The Response of Swedish Multinational Forestry Firms regarding Uncertainties Associated with Sudden Institutional Changes: A qualitative study on how a sudden institutional change can

Abstract

When institutions go through changes, firms must be prepared to adapt to the changing externalities in the market. In addition to the direct effect changing institutions may have on the market, the emergence of uncertainties relating to these sudden changes also influence the actions of firms to an extent. Institutional uncertainties are often experienced by firms in connection to the unknown outcome of institutional changes. It is with these considerations that this thesis aims to get a thorough understanding of how Swedish forestry companies perceive and respond to the uncertainties that have arisen in connection to institutional changes. This will be done by using Brexit as a case context. The studied literature discusses how uncertain business environments affect organisations, as well as how the companies themselves perceive uncertainty and how they respond to it. The process and connections between the elements are depicted in the conceptual framework. A qualitative investigation with a deductive technique was undertaken in order to gather profound understanding about the issue. The design of the research was a multiple-case research where four firms were examined, and two expert interviews were gathered in order to offer an overviewing perspective. This study examines the empirical data using a multiple case investigation and pattern matching to the literature. Findings show how changes in the business environment affect enterprises differently based on the firm's internal and external relations. These considerations have an impact on the strategic planning process as well as the implementation of the resulting strategy.