Business Commons^™

Ambienti Biznesore Në Kosovë Dhe Ndikimi I Tij Në Investime Të Huaja Direkte, Albulena Hyseni

Theses and Dissertations

Është shumë i rëndësishëm zhvillimi ekonomik për një vend, e me zhvillim ekonomik kuptojmë rritje të kushteve të jetesës, rritje të të ardhurave, rritje në prodhimtari, kushte më të mira shëndetësore dhe arsimore etj. E Kosova është një vend ku zhvillimi ekonomik lë shumë për tu dëshiruar, e për zhvillimin e një vendi një rol të mirë luajnë edhe investimet e huaja, andaj ky punim diplome trajton investimet e huaja direkte në një vend. Kjo është një çështje e cila vazhdon të jetë problematike edhe sot, një temë e cila ekziston edhe në vendin tonë si në shumë vende të …

Ndikimi I Tatimeve Në Investime Në Kosovë, Jehona Konxheli

Theses and Dissertations

Punimi shtjellon mënyrën se si është bërë futja e tatimit për funksionimin e një shteti, për çfarë arsye përdoret ai, cilat janë shkaqet për mbledhjen e tatimit si dhe çfarë ndikimi ka tatimi në bërjen e investimeve në Kosovë. Prandaj për punimin e kësaj teme më është dashur të lexoj shumë libra të autorëve të ndryshëm mbi atë se me çfarë të drejte shteti e arkëton tatimin, kush janë obliguesit tatimor, për cilat qëllime përdoret më së shumti tatimi dhe çfarë ndikimi ka në investime. Prandaj për të qenë një shtet sa më stabil dhe i fuqishëm duhet të bëhet …

The Ambience Of Innovation: A Material Semiotic Analysis Of Corporate And Community Innovation Sites, Reed Stratton

Theses and Dissertations

There are unprecedented opportunities in professional and technical writing (PTW) and rhetoric research thanks to a contemporary expansion of rhetorical studies beyond the linguistic/symbolic and into the material, accounting for the rhetorical contributions of “nonhumans” (Latour Reassembling the Social). Material rhetoric frameworks such as Thomas Rickert’s ambient rhetoric and Bruno Latour’s actor-network theory, provide fertile grounds for PTW/rhetoric research that explores the diffusion of “rhetoric into material space” (Rickert xii) which has especially exciting implications for the study of place and how it embodies values and rhetorically shapes acting, thinking, and the entire spectrum of “human flourishing” (Rickert xii).

This …

Effectiveness Of Engineering, Procurement And Construction (Epc) Major Projects In Abu Dhabi’S Oil And Gas Industry: End-User’S Perspective, Mohamed Salem Obaid Aldhaheri

Business Administration Dissertations

Even though project management discipline is gearing towards the improvement of project effectiveness, traditional project management is responding slowly due to either false preconceptions or ineffective communication among project parties. A research study is needed to contribute to knowledge and practice on the effectiveness of Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contracting strategy and consequently increase the chance of achieving product success at the site level. The objective of the research presented herein is to assess the effectiveness of EPC contracting strategy in meeting product objectives, from the end user’s perspective. Required data are collected using an online survey questionnaire targeting …

Factors Contributing To Consumer’S Buying Habits In The Online Ticketing Industry, Joe D'Agostino

Sport Management Undergraduate

Ticket scalping is a growing epidemic that has become more specialized in the online market. The online secondary ticket market thrives on consumer demand. It has been discovered that this demand in the online market is driven by factors such as trust, risk, time (availability), and popularity of the website. A cross sectional survey, using St. John Fisher students, faculty, and staff, uncovered what online secondary ticketing platform consumers use most, and why. Being able to understand what causes consumers to buy online is coveted by businesses’ and marketers. The results showed that consumers had more trust and less presumed …

Exploring Corporate Social Responsibility And The Important Role It Plays In Entrepreneurial Start-Up Businesses, Samuel Sanders

Honors Capstone Projects - All

The purpose of this Capstone is to examine the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and the role it plays in entrepreneurial start-up businesses. The paper introduces a more inclusive definition of the concept – Positive Impact Business Social Engagement. It explains the five facets of social responsibility and examines the impact of social responsibility on major business disciplines. The benefits and disadvantages of social responsibility are analyzed, and the financial performance of socially responsible companies is compared to S&P500 performance. Social responsibility in the start-up world is addressed and is contrasted with established large corporations. The characteristics of …

Faux/Real Festival Of Arts, Zoe Cuneo

Arts Administration Master's Reports

The purpose of this internship report is to analyze the Faux/Real Festival of Arts in regards to my Arts Administration learning experiences. In addition, I will describe my internship involvement with Faux/Real and examine the success of its first year. This report also contains my S.W.O.T. analysis of the festival, highlighting its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Finally, I assert best practices for festival management and programming, and offer recommendations to Faux/Real on how they could incorporate those practices that they have not already implemented to strengthen the festival.

Jamalar Agency: Building Awareness For New Music Through Radio Promotions, Lawanda J. Smith

Arts Administration Master's Reports

This report documents the internship of LaWanda J. Smith with Jamalar Agency. Jamalar is a booking agency which specializes in selling the music and culture of New Orleans to the world. LaWanda’s main task was radio promotion for the 2015 spring release of We’ve Got a River to Cross, a CD by the gospel group Joyful. LaWanda was also exposed to record label management by working with Jamalar’s sister company, Rampart Street Music. This report provides an overview of Jamalar Agency, analysis of the company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, an examination of best practices in music promotions performed …

The John F. Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts: Production Department, Jamie Doyle

Arts Administration Master's Reports

This academic report is the written analysis of my experience as a production intern at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. My internship specifically involved production and this report discusses production management across the performing arts disciplines, as experienced during my 480 hour internship experience. I describe the organizational history of the Kennedy Center and the internship process. I create a SWOT analysis pertaining to factors affecting the Production Department, discuss production management best practices, and make recommendations for the Center’s improvement.

New Orleans Auction Galleries: Sustaining Vitality In Shifting Auction Markets, Natalie Domingue

Arts Administration Master's Reports

This report examines an internship experience as the Auction and Fine Art Department Assistant at New Orleans Auction Galleries with discussion of the Company’s history, operating structure, and role in the auction market. In addition, an evaluation of the Company’s strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats and a discussion of the auction industry’s best practices used by international auction houses as they related to New Orleans Auction Galleries is also found. The report concludes with recommendations made by the intern, for the Company’s future sustainability in the auction market.

Contemporary Arts Center: A Time Of Transition, Samantha Naring

Arts Administration Master's Reports

The following report documents my 480-hour internship from August 17th, 2015 to January 29th, 2016 in the Education and Public Programs Department at the Contemporary Arts Center (CAC). I worked closely with the Marketing and Visual Art Departments. I chose the organization to experience an environment that commits itself to presenting high quality performing and visual arts. This paper assesses the CAC’s history, present day status, and future outlook. It also offers suggestions on how certain aspects can be improved in order to extend the organization’s longevity. Over the course of five months I observed strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats …

Developing An Online Database Of Experts For The Worcester Regional Chamber Of Commerce, Zikan Chen, Douglas Grey, Pranjal Shah

School of Professional Studies

The Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce as part of their mission to attract business to the Worcester area, want to create an online searchable database of industry experts made up of faculty members of the Colleges and Universities in the Worcester area. This online database will be placed on the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce Higher Education – Business Partnership page on their website. The limitations placed on this request are that the Regional Chamber as of this moment have no monetary or Information Technologies resources to provide for the realization of this request.

The proliferation of as A Service …

"Refugee Industrial Complex," Neoliberal Governance Within The Resettlement Industry And Its Effects: Is An Alternative Structure Possible?, Amira F. Al-Dasouqi

International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE)

Within the current political climate and discussions surrounding displacement, refugee resettlement is a ‘hot-button’ issue. While working at one of the largest resettlement agencies in New England, the author began to analyze how power itself is structured within the Refugee Resettlement Industry (RRI) nationally. This paper argues that the RRI is embedded within neoliberal governance and can be better understood and improved with this understanding. The author argues for the term “Refugee [Resettlement] Industrial Complex,” to more adequately understand the ways that power is enacted through the current structure, and how it inhibits social justice work rooted in advocating for …

Optimizing Workforce Performance: Perceived Differences Of Army Officer Critical Thinking Talent Across Level Of Education, Richard B. Ayers

Dissertations

The U.S. Army’s operating environment continues to become increasingly complex and unpredictable, where U.S. technological advantage continues to erode. The complexities stem from the Army’s doctrinal assumption that the future operating environment is unknown and constantly changing (Department of the Army [DA], 2014a). Diminishing technological advantage results in more reliance on soldiers’ cognitive capability, and less on high technology weapons systems (McMaster, 2015).

A review of military literature shows extensive research on the importance of Army leaders to be talented critical thinkers (Fischer, Spiker, & Riedel, 2008, 2009; Gerras, 2008; Thomas & Gentzler, 2013). Human capital literature reveals many college …

An Investigation Of Work Environment Characteristics And Work Engagement Of Limited- And Full-Service Hotel Property Front-Line Employees, Robert Jerald Thompson

Dissertations

Today, employee work engagement is viewed as one of the most important issues for corporations, given its influence on individual and organizational productivity and performance (Attridge, 2009; Czarnowsky, 2008). As a result, all organizations desire employees who are engaged, in particular the hospitality industry. As a service-providing sector of the hospitality industry, hotels are reliant on front-line employees to conduct strong customer-employee interactions and provide efficient service delivery while exceeding customer expectations (Kusluvan, 2003). The hospitality industry needs employees who are committed to the organization and one who is passionate, striving to go the extra mile, and offering discretionary effort …

Object-Oriented Programming: A Method For Pricing Options, Leonard Stewart Higham

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

In the world of finance, it’s becoming necessary to obtain computer programming knowledge and experience, a marketable skill that prepares one conduct quantitative analysis. The objective of this thesis is to utilize concepts in finance and computer science together to form a pricing library for financial derivatives, thus, develop a strong skillset in a specific area of financial computational methods. Through implementation of object-oriented programming and specific design patterns in Python, I develop a pricing engine for many types of options, from plain vanilla to unique and complex options, with the focus on the ability to reuse and extend various …

Single Stock Futures And Stock Options: Complement Or Substitutes, Cuyler Strong

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Are single stock futures and stock options complement or substitute goods? In this study, I test this research question by examining option trading activity (option volume and open interest) surrounding an arguably exogenous introduction of single stock futures. This event study provides a natural experiment that allows us to make causal inferences about how the presence of single stock futures affects the options market. While it is commonly thought that single stock futures and options are substitute goods, my evidence instead suggests that they are complements. While I observe very little change in option volume surrounding the introduction of single …

Modeling Mobile Website Usability, J Matt Hamil

Honors Theses

Smartphones have become a prevalent part of today’s society. Smartphone users have begun using their phones to make purchases on the mobile web. This study focused on usability characteristics of mobile websites of large retail companies. The aim of this study was to conduct quantitative analyses building upon previous usability research both in the e-commerce and m-commerce realm. A sample population was obtained from a convenience sample recruited from a social media and email campaign. Respondents were asked to visit an assigned website and find three products for a friend, family member, or significant other. The data were analyzed quantitatively …

Connecting Through Smartphones: Cognitive, Social, Emotional Motivations, And The Experience Of Value Perceptions, Song-Yi Youn

Open Access Dissertations

Smartphones became a dominant medium for communication with the emergence of converging technology. Since smartphones enable people to access various services, and to interact with other people within mobile social networks, users have become highly involved with such devices. To understand motivational factors associated with using smartphone, this study was informed by perceived cognition (i.e., expected outcomes) and social influence (i.e., social identity) from a social cognitive perspective, which was expanded to incorporate the dimension of emotional attachment.

To develop its “motivational framework”, this study adopted social cognitive theory and attachment theory. This study also investigated the “experience of value …

Utilizing The Signaling Theory In Order To Enhance Minority Recruitment In Law Enforcement, Donald B. Terheide

Open Access Dissertations

Minority recruitment has been an emphasis for law enforcement agencies for decades. These agencies have attempted to recruit minority officers through different venues, including college visits, career fairs, advertising, high school visits, community organizations, and other avenues in an attempt to have their department more representative of the community. However, there has been a limited amount of research on the potential applicants’ perspective concerning how these recruiting efforts have persuaded them, and the messages conveyed to the applicants.

This dissertation has been written utilizing the Signaling Theory, and determining what signals are sent to minority applicants, and how they are …

Essays On The Role Of Institutional Ownership In Bank Governance, Mohammad Jafarinejad

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three chapters, focusing on U.S. bank holding companies from 2007 to 2013 to explore the role of institutional ownership in bank governance. In addition to the impact of ownership proportion, I explore the impact of ownership dispersion among institutional investors on bank safety, profitability and performance.

In Chapter I, I show that the proportion of institutional ownership in banks has increased significantly after the recent financial crisis. Moreover, I examine the impact of institutional ownership proportion and dispersion on bank safety using capital ratios (i.e., Tier 1 and Tier 2 capital ratios) and credit risk (i.e. …

Profitability And Financial Characteristics Of U.S. Publicly Traded Health Services Companies, Alessandra Rios

Theses and Dissertations

The health industry is affected by economic factors like income and prices. From 2007 to 2013, two turning points affected the healthcare industry, the financial crisis and the Affordable Care Act. This study is an attempt to measure the effects these turning points had on profitability of health services firms. To examine the potential changes the two events had on profitability, quarterly financial data was used to create a basic model that measures the Return on Assets, Return on Equity, Total Margin and Operating Margin of the firms. OLS regressions were run and results indicate that both ROA and ROE …

An Exploration Of Omnichannel Marketing Through Fifa 16, Virginia N. Roman

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

According to Forbes, Omnichannel marketing is a marketing strategy that engages consumers over multiple channels, a strategy reflecting the change in how consumers are willing to engage with companies. EA Sports is a branch of Electronic Arts, an entertainment software company that in the fiscal year of 2015 had a GAAP net revenue of $4.5 billion. EA Sports produces sports related video games including the Madden NFL, Rory McIlroy PGA Tour, and FIFA. Omnichannel marketing is the next frontier and the video game industry is on the rise. At the crossroads of these two is FIFA 16, this year’s installment …

Getting Hooked On Gnarly Rods, Cody A. Nelson

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

At Gnarly Rods, our objective is to supply builders and fishermen alike with the quality gear, components, and service necessary to catch everything life has to offer. From providing rod building parts, to repairs, to fully customized fishing rods, we are the destination for all things in custom fishing. Conceptualized in 2015, Gnarly Rods will be based out of Springdale, AR, and started by Robert and Cody Nelson, a father and son pair as passionate for fishing as they are family and the influence the outdoors can have in life. As of now, we will be the only two employees …

The Economic Impact Of The 2015 Conference Usa Baseball Tournament In Hattiesburg, Mississippi, Kyle A. Stoner

Honors Theses

This study aims to measure the economic impact of the 2015 Conference USA Baseball Tournament hosted by The University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Attendees of the event were selected at random to participate in an intercept survey to gauge financial data spent within the Forrest and Lamar County, Mississippi area. An Economic Modeling Systems International Input-Output analysis was used to process the data. This processed data was analyzed and results were determined based on the estimated multiplier and tax effect at the local and state level. These multiplier figures yielded a change in earnings in the local area …

The Question Of Financial Career Paths: Which Graduate Program And/Or Professional Certification Leads To The Greatest Income And Level Of Satisfaction Based On A Survey Of Professionals Working Within The Accounting/Finance Fields?, Tanner M. Shaw

Honors Theses

Thousands of men and women across the United States graduate from accounting and finance undergraduate programs and find themselves uncertain about what the future holds and what steps should be taken in order to maximize their odds of meeting their personal goals related to job satisfaction and level of income. This study aims to evaluate graduate degree and non-graduate-degree alternatives, as well as the CPA and CFA professional designations in terms of the likelihood of each route leading to high job satisfaction and a high level of income. To that end, a survey of successful accounting and finance professionals was …

The Fall Of Petrobras And Its Impact On The Brazilian Economy, Nicolas Lema Severich

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper investigates the full scope of the poor decisions made by the Brazilian oil giant, Petroleo Brasileiro. This paper is focused on the midst of a corruption scandal that ended the hopes and dreams of an entire nation. Fundamental analysis as well as technical analysis are used to determine the intrinsic value of Petrobras. Petroleo Brasileiro is analyzed as an oil company, as a mother company for the Brazilian economy and as the disruptor of a recession that will be remembered historically.

Pre-Holiday Anomaly: Examining The Pre-Holiday Effect Around Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Scott E. Jones

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This paper looks at the 17 years leading up to Martin Luther King Jr. day becoming a non-traded holiday and the 17 years since to see if this exogenous shock to the market resulted in abnormal rates of return on the day before the holiday (known as the pre-holiday effect). I also look to see if evidence of abnormal returns still exists before Christmas and July 4^th during the same time period. I used daily data on the equally-weighted universe of stocks, the value-weighted universe of stocks, and the S&P 500. I find that while there is some evidence …

Social Entrepreneurship As A Response To The Energy Crisis, Climate Change And Women’S Inequality In Developing Countries: Women Managed Solar Cooker Production Business In Rural Haiti, Lelani S. Williams

International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE)

In developing countries such as Haiti, households heavily rely on charcoal and wood to satisfy their energy needs. The unsustainable use of these fuels accompanies adverse health and women's inequality impacts. As well as have severely altered Haiti’s environmental landscape. Solar cooking is one clean energy alternative to these issues. Despite its multiple benefits; solar cookers have had little traction in developing countries. Most research is focused only on technical improvements of solar cookers. This paper looks at how the utilization of solar cookers can positively impact the problems facing Haiti due to traditional cooking methods (1) environmental, (2) energy …

Comparative Organizational Assessments And Partenship Potential For Sekou Pou Nanm-Yo And Asirans Community Counseling Center, Lauren M. Mawe

International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE)

This paper assesses the organizational capacity of two small Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Port-Au-Prince Haiti. Each NGO has a staff of under 15 members. At the time of the assessment, they were both in early stages of their development, with one in its first year of operations, and the other in its fifth year. Both embody grassroots, community organizations because of their connections to the communities in which they work, their willingness to travel to those communities, and their predominantly Haitian staff. The fieldwork included interviews, focus groups, and three months of participant observation and work with these organizations. In …