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  • 1.
    Alinvi, Fatima
    et al.
    Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE).
    Babri, Maira
    Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE).
    Customers' preferences of insurance services: How could insurance companies enhance their ability of meeting the constant changes in customers’ preferences in an increasingly competitive environment?2008Independent thesis Basic level (degree of Bachelor), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    With the presumption of change as an inevitable phenomenon, the aim of this study is to explore ways in which insurance companies can enhance their ability of meeting the constant changes in customers’ preferences in an increasingly competitive environment. In order to conduct this study, we have used a qualitative research strategy to gain a better understanding of young customers’ preferences about the services provided by insurance companies. Based on these preferences we provide useful suggestions for insurance companies. Existing theory suggests that customers change their preferences according to their life circumstances and while certain preferences are well-defined others can be inconsistent. In an increasingly competitive environment, where insurance companies fight for the same customers, having a customer-oriented culture is extremely important not only to retain customers, but also to acquire new ones. This study presents various theories on the changes in customers’ preferences as well as theories regarding organizational strategy and change.

    The empirical data has been collected through two focused group interviews with students under 28, in Västerbotten, Sweden and through a group interview with leading representatives of a dominant insurance company in the county. The findings suggest that young consumers’ preferences regarding insurance services are based on their life situation. Price is a decisive factor in the choice of insurance company and their services. The results also showed that many of the respondents are skeptical towards the intentions of and services provided by insurance companies. The complex nature of insurances and the intangibility of services in general, can be possible explanations. Strengthening the evidence in existing studies, we also conclude that there is a vast amount of information insurance-takers would like to have access to before, during, and after purchasing insurance. Additionally, customers would like flexible insurance bundles with the possibility to add and subtract components as life situations change. Finally, based on these results, we suggest how insurance companies could turn these findings into opportunities. We suggest how and when to meet the customers, and how to build long lasting, trust-based relationships which could lead to increased customer loyalty over time.

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  • 2.
    Babri, Maira
    Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE), Business Administration.
    Studying codes as transforming objects2010Conference paper (Other academic)
    Abstract [en]

    This paper addresses certain methodological aspects of a researchproject, in which an epistemological symmetry is assumed between humans and nonhumans,and this paper is about what implications and challenges such a premise mayentail for the data collection and analysis of the study. Although I adhere strongly to thenotion of epistemological symmetry in theory, there are certain aspects with such a studythat pose methodological challenges and this paper sheds light upon these challenges anddiscusses ways to deal with them. The major concern is retaining the epistemologicalsymmetry throughout the data collection and analysis of the study. This paperinvestigates the methodological aspects of a study on transformations of and by corporatecodes of ethics to analyze how corporate responsibility is influenced. The paper, henceexplores how we can, theoretically and practically, study a non-human actor (in this case,a code), with similar epistemological capabilities as a human actor, in a human-centeredworld.

  • 3.
    Babri, Maira
    Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE), Business Administration.
    The Corporate Code of Ethics at Home, Far Away and in Between: Sociomaterial Translations of a Traveling Code2016Doctoral thesis, monograph (Other academic)
    Abstract [en]

    Corporate codes of ethics (CCEs) have become increasingly prevalent as overarching ethical guidelines for multinational corporations doing business around the globe. As formal documents, governing corporations’ work, policies, and ways of doing business, CCEs are meant to guide all business activities and apply to all of the corporation’s employees, suppliers, and business partners. In multinational corporations, this means that diverse countries, cultures, and a myriad of heterogeneous actors are expected to abide by the same standards and guidelines, as stipulated in the CCE. Despite this empirical reality, CCEs have previously been approached by academics mainly as passive company documents or as marketing or management tools, in the contexts of their country of origin. Building on Actor-Network Theory this thesis applies an interactionist ontology, and relational epistemology, seeing the code as a sociomaterial object with both material and immaterial characteristics, and moving in a global arena. Furthermore, the CCEs are assumed to be susceptible to change, i.e. translations. With these assumptions, the CCE of a multinational corporation is followed as it travels between its country of origin (Sweden) and another country (China) and goes to work in different contexts. Heterogeneous empirical materials such as interviews, company documents, observations, shadowing, and emails are used to present stories from different contexts where the CCE is at work. The overall purpose of the thesis is to contribute to the theorizing of CCEs, thereby providing further understanding of the possible consequences of CCEs in contextually diverse settings. By following traces of a CCE, this study posits the need for a simultaneous understanding of three dimensions of CCEs for CCEs to be understood in contextually dispersed settings. The three dimensions are a) material translations of the code, b) enactments of these translations, and c) ideas associated with the material and enacted code.  The study contributes to the understanding of CCEs by highlighting a specific country-context (China), by putting together knowledge from codes in various contexts, and the overarching contribution lies in highlighting codes as different kinds of objects and adding to the existing literature – specifically, contextualizing the CCE as a vaporous object.

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  • 4.
    Babri, Maira
    et al.
    Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE).
    vom Dorp, Mishka
    Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE).
    The Commercialization Debate: A Contextual Study of Microfinance in India2010Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    Within the field of microfinance, there has been an ongoing debate about whether microfinance institutions should be commercialized. One side argues that a business that very much can earn profits at the same time as it helps the poor, is not justified to receive charity, but should be run with the risks and benefits of any other profit-seeking business.

    The other side argues that the outreach to the ones who most need microfinance, is severely hampered if firms are profit-seeking; arguing that they only target the individuals who allow them to make profits.

     

    This study is a case study based on India, one of the world’s largest nations, and home to millions of people living below the poverty line[1]. Microfinance is widespread in India, and with one of the researchers speaking Hindi, India became our choice of case study. A grounded theory methodology is applied in order for us to learn as much as possible about the context of microfinance in India. Within the context, we look for the mission and the impact of the various institutions. Analysis is done through the constant comparison method; with comparisons within and between different organizations. Each organization is individually analyzed to find recurring themes, always being open to the emergence of new themes. Then, the organizations are compared with others of the same legal form, and finally with all other forms of organizations.

     

    Several different kinds of institutions are identified, working directly or indirectly with providing small loans to low-income individuals. These institutions include banks, local area banks, section 25 companies, NGOs, and cooperative societies. Each one of the institutions has, by law, different areas of restriction and the study finds that the missions of the various organizations can be linked to their legal form; the mission indicating which form they currently operate under or which legal form they are striving to achieve. The major difference between the various legal forms is their methods of accumulating finances, and how they manage their revenue. Although banks actually earn profits, they have not yet been fully commercialized, as they are restricted from attracting mainstream international capital.

     

    The conclusions indicate that in India, microfinance has not reached the point where it has been fully commercialized, but rather the passion for their work and visions of the founders very much guide the work of the various organizations. This can be seen in the missions that guide the organizations and the services provided to fulfill the mission. Commercialization is however, far from a non-issue. If legislation regarding IPOs is changed, the level of commercialization and competitive scene for microfinance in India could change dramatically.

    [1] Can be measured in different ways, but used here symbolically, indicating a very low amount; discussed in more detail in the paper.

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  • 5.
    Helin, Sven
    et al.
    Örebro University School of Business, Örebro University, Sweden.
    Babri, Maira
    Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE), Business Administration.
    Travelling with a Code of Ethics: A Contextual Study of a Swedish MNC Auditing a Chinese Supplier2015In: Journal of Cleaner Production, ISSN 0959-6526, E-ISSN 1879-1786, Vol. 107, p. 41-53Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    Corporate codes of ethics are integrated into supplier-auditing processes in the hope of ensuring sustainability throughout the supply chain. But little is known about what actually happens when one standardized code of ethics is disseminated and applied in audits on suppliers across the globe. This study builds on the literature on the ‘translation of management ideas’ and examines what happens when a corporate code of ethics travels in a global context. The specific case reports on a Swedish Multinational Corporation (MNC) with a standardized code of ethics applied in the practice of auditing a supplier in Eastern China. The study shows that the code can be translated in different ways in different organizational and geographical contexts. Observations of and interviews about how the code is translated in practice indicate that the code's ethics are negotiable. It is argued that sustainability and ethics are in danger of being negotiated or completely undermined when efficiency and contractual agreements set the agenda for audits, and that the relative buyer–supplier power relation can play a vital role in setting standards and demanding supplier compliance.

  • 6.
    Stål, Herman
    et al.
    Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE), Business Administration.
    Babri, Maira
    Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Umeå School of Business and Economics (USBE), Business Administration.
    Educational interventions for sustainable innovation in small and medium sized enterprises2020In: Journal of Cleaner Production, ISSN 0959-6526, E-ISSN 1879-1786, Vol. 243, article id 118554Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    Sustainability innovation research suggests that when the managers of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) perceive sustainability as strategic, they undertake sustainable innovation. Educational interventions are, in turn, suggested to foster such views among these managers. But in the interaction between educators and managers, power matters for how knowledge is conveyed and educational interventions are understudied, especially when they are university-led. This article examines how actors' power affects the translation of knowledge between educators and SME managers. A conceptual framework combining translation and power-dependency theory is introduced and applied to the case study of a University-led competence development program offered to construction company managers in Sweden. The analysis reveals how imbalanced dependencies and power within interactions accumulated over time and came to interfere with the program's learning objectives. The study contributes practically by suggesting how mutual goals, time management, and relationship building can create a better context for educator-SME interactions and SME sustainability. The scientific contribution lies in introducing a new perspective on educational interventions for SMEs and providing a conceptual framework for future studies thereof. 

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