Business Commons^™

More Than Just A Workplace: A Case Study Of Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion In Marriott International Inc. Hotels, Julia Selin

Experience Industry Management

Diversity, equity, and inclusion practices are essential for a hotel to function. Having diversity is an important aspect of a company because it allows for multiple perspectives that bring new ideas together, and most importantly multiculturalism. The purpose of this study was to examine the diversity, equity, and inclusion practices in the workplaces of Marriott International Inc. Hotels. Research for this study was conducted using a case study. The results indicated that Marriott values diversity, which is seen though corporate programs and global initiatives. Marriott is an international company that helps create job opportunities around the world and forms mentor …

The Role Of The Government & The Private Sector, Hazem Abdel Aziz Abdel Hady

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Social Art Club, Beatrice Giuli

MA Projects

The Social Art Club will be a creative hotspot where leisure, art, culture and work come together in one place. The goal of this club is to expand on the idea behind the traditional social club concept. While members will still have access to use the space in whichever ways they prefer, this social club goes beyond. The Club will be a center for art exhibitions, food discovery, music pleasure, and culture renaissance while promoting a multi-sensorial experience and a long lasting communal atmosphere. Recreating the social aspirations of international and luxury clubs such as Soho House, the Social Art …

A Theoretical Prototype For Narrative And Interactive Development Within A Theme Park Parade, Carson Luter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

While theme park parades have developed with technology and guest demands, there is an opportunity to continue innovating the medium with additional guest interactivity. This thesis tracks experiential comparatives that provide iterative components to be utilized for a new theme park parade concept; parade "show stops" that allow for guests to approach the parade floats up-close, participatory entertainment offerings with live actor-driven branching narratives, roleplay and gameplay-driven interactive experiences, and theme park parades that follow a direct linear narrative. What follows is a theme park parade design concept, accompanied by a production and operational plan, that combines the existing spectacle …

Integration Of Video Game Play And Storytelling In Theme Park Environmental Design, Alexandria Marcello

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

This thesis presents a visual design exploration of video game storytelling in physical themed environments, specifically, theme parks. The theme park industry has only recently begun to tap into the video game market, with seasonal attractions and events in parks, and the first fully video game dedicated land, Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan. As theme park companies further seek out the most popular and profitable video game Intellectual Properties (IP), it will be imperative to create the most authentic video game experiences possible. The guest experience will hinge upon the successful adaptation of gameplay; creating the story around …

Creating Themed Accessible Spaces Through Hospitality Design, Sidney Wolf

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

This thesis summarizes available literature about the individual requirements and specific design attributes needed to understand, apply, develop, and design a themed hotel with an emphasis in accessibility and inclusivity. This thesis contains a visual project and design guide that focuses on creating a themed space that offers modern means of accessibility for mobility aids, or for those who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or partially sighted. The guide summarizes literature on existing codes and explores other resources to adapt them to create an inclusive narrative environment. The visual project applies the material found in the guide and produces …

Breaking The Mold: Haunted Attraction Mazes; A Study In Reducing Predictability & Increasing Intensity, Within Unconventional Halloween Attraction Experiences, Amy Avalos

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

Every enchanted Fall season, a segment of the public flocks to a multitude of haunted Halloween attractions across the U.S., to experience fear as a form of amusement and entertainment. Psychologists continue to research the physiological and cognitive behaviors that are associated with fear and the "fight or flight" responses that are triggered when individuals are engaged in a heighten sense of danger. However, as guests traverse through these haunted attraction experiences, it's commonplace for guests to enter into these typical modes of "fight or flight" behaviors very quickly. Once this response kicks in, the guests' instinct is to scramble …

Investigating Restaurant Worker Well-Being In The Context Of The Covid-19 Pandemic: Occupational Stress And The Role Of Workplace Support In Retention And Career-Change Intentions., Craig Rapp

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

Health and well-being have become one of the most important topics in organizational research. The Covid-19 pandemic has compounded the stress levels in all sectors across the world. The current environment has created unprecedented levels of employee turnover, in what economist have been calling the "Great Resignation," where individuals are not only quitting but are questioning their career choice and choosing to leave their profession altogether. This research utilized Conservation of Research (COR) theory and the Buffer Hypothesis (the notion that social support protects individuals from the negative impacts of workplace stress) to investigate occupational stress and well-being (i.e., burnout …

The Antecedents Of Program Satisfaction And Program Loyalty For Hotel Reward Programs, Jill Plumer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

Hotel reward programs have been in existence for three decades. These programs were originally established as a customer relationship management tool to reward loyal guests for their patronage. Over time, there have been indications that the programs that are intended to inspire loyalty to the company have actually inspired loyalty to the program itself. The aim of this study was to analyze the antecedents of program satisfaction and program loyalty in hotels to determine the relationship between the program attributes and the impact on program loyalty. Switching costs were also analyzed to determine if they played a moderating role in …

Employing A Network Perspective To Study Hazardous Events In Tourism: Tourism Connections, Island Preferences, And Tourism Market Concentrations In The Hawaiian Islands (2015-2021), Frida Bahja

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

The purpose of this study was to employ a network perspective to detect fluctuations in tourism (at the level of tourism areas and by inbound tourism markets) that co-occur with hazardous events. Specifically, the study focuses on the Air Travel Tourism (ATT) network of the Hawaiian Islands and its changes with the incidence of nine hazardous events from 2015 to 2021. The three main aspects of the ATT network, which include tourism connections, island preferences, and concentrations of inbound tourism markets were analyzed for a total of eighty-four monthly and seven annual network models. The results suggest that the network …

The Impact Of Social Capital On U.S. Based Destination Marketing Organizations And Interorganizational Relationships, Jeremy Fairley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

Previous literature echoes the notion that destination marketing organizations (DMOs) play a critical role in ensuring a desired tourism development scenario. To date, the performance measurement of destination marketing organizations is paralleled to financial indicators or operations, ignoring the presence and quality of relationships among DMOs and tourism stakeholders. Based on the premise of social capital theory, it is argued that social capital and the inter-organizational relationships between DMOs and tourism stakeholders can influence the success of tourism efforts in a destination, which in return is a contributing factor to the DMOs success as an organization. Furthermore, broader literature indicates …

Silent Auction Fundraiser Dinners And Nonprofit Organizations, Kristine Chiles

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper describes and analyzes the Goldendale Pregnancy Resource Center’s annual fundraiser dinner and silent auction that was held November 4, 2021. It discusses the importance of nonprofit organizations, the difficulties encountered when planning the event, and an analysis of areas of improvement for future events. The information gathered will be used to determine the profitability of the event for the Goldendale Pregnancy Resource Center. The goal of the project is to increase revenue for the Goldendale Pregnancy Resource Center and be able to provide helpful fundraising information to other similar nonprofit organizations, although external factors, such as the COVID-19 …

The Pandemic Changed The Face Of Retail. Here’S How Center City, Philadelphia — The State’S Leading Job Market — Is Faring On The Road To Recovery, Francisco O. Velasquez-Turcios

Capstones

The pandemic changed the face of retail. Here’s how Center City, Philadelphia — the state’s leading job market — is faring on the road to recovery.

Link to capstone project: https://franvela033.github.io/Capstone/

A Peer Feedback Process To Improve Assistant Nurse Manager Job Satisfaction, Juanita A. Jularbal-Walton

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Problem

Healthcare organizations offer different methods of training for emerging and newly hired Assistant Nurse Managers (ANM). Without sufficient orientation to what the role requires, new ANMs receive many requests without adequate guidance on how to respond to patient, staff, and leadership requests. This experience creates unhealthy work environments with low job satisfaction and high turnover rates.

Context

Peer feedback provides an opportunity to reflect on the purpose of the Assistant Nurse Manager role. With sufficient orientation and peer feedback, front-line assistant nurse managers develop competency and role satisfaction, as evidenced by reduced turnover and improved retention.

Intervention

This project …

Crisis Communication And Furloughed Hotel Frontline Employees’ Intention To Stay: The Role Of Perceived Organizational Support, Job Insecurity, And Job Affect, Tabitha A. Chapital

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated furloughed hotel employee’s intention to stay (ITS), with their hotel and hotel industry, based upon the impact of crisis communication strategy, perceived organizational support (POS), job insecurity, and job affect following a crisis. A 2 (crisis communication strategy: apology vs. excuse) × 2 (POS: high vs. low) between subjects, factorial design was employed. The study found that apology strategy and high POS result in lower job insecurity among furloughed hotel employees. A negative correlation was also found between job insecurity and ITS with the hotel industry. These findings may support practical and theoretical implications for hoteliers, specifically …

Factors Influencing Service Robot Adoption: A Comparative Analysis Of Hotel-Specific Service Robot Acceptance Models, Ying Dong

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The market for service robots is expected to expand significantly owing to the increasing relevance of service automation under the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the growing managerial interest in robotic applications in the hotel industry, current robotic research has been mostly conceptual with limited robot data on hand. In light of this issue, this paper will conduct a comparative analysis of hotel-specific service robot acceptance models between the Service Robot Acceptance Model (sRAM) and the Service Robot Integration Willingness (SRIW) framework. By identifying key elements of each service robot acceptance model, this paper puts an emphasis on investigating …

Applying Artificial Intelligence In The Hotel Industry: Exploring Perspectives Of Employees, Logan O'Hara

Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

Robots, Artificial Intelligence, and Service Automation, or RAISA, has become increasingly accessible and affordable for a wider demographic of businesses, including hospitality operations, to implement over the last couple of decades. Especially over the past five years, we’ve seen a significant surge of interest in automating within the service industry and a coupled sense of uneasiness that this technological development would in turn displace the human workers, due to factors such as cost of labor and perceived removal of human error; however, this thesis will posit that automation is most effectively used by augmenting the capabilities of the present workforce. …

Data Analytics In Hotel And Integrated Resort Brands: An Evaluation Of Past Literature And Proposed Research For The Future, Luke Andrew Walocko

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Data analytics in hotel and integrated resort brands is a growing strategy implemented to support business decisions designed to generate revenue or save costs. This study utilizes a literature review of data analytics related publications to provide recommendations on future research topics to improve the quality of literature related to data analytics in hotel and integrated resort brands. The study is not limited to hospitality specific research and uses research from all industries to identify gaps in publications for hospitality scholars to explore. Three proposed research questions for future exploration were composed based on the comparison of literature written for …

Building Customer Loyalty With Millennials In The Gaming Entertainment Industry, Daysha Catchings

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This paper discusses how to build customer loyalty between Millennials and casinos. Although research has indicated that casinos are losing the interest of the Millennial consumer, it is recommended that casinos do not give up on this demographic. The Millennial generation is massive, accounting for a fourth of the U.S. population. Entering the workforce at rapid speed, this generation has a large amount of spending power and is willing to pay more for a product that is deemed valuable. This paper intends to lay the groundwork for an exploratory research study on customer loyalty and Millennials in the gambling and …

Mobile Sports Betting Marketing Plan, Scott Flinn

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

From day one, the hospitality industry in Las Vegas has been innovating and evolving to develop one-of-a-kind experiences for customers from all around the world. Over the decade's hospitality corporations have been shaped through mergers and acquisitions with the end goal of growing land-based assets, improving income statements and balance sheets for shareholders, and trying to own every dollar that a tourist spends while in the city (Bussman, 2021).

Shaping Success For Mobile Applications Of Integrated Resorts, Krista Larsen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

As smartphones have become indispensable in society, it has become critical for integrated resorts to develop mobile applications ("apps") that serve as a marketing tool and an enhancement in the customer's travel journey. This research reviews the features of existing mobile travel apps, in addition to areas of opportunity for future innovations regarding this platform. Based on this research, this study recommends best practices for an integrated resort's mobile app. The findings of this study can be leveraged as a resource when developing and maintaining mobile apps within the hospitality industry to provide an optimal guest experience throughout the entire …

Utilizing Gamification To Enhance Customer Engagement And Loytalty In The Hospitality Industry, Xiaoting He

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Gamification involves the engagement of game elements and designs in non-game contexts. There is a need to increase the effectiveness of the conventional loyalty program, and implementing gamification has become a popular concept. Gamified hotel loyalty programs differentiate hotels from their rivals by increasing customer engagement and, ultimately, customer loyalty. Despite prior research on the effectiveness and functions of gamification, under what conditions gamification can enhance enagement lacks further investigation. This study draws on the Self-Determination Theory (SDT) to develop a framework linking gamification elements with users' psychological needs, where customer engagement is enhanced when the game elements successfully satisfy …

Customers’ Acceptance Of Automated Hotel, Jianhong Feng

Theses and Dissertations

Hotels moved in the direction of intelligentization, network connection and sharing of travel modes in the 21^st century. Automation, robotics, and artificial intelligence (AI) are expected to promote significant changes to hospitality and tourism sectors. Hotels that take advantage of these technological advances would benefit from this new business model as they can differentiate themselves from competitors who fail to adopt these new innovations. In the traditional hotel industry, guests are not served by automated technologies. Nowadays, non-human based business-models and service innovations have become the latest business strategy choice in the hospitality and tourism industry, especially during the …

Alcohol Advertisements On Social Media: A Study Of How Alcohol Advertisements On Social Media Platforms Appeal To Young People, Alexis Campbell

Journalism Undergraduate Honors Theses

Underage drinking is not uncommon and is associated with a number of school, social, legal, emotional, behavioral, health problems, and even death. This research seeks to explore alcohol-related social media advertisements across a variety of alcohol types, alcohol brands, and social media platforms. This was accomplished by a content analysis of the most popular alcohol brands’ advertisements on the Internet that examined the strategies used to appeal to consumers and the overall content patterns and characteristics of online alcohol advertisements. The strategy used differed by brand and alcohol type, but the most common themes included “taste,” “seasonal,” “holiday,” “recipe,” and …

Effects Of Information Exposure, Emotions, And Self-Efficacy On Risk Perception And Travel Intention During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Chunsheng Jin

Theses and Dissertations

Living in the information age, people acquire knowledge from various sources. These resources can play key roles in individuals’ perceptions during disease outbreaks. Especially amid COVID-19, risk perceptions are critical in determining individuals’ behavioral intentions. Researchers have investigated risk perceptions related to numerous diseases (e.g., swine flu, severe acute respiratory syndrome, Middle East respiratory syndrome, the Zika virus, and Ebola). However, few tourism studies have focused on health risks. Different from the above-mentioned illnesses, the relatively new virus of COVID-19 could have unique effects on individuals’ risk perceptions and behavioral intentions; the disease has been spreading worldwide for more than …

The Analysis Of Japanese Consumers’ Purchasing Behaviour Towards Single-Use Plastic Packaging, Yui Setojima

Business ETD Collections

In recent years, the concept of sustainability has been put into the spotlight due to greater concern of environmental issues. Plastic pollution is one of serious sustainability issues which governments are rushing into making new regulations to deal with. The Japanese government is struggling to manage Japan’s heavy use of plastics and Japanese organizations are being asked to take positive actions towards reducing the use of plastic through media coverage and public pressure. However, plastic pollution requires huge efforts not only from governments but also organizations, whether large or small, and all individuals on Earth. This research aims to investigate …

Slow Tourism: A Means-End Approach To The Motivations Of Slow Travelers, Eunkyeong Jung

Doctoral Dissertations

The primary objective of this dissertation was to examine the phenomenon of slow tourism by exploring tourists’ motivations and end-state values of slow tourism. Two research questions were developed: What are the important attributes, consequences/ benefits, and end-state values of slow tourism that travelers perceive? What are the structural relationships among attributes, consequences, and values of slow tourism? To address the questions, this dissertation applied a mixed method design by which both qualitative and quantitative investigations were performed.

First, building upon means-end chain theory (Reynolds & Gutman, 1988), in-depth interviews with slow travelers were conducted and were analyzed by laddering …

Walt Disney World As A Model For Brand Marketing: An Imc Approach To Build Brand Loyalty, Sarah Camille Blankenship

Honors Theses

The Walt Disney Company has an estimated brand value of $61.3 billion and a brand revenue of $38.7 billion according to Forbes’ 2020 World’s Most Valuable Brands (Swant, n.d.). As number seven in the world’s most valuable brands and the only leisure brand in the top fifty, the Disney brand is often used as a business model and inspiration for many companies (Swant, n.d.). Its success can be attributable to the high degree of brand loyalty they create among their customers. Among its approximately 157 million visitors who visited Disney Parks globally, there was a 70% return rate of first-time …

A Study On The Impact Of Social Media Marketing In The Event Industry: Executing A Marketing Plan, Adrian N. Bradley

Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

Marketing is a large part of growing one’s business or event. The objective of this study was to gain an understanding of how social media marketing increases brand loyalty, attendance, and engagement within current and potential guests over traditional event marketing methods. Through this study a data collection survey for the University of Arkansas’ Hospitality Management annual event Students Mastering the Art of Hospitality (SMASH) to gather information on the effectiveness of e social media marketing’s influence on their attendees. Unfortunately, due to a global pandemic SMASH was canceled and the researcher and honor’s committee thought it to be best …

Effects Of Retail Case Environment And Led Lighting Temperature On Color Of Ground Beef Patties, Mesa Kutz

Animal Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

The objective of this study was to explore different type of retail cases and case environments, primarily lighting, to quantify the impact on shelf life. Coarse ground 80:20 beef from a local retail establishment was acquired between 7 and 10 d from the box date and fine ground through a 9.5 mm grinder plate, and then formed into 150.25 g patties with an automatic patty forming machine. Each patty was then individually packaged in PVC-overwrap packages and randomly assigned to one of the four different treatments: open, multideck cases with 3000 K lighting (OPEN3000),open 3500 K lighting (OPEN3500),enclosed, …