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Entrepreneurs need to mobilize funds, but they do so under considerable uncertainty about resource holders’ preferences, leading often to fundraising attempts that perform below entrepreneurs’ aspirations. Past research has offered contrasting theorizing and evidence for why entrepreneurs then make changes to their product offering during such attempts as well as for why entrepreneurs refrain from taking such action. This paper develops and tests behavioral theory to reconcile this tension, explicating when and why entrepreneurs change their product offering during underperforming fundraising attempts. Specifically, we argue that entrepreneurs draw on three sources of information that are inherent to fundraising attempts and that inform the extent of their actions to change their product offering: the degree to which they perform below their own fundraising aspirations, the degree to which they fall below peer fundraising performance, and the time that remains until the deadline for the fundraising attempt. Longitudinal data on 576 fundraising campaigns (6,758 observations) published on the crowdfunding platform Kickstarter support our theory. By developing novel behavioral theory on when and why entrepreneurs take action during resource mobilization, we offer contributions to research on entrepreneurial resource mobilization, the crowdfunding literature, and the Behavioral Theory of the Firm.

Economic development and the contemporary way of living have been achieved by the growing consumption of fossil fuels each year. Researchers agree that the current measures of global warming are dominantly caused by human activities. An alternative to the environmentally burdening present model of extract-produce-use-dump, which wastes materials and energy, circular economy is an incentive to mitigate climate change and provide a possibility for sustainable development. Shifting to an alternative economic system requires organisations to reevaluate their business models and value propositions. This thesis explores and presents a process merging business development, user-centred design and circular economy, enabling organisations to transition to more sustainable operating models. Circular economy and particularly business design are emergent fields from an academic perspective. During the last decade, circular economy has formed a more established definition. It is a restorative and regenerative model where waste is designed out and value retention is maximised. Business design can be grounded on more confirmed methods like design thinking and service design, combining these approaches with a business modelling mindset. The understanding of business design has been gathered through existing research, business design literature and insights from the market, contributing to the theoretical knowledge of the process. The outcome of this thesis, the Circular Business Design process, has been iterated and validated with the circular economy consultancy, Ethica, and interviews were conducted with middle and upper managers of potential corporations. These helped refine the initial set of tools and methods and understand how the process can fit the organisations’ business development processes. This thesis is joining the discussion in which the transition to circular economy is the central issue of this century. The critical factor to that transition is for organisations to

In the early 21st century, the global society has increasingly become aware of several global challenges from climate change to poverty threatening almost all of the socio-technical systems essential to modern civilization. These pressures have led to increasing effort and focused placed on managing the ongoing transition of these systems towards a more sustainable state. Innovation is often understood as the driving force for this socio-technical system transition, and as such, many programs foster smart energy innovation as a means to promote the sustainability transition of the energy system. In order to manage these experiments, the actors included must be able to understand the impacts of their work. A key part of this process is the articulation of the expected impacts of the vision of future in which the experiment is rooted. However, due to the complex nature of the innovations acting at the socio-technical system level, it is often difficult to analyse these impacts. Focusing on understanding the carbon emission related impacts, this thesis seeks to answer the following questions: Research question 1: Can the perspectives from sustainability transition and carbon hand printing be synthesized to generate a framework for predictive evaluation of GHG-emission impacts of smart energy innovation programs? Research question 2: How such theoretical approach could be utilized in management of the innovation programs? To answer these research questions, this thesis synthesized the perspectives of sustainability transition literate and environmental impact assessment methodology. This resulted in idea of analyses process, where the potential impacts of experiments are linked to the embedded vision, and the visioned change is then used as a bases for carbon handprint evaluation. The perspectives form transition is used to provide qualitative understanding of the change the innovation could have, and the carbon hand printing approach is used to quantify this change. Th, 2000-luvun alussa ihmiskunta on kiinnittänyt enenevissä määrin huomiota globaaleihin kestävyyshaasteisiin, kuten ilmastonmuutokseen ja köyhyyteen. Nämä haasteet koskevat lähes jokaista sosiaalisteknistä järjestelmää, joiden varaan moderni yhteiskunta rakentuu. Nämä kestävyyshaasteet ovat johtaneet resurssien ohjaamiseen hallittua järjestelmämurrosta kohti. Innovaatiot nähdään usein tämän murroksen moottorina, ja siksi monet projektit ja ohjelmat pyrkivät edistämään älyenergiainnovaatioita energiajärjestelmän kestävyysmurroksen aikaansaamiseksi. Hallitakseen näitä ohjelmia, osallistuvien toimijoiden on ymmärrettävä näiden ohjelmien vaikutuksia. Odotettujen vaikutuksien artikulointi on tämän ymmärryksen luomisen ytimessä. Innovaatioiden kompleksisesta luonteesta johtuen näiden vaikutuksien suora arviointi on usein vaikeaa. Tämä työ pyrkii rakentamaan ymmärrystä vastaamalla kahteen tutkimuskysymykseen: 1. voiko innovaatio- ja transitiokirjallisuuden sekä hiilikädenjäljen laskumenetelmien pohjalta luoda viitekehyksen ennakoivaan älyenergiainnovaatio-ohjelmien hiilikädenjäljen arvioimiseen? 2. Miten tämä teoreettinen viitekehys toimisi käytännössä ohjelman hallinnoimisen tukena? Vastatakseen tutkimuskysymyksiin tämä työ loi katsauksen transitiokirjallisuuteen sekä ympäristövaikutusten laskennan metodologiaan. Näistä aineksista syntetisoitiin prosessi, jossa vaikutuksia pyritään ymmärtämään innovaatiokokeiden taustalla vaikuttavien visioiden kautta hyödyntämällä visioita hiilikädenjäljen laskemisen lähtökohtana. Transitiokirjallisuus perspektiivi tuo näin työhön laadullista ymmärrystä vaikutusten luonteesta, ja hiilikädenjäljen laskennan metodologia auttaa ymmärtämään vaikutusten määrällistä luonnetta. Ehdotettua lähestymistapaa kokeiltiin soveltamalla sitä VTT:n energiayhteisöinnovaatioita edistävään hankkeeseen. Kokeilu auttoi ymmärtämään, miten lähestymistavasta voisi jatkokehittää toimivan prosessin innovaatioprojektien johtamisen tueksi.

Low carbon energy transitions offer pathways to sustainable futures. In Finland’s district heating sector (DH), the combustion of peat as a fuel source has been a hotly contested debate. While some support peat as a cheap, supply-secure source of domestic energy, others point towards its high level of carbon emissions. In the face of the increasing carbon emissions price under the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme and the Finnish Government’s goal to be carbon neutral by 2035, the DH sector has felt increasing pressure in recent years to switch to non-combustible sources of energy. This thesis is inspired by the continued use of peat energy despite the 2035 target date. By using one of the leading theories on sociotechnical change, this thesis incorporates the Multi-Level Perspective (MLP) into the theoretical framework for understanding the barriers that confront a transition away from peat-use in Finland’s district heating sector, and how they can be overcome. The literature review discusses the historical appeal and policy support for peat-use in DH. It then provides an overview of transition theories by describing the fundamental tenets of the MLP. The empirical findings are derived from interviews with Members of The Parliament of Finland from the Centre Party and the Greens League, a policy advisor for the Left Alliance, the CEO of a bioenergy advocacy, a peat energy government working group representative, and an energy production lobbyist. The data was collected from these informants then sorted through a coding analysis, where their insights were bifurcated into either “barriers” or “ways to overcome” the barriers (WTOs). The findings show that there were twelve barriers and seven distinct WTO clusters identified in the interviews. The barriers reflect the embeddedness of peat-use in DH, but the WTO clusters offer both niche-nurturing and regime-destabilizing solutions to these barriers. The prevailing contribution of this thesis is in finding that th

The global Covid-19 pandemic has impacted our societies in unprecedented magnitude. To limit pandemic spreading various social rules and technological solutions have been developed. One of the most prominent way has been the usage of mobile phones as tracing devices for informing users and collecting data for authorities regarding possible exposure to the virus. We have seen that governments have chosen very different approaches for utilizing software products to control the Covid-19 pandemic at national level. The aim of the study is to explore technology governance in extreme conditions and consequent politically shaped socio-technical outcomes. I build on the tradition of Science and Technology Studies (STS) and draw from the Value Sensitive Design (VSD) approach. VSD’s core tenet is that technology is not value free and values are expressed and embedded in technology. In this study I examine the institutional conditions that lead to the democratic or autocratic characteristics of technology. Both characteristics are measured by the level of user autonomy. I recognize four functional levels that construct the outcome of democratic/autocratic characteristics of technology; voluntary use, minimized location data, data destruction and transparency. By using fuzzy set qualitative analysis, I investigate the interplay of institutional conditions in 30 case countries and the technological outcome. Extreme event of global pandemic provides a novel opportunity to monitor technological development. First, temporal aspects of extreme event build an urgency that is not common for typical commercial product and service development. Second, extreme event is an institutional change, an external factor from an organizational point of view, which will have significant implications to technological development and choices without giving much opportunities for organizations to shape institutions. The results of the study display four successful institutional configurations associa, Covid-19-pandemian yhteiskunnalliset vaikutukset ovat olleet merkittäviä. Toimenpiteet viruksen leviämisen ehkäisemiseksi ovat vaihdelleet ihmisten välisistä sosiaalisista säännöistä teknisiin ratkaisuihin. Yksi lupaavimmista keinoista vastata pandemiaan on ollut puhelimeen asennettava jäljityssovellus, jonka avulla pyritään tavoittamaan tartunnalle altistuneet ihmiset. Eri maiden hallituksilla on ollut hyvin vaihtelevia näkemyksiä siitä, millä periaatteella sovellusten tulisi toimia tartuntaketjujen katkaisussa kansallisella tasolla. Tämän tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on tarkastella sekä teknologian hallintotapaa poikkeusoloissa, että siitä seuraavia, poliittisesti hioutuneita sosio-teknisiä lopputuloksia. Työn teoriaosa rakentuu tieteen ja teknologian tutkimukselle (Science and Technology Studies; STS) ja hyödyntää arvosensitiivisen suunnittelun (Value Sensitive Design; VSD) lähestymistapaa. VSD korostaa ennen kaikkea teknologian arvolatautuneisuutta. Tämä työ pyrkii tunnistamaan institutionaalisia olosuhteita, jotka johtavat demokraattisiin tai autoritäärisiin piirteisiin teknologiassa. Piirteitä mitattiin käyttäjän itsenäisyyden tasoilla. Tutkielmassa tunnistettiin neljä toiminnallista tasoa, joista ominaisuuksiltaan demokraattinen/autoritäärinen teknologia rakentuu; vapaaehtoinen käyttö, paikkatiedon käytön minimointi, tieto datan hävityksestä ja läpinäkyvyys. Tutkielman empiirinen osio toteutettiin sumean logiikan vertailevana analyysina (fuzzy set qualitative analysis; fs/QCA), jonka avulla tarkasteltiin institutionaalisten olosuhteiden ja teknologisten lopputulosten vuorovaikutusta kolmessakymmenessä eri maassa. Poikkeusolojen konteksti tarjoaa ainutlaatuisen mahdollisuuden tarkastella teknologiakehitystä. Tuotteen tai palvelun normaaliin kehitykseen verrattuna poikkeusoloissa korostuu toiminnan kiireellisyys. Lisäksi poikkeusolot ovat organisaatiolle institutionaalinen muutos, joka vaikuttaa teknologiakehitykseen ilman, että organisaatiolla itsellään on suurta

Climate change poses the most urgent threat to all the species on earth. Carbon emissions are the major contributor to global warming and climate change. Therefore, global carbon reduction is crucial to limit the temperature rise to under 2°C above pre-industrial levels, thus preventing catastrophic climate disasters. In the 1990s, carbon markets were created to reduce emissions on a global scale. Compliance markets regulated by international treaties comprise most of global carbon trades. However, voluntary carbon markets have continued to grow rapidly in recent years. Scientists have been seeking solutions from technological innovations to tackle climate change. One such innovation is blockchain technology, which has been recognized by the United Nations as one of the most promising advances for the field of sustainability. Blockchain technology has been utilized to address common issues in carbon markets, such as hacking, frauds, and double-counting. This research examines these issues and explores the potential of blockchain technology in developing more accessible voluntary carbon markets for small sellers and buyers. Due to the novelty of the field, the study employs a qualitative research approach. The data collection included in-depth interviews with three experts of blockchain technology and two experts of traditional carbon trading, a webinar with three existing practitioners of blockchain-based carbon trading system, and a focus group with four participants. The main findings from the data analysis demonstrated strong evidence that blockchain technology can facilitate a more inclusive global carbon market for small buyers and sellers, reduce the costs of the verification and certification process, enhance trust between stakeholders, improve efficiency of carbon trading, and prevent risks of double-counting, hacking and frauds.

Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is a stigmatising medical and social problem suffered in silence by millions of people globally. The worldwide market for adult incontinence protection is larger than the mobile phone market in the United Kingdom, which means that this consumer group has significant purchasing power. Companies planning to enter the market with exercise products for pelvic floor muscles face barriers to entry related to the stigma of incontinence. This thesis shows how three companies, which have entered the market in recent years strategically use stigma related multimodal discourse, and especially stigma removal (destigmatisation) in their public online communication. New destigmatising discursive practices such as devictimisation, empowerment, anonymisation and medicalisation were discovered. Rationalisation, scientification and conformisation were recognized, in line with previous studies’ findings. Devictimisation, empowerment and anonymisation were targeted to relieve the client stigma. Medicalisation is used in a new context for raising awareness about the incontinence problem and building legitimacy for the products. A combination of the stigma removal practises was used for product differentiation and positioning. Destigmatisation was used also for risk management purposes; to affect client purchasing behaviour by highlighting positive and minimising negative risk factors. A stigmatising discursive practice such as shaming was actively used by one company to attack a competitor. Anonymising was intended to be used for destigmatising clients yet it could be interpreted as maintaining a stigma related to female body. This thesis expands the research of stigmatised markets into a new industry and adds to the theory of strategies for entering them. It develops the dimensions of strategy by taking into consideration the hidden stakeholder communication as well as the active stigmatisation aspects. It builds upon the research by empirically reveal

Pursuing sustainability is an urgent task for fashion companies. Despite the values of sustainability are gaining momentum in the industry, efforts remain far from altering the overall environmental and social impacts. There is a growing body of literature that recognises the relevance of the topic, encompassing specific aspects such as materials, processes and behaviours. However, little attention has been paid to the systemic structure and related interplay of actors characterizing the current global fashion industry and in which ways they influence the adoption of sustainable-oriented approaches in companies. The thesis aims to inquire into the systemic nature of the fashion industry by embracing its relation to the social, environmental and economic dimensions; and to capture the emerging discussions among its stakeholders. Accordingly, the research focuses on analysing and experimenting with a Strategic Design (SD) approach to the sustainability line of action of selected small-medium enterprises (SMEs) in the fashion industry. Integrating SD aims at providing holistic and long-term perspectives, guiding the enquiry into strategic and systemic territories. A literature review was conducted on sustainability challenges and changes occurring in the fashion industry, and upon definitions and applications of SD, forming the theoretical background and guiding the empirical research. The thesis used multiple case studies to investigate approaches to sustainability of three SMEs. Qualitative data was collected making use of different methods as: prior desk research, a survey, guided discussions and semi-structured interviews. In addition, visual representations of processes and system architecture were employed as design-driven activities for collecting and analysing insights from the case studies. The empirical enquiry investigated factors driving and limiting the adoption of sustainable practices from the perspective of selected companies and related stakeholders. F