Introduction

Abstract

This introductory chapter is intended to provide a condensed overview of the underlying research project and is structured as follows: In section 1.1 the overall research problem is defined and its theoretical and practical relevance outlined. In section 1.2 a case example is used to make the research problem more tangible and to discuss some possible implications. The research setting, i.e. the industry and functional focus of the research, is presented in section 1.3. In section 1.4 the key research questions are formulated, including a brief discussion of their relevance, investigation procedure and inherent challenges. The methodological approach of the research is addressed in section 1.5. Finally, section 1.6 provides an overview of the structure of the research, i.e. the contents of each chapter.