its' female members to a lesser extent, because the other issues took such priority. Furthermore, because of the substantive concessions. the union lost some of its internal representativeness, and the stubbornness of the union may have even harmed the reputation of the union. This article also includes an early version of the representativeness framework, through which this conflict is analyzed. The second article discusses wage developments, union density and collective bargaining within the context of representativeness. It is shown that the union has been able to secure substantial benefits for its members, regardless of declining employment. Collective agreements have often been based on centralized incomes policies, but the paper sector has not always joined these. Attention is furthermore paid to the changing competition of the General Assembly, with a surprisingly strong position of the Left Alliance still. In an attempt to replicate analysis of union density measures, an analysis of sectoral union density shows that similar factors as in aggregate data influence this measure, though – due to methodological issues – the results may not be robust. On this issue, it can be said that the method of analysis for aggregate union density is not suitable for sectoral union density analysis. The increasingly conflict-ridden industrial relations predicted have not actually materialized. The article concludes by asking whether the aim of ever-increasing wages is a sustainable one in the light of the pressures of globalization, though wage costs are a relatively small part of total costs. The third article discusses the history and use of outsourcing in the Finnish paper industry. It is shown using Hyman's framework of constituencies that over time, the perspective of the union changed from 'members of the Paper Workers' Union' to a more specific view of who is a core member of the union. Within the context of the industrial unionism that the union claims to practice, this is an important change. The article shows that the union more and more caters for a core group, while auxiliary personnel is less important to the union's identity and constituencies, which means that the union's internal representativeness has decreased. Maintenance workers are an exception; the union and employers have developed a rotating system that increases the efficient allocation of these employees. The core reason of the exceptional status of maintenance personnel is their high level of non-transferable skills. In the end it is debatable whether the compromise on outsourcing solves the challenges facing the industry. The fourth article shows diverging discourses within the union with regard to union-employer partnership for competitiveness improvements and instruments of local union representatives. In the collective agreement of 2008, the provision regulating wage effects of significant changes in the organization or content of work was thoroughly changed, though this mainly reflected decisions by the Labor Court on the pre-2008 version of the provision. This change laid bare the deep rift between the Social Democratic and Left Alliance (ex-Communist) factions of the union. The article argues that through the changed legal meaning of the provision, the union was able to transform concession bargaining into a basis for partnership. The internal discontent about this issue is nonetheless substantial and a threat to the unity of the union, both locally and at the union level. On the basis of the results of the articles, other factors influencing representativeness, such as technology and EU law and an overview of the main changes in the Finnish paper industry, it is concluded that, especially in recent years, the Finnish Paper Workers' Union has lost some of its representativeness. In particular, the loss of the efficiency of strikes is noted, the compromise on outsourcing which may have alienated a substantial part of the union's membership, and the change in the collective agreement of 2008 have caused this decline. In the latter case, the internal disunion on that issue shows the constraints of the union's internal democracy. Furthermore, the failure of the union to join the TEAM industrial union (by democratic means), the internal conflicts and a narrow focus on its own sector may also hurt the union in the future, as the paper industry in Finland is going through a structural change. None of these changes in representativeness would have been so drastic without the considerable pressure of globalization - in particular changing markets, changing technology and a loss of domestic investments to foreign investments, which in the end have benefited the corporations more than the Finnish employees of these corporations. Taken together, the union risks becoming socially irrelevant in time, though it will remain formally very strong on the basis of its institutional setting and financial situation.

Yrityksen kunnossapitoyksikön työkalutoimintojen kehitysvaihtoehdot

Tämän tutkimuksen päätavoitteena oli löytää tehokkain ja järkevin tapa organisoida yrityksen kunnossapitoyksikön työkalutoiminnot. Tavoitteena oli saada aikaan uusi toimintamalli, jonka avulla saavutetaan toiminnallinen ja kustannustehokas työkalutoiminta. Tutkimus toteutettiin konstruktiivisella tutkimusotteella. Työn teoriaosuus koostuu pääasiassa teollisuuden kunnossapitoa käsittelevistä tutkimuksista, artikkeleista ja kirjoista. Teoriaosuudessa käsitellään myös kunnossapidon ulkoistamista sekä siihen liittyviä haasteita ja mahdollisuuksia. Teoriaosuudessa käsiteltiin lyhyesti myös varastonhallintaa. Empriaosuus on kerätty yrityksen toiminnanohjausjärjestelmien avulla sekä tutustuen työkalutoimintoihin ja sen erityispiirteisiin. Tutkimuksen alussa selvitettiin nykyisen toiminnan erityispiirteet, ongelmat ja kehittämiskohteet. Näille ongelmille ja kehittämiskohteille etsittiin järkevät ratkaisut ja kehitettiin toimintasuunnitelma, jonka avulla yritys pääsee tavoiteltuun tehokkaaseen toimintamalliin.

Ulkoistettujen logistiikkapalveluiden kustannusrakenne ja säästöpotentiaali

Työ käsittelee ulkoistettujen logistiikkapalveluiden kustannusrakennetta sekä niiden mahdollista säästöpotentiaalia. Asetettu säästötavoite on kymmenen prosenttia. Logistiikkakustannukset muodostuvat pääpiirteissään ostorahdista, myyntirahdista, varastojen ja tuotantolaitoksen välisistä rahdeista sekä ulkopuolisilta toimijoilta vuokratuista varastoista. Työn teettävän yrityksen logistiikkakustannusten kustannusjakaumat tulee selvittää tekijöittäin perinpohjaisesti. Kustannustekijöiden määrittämisen jälkeen kustannukset on kohdistettu kullekin tekijälle yksitellen. Kustannustietojen osalta tutkimus kohdistui yrityksen omaan raportointiin, kirjanpitoon, palveluita tarjoavien toimijoiden laskutukseen sekä toimijoiden rahtien ja varastoinnin dokumentointeihin. Työn teoriaosuus pohjautuu tieteellisiin artikkeleihin ja kirjallisuuteen. Tutkimuskohteiden ja asetetun säästötavoitteen pohjalta on haarukoitu keinoja säästötavoitteen saavuttamiseksi. Kustannussäästöjä on haettu kahta eri reittiä pitkin. Ensimmäiseksi säästöjä haetaan organisaation oman toiminnan tehostamisella ja sitä kautta löytyvillä muutoksilla nykyiseen toimintamalliin nähden. Toinen tutkimuspolku on säästöjen hakeminen investointeja tekemällä. Oman toiminnan tehostamisen toimenpiteillä sekä investointeja tekemällä on mahdollista päästä asetettuun säästötavoitteeseen koskien yrityksen logistiikkakustannuksia.

Trust in inter-organisational dyadic relationships

Understanding the trust in organisations and the business relationships have been an emerging trend in past years. Researchers and executives and subject matter experts in companies have recognised the importance of managing the trust in inter-organisational relationships. Further, the interest both in academia and in business has raised an interest to under-stand dyadic relationships. The objective of this thesis was to examine trust in inter-organisational and inter-personal dyadic relationships. Trust and the dyadic relationships were analysed in information technolo-gy services and outsourcing industry. Dyads were established between the supplier company operating in the industry and its customers. The empiric part of the study was carried out by an email survey that was sent to 331 respondents resulting with effective response rate of 48.7 per cent. Statistical analyses were applied to analyse the data sample. In general, results indicated reputation, trustworthiness, capability and collaboration in dyadic trust relationships. Experience grown in duration of the relationship affected the trust positively. No drastic differences in trust were recognised when comparing supplier and customer responses.

Value added logistics in supply and demand chain : COSTFIX : New operation model for maintenance material logistics in paper industry

This research report illustrates and examines new operation models for decreasing fixed costs and transforming them into variable costs in the field of paper industry. The report illustrates two cases – a new operation model for material logistics in maintenance and an examination of forklift truck fleet outsourcing solutions. Conventional material logistics in maintenance operation is illustrated and some problems related to conventional operation are identified. A new operation model that solves some of these problems is presented including descriptions of procurement and service contracts and sources of added value. Forklift truck fleet outsourcing solutions are examined by illustrating the responsibilities of a host company and a service provider both before and after outsourcing. The customer buys outsourcing services in order to improve its investment productivity. The mechanism of how these services affect the customer company’s investment productivity is illustrated.

Ulkoistettujen toimintojen valvonta – empiirinen analyysi

Pro Gradu -tutkielman tavoitteena on tutkia ulkoistettujen toimintojen valvontaa sekä toimintoihin kohdistuvan valvonnan eroja yrityksissä. Lisäksi tutkitaan, miten hyvin ulkoistukseen liittyvät mittarit toimivat. Tutkimuksessa pyritään selvittämään ulkoistamiseen liittyvien riskien toteutumisia sekä selvittämään valvonnan vaikutusta palvelun laatuun. Tutkimuksen tekoon vaikutti ulkoistamisten lisääntyminen sekä ulkoistettujen toimintojen valvontaan keskittyvien tutkimuksien puuttuminen. Aiemmin tehdyissä tutkimuksissa ei ole käsitelty toimintojen valvontaa. Empiirisessä tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan seitsemän eri toimialalla toimivan yrityksen ulkoistettuja toimintoja. Aineistokeruu tutkimukseen on toteutettu haastatteluina. Tutkimustulosten perusteella voidaan todeta yritysten valvonnan perustuvan sopimuksessa määriteltyihin mittareihin, joiden koetaan mittaavan haluttuja asioita. Toimintojen valvonnassa ei yrityksien välillä ole olennaisia eroja. Yritykset ovat pääsääntöisesti huomioineet ulkoistukseen liittyvät riskit riskienhallinnassaan. Yritykset kokevat valvonnan tehostamisen vaikuttavan palvelun laatuun.

Hissien tasonovien palotestauspalveluiden arviointi.

Elevator landing doors are fire tested to measure their fire resistance. The objective of this master’s thesis was to create a method to evaluate the fire tests and the organizations that provide these testing services. The main focus area was in creating accurate evaluation criteria and weighting the criteria. The thesis was formed by first presenting the reader with the literature review of the closest related theories. The theories which were chosen were systematic decision making, supplier selection, and make or buy and outsourcing theories. In the empirical section the created process of evaluating fire testing is presented, with analysis of the current situation of fire testing processes and evaluation methods. Evaluating fire testing services required two types of criteria to be formed, technical criteria to evaluate the technical requirements, and service criteria to evaluate the organization which was offering the testing service. These criteria formed the core for the evaluation process which consisted of five different phases that were developed based on the literature review. The process was tested to create best practices and to make improvement proposals accordingly. Systematical process for evaluating fire testing helps to recognize the most important technical and service related aspects. The created criteria can be also used in future to benchmark and monitor the situation of fire testing. The results of the process can be used when deciding whether to outsource the service or to keep it in-house.

Industrial solution business – transition from product to solution offering

The business logic in the manufacturing industry has changed in the 21st century. In the current industrial market, manufacturers are driven to provide more comprehensive offerings that go beyond the traditional product-orientation by providing capacity and availability for their customers. From incidental merchandise, services have become the core of manufacturers’ offerings with long-lasting service agreements over the life-cycles of their products. This change is driven both by the need of providers to grow and gain competitive advantage and by increased customer demand caused by customers’ outsourcing trends. The three key drivers for manufacturers’ service strategies are outsourcing trends, saturation of the installed base, and commoditization in product markets. Thus, manufacturers focus on providing industrial solutions which are delivered through relational processes with customers by using solution-driven business models. In the management of marketing activities, this can be regarded as closer customer relationships, service-dominant business logic, and collaboration in solving customers’ problems. However, there are few studies on comprehensive conceptualizations of a solution offering that include different elements and their roles, especially in the context of capital goods industry. Also the transition process needs further studies in a real life context. This study explores the transition process of an industrial company from product to solution business and, as an aid to managing the solution business, explicates the structure and management of an industrial solution offering. There are two themes, the industrial transition process and industrial solution offering. Regarding the industrial transition process, the aim is to understand the supplier view on the process and its execution and to determine the challenges related to the transition process. The industrial solution offering is discussed by its elements and characteristics, as well as management. Furthermore, a special type of build-own-operate-transfer business model is presented and its suitability in the industrial context analyzed. The study includes findings achieved by qualitative methods and from four case companies. Based on the results, it is tentatively suggested that in the industrial solution business, the transition from product to solution business is not a linear project but an evolving process that varies according to customer needs, which suggests that companies need to possess an ability to develop new business models for different customer needs. The industrial solution offering is dynamic as it evolves in collaboration according to the prevailing and latent customer needs, which suggest restructuring of the organization from a product-centric to a customer-centric one. Furthermore, based on the findings, the concept of industrial solutions is defined as an ongoing relational process to satisfy a customer’s particular business or operational requirements, and the concept of industrial solution offering as an entity comprising the customized goods, services, collaboration, and finance needed to fulfill the industrial solution. Finally, the study offers several managerial implications for industrial managers involved in the transition and management of the solution business and its offering.

Service Blueprinting in Irregularity Service Improvement, case Swissport Finland Ltd

The trend of concentrating to core competencies leads to outsourcing of non-core activities. One such activity is logistics, where the responsibility is given to third-party service providers. This means the service provider acts as an intermediary between the buyer and the end customer. This thesis concentrates on depicting the operational environment of one such service provider, Swissport Finland Ltd, and the improvement of their checked baggage irregularity service. The tools used for this work were service blueprinting, an illustrative method for service mapping, and failure modes and effects analysis. The theoretical part of the thesis offers a framework for using these tools for logistics services, while the empirical part consists of a study mostly qualitative in nature. Action research method was used for the service improvement research. According to the results of this study the combination of service blueprinting and FMEA can be used successfully for irregularity service improvement. The most important result was an enhanced irregularity process that has been found to alleviate earlier problems.

Taloushallinnon tehostaminen – tapaustutkimus ostolaskuprosessin tehostamisesta

Kasvava kilpailu ja alati globalisoituvat markkinat ovat pakottaneet yrityksiä hakemaan tehokkuutta myös taloushallinnon kaltaisista prosesseista, joiden tehokkuuteen ei aikaisemmin kiinnitetty juurikaan huomiota. Tutkielman ensimmäisenä keskeisenä tavoitteena on lisätä tietoa taloushallinnon tehostamisesta peilaamalla sitä tutkielman teoreettisen viitekehyksen kolmen keskeisen elementin – liiketoimintaprosessien tehostamisen, sähköisen taloushallinnon innovaatioiden ja taloushallinnon rajat ylittävän ulkoistamisen – kautta. Tutkimuksen toisena keskeisenä tavoitteena on syventää tätä teoreettista tietoa ja analysoida taloushallinnon tehostamiseksi kehitettyjen menetelmien toimivuutta Suomessa toimivan yrityksen ostolaskuprosessin osalta. Tutkielmassa pystyttiin selkeästi tuomaan esiin taloushallinnon tehostumiseen vaikuttaneita tekijöitä ja osoittamaan näiden ostolaskuprosessia tehostava vaikutus. Analysoitaessa eri menetelmien keskinäistä tehokkuutta voidaan suomalaisen yrityksen näkökulmasta perustellusti olettaa, että rajat ylittävät ulkoistamiset ovat vain välivaihe matkalla mahdollisimman pitkälle automatisoituun prosessiin – kun laskut vastaanotetaan sähköisinä verkkolaskuina ja täsmäytetään automaattisesti sähköisiin ostotilauksiin, voidaankin kysyä mitä ostolaskuprosessista voitaisiin ylipäänsä ulkoistaa.

Yritysyhteistyösuhde ja sen hallinta

Kandidaatintyö käsittelee kahden yrityksen välistä yhteistyösuhdetta yritysverkostossa. Nykyisessä verkostoitumiseen kannustavassa yritystoiminnassa yhteistyösuhteiden merkitys on kasvanut ja samalla yrityksille on muodostunut tarve luokitella yhteistyösuhteitaan. Työssä havaitaan kumppanuuden kasvattavan suosiotaan, mutta sen erilaiset muodot luokitellaan usein vain yhteistyöksi. Työn tavoitteena on selventää yhteistyön eri käsitteitä sekä luoda konkreettisia toimintaesimerkkejä tyypillisimmissä yhteistyökohteissa. Aluksi työssä on eritelty erilaisia yhteistyösuhteita sekä tutkittu kumppanuuden ja liittouman käsitteitä. Tämän jälkeen työ havainnollistaa yhteistyösuhteiden toimintaa tyypillisimmissä kohteissa toimitusketjua. Viimeisessä osiossa käsitellään tarkemmin yhteistyösuhteiden ohjauskeinoja.