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Microequity A New Model For Microfinance In The U.S, Joseph Ball May 2013

Microequity A New Model For Microfinance In The U.S, Joseph Ball

HIM 1990-2015

Most of the research on microfinance focuses on the microloan activities of microfinance institutions such as Grameen Bank of Bangladesh and Banco Sol of South America. These institutions make small loans to the poor to help them engage in income generating activities. Many organizations have tried to translate this practice to the United States, but due to fundamental differences between the advanced U.S. business environment and that found in the developing world, such attempts have been met with limited success. There is a substantial amount of research on microfinance institutions and activities in the U.S., however almost all of the …


Will Leasing Lose Its Luster: An Analysis Of Lease Reporting Under Fas 13, Casey Gates May 2013

Will Leasing Lose Its Luster: An Analysis Of Lease Reporting Under Fas 13, Casey Gates

HIM 1990-2015

When standards for financial reporting are amended, potential for change in the appearance of financial position for companies reporting under those standards arises. Currently standards set forth by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) allow for two methods of reporting lease obligations on the financial statements. The first of these methods is the operating method, which allows lease payments to be expensed within the period they are incurred and only a decrease in cash or an increase in an account payable is recognized on the balance sheet. The second method is the capital method, which requires the present value of …


How Sports Franchises Communicate Via Social Media, Christopher Jones May 2013

How Sports Franchises Communicate Via Social Media, Christopher Jones

HIM 1990-2015

The aim of the research is to evaluate how professional sport organizations communicate via social media and lay groundwork on how to effectively do so in the future. The research focuses on the history of social media and its involvement in sport, how it's used today, examples of effective communication and how it can eventually drive revenue for a sport franchise and build a stronger fan base at the same time.


Dick's Last Resort Restaurants: A Unconventional Theme "Bad Service" Becomes Unique Experience For Guests, Sunghyeon Kim May 2013

Dick's Last Resort Restaurants: A Unconventional Theme "Bad Service" Becomes Unique Experience For Guests, Sunghyeon Kim

HIM 1990-2015

The hospitality industry has focused on increasing customer satisfaction by offering services that are generally described as flawless, courteous, and friendly. Dick's Last Resort restaurants, however, are distinguished by intentionally staged erroneous, obnoxious, and rude services that nevertheless provide a unique experience for customers. This unconventional service theme might work for some customers but not for others. This study focuses on exploring the factors that lead to customer satisfaction and dissatisfaction at Dick's Last Resort restaurants. In addition, customer satisfaction levels are examined according to gender and location. Using the modified critical incident technique, 518 online reviews were analyzed through …


Expectancy Theory And Major League Baseball Player Compensation, Edward Leonard May 2013

Expectancy Theory And Major League Baseball Player Compensation, Edward Leonard

HIM 1990-2015

Major League Baseball (MLB) organizations spend millions of dollars each year on athletes with the end goal of winning a World Series title. However when an organization signs a player to a long term contract are they actually receiving the production that they paid for? Under the MLB's current form of player compensation players may not be properly motivated or at least not motivated to perform at their highest level. The intent of this thesis was to apply expectancy theory in assessing Major League Baseball's current form of player compensation. It evaluates how well players are currently motivated to perform …


Human Capital Effect On Second Generation Immigrant Entrepreneurs, Ali Mazahaem Flores May 2013

Human Capital Effect On Second Generation Immigrant Entrepreneurs, Ali Mazahaem Flores

HIM 1990-2015

Interest in entrepreneurship has increased in the past few years as more schools are beginning to incorporate subject and degrees specializing in the area as well as individuals mobilizing into an entrepreneurial lifestyle due to the lack of opportunities in the standard workplace environment. Historically, immigrants have made up a large majority of entrepreneurs and it has been their primary way of upward mobility in society. The boom in high tech start-ups and other small businesses in the last decade have primarily been driven by children of immigrants. As a result of these recent trends this study analyses the foreign …


College Students' Attitudes Towards Green Hotel Practices, Elvis Perez May 2013

College Students' Attitudes Towards Green Hotel Practices, Elvis Perez

HIM 1990-2015

This research was conducted to discover college students' attitude towards green hotel practices and will be helpful to the hospitality industry to help focus their marketing efforts Based on the survey correlations between variables it appears that the people who use green practices at home are more aware of green practices when staying at a hotels. Implementing green practices into hotels will help the environment and also create a positive brand image and loyalty from guests. The movement of "Green" benefits everyone: the employer, the employees, and the guests.


Knowledge Management: Style, Structure, And The Latent Potential Of Documented Knowledge, Sean Mcmahon Jan 2013

Knowledge Management: Style, Structure, And The Latent Potential Of Documented Knowledge, Sean Mcmahon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Despite the volume, growth, and accessibility of documented knowledge – the insights and experiences stored on paper and in electronic form - management research has yet to demonstrate the same usefulness for documented knowledge as that found in knowledge residing in human sources. This dissertation explores two areas of potential for documented knowledge, suggesting the efficacy of a piece of documented knowledge is contingent not only on content, but upon the style and structure associated with that content. Style, how cognitively 'concrete' and affectively 'memorable' documented knowledge is perceived to be, is hypothesized to affect how much attention it draws …


Social Media Effectiveness, Ya You Jan 2013

Social Media Effectiveness, Ya You

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the last decade, the advent of social media such as online product reviews (e.g., Amazon.com),blogs and other social networking sites (e.g., Facebook.com) has dramatically changed the way consumers obtain and exchange information about products. This dissertation investigates the impact of various types of social media on product performance and compares the effectiveness of social and traditional media under various conditions. Specifically, the first chapter performs a meta-analysis of consumer-generated WOM elasticity in social media to identify the factors that influence the impact of WOM on product sales and to assess the generalizability of the relationship. The second chapter examines …


The Impact Of Technology On Management Control: Degradation, Empowerment, Or Technology Dominance?, Joseph Canada Jan 2013

The Impact Of Technology On Management Control: Degradation, Empowerment, Or Technology Dominance?, Joseph Canada

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The evolution of technology brings with it the evolution of business processes. Without a doubt, technology changes how work is performed. At first glance, workplace technology appears to be a great boon to society. However, research presents opposing views on how workplace technologies impact the individual. One perspective argues that organizations utilize technology to redesign work processes, such that the worker requires less skill, autonomy, and compensation. The opposing perspective argues that organizations utilize technology to empower employees to improve efficiency and profits. This dissertation consists of three interrelated studies examining workplace technology’s impact on decision makers. The first study …


The Diffusion Of Digital Dashboards: An Examination Of Dashboard Utilization And The Managerial Decision Environment, Jeffrey Reinking Jan 2013

The Diffusion Of Digital Dashboards: An Examination Of Dashboard Utilization And The Managerial Decision Environment, Jeffrey Reinking

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three related studies examining the diffusion of digital dashboard technology throughout today’s organizations. Dashboards, once reserved for the executive level, are now available to managers at the lower levels of the organization. For these managers, dashboards have become an integral part of their work life to support their decision environment, to provide consistency in measures, to monitor performance, and to communicate information throughout the organization. Prior research in the practice literature has shown that dashboards improve managerial performance and organizational performance as well as communicate organizational goals and objectives; however, empirical research has not been conducted …


Gender Dynamics From The Arab World: An Intercultural Service Encounter, Marryam Khan Jan 2013

Gender Dynamics From The Arab World: An Intercultural Service Encounter, Marryam Khan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Arab countries strive toward the modernization and feminization of the Arab culture; however, some of these countries (i.e., Saudi Arabia) are culturally and legally governed by "sharia law", and have maintained cultural norms regarding segregation of the sexes. In order to have a better understanding of the Arab travelers to the U.S., this research focuses on the gender dynamics between the service providers and Arab customers during a service encounter. Specifically, this research examines how the same and opposite genders of service-provider and customer influence Arab customers’ emotional response (comfort), consequently their service encounter evaluation (satisfaction), and behavioral intentions (feedback …


A Sustainability "Green" Certification Audit Of Food Service Operations And The Development Of A Restaurant Sustainability Instrument, Hans Hagglund Jan 2013

A Sustainability "Green" Certification Audit Of Food Service Operations And The Development Of A Restaurant Sustainability Instrument, Hans Hagglund

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates current green restaurant certifications as well as developing a new more user certification. First, a fact finding investigation to find the most established and commonly utilized green restaurant certifications were compared. Second, a new green certification was developed. Third, chosen green restaurant certifications were compared. Lastly, the new green certification analyzed whether restaurants in the central Florida area utilized green practices. Data were collected in face to face sessions with restaurant managers during nonpeak hours of operation. There were numerous surveys utilized in this research study. The statistical methodology utilized in this study was average means and …


Backpacking In The Digital Age: Ethnographic Perspectives From Latin America, Russell Edwards Jan 2013

Backpacking In The Digital Age: Ethnographic Perspectives From Latin America, Russell Edwards

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

My thesis ethnographically examines the changing nature of backpacking for Westerners in Latin America amid a proliferation of mobile computing and social networking. While anthropological and sociocultural research on tourism is extensive, the social scientific literature on backpacking has, thus far, been largely unconcerned with Western Hemisphere countries and the effects of digital technology on this mode of travel. Recent findings suggest, however, that backpacking has currently moved beyond its niche roots as a subculture of independent traveling into a full-fledged tourist industry. My thesis investigates the Latin American backpacking scene to better understand if this is a global trend. …


The Development Of An Eco-Gastronomic Tourism (Egt) Supply Chain-Analyzing Linkages Between Farmer, Restaurants, And Tourists In Aruba., Marcelino Kock Jan 2013

The Development Of An Eco-Gastronomic Tourism (Egt) Supply Chain-Analyzing Linkages Between Farmer, Restaurants, And Tourists In Aruba., Marcelino Kock

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose of this study is to holistically analyze existing linkages between Aruba’s tourism industry, restaurants and local farmers, by examining strategies that constrain the development of linkages between these stakeholders. Previous research indicated that tourism development is often accompanied with increased demand for imported food, which results in foreign exchange leakages, inflation and competition with local production. This phenomenon is very common in the Caribbean, where Aruba, with its heavy reliance on imported goods and services, is no exception to this occurrence. To comprehend potential problems associated with linking both sectors, these in-depth case study addresses three fundamental questions: a) …


Guest Satisfaction Analysis Of A Casual Dining Restaurant: A Comparison Of Tourist Vs Non-Tourist Satisfaction Scores., Jessica Wickey Jan 2013

Guest Satisfaction Analysis Of A Casual Dining Restaurant: A Comparison Of Tourist Vs Non-Tourist Satisfaction Scores., Jessica Wickey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to analyze guest/customer satisfaction surveys of a casual dining restaurant in the Orlando, Florida area; specifically, to analyze if there is a difference between satisfaction levels of tourist and non-tourist guests. The guest satisfaction surveys were analyzed on eight dimensions of satisfaction; Pace of Service, Service Overall, Server Communication & Accuracy, Food (Taste & Quality), Food Preparation, Bar (Beer, Wine, & Cocktail), Gratefulness, and Atmosphere in whole (including atmosphere and cleanliness).The eight dimensions were evaluated in the GPS (guest pulse survey) based on a Net Promoter Score, or NPS® system, and were …


Regulation And The Auditing Profession, Alexey Lyubimov Jan 2013

Regulation And The Auditing Profession, Alexey Lyubimov

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The dissertation consists of three studies examining three different regulatory issues that affect the auditing profession. The first study has two main foci. First, the study investigates the impact of Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) on the Big 4 fee premium. Second, the study investigates the relationship between the size of an audit client and annual fee change. The results show that in the post-SOX environment, clients of non-Big 4 firms have experienced greater increases in audit fees than the clients of the Big 4 firms, resulting in a diminishing Big 4 premium. This is consistent with the notion that non-Big 4 …


An Exploratory Study Of Customer Vulnerability: A Cross-Segment Approach, Taryn Aiello Jan 2013

An Exploratory Study Of Customer Vulnerability: A Cross-Segment Approach, Taryn Aiello

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to explore the concept of customer vulnerability across varying service industries. While the concept of customer vulnerability has been debated in business, marketing, sociology, and psychology scholarly literature, there has been little research conducted that specifically investigates consumers’ perceptions of vulnerability during the service exchange. Specific to this research, customer vulnerability is defined as experiences in which consumers participate in a service exchange with a firm during a time of individual or shared medical, physical, emotional, or spiritual necessity, whether the vulnerability is experienced during the course of the transaction or whether consumers arrive …


Consumer Engagement In Travel-Related Social Media, Xu Li Jan 2013

Consumer Engagement In Travel-Related Social Media, Xu Li

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The term of "consumer engagement" is extensively used in the digital era. It is believed that engaged consumers play an important role in products/services referral and recommendation, new product/service development and experience/value co-creation. Although the notion of consumer engagement sounds compelling, it is not fully developed in theory. Different interpretations coexist, resulting in confusion and misuse of the concept. This study attempts to define consumer engagement and develop a conceptual framework of consumer engagement, addressing antecedents of consumer engagement in online context. Moreover, some situational and social media usage-related factors are incorporated into the framework. A set of propositions are …