Business Commons^™

Dangling Bridge Builders: Exploring The Personal And Professional Experiences Of Dei Executives With Workplace Belonging, David E. Jackson

PhD in Organizational Leadership

This phenomenological study explores the experiences of African American chief diversity officers (CDO) with workplace belonging in organizations where they implement diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) initiatives. Through interviews with six CDOs across various sectors, the research examines how their backgrounds, identities, and organizational climates influence their perceptions and experiences of belonging. The study reveals five key themes: organizational experience, systemic disruption, identity politics, environmental incongruence, and workplace resilience. Findings indicate that CDOs often face unique challenges related to their marginalized identities, systemic barriers, and organizational resistance to change. Their journeys to leadership are characterized by personal experiences with …

Alumni Giving At A Christian Liberal Arts College That Originated As A Bible College, Joel K. Johnson

PhD in Organizational Leadership

Alumni giving is a critical revenue stream for Christian liberal arts colleges that originated as Bible institutions. This dissertation includes an in-depth case study of the patterns and determinants of alumni donations, focusing on the transition from Bible colleges to liberal arts institutions and the subsequent impact on alumni giving behaviors. Quantitative data from a member institution of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities were analyzed to explore the influence of demographic variables of age, marital status, and era of institutional operation on alumni contributions. This research addressed six key questions, including comparisons of the participants' mean giving to …

The Influence Of Organizational Culture On Mission Drift In A Christian University, Mark Reddy

PhD in Organizational Leadership

This study addressed a critical gap in the literature by investigating the relationship between organizational culture and mission drift within Christian higher education. While mission drift has been widely discussed in popular press, limited academic research has explored the factors influencing it, particularly organizational culture. Utilizing the Denison Organizational Culture Survey (DOCS) and the Mission Drift Survey, this study evaluated how culture influences mission clarity and safeguards against mission drift in a Christian university. Findings reveal that consistency and mission from the DOCS are strong predictors of mission clarity, with both showing statistical significance (p < .001). In addition, the DOCS elements predicted safeguards against mission drift through consistency and mission at the significance level of p < .05. The study’s results highlight the importance of consistency and mission in combating mission drift, offering Christian higher education institutions practical insights for reinforcing their foundational goals. Additionally, the research contributed to validating the Mission Drift Survey in an academic context, broadening its potential application beyond business and into higher education sectors. This topic is growing, and further research is needed to expand on these findings and explore additional organizational cultural factors.

The Role Of Leader-Member Exchange In Building High Performers, Akeem J. Robinson

PhD in Organizational Leadership

This qualitative case study examined the critical factors that affect job satisfaction, commitment, and overall performance among high performers recognized as Employee-of-the-Month (EOM) winners within multiple healthcare systems, as well as insights from professionals in human resources, education, and higher education sectors, to provide a broader understanding of leadership dynamics and performance across different industries. By exploring how these award-winning employees perceive and navigate their relationships within the organizational hierarchy and among their peers, the results provide valuable insights into the relational qualities that influence their interactions with both leaders and team members. The study leveraged the leader-member exchange (LMX) …

A Study On The Impact Of Relationship Strength In Technological Collaboration Networks, Absorptive Capacity, And Leadership Regulatory Focus On Team Ambidextrous Innovation, Zhen Li

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

In the context of rapid global economic development, competition among enterprises has become increasingly fierce, making innovation the core driving force for maintaining competitive advantage and promoting sustainable development. This paper explores the impact of relationship strength within technological collaboration networks, absorptive capacity, and leadership regulatory focus on incremental and radical innovation. The study finds that while relationship strength has no significant impact on incremental innovation, it has a negative effect on radical innovation. The absorptive capacity within technological collaboration networks positively influences both types of innovation. The research also highlights the critical role of leadership regulatory focus: High prevention-focus …

Impact Of Industrial Park Platforms On Sme Financing: Evidence From The Ld Park, Zhendong Liu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are essential to the Chinese economy. However, when seeking financing, SMEs often face stricter financing conditions and higher financing costs due to information asymmetry in the market, commonly referred to as the problem of “difficult and expensive financing.” This issue severely limits the growth potential of SMEs. This study explores the positive role that industrial parks play as a bridge between banks and SMEs in alleviating the “difficult and expensive financing” problem. The study surveyed 54 industrial parks and collected 268 valid questionnaires from banks, industrial parks, and SMEs. The data analysis yielded the following …

Competing In The Stress Olympics: Mid-Level Managers And Their Experiences Of Work Stress As Impacted By Their Supervisors And Organizational Climate, Melissa Jane Hecker Scott

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Student affairs has a problem due to staff attrition (Rosser & Javinar, 2003). Most professionals leave the field due to job dissatisfaction, unhealthy work environments, high stress, and low morale (Marshall et al., 2016; Rosser & Javinar, 2003). Researchers have identified a relationship between job stress and burnout and intentions to leave the field of student affairs (Mullen et al., 2018). Turnover of positions is financially detrimental to the institution due to the cost of recruitment, hiring, and training the replacement employee (Agovino, 2019). In addition to the financial impact, when mid-level managers leave, there is a loss of institutional …

Writing A Course Guide “Fashion Design: A Guide To The Apparel Industry”, Rosemary P. Durfee

Theses

This project focuses on improving course materials for the author, among others, to use as a teaching resource for undergraduate apparel design students. The primary focus is to compile information from various resources and industry knowledge gained first-hand by the author. This project aims to create a course guide that can easily integrate with current Fashion Design and Merchandising courses taught at the college level.

Unraveling Grief: Historical Mourning Wear And Modern Reinterpretations, Sharon Caitlin Carpenter

Theses

Sharon Carpenter's thesis, "Unraveling Grief: Historical Mourning Wear and Modern Reinterpretations," explores the evolution of mourning fashion from ancient times to modern reinterpretations. Carpenter examines how mourning attire has historically reflected cultural attitudes toward death and grief, serving both personal and societal functions. The thesis traces mourning practices across civilizations, beginning with ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, where clothing symbolized beliefs in purity and the afterlife. It moves through the Middle Ages and the Victorian era, where mourning wear became heavily ritualized, particularly influenced by Queen Victoria’s deep grief for Prince Albert. This formalization of mourning attire impacted social norms and …

Digital Marketing And Consumer Consumption Of Breast-Pumps On Social Media, Leanne Clark

Theses

A breast pump brassiere, designed to provide hands free experience for the mother when collecting mother's milk, and which integrates various operative components in the category of a micro pump, at least one suction cup, and a milk reservoir, preferably within each cup, to provide for hands free collection of expressed milk, as desired and required by the mother for use in the feeding of her infant.

Construction And Empirical Assessment Of An Employee Health Management Index System For Chinese Enterprises, Ming Dong

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Purpose: Employee health management is critical for enhancing corporate productivity, and scientific evaluation is core to effective health management practices. This study aims to construct an evaluation index system for assessing the employee health management effectiveness tailored to China’s national conditions (Hereinafter called “evaluation system”), and to empirically assess its differentiation, accuracy, and universality.

Methodology: (1) Grounded in literature and policy analysis, the study adopts the PDCA theory as a foundational framework and employs a modified Delphi method to finalize the evaluation system's structure. Indicator weights were determined using the Analytic Hierarchy Process, and a standard scale was created for …

Influence Of Artificial Intelligence (Ai) On Decision-Making For Market-Entry Strategies In Emerging Economies, Tejas Deshpande

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

International firms with growth-oriented business models face a complex array of factors when planning to enter emerging markets. These markets are characterized by dynamic socio-economic and geopolitical conditions, often resulting in limited market intelligence and a fragmented understanding of the business ecosystem. To succeed, firms must align their short-term objectives and long-term strategic goals with the specific characteristics of these target markets.

Decision-making in such environments is fraught with uncertainty and is critical in determining the success or failure of market-entry strategies. While business leaders rely on their cognition and heuristics to navigate these challenges, the complexity and volume of …

Ecosystem-Oriented Development Of New Energy Vehicle Industry And Its Spillover Effects, Jianli Li

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

The vigorous development of the manufacturing industry, along with advancements in technologies such as the Internet, has propelled the growth of China's new energy vehicle (NEV) industry, and exhibited characteristics of ecosystem-oriented development, which has brought positive impacts on both China's economic and social development. Benefiting from China's policy environment and developmental foundation, the Chinese automotive industry has achieved a leapfrog development in the field of new energy, with China ranking first in global sales and the penetration rate of NEVs continuously increasing. As power batteries and other domains continue to improve and intelligent driving technologies make constant breakthroughs, NEVs …

Understanding The Governance And Inheritance Mechanism Of Fujian Merchants From The Perspective Of Modern Economics, Feiyan Zhang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Under the general background of globalization and market economy, Chinese enterprises are embracing advanced governance models around the world, and facing the challenge of effectively combining them with local culture. In the history of China, Fujian (Min) merchants formed a famous commercial group, leaving modern enterprises some precious enlightenment in its unique governance and inheritance mechanism. This research will extensively explore the governance mechanism of Fujian commercial group and assess its potentials and enlightenment for application in the system of modern enterprises. This research aims to provide theoretical and practical guidance for the development of a governance model matching with …

The Impact Of S2b2c Model On The Performance Of Chain Enterprises, Qingyang Zhao

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

As the economy is highly developed today, enterprises are studying how to improve channel efficiency, customer loyalty, and supply chain stability along the value chain to ensure their competitive advantages. By observing the development of key chain-operated enterprises in China over the past 20 years, this study proposes to examine the impact of constructing an S2B2C model on corporate performance. A foundational theory has been established, and a theoretical framework has been analyzed. Following a logical order from the abstract to the concrete and from theory to practice, a combination of case studies and empirical analysis is employed to evaluate …

Perception Of Recreational Water Quality In The Scholarly Literature: Where Have We Been & Where Should We Go, Xavier Alberto Basurto Cendeno

Theses and Dissertations

This study explores existing literature and research themes between water quality and recreational participation through use of a bibliometric analysis with content analysis. It identifies key researchers, institutions, and themes that have shaped the field. Despite the growing body of research, gaps remain in understanding the state of the research on this important topic. By analyzing trends and how these trends have changed over time, this study aims to offer insights for future research agendas. Ultimately, the findings will inform strategies for improving water quality management and fostering more resilient, timely water-based recreational research.

Does Job Satisfaction Take A Hit? The Relationships Between Employee Cannabis Use, Job Satisfaction, And Absenteeism, Caroline Jordan Moughan

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Despite the frequency of cannabis use, limited research has examined how employees’ cannabis use relates to job attitudes and behaviors. This study responds to calls to examine the effects of employee cannabis use on work-relevant outcomes by exploring how employee cannabis use relates to job satisfaction and voluntary absenteeism by analyzing a sample of 526 employed young adults from the most recent three waves of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY) Child and Young Adult Cohort. Through estimating cross-lagged panel models, this study clarifies the direction of relationships between employee cannabis use and job satisfaction, and how these relate …

The Influence Of Leaders’ Emotional Intelligence And Employees’ Emotional Intelligence On Employee Engagement, Mildred D. Usher

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

The influence of emotional intelligence (EI) on employee engagement (EE) is significant. However, limited research exists on how both perceived leaders' EI and perceived employees’ EI influence EE. Identifying predictive factors that contribute to EE is crucial to organizational success. The current study examined 96 retail employees residing in the U.S. The purpose of the non-experimental, quantitative study was to examine the relationship between perceived leaders' EI and perceived employees' EI on employee engagement in U.S. Southwest region retail organizations. An online multi-sectional survey including demographic questions, the Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test (SSEIT), and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) …

Shelf Space Strategy In Alcoholic Beverage Retail: Analyzing The Impact Of Shelf Facings On Sales Performance And Consumer Behavior, Jesse Core

Dissertations

The alcoholic beverage industry faces intense competition and regulatory constraints, making strategic shelf space management critical. This study investigates the impact of shelf facings on sales performance in the alcoholic beverage sector, focusing on how brand size moderates this relationship.

The study collected data from a regional supermarket chain in Arkansas using a quantitative pretest-posttest control group design. It found that increasing shelf facings for smaller brands significantly enhances overall modular sales, with small brand sales persisting even after reverting to their original facings. Moreover, the analysis reveals that brand size significantly moderates the impact of shelf facings on brand …

The Individual’S Perception Of Ai And Its Effects On The Organization’S Ai Initiatives, Catherine Petersen

JWU Dissertations & Theses

Investment in Artificial Intelligence (AI) does not result in returns for business despite improving technology (Ransbotham et al., 2020; Storm & Borgman, 2020). This study investigated one potential reason for the failure of AI when implemented within an organization with the intent to drive success with this technology. AI is unique amongst technologies due to its ability to inspire emotions from potential users and these emotions can affect the individual’s willingness to adopt the technology. The research questions were:

1. Does an individual’s perception of AI have a moderating effect on their behavioral intention to use a product that includes …

Understanding The Factors Influencing Marketing Bi System Adoption In Us Smes, Daniel L. Giovannucci

JWU Dissertations & Theses

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the United States face challenges in adopting Business Intelligence (BI) systems, which are crucial for optimizing the competitiveness of digital marketing strategies. This study examines the adoption of BI systems among digital marketing teams in US SMEs through the lens of the Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) and Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) frameworks. The primary research question guiding the study is: What factors influence BI adoption among digital marketing teams in United States SMEs?

Guided by constructs formulated through past research and the DOI and TOE frameworks, this study applied a quantitative research method involving an online …

Information Technology Strategies To Sustain Customer Satisfaction During Disaster-Related Disruptions, Gbenga Tomilawo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) leaders struggle to develop and implement effective information technology (IT) strategies to satisfy customers, leaving their organizations vulnerable during disaster-related disruptions. SME leaders are concerned with effective IT strategies, critical for retaining customer loyalty and sustaining their businesses during such challenges. Grounded in the Kano model, this qualitative multiple-case study aimed to explore IT strategies that SME leaders use to satisfy customers during disasters and other disruptions to business continuity. The participants were four SME owners of IT-sector organizations in the Midwestern region of the United States. Data were collected by conducting semistructured interviews …

The Impact Of Instrumental Attribution In Ai-Enabled Monitoring On Counterproductive Work Behavior, Qiang Zhang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

AI-enabled monitoring tools are theoretically expected to suppress unethical employee behavior. However, in practice, employees may perceive such monitoring as being driven by leaders' instrumental motives, primarily focused on personal performance evaluation and self-interest. This perception can foster feelings of job insecurity and moral disengagement, ultimately leading to counterproductive work behavior (CWB), which includes unethical employee behavior and turnover. These outcomes may undermine the intended effectiveness of AI-enabled monitoring tools. This study aims to explore the impact of Instrumental Attribution in AIenabled Monitoring (IAAIM) on CWB, specifically focusing on unethical employee behavior and turnover, through both theoretical and empirical lenses. …

Research On The Influence Mechanism Of Value Co-Creation On Enterprise Performance: Empirical Evidence From China's Motorsport Culture Industry, Xiaodong Weng

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

We are in an era of digital economy and enterprise change management. The application of digital technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain, Cloud Computing, and Big Data (collectively known as ABCD technologies) has increased the competition in the value chain and value network between customers and enterprises. Users can now intervene in product design, transaction, and feedback before, during, and after the process, breaking through the limitations of time and space. They leverage their low-cost advantage to draw attention, shifting from a traditional, unidirectional supply logic to a value co-creation logic. This influences both enterprises and customers to produce …

Performance-Based Contracts: Discovering The Role Of Pbc In Resilience, Justin P. D'Agostino

Theses and Dissertations

The lifecycle sustainment costs for complex and expensive systems (e.g., aircraft, ships, or manufacturing equipment) often exceed their purchase costs. Reducing sustainment costs, even by a fraction, can create competitive advantages for the system owner. The operations and supply chain management (O&SCM) field asserts that this competitive advantage in life cycle sustainment operations is achievable through performance-based contracts. However, empirical validation of this assertion is required. This research investigates performance-based contracts to validate their asserted impact on sustainment operations and develops a branch of research to understand their role in organizational and supply chain resilience. This research consists of three …

Engaging The Acquisition Work Force: A Study Of Antecedents In A Program Office Context, Derek W. Zima

Theses and Dissertations

In an era marked by international conflict and heightened geo-political tensions, the Air Force has necessarily begun preparing for a near-peer fight. Air Force senior leaders have defined improving acquisitions career field performance as a necessary objective to keep pace with adversaries. The linkage between employee engagement and enhanced performance outcomes, as widely supported throughout the literature, suggests that fostering a more engaged acquisition work force may be the key to delivering technology to the field quickly and affordably. As such, this research effort surveyed an acquisitions program office to characterize the key drivers of engagement. Stepwise regression showed that …

When E And G Disagree: Esg Scores Between Hedonic And Utilitarian Firms, Timothy Loomas

Executive DBA Dissertations

How do Environmental (E), Social (S), and Governance (G) scores vary when examined under a hedonic-utilitarian lens? The happiness and guilt associated with hedonic (pleasure oriented) products have been shown to increase altruism and prosocial behavior as compared to utilitarian (need oriented) products. Based on this we examine whether Social- and Environmental-pillar scores for firms associated with hedonic products and/or services will be greater than for firms associated with utilitarian products and/or services. To test these hypotheses, data from the Thompson-Refinitiv ESG database were used to compare the ESG pillar scores between hedonic and utilitarian firms. The research finds higher …

Macro Level Sensegiving Of Disruptive Innovation In Sterile Processing, Marjorie Wall

Executive DBA Dissertations

This dissertation examines how macro-level actors in the sterile processing industry utilize social connectedness and experiential surfacing to facilitate the sensegiving process in the adoption of disruptive technologies. Drawing on the institutional work theory, this study focuses on the actions of individual actors aimed at creating, maintaining, and disrupting institutions in the context of sterile processing—a critical yet often overlooked sector of healthcare.

This research specifically explores how the sterile processing industry responded to the adoption of disruptive technologies during the COVID-19 pandemic. By analyzing over 1,100 podcast episodes, the study examines the rhetorical strategies used by industry leaders and …

There Is Such A Thing As A Free Lunch, But That Isn't Enough: Incentivizing Elementary School-Age Children To Participate In The Healthy Free Meals Program, Angelia Nava

Executive DBA Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the influence of incentives on school-age children's participation in school meal programs, aiming to understand the impact of different incentive strategies on student behavior. This research delves into the dynamics of reward structures (team versus individual) and their implications on school-age children's short- and long-term participation in school meal programs. We find that both incentives increase meal participation and that the team incentive is more effective than the individual incentive, especially in the short run. We also find that once the incentive is removed that motivation to do the activity also returns to pre- incentive levels.

Who Are You Rooting For? T20 Cricket World Cup 2024, Usa & Wi, Purvesh Desai

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The T20 Cricket World Cup '24 played in USA & WI will bring immense excitement to the cricket lovers around the world and have a question to themselves “Who shall I Root for?” How do people or fans support their favorite teams and on what criteria do they pick these teams will discuss in here.

Patriotism, tradition, and favorite individual players, are the main reasons for the fans to choose their and support the team. Nation is the biggest pride of an individual and many people choose their pride over everything. People celebrate when the home team plays on the …