Business Commons^™

Disrupt, Deny, Dismantle: A Special Operations Forces (Sof) Model For Combatting New Terrorism, Will Gunzelman

Faculty Publications and Presentations

Terrorism in the new millennium has morphed drastically since the 1970s. The terrorist organizations of today are a hybrid between the insurgent group models of the 1960s and modern terrorist organizations such as Al Qaeda. This hybrid model has created what has become a transnational insurgency recruited, trained, and led by major terrorist networks such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Even smaller regional groups such as Boko Haram have surpassed merely conducting terrorist attacks. These smaller groups are also focused on controlling territory. Tan (2008) refers to this change as “New Terrorism”. To combat New …

Bob’S Red Mill: For The Employees By The Employees, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

Putting people before profits is more important than accumulating ever-increasing amounts of possession

Ua41 University College Connection, Dennis K. George, Dean, Wendi Kelley, University College

UC Publications

No abstract provided.

Analyzing Shared Value And Social Business Principles: A Case Study Of Honeydrop Beverages And Seven Hills Foundation, Sarah Dys, Maya Grevatt, Brianna Mirabile

School of Professional Studies

Can the business world come together with the nonprofit world to create systems to lift low income women, children, and families out of poverty? The following report aims to show how the changing principles of business have the potential to serve international populations living on less than $2USD per day. For-profit organizations working with citizen sector organizations instead of giving charity provides a sustainable model to connect profit maximization with social good.

Honeydrop Beverages is a company based out of New York that produces lemonade sweetened with honey. Their products do not contain any refined products, only using fresh and …

Women In Microfinance And Its Social Effects On The Community: A Case Study In Hue, Vietnam, Madison Spigel

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Microfinance, a form of micro lending with no collateral, has been used as a way to finance the poor since the foundation of the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh by Muhammad Yunus in 1983. Since the Doi Moi period, the Vietnamese government has showed great interest in microfinance and has made this loan system available to both its rural and urban citizens through organizations like the Women‟s Union. Through detailed surveys and semi-structured in depth interviews of both women in the Union as well as related parties in Hue, I was able to study how microfinance is used by these women …

Doc Wayne Youth Services, Inc. Capstone Project Youth Employment And Mentoring, Bongani T. Jeranyama, Zhengjun Liu, Sarah Parsons

School of Professional Studies

In Boston, Massachusetts, young adults age 16-19 who have dropped out of high school have a very high unemployment rate of 43.8%. Additionally, in the United States of America the difference between a young adult with a high school diploma as opposed to a young adult without a high school diploma in terms of weekly income is $180 USD; between a young adult with a high school diploma versus a young professional with a bachelor’s degree is $433 USD. These numbers demonstrate the need for services that improve academic achievement, job readiness and preparedness, and youth mentorship for struggling young …

A Nonprofit Model In A For-Profit World: A Closer Look At Sheltered Workshops And Sustainability As An Employee Run Business, Bing Jang, Mitchell Perry, Nikolin Vangjeli, Laura Ducharme

School of Professional Studies

Historically, society has tended to isolate and segregate individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Despite improvements such forms of discrimination continue to be a serious social problem. On October 11, 2011, the Department of Justice began an investigation into several state’s systems of providing vocational services to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This action came about due to several states being out of compliance around Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Title II of the ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability for all services, programs and activities provided to the public by state and …

Annapurna’S Porters: Labor Conditions And The Factors That Shape Them, Ari Grant-Sasson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This project sought to determine what the labor conditions of porters working in Annapurna are and the factors both immutable and human-influenced that shape them. To do so, I interviewed government bodies, national and regional trekking organizations, unions, agencies, guides and porters to ascertain what issues a broad term such as “labor conditions” encompasses. Participants highlighted the importance of insurance, wages, weight carried, equipment, access to employment, job training and topography as important factors. I will argue that large advocacy organizations shape these issues, and therefore the porter market, at a national level. Discrepancies in employment experiences between porters are …

How Do We Adopt Multiple Cultural Identities? A Multidimensional Operationalization Of The Sources Of Culture, Badri Zolfaghari, Guido Mollering, Timothy Adrian Robert Clark, Graham Dietz

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Given the shortcomings of unidimensional accounts of culture that are based on nationality, this paper builds on and steps beyond current multidimensional conceptualizations of culture in order to provide first empirical evidence for a multidimensional operationalization of culture. It shows the multiple and simultaneous sources of cultural values (i.e., Family, Nationality, Urban/Rural Background, etc.) that individuals draw from in order to behave in accordance with their social setting. This contributes to our understanding of how and when individuals adopt multiple cultural identities. As the first attempt to operationalize the 'mosaic' framework of culture proposed by Chao and Moon (2005), this …

Kickact: The Implementation & Evaluation Of A Youth Empowerment & Leadership Program, Crystal M. Denny

Capstone Collection

KickAct is a program that combines martial arts and performing arts to empower youth and engage them in creative social change. Youth experience a lack of community engagement and partnership with the adult. Many youth face additional challenges, ranging from lack of support in school to violence at home, that can negatively impact their life. KickAct is designed to provide youth with the necessary skills and experience to thrive as active participants in their communities. Due to inconsistent attendance and participation, it was not possible to determine whether the workshop format was a successful method for youth empowerment. However, the …

An Acculturation Program For Foreign-Born Workers At Multinational Companies Transferred To Offices In The United States, Eric Krieger

Capstone Collection

The purpose of this study is to create an acculturation program that multinational companies can use to ease the transition of foreign-born employees who are transferred to the United States. There are a number of challenges for these employees, from navigating the logistics of finding a place to live, setting up a bank account and filling out taxes to the social emotional issues of trying to adapt to another culture, build community and be successful in a new work environment. Through interviews with foreign-born employees, Human Resources professionals, and intercultural trainers, qualitative and quantitative data was collected to understand current …

Understanding The Failure Of China’S Specialized Cooperatives In China, Zhanping Hu, Qian Forrest Zhang, John A. Donaldson

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

At first blush, contemporary China seems ripe for the rapid development of agricultural cooperatives. After all, cooperatives have not only enjoyed a long history in China, but the country’s recent experience with agricultural communes should make it more amenable to the reestablishment of joint production and spontaneous bottom-up cooperation. Agricultural cooperatives in China date to the 1930s, as Rural Reconstruction Movement advocates promoted cooperatives as a “third road” between capitalism and socialism. Although Mao’s regime disbanded most bottom-up cooperatives, rural cooperatives began to reemerge in rural China by the end of the 20th century, particularly after 1998, when farmer cooperatives …

Both A Borrower And A Lender Be: A Look At The Local Economy And Credit Culture In The Tarap Valley In Dolpa, Nepal, Alexa Adams

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Being in such a remote location, the Tarap valley in the Dolpa district of Nepal has only recently experienced the influences of a modern, cash-based economy in full force. Historically, the economy of the Dolpo-pa in Dho Tarap was almost entirely rooted in agriculture, animal husbandry, barter, and exchange. While these themes are still incredibly important foundations of the economic practices and systems in the valley, the introduction of Yartsa gumbu, the highly valuable caterpillar fungus used in Chinese medicine, has transformed the local economy of the region and propelled it into the arms of a consumeristoriented and cash-based economy. …

The Impact Of Dual Identities Of College Student-Athletes On Academic Performance, Stephen E. Knott

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

Maintaining a balance between the dual roles of being both a student and an athlete can be challenging for many college student-athletes. While research has indicated identity conflicts exist for student-athletes because of these two roles, few investigations have analyzed the impact of having dual identities on academic performance. Using identity theory as a theoretical framework, this study sought to determine if relationships exist among athlete identity, student identity, and GPA. In addition, this study examined whether these relationships varied based on gender, race, year in school, major, and sport. A survey instrument that included the Academic and Athletic Identity …

Transfer Pricing Equity: An Examination Of Reported Revenue Versus Expected Revenue, Justin Moore, Harold Harold, Clarence Coleman

The Winthrop McNair Research Bulletin

This research examines whether African crude oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs) sales revenue deviates from expected sales revenue based on market prices. The deviation may be the result of International Oil Companies (IOCs) transferring a significant amount of crude oils and NGLs to other regions of the world to be turned into finished goods, due to the lack of refining capacity in Africa. This situation suggests that the African region’s governments are placed at a significant disadvantage from profiting off the crude oils and NGLs reserves in their countries because they cannot turn the majority of crude oils and …

Scenario-Based Simulation Game For Hospital Beds Capacity Planning In Singapore, Cheong, Michelle L. F., Li Siong Lim

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

A complete learning object with scenario-based simulation game and accompanying materials, which allows self-directed learners to learn and apply the theory, concepts and calculations for capacity planning, in the hospital beds capacity planning scenario in Singapore, was designed, developed and immplemented. It guides the learners through the key considerations for capacity planning, the computation of actual capacity needed, deciding the time for capacity increments, as well as the economies and diseconomies of scale when adding capacity. All the learnings are applied in a scenario where the learners make decision on how much and when to add hospital beds to existing …

The Corporate Social Responsibility In Lidl’S Communication Campaigns In Croatia And The Uk, Martina Topic, Ralph Tench

The Qualitative Report

The purpose of the paper was to investigate whether Lidl uses CSR communication in their Advertising and Communication Campaigns in two different business contexts, and if so, how. The paper built upon existing analyses of CSR Communication by analysing Lidl’s websites in both countries, and went step forward and analysed TV adverts of the company in both countries as well. The analysis discovered importance of the social context in using CSR to promote business, as well as a different communication management strategy where Lidl does not communicate with UK public as extensively as with the Croatian public due to different …

Religion, Local Produce And Sustainability At Religious Sites In Hungary, Alan Clarke, Ágnes Raffay

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

There is a growing awareness of sustainable practices at religious tourism sites and we have observed this in Hungary, with the focus shifting from one aspect of sustainability to incorporating all three major aspects, the environmental, the economic and the socio-cultural (Rees and Wackernagel, 1996). Although the economic aspect used to be predominant (Shackley, 2001; Mangeloja, 2003) now we can find more examples of practices that aim to promote socio-cultural sustainability, while taking the natural environment also into account (Tanguay et al, 2010).

Several religious tourism sites have started to offer local produce in their souvenir shops and to incorporate …

Bp De Silva – Making A Family Business Last Through The Generations, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

How a Singaporean family business survived, and thrived, into a fifth generation

Facilitating A Whole-Life Approach To Career Development: The Role Of Organizational Leadership, Michael L. Litano, Debra A. Major

Psychology Faculty Publications

This article focuses on the whole-life approach to career development. A review of the ways in which career paths have been conceptualized over time demonstrates that increasing consideration has been given to nonwork factors (i.e., personal life and family life) in defining careers. The whole-life perspective on career development acknowledges that employees are striving for opportunities for professional development as well as individualized work-life balance, which changes over the life course. Although the careers literature has emphasized interorganizational mobility as the primary mechanism for achieving these goals, whole-life career development can also be achieved within a single organization when organizational …

What Does Your Workplace Say About Your Company Culture?, Clarence Goh

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

Disengagementin the workplace can create toxic environments – research has linked suchdisengagement with decreased client interactions and reduced collaborativeperformance, increased absenteeism, and a rise in workplace harassment. Arecent State of the American Workplace study conducted byGallup estimated that active disengagement in the workplace costs the UnitedStates between US$450 billion and US$550 billion annually.

Random Number Simulations Reveal How Random Noise Affects The Measurements And Graphical Portrayals Of Self-Assessed Competency, Edward Nuhfer, Christopher Cogan, Steven Fleisher, Eric Gaze, Karl Wirth

Numeracy

Self-assessment measures of competency are blends of an authentic self-assessment signal that researchers seek to measure and random disorder or "noise" that accompanies that signal. In this study, we use random number simulations to explore how random noise affects critical aspects of self-assessment investigations: reliability, correlation, critical sample size, and the graphical representations of self-assessment data. We show that graphical conventions common in the self-assessment literature introduce artifacts that invite misinterpretation. Troublesome conventions include: (y minus x) vs. (x) scatterplots; (y minus x) vs. (x) column graphs aggregated as quantiles; line …

Digital Engagement: Personality Is The Context Of The Text, Diane C. Spencer-Scarr

Proceedings from the Document Academy

This paper examines digital-technology as a tool and an environment with the individuals’ personality at the intersection of the two: Its impact on social memory and the unbound document. With the ubiquitous embedding of digital networked technology in society and the emergence of the unbounded document, humans increasingly obtain information by grasping snippets of decontextualized text sourced through non-human entities from globally dispersed databases that have stripped out context. Then in a Kafkian way humans’ have to build from the middle to make sense of the information snippets. The paper explores how the inherent nature of the individual can be …

The Moderating Role Of Interactional Justice On The Relationship Between Justice And Organizational Citizenship Behavior, Arlene Ramkissoon

All Theses, Dissertations, Capstones, and Applied Clinical Projects

This research was designed to examine the moderating effect of interactional justice on the relationship between justice constructs and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) with organizational identification as a mediator of the influence of justice perceptions on OCB. This study was based heavily on social exchange, the norm of reciprocity, and psychological contracts between individuals and their supervisors. The study sample was comprised of respondents drawn from a crowd sourcing internet website (N = 250). Niehoff and Moorman’s Organizational Justice Scale was used to measure justice perceptions. Mael and Ashforth’s Organizational Identification Scale was used to measure the degree of the …

Portrayals Of Gender In The Media: A Content Analysis Approach To Identifying Gender Oppression And Legitimation Of Patriarchy In Magazine Advertisements, Autumn M. O’Toole

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Advertisements are among the most pervasive forms of media. Portrayals of gender in advertisements constitute a significant subject of social research based on this pervasiveness and the influence that advertising media have on audiences. This influence is based on the notion that media is an institutional vehicle for ideas about products, lifestyles, and oppression. In this study, the institution of media is examined through an analysis of representations of patriarchy and gender oppression in media advertisements. The primary research question is: In what ways can we identify gender oppression and the support of hegemonic masculinity and systems of patriarchy in …

Supporting Sustainability Through Developing A Learning Network Among Traditional Food Producers: Applications Of Action Learning, Paul Coughlan, David Coghlan, Denise O'Leary, Clare Rigg, Doireann Barrett

Articles

Purpose: The chapter describes and reflects upon an EU-funded research initiative, TRADEIT, which has attempted to develop a learning network among European traditional food producers as one way of contributing to the economic sustainability of the ventures, the social sustainability of the food’s regional character, and the environmental sustainability of food production through the use of traditional methods.

Design/methodology/approach: The chapter describes TRADEIT before moving on to an exploration of learning in organizations and networks. It outlines the action learning research methodology developed and implemented to explore the development of a learning network in TRADEIT. A single case history …

Turning To Case Studies As A Mechanism For Learning In Action Learning, Denise O'Leary, Paul Coughlan, Clare Rigg, David Coghlan

Articles

Case studies are a useful means of capturing and sharing experiential knowledge by allowing researchers to explore the social, organisational and political contexts of a specific case. Although accounts of action learning are often reported using a case study approach, it is not common to see individual case studies being used as a learning practice within action learning sets. Drawing on a network action learning (NAL) project, this paper explores how the process of coaching, articulating, authoring, sharing and editing case studies provided a vehicle for learning and research within a NAL set. The intended contribution of this paper to …

Exploring The Importance Of Team Psychological Safety In The Development Of Two Interprofessional Teams, Denise O'Leary

Articles

It has been previously demonstrated that interactions within interprofessional teams are characterised by effective communication, shared decision-making, and knowledge sharing. This article outlines aspects of an action research study examining the emergence of these characteristics within change management teams made up of nurses, general practitioners, physiotherapists, care assistants, a health and safety officer, and a client at two residential care facilities for older people in Ireland. The theoretical concept of team psychological safety (TPS) is utilised in presenting these characteristics. TPS has been defined as an atmosphere within a team where individuals feel comfortable engaging in discussion and reflection without …

Perceptions Of Well-Being In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2016 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy

Nebraska Rural Poll

Rural Nebraskans continue to feel positive about their current situation. Just over one-half (52%) of rural Nebraskans believe they are better off than they were five years ago (holding steady from 53% last year, the highest proportion in all 21 years of this study, tied in 2008). And, rural Nebraskans’ outlook on their future continues to be optimistic. Almost one-half of rural Nebraskans (46%) believe they will be better off ten years from now. In addition, most rural Nebraskans disagree that people are powerless to control their own lives. This year, 55 percent strongly disagree or disagree with that statement. …

Best Practices To Increase Efficacy Of Graduate School Admissions Communications At Clark University, Diana Curran, Nikki Feinberg, Mitchell Kelley, Ruiqi Li, Anning Zhou

School of Professional Studies

Within the period of time that a graduate student deposits and subsequently arrives at their academic institution, receiving timely information is important for their preparation. This process has been deemed by the Deans of the Enterprise Schools at Clark University as one that needs further investigation. As such, this Capstone looks at the array of communication that goes out to each graduate student during this four-month period. The purpose of examining this communication is to analyze its effectiveness in engaging students. To analyze the effectiveness of this communication, surveys were distributed to current students in these schools to gather data …