This research explores Social Cooperatives focusing on what factors characterize a successful social cooperative. We apply a case for data collection. Semi-structured interviews and direct observation were used to collect qualitative data. A case on Unitis, a Swedish Social Cooperative, developed in 1998 with the main aim to create employment and to empower disable people by setting up a handicraft cooperative owning it together, has been conducted in its real life context.  The results indicate that five factors are important for the success of the cooperative. Social well being and members empowerment,  networking to identify and exploit business opportunities, financial independence by adapting innovative business ideas, independence from volunteers and trusting on sustainable own human resources and generation of economic wealth using it for the well being of the members. The research contributes to the literature and theoretical development on social enterprises by analysing a Swedish case based on successful factors to sustain social cooperatives. We suggest that networking with stakeholders can contribute to make social cooperatives visible and sustainable. 

Key Words: Social Enterprises, Unitis, Social Economy, Cooperatives, Sweden.

Despite the growing popularity of medical tourism (MT) in emerging markets (EMs), little is known about how healthcare providers operationalize. This paper analyzes how healthcare providers meet different challenges to market MT in an EM setting. A qualitative method was used for data collection and conducting case studies on healthcare services in the Philippines. The results show that trust and network building are necessary for mitigating the unfavorable characteristics, instability and lack of legitimacy caused by institutional constraints in EM. Word of mouth is found to be important to attract new customers and disseminate information about MT services

Climate change presents an unprecedented public health challenge as it has a great impact on population health outcomes across the global population. The key to addressing these health challenges is adaptation carried out in cities through collaboration between institutions, including public health ones. Through semi-structured interviews (n=16), this study investigated experiences and perceptions of what public health aspects are considered by urban and public health planners and researchers when planning climate change adaptation in the cities of Söderhamn (Sweden), Porto (Portugal) and Navotas (the Philippines). Results of the thematic analysis indicated that participating stakeholders were aware of the main climate risks threatening their cities (rising water levels and flooding, extreme temperatures, and air pollution). In addition, the interviewees talked about collaboration with other sectors, including the public health sector, in implementing climate change adaptation plans. However, the inclusion of the public health sector as a partner in the process was identified in only two cities, Navotas and Porto. Also, the study found that there were few aspects pertaining to public health (water and sanitation, prevention of heat-related and water-borne diseases, and prevention of the consequences associated with heat waves in vulnerable groups such as children and elderly persons) in the latest climate change adaptation plans posted on each city’s website. Moreover, participants pointed to different difficulties: insufficient financial resources, limited intersectoral collaboration for climate change adaptation, and lack of involvement of the public health sector in the adaptation processes, especially in one of the cities, in which climate change adaptation was solely the responsibility of the urban planners. Studies using larger samples of stakeholders in larger cities are needed to better understand why the public health sector is still almost absent in efforts to adapt to climate change.

This book chapter is positioned to examine how a local government in a vulnerable country facilitates climate change resiliency. In this context, Navotas, a city located in the Philippines, is chosen because of its geographical location, active action concerning climate resilience while operating with limited resources. The study shows that the government (as the provider of the service) faces three challenges: limitation of provider, complexity nature of advocacy, and limitation of the citizens. To help smoothen the process, trust-building and collaboration are placed to fill up the gaps. This means that developing trust and establishing collaboration ease the challenges of government meets during the climate change resilience action.

Medical tourism (MT) enables patients to satisfy their healthcare needs by traveling outside their country of residence to obtain medical treatment. The increasing number of scientific publications, different countries’ engagement in providing care for foreigners, and patients heading abroad to receive healthcare indicate the growth and popularity of MT. This industry’s development exposes the healthcare sector to a competitive environment. As a result, marketing has become a significant part of healthcare providers’ operations and survival. Research into how these providers promote their services is limited. This limitation is further apparent for healthcare providers located in less popular destinations, such as emerging market (EM) countries. This dissertation therefore focuses on MT service providers in an EM, the Philippines.

This study aims to examine how service providers in an EM country market healthcare services internationally. This thesis consists of four articles. Through qualitative case-based research, this study concentrates on hospitals, clinics, and medical tourism facilitators that play a central role in service delivery within the MT industry. The results from this thesis show that to efficiently market healthcare, service providers have to build trust, establish reliable networks, and offer customized and supplementary services.

This dissertation is positioned to contribute to relevance and diversity in service marketing research and the budding healthcare service marketing while sustaining MT literature through studying service providers in an EM context. Although this study was based on one EM, it offers an in-depth understanding of how the marketing of healthcare services is being implemented. This knowledge is not only important for the practicing medical tourism destination countries, but also for patients, managers, policymakers, and researchers in the patients’ home country. Future studies could focus on the perspective of consumers. Accordingly, this study is an initial step toward a deeper understanding of the marketing of commercialized healthcare.

Employing Lovelock (1995) supplementary service model, this paper aims to examine how MTFs operationalize in the MT industry in the context of an EM. Qualitative approached using case-study methodology is employed in this paper. Three local medical tourism facilitators were selected for investigation. Data analysis was done using within and cross pattern that facilitated by NVivo. Lovelocks supplementary service model is not fully validated in the study. Thus revise model is presented. Additional two supplementary services emerge from empirical findings: linking diverse stakeholders (i.e., catalyzing collaboration) and alleviating the unfavorable reputation of the country (i.e., promotion of quality, mitigating ambiguity in patients’ experience).

Medical tourism facilitators are novel type of organizations that assume an important role in medical tourism industry. Employing Lovelock (1995) supplementary service model, this paper aims to examine how medical tourism facilitators operationalize in an emerging market. Qualitative method using case-study strategy was employed to gather empirical data from three medical tourism facilitators in the Philippines. The study presents a revised Lovelock’s supplementary service model that includes six supplementary service clusters namely: information, consultation, order-taking, hospitality, linking and alleviation. This research recognizes the applicability of Lovelock's model to an underexplored industry in emerging market context. 

Established scholars encourage academics from different fields to make a contribution to the service research to advance, maintain relevance, and promote diversity in the service discipline. This study focuses on a novel type of intermediaries called medical tourism facilitators that assume a vital function in the medical tourism industry. Applying the case study method, the researchers collected qualitative data from three medical tourism facilitators in the Philippines. The study presents a model that includes six supplementary services, namely: information dissemination, consultation, booking, providing hospitality, network development, and support industry development.

This study aims to explore the sustainable global brand development process of Born-Global startups. This study follows a qualitative method which includes semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis. Data is collected from ten Born-Global startups in Sweden. This study contribute both toward a deeper theoretical understanding of the issues that influences sustainable global branding for Born-Global startups as well as work as a practical guide for entrepreneurs and managers to prioritize the factors that influences the sustainable global branding process for Born-Global start-ups. 

This paper aims to examine marketing of medical tourism (MT) from an emerging markets’ (EMs) perspective. In concrete, it analyzes how service providers develop trust, establish contacts with different actors and adapt to customers and the local environment to carry out the marketing in EM. A qualitative multiple case study approach has been employed. The result shows that trust- and network building is significant in mitigating the unfavorable feature, sustain the instability and legitimacy cause by institutional void. While, adaptation is necessary to customize service and support trust and network building. This study shows how healthcare providers are thriving in a turbulent environment in EM to promote medical service. Thus, it confers marketing science influence the MT industry. The proposed theoretical framework can be a relevant tool to improve understanding MT.

Focusing on customization, this paper aims to examine how service providers market health care in emerging markets through medical tourism. Using a qualitative method, researchers conducted 18 semi structured interviews with managers from five health-care providers and supporting organizations in the Philippines. For analysis, data from the service providers are compared. Customization is found to play crucial role in offering health-care services. The customization takes place by adapting to emotional, social and cultural needs; alleviating knowledge asymmetry; and moderating the negative impact of the unfamiliar context experienced by international patients.

Purpose - This essay uses service marketing concept to discuss how domestic medical tourism (DMT) can contribute to healthcare equity in developed countries. Approach - The authors take up several vital issues. First, the potential benefits of DMT are outlined from a healthcare equity perspective; second, the challenges that DMT confronts in reaching its aim are identified; and finally, a few research areas are suggested. Finding - It is suggested that increased awareness about the healthcare service and proper service delivery are required to improve healthcare equity. Practical implication - This paper raises several research issues from service marketing to deal with delivery, communication, efficiency, and insurance practices regarding healthcare. Social implication - From a societal point of view, it explores how healthcare equity can be improved by DMT.