Business Commons^™

Treasury Analysis & The Digital Divide, Alivia Shaver

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper outlines the daily tasks of a Treasury Analyst Intern and highlights the problematic issues that arise from the digital divide in the telecommunications industry.

Exploring Emotional Intelligence As A Determinant Of Sales Performance: An Analysis Using The Ability Model Of Emotional Intelligence, Madison A. Kuntz

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

This multi-phase research project explores the evolving role of emotional intelligence in the sales profession by focusing on four key themes: comprehending the intricacies of the sales field, understanding emotional intelligence, comparing emotional quotient to traditional sales tactics, and ultimately, harnessing emotional intelligence as a sales advantage. The study begins with an in-depth review of emotional intelligence theories and models, ultimately selecting the Ability Model as the framework for further analysis. Using this model, an emotional intelligence assessment was administered to students participating in the Walton College Sales Competition. Statistical analysis was then conducted to determine whether a correlation exists …

Analytics Insights From Text: Machine Learning, Ai, And Sentiment Analysis On Beige Books, Charlie Smith

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

Business analytics is about drawing actionable insights from data. These distinct but connected essays represent a novel approach to explore how natural language processing (NLP) advances and machine learning can transform unstructured text data into actionable conclusions. Essay 1 provides a broad framework. Essay 2 strengthens the sentiment analysis with the most recent artificial intelligence methodologies for capturing nuanced sentiment in complex texts. Essay 3 applies those insights to forecast recessions using topics that can be readily interpreted and applied.

The research demonstrates how these methodologies can be applied to enhance understanding of the same dataset, Beige Books. Published by …

Prescription For Progress: A Retention Plan To Heal The Dying Nurse Workforce, Margaret Curd

Senior Honors Theses

The United States is currently facing an unprecedented nursing shortage which stems from many variables, including a lack of clinical rotation sites for students, increased burnout among current nurses, and a growing retiring workforce. Rising nurse turnover rates negatively impact patient outcomes, which should concern all levels of management. One specific hospital facing such an impact is Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Illinois. This thesis seeks to address their substandard staffing ratios in an extensive, holistic strategic retention plan. Metrics for proving the plan’s success are provided alongside a discussion of proper calculations for each.

Beyond The Paycheck: Crafting A Competitive Benefits Package In American For-Profit And Non-Profit Entities, Olufemi C. Akpona

Senior Honors Theses

This thesis explores the changing landscape of employee benefits and theorizes how benefits can further be formulated to appeal to the specific employee base in every for-profit and non-profit organization. An evaluation is given of common benefits offered in the United States as well as an evaluation of the legal, financial, ethical, and psychological dimensions of providing employee benefits. Finally, an example benefits package is presented in order to illustrate how an organization can provide unique benefits to recruit and retain employees in the communities they operate in.

Investigating Business Cybersecurity Vulnerability And Development Of An Application For Security Awareness Training Platform For Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises, Baijun (Jack Skywalker) Jiang

Senior Honors Theses

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly becoming prime targets for cybercriminals due to their limited IT expertise, inadequate cybersecurity investment, and insufficient security awareness training. The increasing sophistication of social engineering attacks are rendering traditional security awareness programs obsolete, as they fail to effectively promote behavior change. The proposed solution develops a software-based security awareness training program that integrates interactive activities, realistic scenarios, and gamified learning methods to engage employees and facilitate long-term behavioral change towards security awareness. Future research should focus on evaluating the effectiveness of the proposed training program in real-world scenarios to measure its impact on …

U.S. Tax Treatment Of Crypto Assets, Kylie May Schmitt

Senior Honors Theses

Disagreements exist surrounding the proper definition and tax treatment of cryptocurrency. The IRS views crypto assets as a type of intangible property, and most guidance regarding how to include income or loss from cryptocurrency on the relevant tax forms stems from this classification. Crypto asset transactions create either ordinary or capital income or loss, depending on the taxpayer’s reason for holding the assets. This requires keeping track of the cryptocurrency’s fair market value at the time of receipt and disposition. While researchers have not reached a unanimous conclusion, most identify problems with this treatment and instead propose alternative methods, such …

Comparative Analysis Of Regression And Random Forest Models For Player Performance Prediction In The Mls, Joshua Clement Madeti

Senior Honors Theses

Advanced technology and analytics have transformed the world and have benefited several industries throughout, the sport industry being one of them. Data is constantly generated during sports and requires post-game or post-season analysis which is crucial to team and player success. In this paper, the researcher will focus on the impact of analytics on soccer and soccer players. With over three billion active fans, soccer is the most famous sport in the world yet, when it comes to analytics, it is lagging. The thesis includes a comparative study of multiple linear regression and random forest regression to explore whether these …

Dancing In The Digital Age: How Social Media Shapes The Commercial Dance Industry, Luke Lisowski

Honors College Theses

Social media has fundamentally transformed the commercial dance industry, reshaping how dancers establish careers, connect with industry professionals, and promote their artistry. This thesis examines the impact of social media platforms – such as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube – on career growth by facilitating networking opportunities, increasing visibility, and redefining industry standards. The research explores how digital platforms have shifted the traditional pathways to success, enabling dancers to showcase their work independently while also creating challenges related to self-promotion, competition, and mental health.

Through a series of in-depth interviews with professional dancers and choreographers actively working in the industry, this …

How Individuals’ Perceptions Of Health-Related Content On Social Media Are Shaped: The Impact Of Information Sources And Message Characteristics, Grace Mclain Hensley

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and X, serve as major sources of health-related information. However, the credibility and accuracy of this information remain a critical concern. This study used a 2 x 3 between subject experiment design to examine the effects of two information sources (individual influencers, nonprofit organizations) and three message types (general message, message with statistics, message with testimony) on perceived credibility and engagement. Participants were recruited through two primary channels to ensure a diverse and engaged sample. First, an email invitation was distributed by the head of the Butler University Honors Program to all students within …

Preying For A Spot At The Table Examining Regulatory Policies And Solutions To Combat Predatory Microfinance Practices, Nicholas R. Brenner

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Microfinance involves financial services such as small loans, savings accounts, and insurance to low-income populations typically excluded from traditional financial markets. While the services it provides can encourage entrepreneurship and work to alleviate poverty, insufficient regulation can lead to borrower exploitation and continued cycles of debt. This thesis explores the regulations leading to successful microfinance outcomes. Particularly, the variance in outcomes between Ghana and Jordan will be examined as a case study. In Ghana’s Wa West District, effective policies and financial literacy programs have enabled microfinance to promote economic growth. In the country of Jordan, however, a lack of strict …

Changing The Game: Examining The Impacts Of Name, Image, And Likeness Legislation On Dominance Within Ncaa Division 1 Men’S Basketball, Jaclyn Noel Lawrence

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

On July 1, 2021, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) implemented a policy change allowing collegiate athletes to benefit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL), enabling them to earn additional income through partnerships without penalty. This shift sparked widespread debate regarding its potential impact on competitive balance and dominance within college athletics—a principle the NCAA has long cited in defense of its amateurism model. Controlling for player, coach, and institutional characteristics, this study estimates a comprehensive model to assess the relationship between the presence of NIL opportunities and team success. We found no evidence that NIL alone has significantly …

Beyond The Numbers: Redefining Accounting To Attract The Next Generation Of Professionals, Ella Million

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

The demand for accountants and auditors is projected to grow by 6% from 2023 to 2033, yet the number of students entering the profession is declining. In the 2021-2022 academic year, the number of U.S. accounting graduates fell by 7.4%, marking the largest single-year decline since at least 1994-1995 (AICPA 2023). This decrease in new entrants contrasts with the growing industry need, raising concerns about the long-term sustainability of the profession. Research suggests that perceptions of accounting as routine, solitary, and lacking creativity or social engagement may contribute to students opting for other business fields (Steenkamp & Wessels 2009). Given …

Mary Kay Reimagined, Allison Terveer

Theses

This project is taking the brand Mary Kay and turning it into a new brand that would be enticing to younger generations and become a staple in everyone and anyone’s routines. Mary Kay was a huge makeup brand in the 1990s and early 2000s, but the cosmetic industry has grown tremendously, and Mary Kay has fallen behind. They mostly target the older generations, the generations that were supporting them in the 1990s and 2000s. They need to expand their target range and get younger consumers to pay attention to them. With updated packaging, new marketing and a new way to …

The Impact Of Tik Tok Marketing On Consumer Behavior In The Fashion Industry: Strategies For Effective Engagement And Sales Conversation, Latoya Burns

Theses

This thesis investigates the impact of TikTok marketing on consumer behavior within the fashion industry, focusing on strategies for effective engagement and sales conversion. As social media platforms, particularly TikTok, reshape the dynamics of fashion marketing, this research explores how short-form video content, influencer partnerships, and user-generated content (UGC) drive brand awareness, loyalty, and purchasing decisions among consumers, especially Gen Z and millennials. The study compares TikTok’s effectiveness to traditional marketing channels, highlighting the platform’s ability to foster interactive, real-time engagement and democratize trendsetting through its algorithm-driven content delivery. The thesis uses quantitative research to examine how TikTok influences consumer …

Employee Experiences With Human Resources Management In Nonprofit Organizations, Jacquelyn Vari

Health Studies Capstones

When we discuss “Human Resources Management” what we really mean to discuss is the way that the people and employees are treated and accounted for in an organizational setting. There are many different approaches that organizations can have to human resources management, and nonprofit organizations in particular often have different degrees of management ranging from a staff member managing the whole program to having an external person handle singular processes like recruiting, onboarding, and personnel investigations. But how does a nonprofit’s handling of human resources management concerns affect the wellbeing of employees in an organization? And do employers have the …

Life Cycle Analysis Of Cosmetic Products -- Assessing Environmental Sustainability And Potential Impacts, Karina Magro Machado

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The cosmetic industry has a significant environmental footprint due to its reliance on water, energy, petrochemical-derived ingredients, and plastic-based packaging. This study performs a cradle-to-grave Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) to evaluate the environmental impacts of three cosmetic products: CeraVe Daily Moisturizing Lotion, bareMinerals Gen Nude Powder Blush, and Gillette Foamy Regular Shave Cream. The analysis was conducted using OpenLCA software and free databases, modeling each product across raw materials, packaging, manufacturing, transportation, use and end-of-life phases. The results showed that the shave cream had the highest environmental burden to three out of the four categories, especially in consumption and carbon …

Creative Brief For Wk Kellogg's Co, Sarah K. Johnson

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

In recent years, cereal, the once classic and essential breakfast food has been losing its market share and overall sales in the breakfast category. WK Kellogg’s cereal brands include Frosted Flakes, Froot Loops, Frosted Mini Wheats, Special K, Rice Krispies, Raisin Bran, Corn Flakes, and more, yet their sales have been falling. They now face a challenge, as consumers become more cost and health conscious, how can cereal be made fun again? What ways can they engage with new audiences and further excite current customers? After conducting research, I have developed a creative brief and strategic pitch that include solutions …

Developing Standard Operating Procedures For The Dewitt Town Clerk’S Office, Noura M. Osman

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

ABSTRACT OF PROJECT

Developing Standard Operating Procedures for the DeWitt Town Clerk’s Office

This project addresses the operational inconsistencies in the DeWitt Town Clerk’s Office in Syracuse, NY, by creating a structured Standard Operating Procedures (SOP's) manual. The focus is on six high-impact processes: tax collection, water bill payments, dog licensing (new and renewals), marriage license transcript requests, and handicap parking permit issuance and renewal. Each SOP includes visual info-graphics to enhance accessibility and minimize errors. The final product is designed to improve on-boarding, reduce staff reliance on memory, increase efficiency, and align with creativity and change leadership principles.

Framework For Enhanced Intergenerational Connectivity (Eic): A Professional Program Development Report, Amanda Michelle Reigle

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This program development report documents the implementation and facilitation of the Sages and Seekers pilot program at California State University, San Bernardino (Palm Desert Campus) from 2022 to 2025. Grounded in communication theory, intergroup contact principles, and instructional design, the report outlines a structured intergenerational intervention aimed at enhancing empathy, connection, and understanding between older and younger adults. Drawing from facilitator observations and program implementation experiences, this work led to the creation of the Framework for Enhanced Intergenerational Connectivity (EIC), a five-point planning model emphasizing leadership, facilitation, administrative support, participant continuity, and structured program design.

The EIC framework is accompanied …

Shortage To Surge - Studying The Post-Covid-19 Guitar Retail Market, Jed H. Kim

Data Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

The COVID-19 pandemic was one of the most catalyzing events of the 21st century, leading to supply chain disruptions, lifestyle changes, and a massive shift towards digital technologies. During the COVID-19 lockdown, many people had more free time, and over 16 million individuals learned to play guitar in the first 2 years of the pandemic. According to a study by Fender, 62% of these new guitar learners cited the pandemic as their primary reason for learning the instrument. However, pandemic policies and supply chain disruptions meant that many guitar retailers were unable to satisfy demand, and backorders accumulated. After the …

Computer Vision In Soccer: Yolov11 Analytics Engine For Quantifying Game Strategy, Connor S. Maurer

Data Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Single-shot object detection capabilities significantly reduce computational overhead for real-time computer vision in sports analytics at 60 FPS. YOLO11’s lightweight CNN gives promising accuracy while meeting the low-latency demand of dynamic soccer matches. As data-driven approaches take over the sport of soccer, efficient player tracking systems become critical for informing coach’s strategies. I prototype the ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) process of data collected from a single- shot detection program and evaluate its viability for estimating player fatigue. YOLO11 detects players, the ball, and other characteristics, with the output transformed by homography to estimate the positions in the real world. These …

An Analysis Of Liv Golf: Examining The Ethical And International Relations Issues Associated With Saudi Arabia’S Sportswashing Project, George Gilbertson, Tyler Sasser

Undergraduate Research (Journal)

LIV Golf (LIV) shocked the world with its emergence in 2022. This project explores the impact that LIV has had on the sport, as well as the broader societal implications of the new Saudi Arabian backed golf league. First, an analysis of how LIV is changing golf at the professional level is conducted, concluding that LIV is creating positive change due to the elevated compensation for athletes and increased attention on golf’s biggest tournaments. Following this discussion, the geopolitical impacts, as well as the ethical issues, tied to LIV are examined. Since LIV poses little to no threat to international …

Identifying Best Practices In Small Business Meetings: An Importance-Performance Gap Analysis, Ashley R. Euritt, Nick J. Johnston

Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

Meetings are crucial for small businesses, yet many struggle to plan them effectively due to limited resources. This study examines the gap between the perceived importance and actual performance of 14 meeting planning attributes in small businesses. Through an online survey and Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA), the study finds that attributes such as setting SMART goals and having employees arrive on time and engage before meetings are highly valued but underperformed. The study also emphasizes the importance of leadership, communication, and technology skills for successful meeting planning. The 5 Ps framework (Purpose, Participants, Planning, Participation, Perspective) is studied to evaluate the …

Reap What You Sow: Using Historic Enrollment Data To Strategically Recruit Students, Hayden Cherry

Honors Theses

As the higher education landscape continues to become more competitive, adapting our marketing strategies to affordably recruit students will be imperative to maintaining both relevance and financial stability. Research has predicted an increase in tension as institutions weather the enrollment cliff, a period characterized by a steep decline in the number of college-age students in the United States. While this research is useful in informing our outlook in the coming years, there is little research surrounding the most efficacious methods for recruiting college students. Using data from Mississippi State University's Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness on student status and …

Hdwsa2: A Secure Hierarchical Deterministic Wallet Supporting Stealth Address And Signature Aggregation, Xin Yin, Zhen Liu, Guomin Yang, Guoxing Chen, Haojin Zhu

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Hierarchical Deterministic Wallet (HDW) and Stealth Address (SA) are widely used in cryptocurrency communities due to their functionality and security. In the preliminary version of this work (ESORICS 2022), we formally define the syntax and security models of Hierarchical Deterministic Wallet supporting Stealth Address (HDWSA), capturing the functionality and security requirements imposed by the practice in cryptocurrency. We propose a concrete HDWSA construction and prove its security in the random oracle model. Note that when applied in blockchain, in practice, signature aggregation could reduce the cost of computation, storage, and communication dramatically. In this full version, we develop HDWSA definition …

The Straining Effect Of House V Ncaa On College Athletics Departments, Sullivan W. Scott

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis examines the implications of the House v. NCAA ruling on collegiate athletic departments, particularly in light of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) compensation and the NCAA's new revenue-sharing model. Through analysis of programs like Tennessee, Arkansas, and Auburn, this research reveals how schools are attempting to rethink revenue strategies, leveraging corporate partnerships, subscription models, and donor collectives to remain competitive. It also highlights disparities between Power 4 programs and smaller Division I schools, raising concerns over widening resource gaps, Title IX compliance, and roster reductions. Ultimately, this study concludes that while NIL reforms address athlete equity, they also …

Rigged Or Random? How Angry Bettors, Game Fixing, And Controversy Affect The Integrity Of The Sports World, Ryan S. Bostik

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper explores how the legalization of sports betting has fueled fan outrage, athlete harassment, and mistrust in professional and collegiate athletics. It explores the psychology of sports gamblers, the role of social media and online betting, and recent scandals in the sports world. It also highlights the measures being taken by the NCAA, government, and professional sports leagues to protect athletes and maintain integrity. This paper ultimately questions whether true integrity can be maintained in a sports world increasingly influenced by gambling.

Saving Grace Nwa & Immerse Arkansas Internships: An Analysis Of Arkansas Nonprofits Serving Youth In Crisis Situations, Raegan A. Mcelmurry

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

In the United States, there are 23,000 youth each year who age out of foster care (Morris, 2021). Aging out occurs when the youth turn 18 and are no longer under the provision of child welfare, as they are considered legal adults. Most of these youth, however, do not have stable support systems to fall back on, due to not being adopted during their time in the system. Because of the lack of financial and emotional support, 20% will immediately encounter homelessness, 60% will engage in criminal activity, and 50% will have no steady income within four years removed from …

Creative Brief For North Shores Resort & Marina, Shelby B. King

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

In today’s experience-driven travel market, destinations that offer authenticity, affordability, and a sense of community stand out. North Shores Resort and Marina, located on the scenic northeast end of Lake Ouachita, has long been a hidden gem offering a strong sense of family and community, prolonged camper stays, and more economical pricing compared to nearby marinas. Despite consistently high occupancy rates for boat slips and campsites, North Shores has an opportunity to expand its visibility and grow its customer base through improved marketing strategies. As a former employee with direct insight into the day-to-day operations, I identified key areas where …