Business Commons^™

Pricing And Lead Time Decisions In A Duopoly Common Retailer Channel, Xiuming Niu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

This thesis studies a dual-level decentralized supply chain consisting of two suppliers and two retailers facing a price- and lead-time-sensitive demand. We model the suppliers’ operations as M/M/1 queues and demand as a linear function of the retail prices and promised delivery lead-times offered to the customers. Three different kinds of games are constructed to analyze the pricing and lead-time decisions of the suppliers and retailers. We show the existence of a unique equilibrium in all games and provide the exact formulas to compute the optimal decisions for both the suppliers and retailers. We further present numerical examples to illustrate …

Ownership Structure, Financial Structure And R&D Investment: Evidence From Korean Firms, Yanghua Chen

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Understanding factors that can enhance a firm‟s innovativeness is of critical concern in management research. Prior studies in strategy and financial economics have advanced our understanding of how resource allocation into innovation is shaped in a firm, mainly from the perspectives of ownership and financial structures. However, the extant literature is incomplete, because it treats ownership and financial structures as separate determinants, even though theoretical arguments and empirical evidences suggest that they are interdependent. This study investigates the determinants of firm‟s R&D investments by bridging ownership and financial structures. Ownerships held by inside and external owners are considered for ownership …

Procure Financing For Shipping By Auctions, Kekun Wu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

We study a risk management problem in the scenario of ship procurement. A shipping firm faces a certain financing pressure for the procurement of a new ship. On the other hand, the capacity of the ship excesses the demand requirement of the firm. The firm wants to reduce the payment and control the risk by selling a percentage of capacity to another shipping company. We introduce an auction mechanism for the firm to select the partner and determine the sharing percentage. Acting as the auctioneer, the firm announces a certain percentage of capacity to a set of buyers. The payment …

Organizational Slack, International Expansion And Firm Profitability, Anran Liu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

International expansion is a viable growth strategy for firms operating in an increasingly competitive business environment. Understanding the relationship between international expansion and firm performance has been a significant concern for theory development in the strategy and international business literature. The extant literature, however, has paid insufficient attention to the tradeoff between firm growth and profitability that may imply the existence of an optimal rate of growth. Drawing from the Penrosian perspective that emphasizes the role of resources in firm growth, this study investigates whether and how firm slack resources affect the tradeoff between international expansion and profitability. Specifically, this …

The Relationship Between Product And International Diversification: The Effect Of Asset Dispersion And Asset Diversity On Firm Performance, Yulia Muzyrya

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

There is little consensus on the diversification-performance relationship in the diversification literature. We aim to contribute to this literature by looking simultaneously at product and international diversification and the relationship between both. Furthermore, we distinguish theoretically and empirically between two different components of any diversification strategy, i.e. the degree of diversification and the type of diversification. We test our hypotheses on panel data covering 115 firms. We find that the dispersion of a firm’s activities, both internationally and in different product markets, results in higher levels of performance. Contrary, we find that higher levels in the diversity of the firm’s …

The Impact Of Employees' Perception Of Corporate Social Responsibility On Job Attitudes And Behaviors: A Study In China, Dan Zheng

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is regarded as voluntary bahaviors that contribute to the soceity welfare. Based on the concept of sustainable development, corporations should not only stress on their economic and business outcomes, but also pay attention to their effect on the society and environment. Corporations are expected to engage in the improvement of their employees' quality of life, as well as the well-being of employees' families, local communities, and the overall society. With the acceleration of global integration, CSR has become a main concern by the public, and is considered as an essential part of the business strategy. It …

Clusters And Upgrading: A Purposeful Approach, Gerald A. Mcdermott, Héctor O. Rocha

Faculty Publications

We develop a theoretical model to investigate how backward societies can improve their upgrading capabilities by transforming existing industrial agglomerations into dynamic clusters. Our main assumptions are two: first, emerging market economies are not uniform but characterized by variety of subnational regional and sectoral organizational and institutional configurations; second, the basic building block and unit of explanation in social sciences is personal action guided by some intention, which is heterogeneous across different actors. Based on these assumptions and the literature on human motives and social networks, we develop a purposeful approach to clusters and upgrading. We argue that governments can …

Shrouded Sins: An Exploration Of Child Sex Trafficking In South Africa, Jennifer L. Kennedy

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

Sex trafficking is a global $32 billion industry that affects hundreds of thousands of lives. A large portion of this industry belongs to child sex trafficking; a growing phenomenon that violates our children's dignity, rights and freedom. Although affecting every nation in the world, this industry has a strong hold in the Republic of South Africa. This country serves as an area of origin, transport, and destination, implicating itself in the broad child trafficking networks that reach nearly every nation, including our own. This paper seeks to explore the many facets of the child sex trafficking industry in South Africa.

The Impact Of Task Conflict On Virtual Team Performance And Cohesiveness, Wilawan Onkman, Anil Ustun, Pilar Pazos, Ana Maria Canto

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper examined the impact of task conflict on team performance and cohesiveness. Twelve virtual teams participated in two sessions with two difficulty levels. Each task consisted of a survival simulation. Teams communicated using a text-based communication media (chat). A mixed methods approach combining both quantitative and qualitative data was used. Performance was measured using expert ratings, and cohesiveness was measured using a modified version of Seashore's Cohesiveness Index. Content analysis was utilized to evaluate the level of task conflict on the team. This study provides some initial evidence on the effects task conflict on virtual team performance.

An Empirical Analysis Of Reputation Effects And Network Centrality In A Multi-Agency Context, Emily Jane Plant

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Signals convey information to marketplace participants regarding the unobservable quality of a product. Whenever product quality if unobservable prior to purchase, there is the risk of adverse selection. Problems of hidden information also occur in the consumer marketplace when the consumer is unable to verify the quality of a good prior to purchase. The sending, receiving, and interpretation or signals are potential ways to overcome the problem of adverse selection. In general, there is a lack of empirical evidence for signaling hypothesis, particularly that which links signaling to business performance outcomes. This research proposes that reputation serves as a marketplace …

Pemakaian Maqasid Al-Shari'ah Dalam Produk Takaful Keluarga Di Etiqa Takaful Berhad., Che Ismail Che Othaman

Student Works (2010-2019)

Takaful is one of the financial instruments that has its own importance. It is the fundamental to Islamic insurance and its existence is as an alternative to the present conventional insurance in the conventional world of banking and finance. Al-Takaful which is based on al-mudarabah, at-tabarru’ and al-wakalah is very supportive towards syara’ in facing the conventional insurance which contains the element of gharar, usury and gambling element. The existence of takaful has aroused various issues, among them is to what extend is the application of maqasid al-shari‘ah in all of the products offered either in Family Takaful or General …

Risk Modelling In Finance, Dave Allen

ECU Research Week

Examines the measurement of risk in finance and the shortcomings of the various approaches to this measurement.

Moral Hazard, Firms’ Internal Governance And Management Earnings Forecasts, Jimmy Lee

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

This paper investigates the role of management earnings forecasts in mitigating information asymmetry between investors andmanagers relating to moral hazard, and explains how earnings guidance facilitates monitoring. I demonstrate that firms that are more susceptible to moral hazard problems and more difficult to monitor are also more likely to issue annual earningsforecasts and they do so more frequently. In addition, I examine how firm internal governance drives forecasting decisions andshow that stronger board governance and managerial equity incentives are associated with higher likelihood and frequency of forecast issuance. Finally, I provide robust evidence that managerial equity incentives are associated with …

Creating University And Community Connections Via Social Media: Cedar Valley Focus, Cassandra Ann Loecke

Honors Program Theses

The upcoming generations of graduating college students are those that grew up on technology, witnessed the launch of Face book, and posted the first Y ouTube videos. These young adults are engaged in social media each and every day, but when it comes to removing themselves from their on-line social networks and becoming involved in their local community or even on-campus, they tend to be rather apathetic. As these students become local leaders and community members, their involvement will be critical to community growth, development, and enrichment. It is best that students cultivate the mentality and skills needed to fulfill …

The Impact Of Perceived Importance Of An Ethical Situation (Pie) On Ethical Judgment And Intention: Beyond Moral Intensity, Monica Marie Johnston

Honors Program Theses

The importance of ethics to the accounting profession is well established (Turpen and Witmer, 1997; Abdolmohammadi, Read, and Scarbrough, 2003; Guffey and McCartney, 2008). In accounting, a commitment to ethical behavior is regarded as the basis for all other performance standards, (Turpen et al., 1997), and historically most agree that accountants practice honest principles (Leitsch, 2006). However, business headlines such as those related to the collapse of Enron and its auditor, Arthur Andersen, raise concerns about ethical actions of accountants (Abdolmohammadi et al., 2003). Additionally, accountants and auditors have more recently come under fire due to issues related to the …

The Impact Of Socialization On Youth Program Outcomes: A Social Development Model Perspective, Mat D. Duerden, Peter A. Witt

Faculty Publications

This study employs a mixed-methods design and a social development model (SDM) to examine the role of socialization processes within an international immersion program for adolescents. Longitudinal data from 108 participant and 49 comparison group members are analyzed using structural equation modeling procedures. Qualitative data are also used to assess participants’ perceptions of these processes. The quantitative findings indicate that the SDM fits the data well and partially mediates the growth of observed recreation programoutcomes. The qualitative findings offer additional insights into the role of within program socialization processes.

'Fermenting' A Successful Business: Beyer's Wine Cellar, Connie J. Beyer

Honors Program Theses

Beyer's Wine Cellar will be a vineyard and winery located in Mitchell, Iowa. Donald and Lucinda plan to begin production in the Fall of 2011 and begin selling wine to customers in the Spring of 2012. The wines that Beyer's Wine Cellar produces will be sold through the tasting room. Furthermore, Donald and Lucinda also plan to offer wine and grape education classes for the eager wine consumers in the area.

Decomposition Of Fraud-Risk Assessments And Auditors’ Sensitivity To Fraud Cues*, T. Jeffrey Wilks, Mark F. Zimbelman

Faculty Publications

Practitioners and regulators are concerned that when auditors perceive management’s attitude or character as indicative of low fraud risk, they are not sufficiently sensitive to high levels of incentive or opportunity risks in their overall fraud-risk assessments. In this study, we examine whether a fraud-triangle decomposition of fraud-risk assessments (that is, separately assessing attitude, opportunity, and incentive risks prior to assessing overall fraud risk) increases auditors’ sensitivity to opportunity and incentive cues when perceptions of management’s attitude suggest low fraud risk. In an experiment with 52 practicing audit managers, we find that auditors who decompose fraud-risk assessments are more sensitive …

The Desire To Acquire And Ipo Long-Run Underperformance, James C. Brau, Robert B. Couch, Ninon K. Sutton

Faculty Publications

We analyze a sample of 4,795 IPOs that went public between 1985 and 2003 to determine the impact of acquisition activity on long-run stock performance. After controlling for relevant factors, we find that IPOs that acquire within a year of going public significantly underperform for three-year holding periods following the first year, whereas non-acquiring IPOs do not significantly underperform over this time frame. In addition, firms that wait for more than a year after the IPO to become an acquirer do not underperform. Our event- and calendar-time results suggest that the acquisition activity of newly public firms plays a previously …

Electric Vehicles: Market Opportunities In China, Shanna Hoversten

CMC Senior Theses

Electric vehicles (EVs) offer an exciting opportunity in China both in terms of the potential to build a domestic manufacturing base and the potential to create a strong domestic market for the product. The Chinese nation stands to benefit from both supply-side and demand-side promotion due to the economic stimulus from EV manufacturing and export, the environmental benefits of reduced air pollution and reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and the energy security benefits of transitioning away from foreign oil dependence. The Chinese have several advantages when it comes to stimulating EV industry development and EV deployment, including: leadership in battery technology, …

The Underlying Factors Of Regional U.S. Hotel Market Resiliency Post 9/11, Beaumont L. Heidrich

CMC Senior Theses

I was interested in researching the underlying factors that drove resiliency in regional U.S. hotel markets. I did this by conducting an empirical analysis of twenty nine different markets post September 11 and investigating general, leisure and business variables. I concluded that leisure variables were the underlying drivers of resiliency in regional U.S. hotel markets.

I then conducted an event study to try to apply my findings to stock market prices of publicly traded hotel companies. Although it was a challenge to differentiate between companies that depended more on leisure versus business customers due to their asset diversification, I categorized …

The Effect Of Age Upon Ceo Compensation: A Cross-Industry Study, Anthony Bouvier

CMC Senior Theses

The compensation of CEO’s has been at the forefront of the public’s mind for the past few years. During the recession, one could not go a day without hearing about the atrocious salaries and bonuses that executives were being paid. Although it only recently became an explosive topic, academics have been researching all aspects of compensation for many years. One of the earliest looked at the idea of pay for performance (Jensen and Murphy 1990), and the field has taken off from there. Many studies have been done on the determinants of compensation, and I was interested in how age …

Do Investors View Excess Capacity As A Determinant Of Mergers And Acquisitions In The Pharmaceutical And Biotechnology Industry?, Jennifer M. Volk

CMC Senior Theses

I examine investors’ reaction to the announcement of mergers and acquisitions in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry from 2002 to 2008. Over this period, investors anticipate the announcements, as demonstrated by the fact that the cumulative abnormal returns are not statistically significant. In addition, I test to determine the effect of excess capacity on investors’ reactions. From 2002 to 2004, investors do not recognize acquisitions as a response to excess capacity, as the excess capacity measures utilized have no effect on the size of the cumulative abnormal return. From 2005 to 2008, however, excess capacity measures have a positive effect …

Corporate Sustainability And The Recession: Firms' Strategy Response In A Financial Crisis, Carolyn M. Campbell

CMC Senior Theses

As the modern world deals with an increasing number of environmental and social crises, corporate sustainability is becoming ever more imperative for business. There is broad agreement that profit maximization can no longer be the exclusive goal of a company, with firms working to align environmental, social, and financial performance. Companies have demonstrated a wide variety of experiences in regards to the financial crisis and its effects on corporate sustainability. While some firms experienced serious setbacks in achieving environmental and social goals others firms claimed to have been ramping up sustainability efforts during the recession. However, most firms report that …

Analysis Of Acquirer Stock Performance In Mergers And Acquisitions In Alberta's Oil And Gas Industry, Harrison A. Zivot

CMC Senior Theses

This paper develops a framework that analyzes how mergers and acquisitions in Alberta’s oil and gas industry affect stock prices. In this experiment, a multivariate regression is applied to several industry-specific variables to determine if they have impacts on the abnormal stock returns of acquirers. The results show that abnormal returns 5 days prior to the public announcement of the transaction are, in fact, driven by several industry-specific variables. However, the returns immediately after the M & A announcements are similar to previous research done in other industries. Acquirers’ gains 2 days after the announcement are essentially unaffected by the …

Diversification Premium On Indian Adrs During The Financial Crisis, Rajat Gupta

CMC Senior Theses

Non-arbitrage asset pricing has been an avenue of unending interest to financial academics and practitioners alike. With increased capital outflow being permitted by developing economies, investors now have easy access to securities issued by foreign firms. The issue investigated in this research is concerned with the persistent presence of arbitrage opportunities between depository receipts and domestic stocks of Indian firms during the recent financial crisis. Instead of being priced in parity with one another during the crisis, ADRs of Indian firms were overpriced by as much as 70% for months on end. This thesis investigates the reasons giving rise to …

Private Equity Transaction Bankruptcy Risk Prediction, Lewis A. Corson

CMC Senior Theses

This study utilizes a sample of private equity backed acquisitions to test whether certain factors, evaluated and quantified on the date of transaction completion, serve as indicators of future transaction bankruptcy. The results of this paper suggest that the effective federal funds rate is significantly and positively correlated with the bankruptcy of private equity backed transactions. Other measured factors specific to the private equity sponsor, the target firm in the acquisition and the characteristics of the transaction are found to be insignificant. Analysis on the influence of these factors is performed using two types of binary-response models, which predict the …

Factors Affecting The Forecasting Ability Of Implied Correlation In Currency Options, Justin S. Eskind

CMC Senior Theses

Little research has been done into implied correlations, and the small literature grows even smaller when referring to currency options. The existing literature has established that implied correlation is a good if not the best forecaster of future realized correlation, and that this ability to forecast is not necessarily universal. This paper will establish that the forecasting ability of implied correlations in currency options varies across currency pairs, thus proving that not all implied correlations are created equal. Using two different proxies for the quality of the forecaster, the paper attempts to explain which characteristics of an option on a …

Conflict Of Interest?: Executive-Auditor Relationship And The Likelihood Of A Sec-Prompted Restatement, Henry Lyford

CMC Senior Theses

This study examines the relationship between executives and their independent auditor to see if there is a conflict of interest in their interaction. This study was motivated by the meltdowns, partially caused by fraudulent accounting, of many public companies in the late 1990s and early 2000s and the consequent passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. This study examines the variables of audit fees, fees for other services, and auditor tenure to see if they are connected with the occurrence of an SEC-prompted restatement. The results show no significant correlation between amount of fees and the likelihood of an SEC-prompted restatement but …

Forecasting The Inland Empire's Economic Recovery, Jesse C. Franklin

CMC Senior Theses

The Inland Empire -Riverside and San Bernardino Counties - was one of the hardest hit areas in all of the United States during the Great Recession. Home prices have declined over 50%, significantly more than the 25% decline in the surrounding Los Angeles County, and housing starts have declined to over 90% from 2005. The Inland Empire has one of the highest unemployment rates in the US at 14.8%. This paper attempts to forecast the recovery for the Inland Empire. Employing univariate forecasts along with VAR(12) forecasts, focusing on housing starts and unemployment rates as the underlying variables, we find …