Business Commons^™

Does Assurance Matter? Evidence From U.S. Financial Institutions, Ashley Warwick Douglass

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this paper, I explore the determinants and consequences of the level of assurance that a bank selects. Using a sample of small, privately held U.S. (United States) financial institutions (banks), I find that two differing types of banks are more likely to purchase more assurance. First, larger banks that are experiencing growth purchase relatively more assurance than other banks. Second, more complex banks with lower returns on assets, losses, and higher leverage are more likely to purchase an audit than a lower level of assurance. This may indicate the influence of regulators on banks’ assurance purchasing decisions. I also …

An Essay On Salesforce Agility: Is The Concept Worthy Of Study?, Shahriar Gias

Marketing Dissertations - Archive

Sales force agility has been identified as an important issue for contemporary professional selling and sales management (Jones et al. 2005). However, up until now, marketing scholars have sparingly paid attention to the concept of sales agility. Marketers as well as salespeople are not quite informed about the term “salesperson agility” even though they sense the need for agility in order to deal with the changing business environment and customer requirements. Therefore, this dissertation explores sales agility in detail. First, in this dissertation, an extensive literature review is conducted to conceptually ascertain how agility might be different than adaptive selling, …

Social Media Information And Analyst Forecasts, Mahfuja Malik, Rajib Hasan, Abu S. Amin

WCBT Faculty Publications

In the past decade, social networking has changed the landscape of information dissemination. The rapid diffusion of social media services such as Facebook and Twitter is unprecedented and offers immense possibilities for corporations to communicate with, and engage core stakeholders in, various business decisions. In this study, we investigate whether social media play any role as a source of information for financial analysts. We specifically focus on information revealed on the official Facebook pages of S&P 500 firms. We define information content on a Facebook page as the total number of posts by the corporations and the comments, likes and …

Unconscious Bias During Recruitment Of New Hires-A Comparison Of The General Public And Human Resource Professionals, Diane Ellen Russo

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Immediate decisions are required in various situations. Judgements are made based on a variety of influences without even realizing it has occurred. Decisions are made within split seconds, and the outcomes are often a result of biases held.

Biases can be positive or negative; they are attitudes or stereotypes that are taught during an early age in life and reinforced over time. It is important to realize how these biases impact decision making and negative judgements placed on others.

Bias begins around the time one has the ability to understand and speak words -- generally at three years old. At …

Essays On Supply Chain Analytics: Investment And Capacity Planning Under Uncertainty, Mert Hakan Hekimoglu

Dissertations - ALL

In this dissertation, we study a firm’s investment and capacity planning strategies in the presence of different types of supply uncertainties and risks. Both essays in this dissertation benefit from empirical analysis as the analytical models build on the findings and observations from the corresponding empirical investigation. Each essay shows the benefits from utilizing flexible options that are deemed to be less preferable before conducting the analysis. Wine futures investment represents the flexible option (due to its liquidity) in the first essay, however, it exhibits greater uncertainty in price than the traditional bottled wine. We find in our empirical analysis …

Essays On Global Sourcing Under Uncertainty, Shahryar Gheibi

Dissertations - ALL

In this dissertation, we study the sourcing policies of global corporations and determine the key drivers of the procurement decisions under different types of uncertainties.

The first essay explores the impact of exchange-rate and demand uncertainty on sourcing decisions of a multinational firm which engages in global sourcing through capacity reservation contracts. The focus of this essay is cost, which is known to be the main driver of global sourcing practices. We investigate the impact of cost uncertainty caused by exchange-rate fluctuations on procurement decisions, and identify the conditions that result in single and dual sourcing policies. Our analysis indicates …

Capital Structure And Political Risk In Asia-Pacific Real Estate Markets, George D. Cashman, David M. Harrison, Michael J. Seiler

Finance Faculty Research and Publications

This study investigates the determinants of capital structure decisions by real estate firms, with a specific focus on the impact of political risk on leverage. Using a sample of Asia-Pacific REITs and listed property trusts, we find those firms with properties located in countries characterized by relatively high degrees of political risk, such as political instability, and/or greater uncertainty in the ability to repatriate and monetize profits from international investment activities, employ less debt than their counterparts operating in more politically stable environments. This core finding remains robust to alternative sample selection criteria including the division of the sample into …

Why We Follow: Exploring How Culture Shapes Users’ Motivation For Following Sport Organizations On Twitter And Weibo, Bo Li

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to explore how culture shapes Social media users’ usage as they follow sport organizations on two similar microblogging services - Twitter and Weibo. In particular, the study attempted to measure whether Social media users exhibited different usage pattern, points of attachment, and usage motivations within two different cultural environments known as individualism and collectivism.

The Los Angeles Lakers’ Social media followers were selected and invited to participant in this study. There were 839 the Lakers’ Weibo followers and 334 Twitter followers who completed an online survey facilitated on Qualtrics. The results of Multivariate analysis …

Cultural Moderation Of The Relationship Between Anticipated Life Role Salience And Career Decision-Making Difficulties, Emily Anne Schmidtman

Dissertations

The perceived importance of, and commitment to, work and family roles has significant implications for the career decision-making difficulty (CDMD) of undergraduate college students. Additionally, cultural variables have been shown to influence undergraduate students’ anticipated life role salience (LRS) as well as the amount of difficulty experienced in making a career decision. Given this information, the current study assessed the relationship between LRS and CDMD specifically in terms of differences that may occur within this relationship for different cultural groups. Using a sample of college students (total N = 246), an online survey was used to gather information about their …

Marketing And Development For Libraries, A Luxury Or A Necessity?, Essraa Nawar

Library Presentations, Posters, and Audiovisual Materials

For many libraries across the world, marketing, development and fundraising can be dirty words and if you add outreach people do not even get it. In this poster, the presenter will prove why libraries across the globe should embrace marketing, outreach and development for what they are, and let outreach spread and be part of our daily routine in libraries. Just like corporations and start-up, libraries of all kinds need to invest time; energy and resources on their marketing and development strategies. By applying some of these techniques, libraries will not just be able to better understand their users’ needs …

Modern Megachurch Organization In The United States (2005-2013) : An Exploratory Organizational Study Of The American Megachurch Phenomenon., Robert Lee Shelby Jr.

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation study explores the applicability of two for-profit organizational theories on a non-profit sector. Theoretical concepts from organizational ecology (OE) and new institutional sociology (NIS) provide the framework for exploring modern megachurches as an organizational phenomenon in the United States between 2005 and 2013. Modern megachurches are modern in the sense they really began to be an organizational population starting in the 1970s and 1980s. These churches are distinctively from the Protestant Christian tradition having 2,000 or more attendees (Thumma & Travis, 2007; Hartford Institute for Religion Research, n.d.). Three empirical chapters test several hypotheses germane to these aforementioned …

2016-August-01-Tn Health Chat, University Marketing And Communications, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

No abstract provided.

2016-August-01-Tsbdc Classes, University Marketing And Communications, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

No abstract provided.

2016-State Report Card For 2015-2016 Released, University School, East Tennessee State University, University Marketing And Communications, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

No abstract provided.

Weathering The Storm Of Austerity, Deirdre Lillis

Conference papers

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) collaborate with public funding and quality assurance agencies to balance programme delivery with funding and quality. After the financial crisis in 2008, many countries are now emerging from economic recessions, providing an opportunity to reflect on how HEIs have weathered the storm of austerity. During the period 2008 and 2015 overall funding to publically funded Irish HEIs fell by 14% despite enrolment of full-time students increasing by 25% (HEA, 2015). Against the backdrop of a national Strategy for higher Education reform, the strategic choices made by HEIs are considered along with the effectiveness of quality assurance …

2016-August-01-Billy Currington Concert, University Marketing And Communications, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

No abstract provided.

2016-August-01-Molly Jones, University Marketing And Communications, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

No abstract provided.

Pedagogical Advances In Business Models At Business Schools: In The Age Of Networks, Peter Lorange, Howard Thomas

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on potential advances in pedagogy and on the process of learning in business schools. It examines innovations in teaching and learning methods particularly in the context of networked organizations. Design/methodology/approach – It approaches, and examine the impact of, three key developments in business schools, namely, recent advances in IT, changes in the architecture of classrooms and learning spaces and advances in the way teaching is undertaken. Findings – The paper suggests that a blend between self-learning via distance approaches and face-to-face learning will increasingly become the norm. Face-to-face sessions might …

The Influence Of The Electric Supply Industry On Economic Growth In Less Developed Countries, Edward Richard Bee

Dissertations

This study measures the impact that electrical outages have on manufacturing production in 135 less developed countries using stochastic frontier analysis and data from World Bank’s Investment Climate surveys. Outages of electricity, for firms with and without backup power sources, are the most frequently cited constraint on manufacturing growth in these surveys.

Outages are shown to reduce output below the production frontier by almost five percent in Africa and by a lower percentage in South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East and North Africa. Production response to outages is quadratic in form. Outages also increase labor cost, reduce exports …

Errors Spell Checkers Do Not Correct And Style Sheet: 5 Years Later, Charles J. Higgins

Finance Faculty Works

This updated listing of words that are often confused by spell checkers is the most downloaded article among my works and those at my university. After 5 years, it has been frequently revised and added to with more than a thousand new words.

"Other Information" In An Audit (Part 2), Foo S.L.

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

In light of the new reporting requirements, SSA 720 (Revised) articulates a systematic approach on Other Information (OI) work. It comprises five key elements. These are Obtaining, Reading and Considering, Responding, Reporting and Documentation of OI (Figure 1). Invariably, these enhancements provide useful guidance to the auditors. With additional prescribed work efforts, it also calls for a greater integration of OI work scope with the overall audit planning.

Thoughts From The Iaaer’S 12th World Congress Of Accounting Educators And Researchers, Greg Stoner, Themin Suwardy

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

No abstract provided.

In Fair Value We Trust, Or Not, Joyce Tang, Nick Leong, Pan, Gary, Keng Kevin Ow Yong, Chu Yeong Lim, Tee Yong Jeffrey Ng

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

The objective of financial reporting is to provide financial information that is useful to existing and potential investors, lenders and other creditors (IASB’s Conceptual Framework ED/2015/3). General purpose financial reports provide information about the financial position of a reporting entity, as well as information about the effects of transactions and other events that will change a reporting entity’s economic resources and claims (para 1.12 ED/2015/3). Investor confidence and trust in the financial statements is a crucial component for financial markets to function smoothly. This report presents the attitudes and concerns of over 700 respondents toward fair value accounting. The survey …

Preparing Students For The Future Workforce: An Experiential Learning Approach To Deliver An Accounting Analytics Course, Gary Pan, Venky Shankararaman, Poh Sun Seow, Gan Hup Tan

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

This paper describes an undergraduate accounting analytics course which was delivered based on an experiential learning approach. This accounting analytics course is timely as, with the proliferation of Big Data, several accounting professional bodies have highlighted the importance of developing analytical skills among accounting graduates. The experiential learning approach was adopted because there is a need to equip students with future work skills so as to tackle increasingly complex problems. The professors collaborate with external partners to design a course which combines theory with experiential learning through heavy use of projects involving real world problems. Students rated the course favourably. …

Essays On The Performance And Earnings Management Of Cross-Listing Firms, Klaus S. Beckmann

Theses and Dissertations

I investigate the performance and earnings management of firms that cross-list in foreign markets. In the first essay, I analyze and compare the underpricing and buy-and-hold abnormal returns of depositary receipt equity offerings with preceding Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) and Seasoned Equity Offerings (SEOs) of the same firms to identify differences and motivations of equity offerings free of any matching bias. I find that domestic equity offerings entail significantly larger underpricing than subsequent foreign equity offerings. The average buy-and-hold abnormal returns of depositary receipt equity offerings are significantly lower than the underlying firm’s performance at preceding domestic equity issuances over …

Destination Choice In Novel And Mature Destinations: Effects Of Psychographic Traits And Anticipated Need Congruity On Tourist Intentions, Oliver Cruz-Milan

Theses and Dissertations

The tourism marketing literature shows that psychological variables are predictors of destination choice for vacations. However, research testing the effects of Plog's (1974) personality-based psychographic traits on destination selection has yielded inconclusive results. Based on the theory of market choice behavior (Sheth, Newman, and Gross, 1991a), this research proposes that tourist´s destination choice is influenced by the mediating effects of anticipated needs congruity (epistemic, emotional, functional, and social) in the relationship between Plog's psychographic traits and behavioral intentions, providing more explanation of destination preference for novel and mature beach resort destinations (Butler, 1980). In order to conduct the study, data …

Conquerors Or Cost-Cutters? The Influence Of Ceo Power On Corporate Restructuring And Aggressive Strategic Behavior, Ana M. Sariol

Theses and Dissertations

How do dominant (powerful) Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) influence corporate strategic behavior? Do they disproportionately focus on restructuring (cost-cutting or efficiency-enhancing) strategies in an attempt to run an efficient business? Alternatively, do they instead pursue aggressive (domain-creating) corporate strategies (i.e. engage in "empire-building") that not only expand the scope of the firm but also their personal influence? Current research evidence in the corporate governance literature is ambiguous when it comes to the relationship between CEO power and the choice of conservative vs. aggressive corporate strategies. Most studies in the literature use a piece meal approach and examine the influence of …

Perceptual Determinants Of Consumption Philanthropy Donation Intentions: Consumption Or Philanthropy?, Nese Nasif

Theses and Dissertations

Consumption philanthropy is the concurrent consumption of self-interested products while contributing to a charitable cause. Although this overarching notion has been widely investigated in the context of cause-related marketing, there has been little work done in marketing or other disciplines in its alternative context of donor giving behavior. Thus, the current research conceptually develops and empirically investigates a model of consumption philanthropy donation intentions (CPDI) where a potentially valued gift is offered in return for a monetary donation by an individual consumer. The conceptual model integrates three fundamental frameworks from marketing and psychology, as well as incorporates a multi-disciplinary body …

The 30th Anniversary Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival: An Internship Academic Report, Maria Plotkina

Arts Administration Master's Reports (1984-2016)

This report presents a reflection and analysis of my internship with the Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival, where I completed 480 hours of work in pursuit of the M.A. in Arts Administration. I worked primarily with Tracy Ferrington Cunningham, Director of Communications & Special Events, in preparing and organizing the 2016 Festival, which represented the organization’s 30th anniversary. In this report, I will deliver an organizational overview of the Festival, describe my internship duties and responsibilities, analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the organization, and provide best practices and recommendations in festival management.

Preparing Students For The Future Workforce: An Experiential Learning Approach To Deliver An Accounting Analytics Course, Gary Pan, Venky Shankararaman, Poh Sun Seow, Gan Hup Tan

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

This paper describes an undergraduate accounting analytics course which was delivered based on an experiential learning approach. This accounting analytics course is timely as, with the proliferation of Big Data, several accounting professional bodies have highlighted the importance of developing analytical skills among accounting graduates. The experiential learning approach was adopted because there is a need to equip students with future work skills so as to tackle increasingly complex problems. The professors collaborate with external partners to design a course which combines theory with experiential learning through heavy use of projects involving real world problems. Students rated the course favourably. …