Business Commons^™

Crossing Borders And Breaking Barriers: A Strategic Analysis Of Chick-Fil-A'S Expansion Into The French Market, Avery Besson

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis explores the strategic considerations and potential challenges of Chick-fil-A, a prominent American fast-food chain, establishing itself in France. The study investigates the cultural, economic, and regulatory factors that may impact Chick-fil-A's entry strategy, aiming to provide a comprehensive understanding of the opportunities and obstacles the company may encounter in France. This research will examine Chick-fil-A’s previous attempts at expansion, analyze an American company that has successfully established themselves in France, and provide market entry strategies to Chick-fil-A to establish its presence in the French market successfully.

The Quick Service Food And Beverage Line Of Business And How It Is Aligned With The Overall Objectives For The Walt Disney World® Resort And The Walt Disney Company, Meghan Mcclure

Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Disney College Program allows for many opportunities, such as instructor lead offerings, experiential learning, career path development, and academic support. This internship gives us hands-on work in a global company but also helps us further ourselves in our career by providing networking opportunities and behind-the-scenes access to things others may never experience.

As an intern in Food and Beverage, it was my job to provide not just food but experiences to guests from all around the world. It was my job not only to make sure guests left the restaurant locations happy, but also to maximize production. To do …

What To Expect When Preparing To Transition For Working Abroad: Exploring Work-Focused Intercultural Transition Training, Hannah Johnson

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

Despite living in a highly globalized world with increased travels, interactions, and migrations across both physical and mental cultural lines, many individuals are still often unprepared to interact with those who are different successfully (Kupka et al., 2008). With all these increases in travel, interaction, and migrations across cultural lines, it is essential to understand the adjustment process and the potential challenges or barriers that individuals may face when transitioning to a new culture. This project systematically examines literature on intercultural transitions to improve training for individuals traveling to another culture for work. The literature examined includes pre-departure training and …

An Analysis Of The Effects Of Soft Power On The Risk Of Foreign Direct Investment Projects, Kelly Montemayor

Honors Program Theses and Research Projects

As the world has become more interconnected due to the rapid expansion of trade and communication technologies, countries have been able to create a reputation based on their image instead of their military power. This attraction or soft power, has become a topic of discussion as many scholars have tried to define soft power and the effects it has on the world. This research study focuses on how a country’s soft power affects the foreign direct investment projects it participates in based on the level of soft power its home country has over the host country. This study examines criteria …

The Effect Of Supranational Organizations On Investment Project Success, Isaiah Chavez

Honors Program Theses and Research Projects

Supranational organizations, such as the World Bank, associate with member countries from across the world that cede an aspect of their authority and sovereignty. 137 countries partner with supranational organizations for the purpose of seeking benefits whether financially, militarily, or politically. Without understanding the effectiveness of supranational organizations, international communities risk becoming negatively impacted through the means of inaccurate support via financial aid through investment projects. This study analyzes the relationship between investment project success and support with supranational organizations. This paper proposes that bilateral support and multilateral support in collaboration with supranational organizations reveals a positive correlation when partnering …

Harnessing The Power Of Cliftonstrengths®: How Multinational Corporations Can Use Deep-Level Diversity To Enhance Organizational Inclusion, Trapper Kay Pace

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research explicitly investigated how multinational corporations can enhance workplace inclusion through the novel use of the CliftonStrengths® assessment as a dimension of deep-level diversity. The study gleaned insights from employees’ perspectives, employing a constructivist grounded theory approach to explicate their experiences in rich qualitative narratives. Through open-ended surveys and intensive interviews, participants were selected using purposeful sampling to ensure meaningful data collection from the study organizations’ three global regions. The researcher conducted the analysis systematically through the constant comparison of data utilizing the NVivo14 software to assist in constructing codes, themes, and a theoretical schema. Results highlighted the significance …

A Job Satisfaction Evaluation Of Nursing In The United States And Greece Utilizing The American Nurses Association's Scope And Standards Of Practice, Audrey Narhi

Honors Projects

Nursing is a multifaceted profession that is constantly evolving with the health needs of the populations it serves. Professional organizations within the field utilize evidence-based practice to provide guidelines of what best-practice nursing is. This study aims to evaluate if the American Nurse's Association (ANA), a professional nursing organization in the United States, supports the realities of nursing in a rural US hospital. An international perspective is also considered by evaluating the same principles to a urban hospital in Athens, Greece. Categories that align with ANA Scope and Standards, including workplace environment, career development, supervisor relationships, and personal work practice, …

Containerization Of Seafarers In The International Shipping Industry: Contemporary Seamanship, Maritime Social Infrastructures, And Mobility Politics Of Global Logistics, Liang Wu

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation discusses the mobility politics of container shipping and argues that technological development, political-economic order, and social infrastructure co-produce one another. Containerization, the use of standardized containers to carry cargo across modes of transportation that is said to have revolutionized and globalized international trade since the late 1950s, has served to expand and extend the power of international coalitions of states and corporations to control the movements of commodities (shipments) and labor (seafarers). The advent and development of containerization was driven by a sociotechnical imaginary and international social contract of seamless shipping and cargo flows. In practice, this liberal, …

Capturing Value In Emerging Markets: A Real Options Perspective On Resilience And Risk, Alexander Castillo

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the evaluation of investment opportunities in emerging markets (EMs) through real options analysis, against the backdrop of their unique risk profiles and the recent trend of EMs exhibiting resilience in economic performance. While EMs are associated with high growth rates and infrastructure gaps, they have shown adaptability, particularly in monetary policy responses to inflation. This paper explores the sensitivity of net present value (NPV) and real options (RO) to changes in the capital asset pricing model, adapting the yield spread to capture default risk and local risk-free rates. Utilizing oil benchmark price data, the paper constructs a …

Market Reaction Test On Banks & Brokers Based On Bitcoin Price History. A Look At National Commercial Banks And Security Broker, Exchanges, And Service Stocks Following The Most Volatile Swings In Bitcoin’S Price., Payton Earl

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines if there is an inverse correlation between Bitcoin’s most volatile price swings and national commercial banks and security brokers, exchanges and service companies performance. Company performance in the dataset is measured by Cumulative Abnormal Returns during 2021 within a two-day period where Bitcoin has had the most significant uptick and downtick events. Using a market-adjusted model for my regression, it is concluded that Bitcoin’s largest uptick event did indeed have an inversely negative effect on traditional banks and trading securities companies, as the Cumulative Abnormal Returns were negative for my 107 observations and the event was statistically …

Towards A Model Of Follower Development: Exploring The Success Differentials In Leader And Follower Development Outcomes As Experienced By Bankers In Nigeria., Chris O. Chukwuma

PhD in Organizational Leadership

The aim of this qualitative study was to understand the leader and follower development experiences of middle-level managers in the Nigerian banking industry regarding developing followers into leaders. I used two research questions to explore the perception and treatment of followers and the levels of leader and follower development as influences on the development of followers into leaders. The research was set in Nigeria, with a purposive sample of middle-level managers in the Nigerian banking industry. I used a descriptive phenomenological technique to conduct long, deep interviews with 12 middle-level managers via Zoom video and then transcribed them with Otter.ai …

Not Too Scared To Enter: Understanding The Uppsala Model’S Complexity As Sme Decision Makers Enter High-Risk Countries, Andrew Kindfuller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Johanson and Vahlne’s Uppsala internationalization model is a framework for understanding sequential internationalization, experiential learning, and the commitment decision processes designed to answer the question: “Why and how do firms internationalize?” Each potential market is distinctive due to dissimilar languages, cultures, religions, ethics, political systems, laws, business norms, etc. – all these perceptual differences, which can potentially block the free flow of information between markets, are called “psychic distance.” By completing 34 detailed, semi-structured interviews with executives who have recently made significant financial or resource commitments to enter 28 different challenging countries, this is the first study to focus with …

Global Energy Consumption: An Analysis Of Variables That Shape Per Capita Usage, Or How Pump Price, Urbanization, And Fossil Fuels Imports Impact Fossil Fuels Consumption Per Capita Across Oecd Countries, Mila Demchyk Savage

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Among reasons explaining the importance of studying fossil fuel consumption are: crude oil is a subject of the international commodities market, thus, any fluctuation related to its' availability or price would impact the rest of the World; natural resources like oil, gas, and coal are limited; the extensive use of fossil fuels harms our surroundings, creating many environmental concerns; every human (on average) has been using more energy since 1971 and the trend is expected to continue. The upward trend is not consistent among individual countries. Therefore, the core question of my research is, `Why do some countries consume less …

Career Choice Motivation For Commercial Pilots, Brett Watts

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Career choice motivation research studies the factors involved during a person’s decision-making process regarding which career to pursue (Skatova & Ferguson, 2014). These factors are often studied in individuals who have not yet entered the workforce, such as students. Although there is a significant amount of research on career choice motivations for doctors, dentists, and other related fields, research on career choice motivations for pilots is sparse. As air traffic is expected to grow at approximately 4.7% per year for the next 20 years (Federal Aviation Administration, 2022), a key factor in the aviation industry’s growth is the availability of …

Tied Together, Eiko Nishida

Theses and Dissertations

The paper is about a site-specific installation that questions a viewer’s norms and perspectives, through the use of multilingual newspapers as a sculptural material.

Household Heroes: An Examination Of Domestic Workers' Rights In The United States And Mexico, Kaitlyn Sutton

Honors College Theses

Since 2018, worker's rights have become a forefront in the battle to developing a more equitable nation in Mexico, specifically regarding domestic employees. In my honors thesis I compare the rights of domestic workers in both the United States and Mexico using elements set forth in the SA8000 Standard formed by the Social Accountability International Organization in order to analyze which country grants more access to these liberties. I then examine different cross-cultural management styles in the countries as a method for explaining the differences in right. I also discuss advocacy groups still fighting for more freedom as well as …

Go And Grow Business Plan For A Social Media Application, Piper Duke

Information Systems Undergraduate Honors Theses

Go and Grow proposes to develop a new iOS social media application to connect students studying abroad with students in the destination country. With the use of geolocation, in-app communication, and multi-language support, Go and Grow allows students to make the most of their once in a lifetime experience and give local people and businesses a chance to show off their home country. With Go and Grow, users will create relationship networks by posting questions, connecting with locals, and accessing information not provided by their program, making the student feel more comfortable before they depart and while they are in …

Impact Of Tourism In Developing Nations, Thomas Consolino

Supply Chain Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

Belize, a small country located in Central America, thrives on tourism. The industry makes up 15% of the country’s GDP and employs roughly 40% of Belize’s population. However, the majority of tourism takes place in only a few Belizean towns, causing the economies of the other towns to not benefit from the industry. One of the towns lacking tourism is called Dangriga. Although Dangriga is on the coast and is known as the “Culture Capital of Belize”, not many tourists make is stop in or even know of Dangriga. One of the main reasons for this is the lack of …

Social Entrepreneurship And Its Impact On Women In Poverty., Allison Primm

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Poverty is a complex issue that will require complex solutions. There is a disconnect between the two as people living in poverty usually connect it to ideas of self-esteem, pride, and confidence. In contrast, people who aren't living in it will connect poverty to the lack of material possessions and more physical needs. Proposed solutions and ventures that seek to assist those living in poverty must consider that each individual living in poverty has a different situation. This paper will explore the effect that social enterprises have on Women in poverty by providing employment, training, and support. The company Trades …

Firm Capabilities, Great Power Competition, And The Structural Reshaping Of Globalization, Samuel Wilson

Theses and Dissertations in Business Administration

The changing nature of modern globalization has given rise to strategic competition between great power states, who utilize global firms and policy interventions in commercial markets to pursue state-level objectives. Multinational executives operating in global markets must contend with the consequences of great power competition between countries like the US and China, developing novel strategies and capabilities to defend firm performance in the face of trade wars and geopolitical confrontation. Through the analysis of risk factor disclosures of foreign multinational firms operating in China, as well as cases of Chinese economic and industrial espionage against US firms, this study utilizes …

From Espresso To Frappuccino: Analyzing Starbucks' Business Plan For Entering The Italian Market, Cameron Demott

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Starbucks is a multinational coffeehouse chain founded in Seattle, Washington in 1971 (Starbucks, 2023). The company has become one of the world's most recognizable brands, with over 30,000 locations in 78 countries worldwide (Starbucks, 2023). The coffee house has a reputation for providing high-quality coffee, great customer service, and a unique in-store experience. Americans view Starbucks as the golden standard for coffee shops and admire the brand for its success. After establishing a strong presence in the market in the United States, Starbucks decided to go global. In 1996, the chain opened its first store overseas in Japan and then …

Refugee Advocacy Organizations: Factors That Influence Success In The United States And Ireland, Caleb Elkington-Stauss

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis is a comparative study of refugee advocacy organizations in Ireland and in the United States. The goal is to research and study some of the best practices that refugee support organizations utilize and report how these two countries address the ever-growing refugee crisis. This study assesses the applications and operations in both organizations and determines how these practices contribute to the fulfillment of their missions. This better understanding of the strengths and struggles experienced by these organizations will support the development of a model and framework for successful social welfare initiatives. Within this thesis, the social initiatives in …

The Cultural Impact On International Marketing: Understanding How Different Cultures Influence Advertising Perception And Strategies, Nathaniel Roffman

Honors Projects

This case study evaluates the effectiveness of standardized international marketing campaigns versus globalized international marketing campaigns in the context of two multinational corporations, McDonald's and Burger King, both operating in the United Kingdom. The study compares the outcomes of a standardized marketing approach, which uses the same marketing messages and materials across all regions, to a globalized approach that considers local cultural differences and modifies the marketing messages accordingly. The study analyzes the impact of each approach on brand recognition, and customer engagement, as well as the benefits and challenges associated with each strategy. Additionally, the study examines the importance …

Should We Move Our Headquarters Abroad?: An Analysis Of Corporate Inversion, Rowen Newlon

Honors Projects

In recent years, companies from a plethora of industries have participated in the act of corporate inversion, which is essentially moving the headquarters of a company to a subsidiary branch located in another country. There are some substantial benefits as well as drawbacks to this practice; therefore, the objective of this project is to examine this from an accounting and international business perspective. This project will investigate the research of corporate inversion, including both current and potential legislation, and give guidance to companies deciding to move abroad as well as using a hypothetical company to examine this phenomenon in a …

Flexibility Is Key: Managing Rubber’S Elastic Sourcing Demands, Alexander Kennedy

Honors Projects

A contemporary study of how tire manufacturers are responding to supply chain challenges resulting from the Russian invasion of Ukraine by comparing them to actions taken during World War II. Supply chain management principles are applied within the context of the tire and rubber industry to provide recommendations for dealing with supply disruptions in future conflicts.

The K-Wave And Its Impact On The South Korean Economy, Jessica Johnson

Honors Theses

During the last few years, Korean entertainment has captivated audiences globally. Parasite was the first foreign film to win Best Picture at the Oscars, BTS was nominated for a Grammy Award, and Squid Game was one of the most popular TV shows of 2021. A discussion of the merits of these works I will leave to the artists and critics. My question is, what does this wave of popularity mean to the South Korean economy?

Understanding Gentrification Outside Of The Global Neoliberal Perspective In Hong Kong, Ivy Lu

Senior Theses

Globalization has impacted urban development in different parts of the world. In particular, the influence of neoliberalism has had a significant impact on gentrification. The academic hegemony of the English language further compounds the complexities of overextending the scope of this definition when applying it outside of its original Anglo-American contexts. East Asia, specifically Hong Kong, presents a unique case study due to its local context historically, politically and market-wise, as well as culturally; all of which make it valuable to study urban development phenomena in the region. However, identifying the indicators of neoliberalism and gentrification in Hong Kong is …

Hard Seltzers In Europe: A Sparkling Opportunity? An Analysis Of The Market Potential For Hard Seltzers In Europe, Amanda R. Harper

Senior Theses

This thesis seeks to uncover the potential for the hard seltzer category in the European alcohol market. First, through secondary research, it establishes the conditions of entering the European alcohol market by looking at the challenges of entering markets abroad, the challenges of entering the European market, and the history and current state of alcohol in Europe. Second, this thesis will analyze the history and characteristics of the hard seltzer category. This will include profiles of seven key brands: White Claw, Truly, Bud Light Seltzer, Vizzy, Topo Chico, Mike’s Hard Seltzer, and Pure Piraña. Next, this thesis will analyze primary …

A Content Analysis Examining The Nfl's Social Media Communications In A Global Market, Lauren Cavanaugh

Honors Theses

To better connect with the potential fan base in the United Kingdom, the NFL created another Instagram account, separate from their main “NFL” account, with the username “NFLUK”. In this thesis, I conducted a content analysis comparing a selection of posts made during the 2021 NFL season for each account, “NFL” and “NFLUK” to examine how the NFL modified their posts and communication for their new target audience. The posts were examined through the perspective of two different communication theories: The Elaboration Likelihood Model of Persuasion and the Adaptation versus Standardization Model of International Marketing. The goal was to determine …

Information, Communication, And Technology In Developing Countries: The Impediment To Nigeria Economic Growth, Fatima Ali Muhammed

Dissertations and Theses

Technological revolution has shifted the world to a post-industrial society as information communication and technology (ICT) govern the centrality of human interaction. ICT has become widely influential at all levels of life, especially socially and economically.

In the 21st century, innovative technologies have become a crucial element of accelerating all factors of production to deliver rapid and effective results in every sector of the economy. The Internet, as a component of ICT, has become the global computing network that facilitates the access, analysis and dissemination of infinite information rapidly using advanced technology.

Policy makers, researchers, business leaders, academics are all …