Business Commons^™

By The Numbers

Business Exchange

Infographic offers statistics on the growth of DePaul's Driehaus School of Business under the leadership of Dean Ray Whittington.

College News: Misty Johanson Appointed Interim Dean

Business Exchange

Misty Johanson, PhD, an associate business college dean, professor and director of the School of Hospitality Leaders, has been named interim dean of the Driehaus College of Business.

College Level Mentoring For Underrepresented Populations: Enhancing The Transition Into The Corporate World, Titilayo O. Abiwon

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This research paper examines existing mentoring services at a regional southeastern university with major emphasis on mentoring services mainly available to underrepresented populations at the institution. The investigation aims to define the importance of and the need for such programs and the impact the absence of said programs might have on the university population with emphasis on the underrepresented. For the purpose of this research, mentoring is considered in terms of employment preparation and transition into the corporate world. Mentoring services awareness and employment preparedness from the student perspectives are surveyed.

Examining Snapchat: Narcissistic Tendencies Of Core Users, Austin Philpott, Susan Waters

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study aims to establish current levels of narcissistic tendencies among the major Snapchat demographic, 18 to 34-year-olds in the United States. Like the Raskin and Terry 40-item Narcissistic Personality Inventory, commonly referred to as NPI-40, the present survey utilized a smaller variant with 16 items, known as NPI-16, for participants. This study may provide indications for further research and advertising techniques using social media, specifically Snapchat.

Portfolio Insurance Using Leveraged Etfs, Jeffrey George

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study examines the use of leveraged exchange traded funds (LETFs) within a portfolio insurance framework to reduce exposure to downside risk. Investors have learned the importance of mitigating this risk having experienced two “once in a century” events in the last 20 years with the tech crash in the early 2000s and the financial crisis in 2008. Current portfolio insurance strategies are either option based (Leland & Rubinstein, 1976) or constant proportional portfolio insurance (CPPI), (Black & Jones, 1987). The cost of option based strategies can be quite high while a CPPI strategy requires constant rebalancing.

This study combines …

A Theoretical Application Of Metaphor Research To The Film Industry, Michael J. Stanton

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper explores the value of using metaphor based marketing research methods (most notably Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique) in the development and green-lighting processes of filmmaking. A review of literature reveals that even large blockbuster films lack any marketing research employed in the developmental stage. Audiences are extremely difficult to analyze when considering something as abstract and subjective as what makes a “good” film. Metaphor based marketing research methods (e.g. ZMET) offer a solution by examining the minds of consumers through language markers called metaphors. Using a metaphor based marketing technique early in a film’s development process may help to …

Factors Affecting Intentions To Use Social Commerce In Shopping For Fashion Products, Tiffany Bounkhong

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine factors affecting millennials’ attitudes and intentions to purchase fashion products through Social commerce. The current study adopted the technology acceptance model (TAM; Davis, 1989) to develop a theoretical framework. A total of 531 college students completed an online survey at a university. The sample was appropriate because millennials are a highly educated generation (Goodman, 2015) and most college students are Social media users (eMarketer, 2015). The sample was predominantly female Caucasian American students (71%) who are daily visiting Social media networking sites over four times.

Results of exploratory factor analysis with varimax …

Exploring The Impacts Of Study Abroad On Hospitality Student’S Perceptions Of Emotional Intelligence, Diversity And Sustainability, Jordan Glynn Griffin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated if there was a significant difference in hospitality students who did and did not participate in a study abroad program to determine if study abroad had an impact on their emotional intelligence, diversity, and sustainability awareness. The results of this study will assist both hospitality education and study abroad by providing information.

A descriptive, four-section survey was distributed online via Qualtrics utilizing snowball sampling. A total of 110 respondents participated in the study; 72 nonstudy abroad and 38 abroad. The respondents completed the questionnaire that measured emotional intelligence, career longevity, perceptions of diversity, sustainability awareness, and demographic …

On The Right Track: Exploring Influences Contributing To Successful Track-Switching Of Indians Working For A U.S. Company, Rose-Marie Speck

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore how Indian managers assessed the influences leading to their transition from technician to manager when working for a company in the U.S. This study was based on interviews with fifteen Indian managers who had track-switched from a technical job to a management position in the U.S. in a U.S. company. The interviewees were asked five questions about what they believed made them successful in track-switching, and the consensus among interviewees was that for a technician to track-switch effectively, the technician had to have excellent technical skills. In addition to technical skills, the …

Assessing Organizational Health Literacy At An Academic Health Center: A Quantitative Research Study, Latrina Y. Prince

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Inadequate health literacy is a national health problem that affects about 90 million Americans. Health literacy is the degree to which a person is able to make good health decisions based on his/her ability to read, understand, and use health information and services. Organizational Health Literacy (OHL) is the degree to which an organization considers and promotes the health literacy of patients by providing easy to read, understand, and use health information and services. Since it is difficult to determine which patients have inadequate health literacy, a recommended intervention for addressing health literacy is to use OHL practices at all …

Measuring Racial Competence In Athletic Academic Support Staffs, Aquasia Thornhill

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Critical Race Theory, a theoretical framework that has been gaining much recognition in sport literature, is a useful and beneficial tool in discussing race and racism. To better understand the context in which academic support staff appreciate the functionality and significance of race, the present study measures the racial competence of athletic academic support staffs. This research study explores the need to integrate a model such as Critical Race Theory that promotes “racial competency” among academic support staffs working closely with student-athletes of color, and measures Color-Blind Racial Attitudes that may have effects on the types of interactions individuals are …

College News: Alumnae Named To Kellstadt Leadership Roles; Depaul Joins Chicago's 1871 Business Incubator

Business Exchange

DePaul Alumnae Christa Hinton and Jennifer Kopczynski have assumed leadership roles as director of the Kellstadt Graducate School of Business and director of the Kellstadt Career Management Center, respectively. The Coleman Entrepreneurship Center has partners with DePaul's College of Law, College of Computing and Digital Media, and Office of Academic Affairs to join 1871, Chicago's premier business incubator.

Faculty Focus: Seeking To Promote Workplace Respect, Scholar Probes Roots Of Harassment

Business Exchange

Sexual harassment and other forms of aggression are a persistent problem in the workplace. Jaclyn Jensen, associate professor of management, focuses her teaching on human resource management and her reserach on employee mistreatment and misbehavior, particularly as it applies to women.

Scholarly Pursuits: Minimum Wage Hikes = Automation = Fewer Jobs? No So, Study Says; The 606 Trail Raises Home Prices And Affordability Concerns

Business Exchange

A study of minimum wage increases found that they expedite the automation of low-wage jobs but that there was growth in other types of low-wage employment related to this automation.

A study by the Institute for Housing Studies found that homebuyers are paying more to be near Chicago's Bloomingdale Trail, also know as The 606, a linear park on the city's Northwest Side.

Women In Leadership: Six Stories Of Alumnae Success

Business Exchange

To mark the 100th anniversary of women studying in DePaul's business school, six trailblazing DePaul business alumnae are profiled: Emilia DiMenco, president and CEO, Women's Business Development Center, Chicago; Monique Nelson, CEO, UniWorld Group, Inc. (UWG); Carrie Meghie, co-president, Becker Ventures, and founder, Jackson Chance Foundation; Joanna M. Bauza, president and co-founder, the Cervantes Group; Diane Pearse, CEO, Hickory Farms; and Carol Bramson, entrepreneur, private equity investor and CEO of a natural pet food business.

Joint Optimization Of Resource Provisioning In Cloud Computing, Jonathan David Chase, Dusit Niyato

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Cloud computing exploits virtualization to provision resources efficiently. Increasingly, Virtual Machines (VMs) have high bandwidth requirements; however, previous research does not fully address the challenge of both VM and bandwidth provisioning. To efficiently provision resources, a joint approach that combines VMs and bandwidth allocation is required. Furthermore, in practice, demand is uncertain. Service providers allow the reservation of resources. However, due to the dangers of over-and under-provisioning, we employ stochastic programming to account for this risk. To improve the efficiency of the stochastic optimization, we reduce the problem space with a scenario tree reduction algorithm, that significantly increases tractability, whilst …

Feasibility Analysis Of Recycled-Paper Fueled Agricultural Desalination Process: Design Of Recycling And Desalination Processes, Sean M. Street

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

While recycled-paper-briquettes have lower BTU ratings than wood, and fresh water is typically a low cost to agricultural entities, situations exist where economic and/or environmental factors may allow a recycled-paper-fueled desalination process to be viable for some specific agricultural entities. This document begins with a discussion of how water is priced throughout India before analyzing trends in the Maize futures market. By tying the two together, an opportunity is created for solution which the remainder of the document presents. Paper waste in India makes-up 50% of its solid waste country-wide; however, only a quarter of that waste is recycled - …

Are Single Tier Inventory Systems Still Relevant In The Business World Today?, Hank Massaro

Senior Theses

The goal of this paper is to identify whether single tier inventory management systems are still effective and useful for businesses in today’s more globalized economy. Multitier inventory management systems are very popular, especially for researchers who have mostly forsaken single tier systems in recent years so there was reason to question the viability of single tier systems. However, to determine whether these inventory management systems are still viable, I would also have to identify at least one significant business sector that would benefit from their use, as well as exploring their assumptions and mathematical background to identify the inventory …

Wage Penalties In Major League Baseball, Thomas Kraemer

Honors College Theses

This study examines discrimination both by race and by foreign-born status in the context of Major League Baseball (MLB). The goal of this study is to determine if employer-based discrimination is present in MLB by looking for average differences in wages amongst groups and by looking for differences in returns to on-field output for players of different groups. MLB is an interesting industry to look for evidence of discrimination because it is one of the few industries where employee output is clear to see and compensation information is widely available, which is unusual for labor market studies. Sports is an …

The Internal Revenue Code: A Burden For Taxpayers Or An Instrument For Social Change?, Heather N. Murray

Honors Theses

Social engineering in the tax code has been evident from the beginning of the U.S. tax history. Today, it is as much as ever a part of the fabric of the tax codification, but there is very little research that investigates 1) how social engineering plays a role in the creation of new tax law, and 2) whether tax law is effective in altering taxpayer behavior. This paper streamlines the history of social engineering in the most popular revenue-reducing measures and analyzes how they've affected the U.S. taxpayer, with notes on future policy implications.

Women In Leadership: A Comparative Case Study On Successful Leadership, Christine Newcomb

Honors College Theses

The purpose of this report is to understand what makes a successful female leader. Since there are so few women in executive level positions, especially chief executive officer positions, I became interested in analyzing how successful leaders act in contrast with how unsuccessful leaders act. To analyze, I will focus on the leadership of two prominent businesswomen, one who has been successful in their tenure, and one who has been unsuccessful. Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors, Inc. has been successful throughout her tenure, while Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo has been unsuccessful in turning the company around. I will …

Motivation To Play Esports: Case Of League Of Legends, Yaoyao Sun

Theses and Dissertations

The population of playing electronic sports has increased recently, and the most popular one is League of Legends (LoL). As a multiplayer online battle arena video game, it’s not only a game, but also a competitive electronic sport. The purpose of this study was to assess the motivations of playing League of Legends and to relate them by genders, age groups and frequency groups. The final sample comprised 111 LoL players. The study categorized 12 items into three factors: achievement, socialization and immersion. Results indicated that achievement factors were stronger motives for men than women. For different age groups, there …

Start The Ruckus: The Influence Of Fan Organizations, Taylor Kohler

Senior Honors Projects

Sports are a prevalent aspect of our lives. We tend to find a team that we passionately follow and support, through the good and bad. At the college level, there is an extra amount of pride while cheering on your school’s team. Whether that be a basketball, football, or any other team, we feel excitement and passion towards our alma mater. At the University of Rhode Island, students, faculty, and community members feel this way towards our men’s basketball team. Rhody Basketball brings excitement, school spirit, and so much more to our community each and every season.

For the 2016-17 …

Organization Restructuring And Leadership Development, Elizabeth Rogers, Danielle Wolf

Senior Honors Projects

The University of Rhode Island’s chapter of the American Marketing Association (AMA) has progressively grown as a student run organization throughout the past decade. During this period, the leadership team faced the challenge of engaging members and transitioning smoothly from year to year. These two issues were linked to the chapter organizational structure and the leadership transition processes, respectively. In order to improve and become competitive on a national level with other AMA collegiate chapters and marketing degree programs, it is important to continuously reevaluate the chapter’s strategy. This research aims to seek best practices that can be applied for …

#Keepvolunteeringcool - A Marketing Analysis Of The Uri Service Corps, Caroline L. Hacunda

Senior Honors Projects

Since 2009, the University of Rhode Island has offered Alternative Spring Break trips to students who are passionate about service and want to become more involved within the community doing meaningful and engaging volunteer work. These trips are completely student planned and fundraised with the guidance of a group of student leaders for each trip. Over the years, this program has exponentially grown, leading to our biggest year yet with two trips staying in Rhode Island and three out of state trips offered in 2017. In the past, the spring break trips were hosted by URI S.A.V.E.S and URI Habitat …

Aurora Athletics: A Sustainable Active Wear Brand., Molly Gram

Senior Honors Projects

The apparel industry has had a compounded annual growth rate of 2.5% over the past ten years. Much of that is due to the tremendous demand from consumers for active and athleisure apparel. Demand for more casual apparel has resulted from various cultural shifts, like more casual dress codes in the workplace. There is a lot of competition between businesses in this industry. In the globalized apparel industry, a brand’s supply chain is a major influencer of its success. What if a brand could keep up with competitors while also addressing growing consumer demands for ethically sound product? Meet Aurora …

Mitigating An Energy Utility Death Spiral In The United States: Applying Lessons From Germany, Eric W. Hopf, Will O'Brien, Timothy Downs, Alistair Pim

Sustainability and Social Justice

The purpose of this paper is to present evidence that the United States is entering a "Utility Death Spiral" - a dramatic shift away from the utility based model of electricity supply to consumers. It also explores how U.S utilities can reposition themselves to best mitigate the economic losses associated with a Death Spiral. A Utility Death Spiral is currently taking place in Germany called the "Energiewende" and it is having immediate impacts on its energy landscape. The case study of the Energiewende is presented, its impacts, and the response taken by the country’s “big four” utility companies. After analyzing …

Messaging Without A Message: Executive Value And Social Media Activity, Ru Gao, Gilles Hilary, Rencheng Wang

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

We show that executives who start tweeting benefit from better career options. We motivate this finding using the well-established theory of limited attention. Consistent with this explanation, we find that content is irrelevant. Comparative statics are also consistent with our framework. In particular, the effect of Twitter is greater for executives who were largely unrecognized and who were underpaid before they started tweeting, who garner greater public attention from their social media activity, who enjoy higher professional mobility, and who operate in environments where compensation setting is less structured.

Corporate In-House Human Capital Tax Investments, Xia Chen, Qiang Cheng, Travis Chow, Yanju Liu

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

In-house human capital investment in the tax function is a significant input to a firm’s tax planning. Yet, due to lack of data, there is little empirical evidence on whether corporate in-house tax departments are associated with effective tax planning. We examine this issue using hand-collected data on corporate tax employees in S&P1500 firms. We find that firms with larger in-house tax departments are more effective in tax planning: they have lower tax rates, report lower uncertain tax benefits, and exhibit less volatile tax rates. The results are stronger for firms with in-house tax departments that have a higher proportion …

Warm Weather Leads To Safe Choices, Shilpa Madan

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Consumers have different purchase journeys depending on the temperature, according to research; and not just when it comes to purchasing cold drinks.Writing for WARC, Shilpa Madan, an Associate at the Institute on Asian Consumer Insight (ACI) in Singapore, explains that outward bodily sensations, such as feeling hot in summertime, can influence the way consumers perceive people and things, and shape preferences and choices, without conscious thought.