Business Commons^™

Cleaning The World One Smartlink At A Time, Ryan Zwahlen, Sarah Lucas, Sara Woika, Faith Goforth, Logan Hanreck, Rachel Schirripa

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This project sought to develop the best sales plan for GOJO's currently developing product called SMARTLINK, a technology that transforms any hand soap or hand sanitizer dispenser into a smart dispenser. It allows the user to track current levels of solution among other uses.

Impact Of Experiential Learning In Cross Disciplinary Projects, Cassandra M. Cameron

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

In higher education, immersion in real-world experience is essential for students’ professional development. This paper seeks to examine the facets of importance within experiential learning while participating in cross disciplinary projects. First, an anecdotal experience of participating in a national financial competition as transcribed by the author is provided in Section I. This will provide personal reflection of the various benefits associated with the project. Section II follows with a review of relevant literature to connect the aforementioned benefits to experimental and empirical evidence. Section III provides the manuscript submitted to and chosen as a finalist of the Financial Service …

Finance Day At Ua, Shelby Amatangelo

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Financial stability cannot be built overnight. It takes years of working, saving, investing and planning to develop and maintain financial stability. However, one poor financial decision can destroy a person’s financial stability that they spent years creating. Over 25% of high school students believe that they will be unprepared to manage their finances upon high school graduation (Cooley, 2013). While 43 states require that K-12 standards in financial literacy, only 35 of them are required to be implemented (Heath, 2016). Furthermore, only 17 states require that a high school course in personal finance be taken to graduate and only 6 …

Ua Feature Twirler For A Day, Amy Mellinger

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This analysis includes a description of the first UA Twirler for a Day Event, the preliminary research done on the best practices for planning events such as this, and the process that took place to plan the event. It then goes into an analysis of the planning process, communication, registration, and execution of the event, as well as suggestions for planning similar events.

Blogging As Marketing: From Writing To Revenue, Matthew Headland

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This research paper explores the evolution of writing from a form of self-expression into a tactic to build community and to earn revenue in the form of web logs, or blogs. A history tracing blogging back to personal diaries and journals operates to set the context for the methods by which current day blogs create persona, community, and revenue. Through research conducted utilizing industry reports, academic texts, and professional blog articles, a thorough examination of 3 types of blogs outlines the methods of creating a successful blog and how each type of blog is monetized. Current trends in personal blogging, …

Social Media Strategy For With Purpose, Kelly Lauck

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The intent of my Honors Research Project is to prepare, execute, and analyze a social media strategy as part of an education campaign for the childhood cancer organization With Purpose. The social media campaign that I created was part of a greater public relations campaign for With Purpose. I worked on a four-person team to develop the campaign for the Public Relations Student Society of America’s 2018 Bateman Case Study Competition.

In order to properly prepare and execute the strategy, I conducted a situation analysis to learn more about With Purpose, set social media goals and objectives to provide direction …

2018 Formula Sae Michigan Cost Report: Abbreviated Version, Rachel Rodgers

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Formula SAE Michigan is a collegiate design competition held every year at Michigan International Speedway. The University of Akron Zips Racing competes against 120 other teams in eight different events. The cost event requires a costed bill of materials and outline of how the team's open-wheel formula car is built. The event is scored on the car's total cost, the report's accuracy, and how students redesign components to meet a cost standard. This project is an abbreviated version of the cost report submitted for the 2018 Formula SAE Michigan event. Part drawings have been redacted due to their proprietary nature.

It's A Goodyear For Innovation, Nathaniel Rellinger, Erin Horstman, Miranda Radesic, Layne Mckinley, Nash Smalley, Rachel Starvaggi

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Innovation is nothing new to The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company. The near future will bring another phase of evolution as the focus of tires sales will shift with the growing popularity of ride sharing, car sharing, and autonomous vehicles. For the scope of our project, it initially seemed obvious to use Goodyear’s good name as a selling point for a partnership with car sharing companies. We surveyed students at several colleges across Ohio that have car sharing fleets on campus and asked them about how they utilize the vehicles. After discovering through these interviews that ride sharing was more …

Zips Rifle Endowment Project, Christopher Catalano

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This Research project serves predominantly as a feasibility index for the permanent funding and endowment of the Zips rifle club at the University of Akron. Among the objectives covered was the description and assessment of the clubs financial needs, the calculation of capitalization, and best options for permanent funding.

Your Business Needs To Invest In Artificial Intelligence, Jacob Jones

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Artificial intelligence (AI) is defined as “machines that respond to stimulation consistent with traditional responses from humans, given the human capacity for contemplation, judgment, and intention” by Brookings Institute. According to Amazon, AI is “the field of computer science dedicated to solving cognitive problems commonly associated with human intelligence, such as learning, problem solving, and pattern recognition”. AI has the ability to transform business as there are many applications of AI technology available today that could improve the operations and financials of a business. AI has turned capabilities that previously were only thought about as futuristic into a reality which …

An Analysis Of The Factors Which Effectively Attract College Graduates, Mandy Kaur, Kaleb Oney, Joseph Chadbourne, Kayli Bookman, Benjamin Beckman

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Team Smucker Love was assigned the task of understanding recent graduates’ work environment priorities by the J. M. Smucker company. Through primary and secondary research, the team collaborated and discovered a variety of factors that are important to recent college graduates, as well as other millennials. This research seeks to define a few elements that can sway a recent college graduate whether to ultimately accept a position offered to them. Identified were five key areas of improvement at the target client, the J.M. Smucker Company, including technology in the workplace, work-life balance, workplace layout, work place culture, and amenities offered …

An Analysis Of The Factors Which Effectively Attract College Graduates, Mandy Kaur, Kaleb Oney, Joseph Chadbourne, Kayli Bookman, Benjamin Beckman

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Team Smucker Love was assigned the task of understanding recent graduates’ work environment priorities by the J. M. Smucker company. Through primary and secondary research, the team collaborated and discovered a variety of factors that are important to recent college graduates, as well as other millennials. This research seeks to define a few elements that can sway a recent college graduate whether to ultimately accept a position offered to them. Identified were five key areas of improvement at the target client, the J.M. Smucker Company, including technology in the workplace, work-life balance, workplace layout, work place culture, and amenities offered …