Business Commons^™

Analysis And Implications Of Guest Attitudes Towards Queuing In Theme Parks, Austin Lemaster

HIM 1990-2015

Queue lines are a fundamental inevitably of the modern theme park. Parks have begun to introduce various systems for combating the normal queue, some of which are at no extra cost to guests and some of which are an extra cost. These systems feature a variety of methods by which guests can bypass the normal queue and enter one featuring a minimal wait. Parks have also started to introduce elements within queues that make waiting in them easier and change guests’ perception of time, thus making the waits seem shorter. This thesis attempts to determine the attitudes of guests towards …

Does Corporate Inversion Lead To Tax Savings?, Nathan P. Downs

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

Corporate Inversion

Scentsational Marketing In Business: A Study Of Scent Atmospherics, Jordan Thomas

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This research will evaluate a marketing tool called atmospherics. This tool, although very powerful in capturing a consumer’s interest through the use of memories and the overall aspect of buying, is sometimes forgotten when constructing a marketing plan. The thesis will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses when using this marketing tool and then apply those characteristics to a specific example of a bakery.

Social Good And The Competitive Advantage Of Doing It Well, Morris Shawn

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this study then is to show that though social good has become largely common in Corporate America, very few businesses are doing social good well. This creates an opportunity for competitive advantage and for a few businesses to capitalize on it.

Analiza E Efekteve Të Krizës Financiare Në Menaxhimin E Riskut : Rasti I Sektorit Bankar Të Kosovës, Faton Hasolli

Theses and Dissertations

Menaxhimi i riskut është një disiplinë e pozicionuarthellë në esencën e çdo institucioni financiar dhe përfshinë të gjitha aktivitetet që ndikojnë në profilin e saj të riskut. Menaxhimi i riskut në përgjithësi përfshinë identifikimin, matjen, monitorimin dhe kontrollin eriskut financiar.

Pavarësisht nga fakti se ekzistojnë një varg metodash për menaxhimin e riskut në sektorin bankar, raportohet se ky lloj tëriskut qënë vazhdimësi paraqet problem fundamental.Ngjarjet e vitit 2008 të ndërlidhura me krizën financiare janë një mësim i fuqishëm nga i cili kuptojmë se risku në sektorin bankar mund të jetë i paparashikueshëm e nganjëherë i parashikueshëm por i pamundur të …

Labor Force Commute Mode Preferences And The Natural Environment, Brandon Killen

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

In commuting to work, commuters select from a limited variety of transportation modes, including alternative modes like cycling and walking, based on needs and preferences. Understanding these needs and preferences, and how the conditions of the immediate environment can influence them can benefit both businesses and local governments in their efforts to accommodate the commute needs of their workers and better serve their communities. Though the body of commute preference research has grown significantly over recent decades, the study of the effects of the natural environment has remained mostly overlooked. In my research, I examined the relationships between selected weather …

Kinder Morgan’S Master Limited Partnership Reorganization, Brett Doyel

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

The main objective of this paper is to investigate the reorganization of Kinder Morgan’s (KMI) master limited partnership (MLP) structure. In October 2014, four publicly traded companies – Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE: KMI), Kinder Morgan Energy Partners, L.P. (NYSE: KMP), Kinder Morgan Management, LLC (NYSE: KMR), and El Paso Pipeline Partners, L.P. (NYSE: EPB) – were merged under the Kinder Morgan, Inc. name. This study analyzes the consolidation of KMI through the use of qualitative and quantitative research. The qualitative research involves the study of the company’s 10-K reports, earnings call transcripts, and energy sector reports. The quantitative research includes …

An Analysis Of The Changing Competitive Landscape In The Hotel Industry Regarding Airbnb, Dean D. Lehr

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

This thesis analyzes the competition between hotels and Airbnb in San Francisco. Airbnb is an internet platform that allows hosts to rent shared space, private rooms or homes to tourists. This study identifies the affect Airbnb has on hotels, workers, renters, neighborhoods, and tax revenue.

Interviews and research was engaged with travel industry professionals. Hoteliers were found to be apathetic about the competition between hotels and Airbnb.

Airbnb can be a meaningful experience between hosts and tourists. Budget travelers might not travel if not for low Airbnb rates. Airbnb rooms supplement hotel inventory during extraordinary events.

This utopian view …

The Corporate Social Responsibility And Financial Performance Debate, Andrew K. Nunn

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

Much controversy surrounds the theoretical link between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and financial performance. Many different empirical studies have reached conclusions that this link is either positive, neutral, negative, or non-existent. In this paper, a thorough literature review is conducted seeking an explanation for the contradiction and disagreement present in current literature on the subject. Six key factors causing this contradiction were highlighted and examined in the review. A comprehensive understanding of the contradiction in this field will help researchers avoid historic pitfalls in future research, and may eventually lead to a definitive understanding of the financial implications of CSR. …

Self-Concept And Product Extension: Why Some Products “Wear In” While Others “Wear Out”, Carmen M. Hawkins

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

An Information Privacy Examination Of The Practices Of Pharmaceutical Companies Regarding Use Of Information Collected Through Their Websites, Shonda Dellena Brown

CCAC Theses and Dissertations

Consumers have begun to take a more proactive approach to their healthcare by accessing pharmaceutical companies Websites to obtain health and drug information, support groups, rebates, coupons, as well as free drug trials. In exchange for these benefits, companies require consumers to voluntarily disclose information. However, research has shown that consumers continue to be concerned about how their information is managed, used, and distributed by companies, especially if accessed via the Web. To date, there has been limited empirical research to examine the actual online practices of companies when it comes to privacy, especially those of pharmaceutical companies. Using Delphi …

An Empirical Development Of Critical Value Factors For System Quality And Information Quality In Business Intelligence Systems Implementations, Paul Dooley

CCAC Theses and Dissertations

Business intelligence (BI) systems have been widely recognized as a leading technology for many years. However, despite the high priority and importance placed on BI, there has been a significant lack of BI system implementation (BISI) success. BI systems are not considered to be conventional information systems (IS) and often rely on the integration of a complex information infrastructure. Consequently, the degree of information quality (IQ) and system quality (SQ) have not met expectations for BISI success.

This study was designed to determine how an organization may gain benefits in the context of BISI by uncovering the antecedents and critical …

Analysis Into The Effect The Sarbanes-Oxley Act Of 2002 Has Had On Investor Confidence In Audited Financial Statements, Richard F. Pino Iii

Business/Business Administration

This paper studies the impact that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) has had on investor confidence in audited financial statements. Most studies of SOX examined its effect on audit quality, but the principal goal that government officials wanted to accomplish was to restore investor confidence in audited financial information following the frauds at Enron, WorldCom, and other public companies. The main method used in gathering data is a small survey to investors, where they answered questions regarding certain parts of SOX to gain insights into investors’ perspectives. After analyzing the survey results as well as researching scholarly works on …

A Commentary On Women In The Workforce: Has The Issue Of Gender Discrimination Pierced Through To The Accounting Profession?, Jennifer A. Roman

Accounting

The following is intended to be a theoretical commentary on the issue of gender discrimination against women in the modern professional workforce. The content is designed to discuss the issue at hand and explain its pertinence within modern society. The relevant discussion will suggest that there seems to be a sufficient quantity of anecdotal evidence in order to suggest that this issue may have penetrated the accounting profession. This raises the concern that women may be experiencing discrimination within the accounting profession, in terms of leadership roles, monetary earnings, and employer-provided benefits. Ultimately, this discussion will raise questions to be …

Coins In The Air: A Literature Review On The Evolving Framework Of Bitcoin And Its Relevance To The Accounting Profession, Javin H. Forrester

Accounting

Bitcoin is an innovative virtual currency, which has gained much commercial traction, yet is widely overlooked by the accounting profession. Due to its parallels with actual currencies and its growing use, accountants should be aware of what bitcoin is, including its risks and benefits, in order to properly leverage its business uses. Of the existing financial instruments, derivatives stand out in their potential to stabilize the bitcoin market. Bitcoin regulation is sparse, but evolving, especially in the face of the emerging bitcoin securities and derivatives markets. The accounting profession is poised to play a major role in facilitating the future …

Nike Marketing Strategy: A Company To Imitate, Patrick Flynn

Accounting

This paper takes an in depth look at how Nike became the largest company in its industry and how other companies across various industries have tried to model Nike’s plan for success. At the heart of Nike’s business plan are the company’s unique marketing strategy and culture that significantly helps foster innovation and creativity. First I will go into a brief history of the company and its most popular brand. Then an in-depth analysis will be provided of these two important pillars of success. The next part of the paper will focus on how other companies in the same industry …

The Controversy Of Mandatory Audit Firm Rotation: Has Quantitative Accounting Research Misinformed Us About The Relationship Between Audit Tenure And Audit Quality?, Courtney Stern

Accounting

There is controversy between regulators and audit firms over the policy of mandatory audit firm rotation. Many regulators favor mandatory audit firm rotation whereas audit firms are against such a policy. Regulators argue that mandatory firm rotation would improve audit quality while audit firms claim that audit quality increases with audit tenure. Typically, regulators and audit firms refer to academic research that supports their position. One early paper on mandatory audit firm rotation that is commonly cited by academics and opponents of mandatory rotation is Carcello and Nagy (2004), which finds that longer audit tenure does not reduce audit quality. …

Effects Of Tax Evasion In The United States, Matthew Morse

Accounting

This study identifies, highlights and approaches the economic impact imposed by tax evasion. Tax evasion is overlooked as a common matter, but the economic consequences of not alleviating evasion can be deadly. This paper utilizes a collection of research to define tax evasion. From the literature it will provide a history of income taxation in the United States as it relates to tax evasion. The effect of tax havens have on the amount of tax evasion is approached according to literature. Specific cases of evasion are mentioned to further evaluate the effect of tax evasion on the United States economy. …

Large American Banks And Economic Recovery: A Look At 2009 And 2014, Robert Bonilla

Accounting

I analyzed the financial performance and stock performance of the largest four banks in the United States after the banking crisis of 2008. By using 2009, the year that recovery for the financial sector began, as a benchmark, I could determine the level of success each of the four banks reached in 2014 in relation to themselves and to one another. Using simple, but effective ratios and equations I could compare the efficiency with which upper management in each company has made use of asset, debt, and equity accounts. My results support the fact that larger accounts do not necessarily …

Exploring The Fantasy World Of Internet Gambling, Bobby Philip Meek

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis explores the gambling activities arising from Fantasy Sports Leagues, in particular the gambling behavior of college students within these leagues. In my research, I investigated the development of the industry, the rules and surrounding internet gambling, and conducted a survey of college students over their Fantasy Sports behavior.

The Effect Of Showrooming On Specialty Retailers: Leveraging A Framework For Success, Erin Jodi Belk

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

As technology continues to increasingly infiltrate the lives of consumers around the globe, retailers are being faced with new challenges. Not only is there a push for retailers to be faster and more responsive, but retailers are also expected to have high integration across all channels. Over the past few years, as online shopping expanded and e-commerce became the norm, phenomena such as showrooming — consumers using their phones to comparison shop in stores — seemed like the evident and looming death of brick and mortar retailers (Adler, 2013). Historically, offline retailers have tried various methods to eliminate showrooming, going …

Application Of Heritage Tourism Development Frameworks To Jenkins County, Georgia, Shelby R. Herrin

Honors College Theses

With the decline of traditional agriculture and extraction industries, many small towns in the Southeast US are facing challenges of economic decline and looking for alternative development trajectories. The city of Millen in Jenkins County, Georgia is one of such small towns. With the discovery of a large Civil War heritage resource, Millen’s administration became interested in developing the town’s tourism potential. However, the community possesses neither the resources nor knowledge to develop and promote this potential. In this project, the combination of Gunn’s functioning tourism system model as a conceptual framework and Jamal and Getz’s three-step collaborative community tourism …

The Washington Redskins: A Brand In Crisis, Jonathan Benson

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Even though it is not new, the debate over the use of the brand and logo by the Washington Redskins has come to the forefront of the collective consciousness. With this debate in mind, I completed a study to answer two questions. Should the Redskins change its brand and logo? And must the Redskins change their brand and logo? In order to complete the study, a survey was conducted with undergraduate students that gathered more than 300 complete responses. After gathering and analyzing the data, I was able to draw conclusions. The first conclusion being that the Washington Redskins should …

The Influence Of Direct To Consumer Advertising Of Oral Contraceptives And The Consumer’S Attitudes And Perceptions That Ensue, Olivia A. Till

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper seeks to gain a better understanding of the influence that Direct-to-Consumer Advertising has on the willingness of a consumer to request a prescription of a particular brand of birth control. More specifically, it assesses how willing a consumer is to undertake the risk of potentially serious side effects to gain some advantageous secondary effect. In this case, the promise of clearer skin for mild to moderate acne was the secondary benefit promoted. Participants were given an advertisement for the fictitious brand of oral contraceptive, Ortho TriRegularis. One group received a version with minor side effects, while another group …

The Future Of Shrimp: Why Indoor Tank Farming Could Revolutionize The Industry, Nicole M. Daniels

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

“The United States is currently importing 1.2 billion pounds of shrimp a year from Asia. It is cheap to U.S. consumers, but it’s being produced in an unsustainable way. It will stop…and when it does stop there has to be an alternative way to produce seafood” (Hourigan, 2013, p.1). Because the shrimp supply crisis is growing exponentially, it is the job of countries like the United States, who have resources and technology that less economically developed countries do not, to find a sustainable alternative to the current destructive farming practices that are rapidly damaging ecosystems and endangering human health. In …

The Effectiveness Of Modern Advertising At Achieving Brand Remembrance, Connor P. Robertson

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

The relationship between aspects of modern commercial advertising, such as use of storytelling, positive and negative emotional factors, and message content, and their effect on achieving correct brand remembrance with the commercial’s viewers was studied. One hundred sixty subjects completed a survey that prompted them to remember the brands associated with five different commercials shown during the 2015 Super Bowl, as well as asked other questions about each commercial and the subjects’ television viewing habits. Results showed that a very small percentage of viewers correctly remembered the brand associated with commercials they had seen, and that this correct brand remembrance …

Zipcar: Unlocking The Keys To Alternative Mobility For Aarhus University Students And Professionals Of The Community, Natascha D. Bunner

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Zipcar is a company which has revolutionized the mobility of its users and is currently the world leader of car-sharing networks (Zipcar, 2015). A member of the industry powerhouse, Avis Budget Group, Inc., with operations currently in the United States, Canada, UK, France, Spain, and Austria, Zipcar is looking to expand its market share and total sales internationally. This report sets forth to analyze the potential market of Aarhus, Denmark for Zipcar. The report is essentially a marketing plan for Zipcar to enter the community of Aarhus, Denmark which contains competent cultural, economic, industry analyses for the intended product and …

Student Organization Success: Developing A Business Plan For The University Of Arkansas American Marketing Association Collegiate Chapter, Candace Brooke Gooding

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper explores best practices and original research to develop suggestions for the University of Arkansas American Marketing Association Collegiate Chapter in order to face an upcoming change in officer structure. Previously relying on a class structure for officers, University of Arkansas AMA is transitioning to leadership completely outside the classroom. College students involved in various organizations across the country were surveyed in order to find commonalities between organizations and perceptions of organizations. Similarities, combined with previous literature, were used as a basis for developing recommendations.

Revenue Recognition – Milestone Method (Topic 605) 2010 Amendment: From The R&D Industry Perspective, Sofia I. Tent

Honors Theses

This paper examines the Revenue Recognition – Milestone Method (RRMM), FASB codification amendment of 2010 and its effect on the health of firms heavily dependent on the Research and Development (R&D), as evidenced by the operating profit margin. By utilizing a two-stage OLS model developed by Lev and Sougiannis (1996), this study measures the effect of the adoption of the RRMM on operating profit margin. The sample includes U.S. firms with significant R&D expenses (a R&D expenses/Sales ratio greater than 2%) for the years 2006-2013. Due to the more rapid recognition of income using the RRMM, I expect the operating …

Terrorized Tourists: A Study Of The Impact Of Terrorism On Tourism, Caroline M. Depuma

Honors Theses

Tourism is one of the largest sectors in the world; it is also one of the first to take a hit when terrorist attacks happen. Terrorism data has become more important to the tourism and travel industry since the attacks on September 11, 2001. This study looks at the impact that terrorism has on tourism levels, Gross Domestic Product, and Foreign Direct Investment in the countries of Brazil, Egypt, India, Russia, and the United Kingdom. The results of this study show that terrorism affects the daily operations of these countries, by impacting the amounts of GDP, FDI, and the number …