Business Commons^™

Bio-Bust: Investigating Biotech Stock Factors Contributing To Abnormal Returns In The Wake Of Silicon Valley Bank's Failure, Spencer Kent

CMC Senior Theses

Following the unprecedented collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) in March 2023, this study explores abnormal stock price reactions within the biotechnology sector. As the chosen financial institution for countless Silicon Valley-type technology and healthcare firms, SVB's failure had a profound impact on small to mid-sized biotech companies. Analyzing a dataset of 180 biotech firms during a two-day event window over SVB’s collapse, I investigate whether exposure to SVB, or other factors, was the primary contributor to negative abnormal stock price reactions, considering variables such as the percentage of cash held at SVB, whether a firm maintained an active SVB …

The Impacts Of Hype And Competition On The Valuations Of Privately-Held U.S. Software Startups, Karan Sudhir Goel

CMC Senior Theses

The impacts of internal conditions on startup valuations have been well studied, but external factors such as market hype and competition have been more restricted to public company valuation research. With soaring valuations in the Generative AI market, an analysis of the relation of hype and competition to startup valuations is timely. I test three hypotheses: (1) More hype about certain business or tech-focused topics is associated with higher valuations for startups operating in those areas (2) More competition is associated with lower valuations for startups (3) The positive effect of hype on valuations is offset by the negative effect …

Ai-Nvesting: An Empirical Analysis With Sector Categorization And Prompt Complexity Considerations Assessing The Predictive Power Of Chatgpt In Stock Market Forecasting, Ian J. Larson

CMC Senior Theses

Abstract

This paper investigates whether ChatGPT has any predictive power when it comes to the stock market. Since its public release in December 2022, OpenAI’s ChatGPT has become a popular tool for millions of users across the world. With new use cases being found every day, I explore whether the system has any utility at predicting where stock prices will go. Using a 10-year study window, I prompt ChatGPT to give U.S. equity picks on a one-year holding period basis, segregating its picks into 3 different category sizes across 8 directed prompts. I examine the 24 equal weight portfolios of …

Ceo Characteristics That Lead To Extreme Outperformance: A Statistical Analysis Of William Thorndike’S “The Outsiders”, William Turner

CMC Senior Theses

What makes a high-performing CEO? What CEOs should you invest in? These are the questions that the Board of Directors, headhunters, academics, and investors all seek the answer to. This paper explores the answer to this question by examining CEO performance at the extremes. Inspired by the work of William N. Thorndike’s “The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success,” this study expands upon his methodology, employing a statistical approach to analyze a broader dataset of CEOs over the past thirty years. Using a logit model of hyper-outperforming versus hyper-underperforming CEOs, it assesses the …

Towards Algorithmic Justice: Human Centered Approaches To Artificial Intelligence Design To Support Fairness And Mitigate Bias In The Financial Services Sector, Jihyun Kim

CMC Senior Theses

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has positively transformed the Financial services sector but also introduced AI biases against protected groups, amplifying existing prejudices against marginalized communities. The financial decisions made by biased algorithms could cause life-changing ramifications in applications such as lending and credit scoring. Human Centered AI (HCAI) is an emerging concept where AI systems seek to augment, not replace human abilities while preserving human control to ensure transparency, equity and privacy. The evolving field of HCAI shares a common ground with and can be enhanced by the Human Centered Design principles in that they both put humans, the user, at …

Activism Aftershocks: Looking Beyond The Short-Term Stock Surges Caused By Activist Hedge Fund Campaign Announcements, Zara Vakath

CMC Senior Theses

It is well known that firms targeted by activist hedge funds experience positive abnormal stock returns during the campaign announcement window. However, the link between these short-term returns and the impact to long-term target firm performance has not been established. In this study, I find essentially no link between the positive announcement window returns and long-term performance improvements, using a variety of different methods. I examine performance changes over time and also relative to a matched sample of firms that have not been targeted by activist hedge funds. Additionally, I assess the correlation between the magnitude of short-term abnormal stock …

Capturing Value In Emerging Markets: A Real Options Perspective On Resilience And Risk, Alexander Castillo

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the evaluation of investment opportunities in emerging markets (EMs) through real options analysis, against the backdrop of their unique risk profiles and the recent trend of EMs exhibiting resilience in economic performance. While EMs are associated with high growth rates and infrastructure gaps, they have shown adaptability, particularly in monetary policy responses to inflation. This paper explores the sensitivity of net present value (NPV) and real options (RO) to changes in the capital asset pricing model, adapting the yield spread to capture default risk and local risk-free rates. Utilizing oil benchmark price data, the paper constructs a …

The Impact Of Wars On Us Defense Stock Returns, Viksit Verma

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis examines the financial performance and market impact of defense and aerospace companies during periods of war and conflict. The study examines a sample of 9 firms representing the defense sector, and utilizes an event study methodology to assess stock returns during specific geopolitical events, namely the Russia-Ukraine War and the Israel-Hamas conflict. The study generally reveals positive abnormal returns during conflicts, indicating lower volatility and reduced market risk for the sample of defense firms compared to the broader market. All abnormal returns are statistically significant for the Russia-Ukraine War. For the Israel-Hamas conflict, abnormal returns for 4 out …

Essays On Public Finance And International Finance, Deepti Sikri

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

The first chapter examines New York State's Fiscal Score Monitoring program to find the effect of two quality labels on school district outcomes: fiscal stress scores, reflecting the budget solvency, and environmental stress labels reflecting economic and demographic conditions. Using the NYS school district data from 2013-22, I employ the regression discontinuity design to find the effect of stress labels, in response to the political pressure on district finances, housing, and school outcomes. I find the effect of fiscal stress label is limited, leading to a decrease in the fund balance ratio and an increase in the tax rate. However, …

Strategic Alignment, Performance, And The Moderating Effect Of Regulatory Fit, Hayden T. Gunnell, Steven D. Smith, Travis W. Steadman

Faculty Publications

We examine how the alignment of performance measurement and strategy affects performance on a multidimensional task. Our experiment varies both the strategy (speed versus accuracy) of the hypothetical firm for which participants work and the individual performance measure that is reported to them, creating two conditions of clear alignment and two of clear misalignment. We find that while workers are responsive to the performance measure regardless of its alignment, they are also sensitive to the strategy such that costly alignment effects are observed. We also predict and find that workers respond asymmetrically to misalignment in accuracy performance but not in …

A Demonstration Of How Chatgpt Can Be Used In The Internal Auditing Process, Marc Eulerich, David A. Wood

Faculty Publications

For the past several years, internal audit functions (IAFs) have been significantly increasing their digitization efforts to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the IAF. The introduction of ChatGPT has increased the potential for IAFs to have a more significant impact; however, there is little guidance on how ChatGPT can influence the day-to-day work of internal auditors. This paper demonstrates with specific examples how ChatGPT can be used to enhance all aspects of the audit process. While not comprehensive in nature, the detailed, illustrative examples should help internal auditors see actionable steps they can take to be more efficient and …

Media Conglomeration, Local News, And Capital Market Consequences, Travis Dyer, Mark Lang, Jun Oh

Faculty Publications

We examine the effect of news media consolidation on local business coverage and its consequences for firms, investors, and capital markets. Using television transcripts, we find a substantial drop in coverage of local firms following the consolidation of local television stations associated with Sinclair acquisitions. Local information search, institutional portfolio local bias, and overall retail trading decrease for firms in treated geographic areas. Results are most pronounced for small firms, for stations with higher ex ante viewership, and for stations with greater reductions in local coverage. Our results provide insight into the consequences of media consolidation for local business coverage, …

Traditional Investment Research And Social Networks: Evidence From Facebook Connections, Travis Dyer, Gerrit Köchling, Peter Limbach

Faculty Publications

We show that investors acquire more public information about firms to which they are more socially proximate. On average, a standard deviation increase in the Social Connectedness Index (Bailey et al., 2018) between a firm’s headquarter county and a searcher county is associated with 30% more EDGAR filing downloads from the searcher county. The effect of social proximity on traditional investment research is distinct from the effect of geographic proximity. We find similar results studying headquarter relocations, investor-level data, and EDGAR downloads from European regions, for which physical distance should be irrelevant. Social proximity matters more during times of high …

The Pacesetter Style Of Leadership, Michelle C. Dziurgot Dds

The Journal of the Michigan Dental Association

This editorial explores the pacesetter leadership style, likening it to a marathon "rabbit" setting a fast pace. Pacesetters, exemplified by figures like Jack Welch and James Cameron, set ambitious goals, driving themselves and their teams relentlessly. While effective in achieving short-term goals and maximizing team potential, drawbacks include employee stress, lack of feedback, and a "rat race" atmosphere. The author, a self-identified pacesetter with a compassionate approach, emphasizes the importance of balancing high standards with employee well-being for sustained success.

Architects Of War: The Economic And Industrial Strategies Of The Third Reich And United States Under Albert Speer And William Knudsen, Spencer David Taylor

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis presents a chronological narrative that delves into the economic and industrial underpinnings of the Second World War, focusing on the contrasting war machines of Germany and the United States. By examining the strategic decisions and outcomes shaped by two central figures, Albert Speer of Germany and William S. Knudsen of the United States, this study highlights how their approaches to war production profoundly influenced the overall trajectory and outcome of the war. Knudsen’s embodiment of the American industrial spirit and Speer’s manipulation of Germany's constrained resources illustrate the crucial roles that economic strategies played alongside military operations. The …

The New Marshmallow: The Effects Of Screen Use On Children's Ability To Delay Gratification, Benjamin Richardson, P. Thomas Fife, Joseph Steed, Caroline Crane, James Gaskin

Faculty Publications

In a digital age where screens are as ubiquitous as crayons once were, the relationship between screen use and a child’s development necessitates examination. This study investigates the effect of screen use—both by children and their parents—on children’s ability to delay gratification, a key predictor of future success. Utilizing an experimental design modeled after the Stanford Marshmallow Experiment, we found that children’s screen use did not significantly affect their ability to delay gratification. However, parental screen use for entertainment purposes was negatively associated with children’s capacity to delay gratification. Additionally, screens proved to be a more potent temptation than traditional …

Graph-Partitioning Entity Resolution For Resolving Noisy Product Names In Ocr Scans Of Retail Receipts, Jose Ramon Ilagan, Joseph Benjamin R. Ilagan

Quantitative Methods and Information Technology Faculty Publications

In business intelligence for retail, it is critical to ensure consistent and unambiguous product dimension information. This is challenging, especially if an organization does not have full control over the source of either transaction or master data. Such lack of control is the case when brands rely on data provided directly by consumers through images of receipts. Product name strings obtained from the digitization of receipts often contain substitution, insertion, and deletion errors. These errors prevent product names from serving as a useful dimension for further analysis. This paper proposes a clustering-based approach to link error-laden product names to underlying …

Elevating Inclusion: Understanding The Employee Experience Of Latinx Immigrants In The Technology Industry, Angelica Coronel

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

In a time characterized by an increasingly diverse U.S. labor force, immigrants have emerged as a vital yet often overlooked segment. As the workforce landscape evolves and employers seek to expand their Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DIB) initiatives, understanding the unique challenges and perspectives of immigrant employees becomes crucial for fostering equity and inclusion in the workplace. The existing literature reveals a significant gap on workplace experiences of immigrant employees, particularly Latinx immigrants employed in the technology industry. Grounded in social identity theory, systems theory, and equity theory, this study adopts a phenomenological approach to understand how Latinx immigrant employees …

Human Resource Professionals And Ombuds: Perceptions, Challenges, And Benefits Of Their Working Relationship And Interactions A Qualitative Descriptive Study, Herbert S. Ambrose

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

Many organizations use policies and procedures as well as professionals to manage conflict within their organizations. Human Resource (HR) professionals assist organizations by establishing policies and ensuring that processes are being followed accordingly. Ombuds provide confidential assistance to individuals through various methods but are not associated with the organization’s official procedures for handling workplace conflict and do not have the formal authority of Human Resources. This qualitative descriptive study explored the individual working relationship between Human Resources professionals and Ombuds. Based on interviews with HR professionals and Ombuds who work in organizations that employ both types of professionals to deal …

The Narratives Of Successful Conflict Resolution Entrepreneurs: Evolving Career Pathways And Determinants Of Business Success, Eileen Paige Petzold-Bradley

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

The study explores the narratives and best practices of 33 Successful Conflict Resolution Entrepreneurs (SCREs) in the United States. In doing so, the study helps to fill an essential gap in the literature, where research on conflict resolution entrepreneurship with experienced practitioners is rare. Given the focus of the study on narrative inquiry and thematic analysis, this methodological approach achieved an in-depth qualitative analysis of conflict resolution entrepreneurial experiences. The narrative insights gathered from the 33 SCREs provided detailed descriptions of the career pathways, personal motivations, business challenges, and successes of running a conflict resolution business. The research illuminates the …

Evaluating Conflict Resolution Training For Effectiveness: Developing Knowledge And Skills For Multiple Perspectives, Jessica Arriola

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

Managers and leadership teams invest time in resolving workplace conflicts, but the key question is whether professional learning effectively delivers lasting outcomes for individuals and organizations. This study created an eight-hour conflict resolution training on Bolman and Deal’s Four Leadership Frames to educate Central Florida professionals on using multiple perspectives in conflict resolution, evaluating effectiveness through the Kirkpatrick Model. Directed qualitative content analysis (DQCA) was used to gauge the effectiveness of the training, therefore answering the overarching research question: Is conflict resolution training of the Four Frames of Leadership by Bolman and Deal perceived as effective training by human resource …

Goodwill Elasticity And The Opportunity For Favorable Financial Reporting, Drew Stevenson

Dissertations and Theses

ASC 350-20 grants public business entities (PBEs) the discretion to determine timely recognition of goodwill impairment charges, which likely introduces managerial ambiguity in the goodwill impairment process. Consequently, this paper explores whether the ambiguity in goodwill accounting standards allows managers to engage in favorable financial reporting during economic disruption, such as the global financial crisis of 2008 and 2009 or the COVID-19 pandemic beginning in 2020. The study introduces an indicator variable to identify PBEs with highly elastic goodwill changes, providing insight into a PBE's internal processes and how its management practices for goodwill impairment differ from standard industry practices. …

The Role Of Technology In Online Health Communities: A Study Of Information-Seeking Behavior, Leann Boyce, Ahasan Harun, Gayle Prybutok, Victor R. Prybutok

Information Systems Faculty Publications

This study significantly contributes to both theory and practice by providing valuable insights into the role and value of healthcare in the context of online health communities. This study highlights the increasing dependence of patients and their families on online sources for health information and the potential of technology to support individuals with health information needs. This study develops a theoretical framework by analyzing data from a cross-sectional survey using partial least squares structural equation modeling and multi-group and importance-performance map analysis. The findings of this study identify the most beneficial technology-related issues, like ease of site navigation and interaction …

Unlv Title Iii Aanapisi & Mcnair Scholars Institute Research Journal 2024, Jesica Godinez-Paredes, Kian Hassankhan, Apia Hickman, Robin Ruth Kee, Kevin Ayala Pineda, Briana Melendez, Kalli Ramos, Saturn L. Reyes, Fabian Leija, Selena Pepe, Silva Topchyan, Celeste Ainsley, Mayra Arzate, Jessica Balistreri, Zantana Ephrem, Mirella Jasso, Karl Panou, Nichole Pelaez, Miklo Alcala, Akshay Dave, Mey Mey Heng, Michael Finkle, Janessa Montenegro, Reynafe Naol Aniga, Victor Mejia, Angelica G. Diaz, Anayeli Flores-Garibay, Kari Lee Joe Goold, Samantha Hernandez, Lianelys Cabrera Martinez, Caitlin Reynolds, Kimberly N. Usbeck, Abdulrahman Alahdal, Angelica Diaz, Willaine Mae Kahano, Raquel Jackson, Cecia Ruiz-Hernandez, Kers Ung-Watson, Yessenia Henriquez, Vanessa Marie Booth, Alexia Brown, Darlyn Magana, Bianca Navarro, Nicholas Pereira, Gia Renemae Calip, Lucky Heng, Ralph Sagun, Lucas Abreu, Alexandra Maria Acosta, Tristan Benally, Cosset Hernandez Pena, Adrian Montenegro, Cierra Paaaina-Daquioag, Nicole Torosian, Tracy Fuentes, Julissa Martinez, Medina Mcallister, Michal Newhouse-Van Vlerin, Tiria Carr, Nima Abkenar, Isabella Aceituno, Yuhan Bi, Victoria Campos, Melika Cummings, Zachary J. Johnigan, Alexis Sotolongo-Marin

McNair Journal

Journal articles based on research conducted by undergraduate students in the AANAPISI, LSAMP, and McNair Scholars Program.

Table of Contents

About AANAPISI

Dr. Chris Heavey, Interim President

Dr. Keith Rogers, Vice President for Student Affairs

Ms. Zhanna Aronov, Associate Vice President for Retention & Outreach

Optimizing Sports Outcome Prediction Through Feature Engineering And Machine Learning, Vitor S. Freitas

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The challenge of predicting the outcome of a team game lies in the high complexity and dynamics of the sports data. This thesis focuses on the aspect of using feature engineering and the genetic algorithm to predict the winner and the score of various sports events. Generally, it deals with how machine learning algorithms are combined with state-of-the-art feature engineering techniques in sports datasets derived from various sports disciplines. In this thesis, five different machine learning models have been applied, classification and regression trees (CART), random forest (RF), stochastic gradient boosting (SGB), eXtreme gradient boosting (XGBoost), and extreme learning machine …

A Review On Machine Learning Methods For Customer Churn Prediction And Recommendations For Business Practitioners, Awais Manzoor, M. Atif Qureshi, Etain Kidney, Luca Longo

Articles

Due to market deregulation and globalisation, competitive environments in various sectors continuously evolve, leading to increased customer churn. Effectively anticipating and mitigating customer churn is vital for businesses to retain their customer base and sustain business growth. This research scrutinizes 212 published articles from 2015 to 2023, delving into customer churn prediction using machine learning methods. Distinctive in its scope, this work covers key stages of churn prediction models comprehensively, contrary to published reviews, which focus on some aspects of churn prediction, such as model development, feature engineering and model evaluation using traditional machine learning-based evaluation metrics. The review emphasises …

Leadership In Social Service Non-Profit Organizations: An Interpreative Phenomenlogical Analysis Of Executive Leadership High Attrition Levels And Proposals For Change, Stephanie Fredericka Wanza

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to address how leaders who are employed at non-profit organizations can utilize change management frameworks, leadership style, strategic planning and organizational best practices to reduce attrition levels at their organizations. The focus of this study is three-fold: a) to understand why high attrition takes place at non-profits; identify what change model/s, types of leadership styles and best practices can be effective in reducing leader attrition, b) explore the development of a leadership framework by understanding how to manage change at nonprofits through the Carnall (1986), Shields (1999) and Cummings and Worley (2009) change management …

The Latina Career Journey: Experiences Of Latinas In Accounting, Alba Ruth Prato

Theses and Dissertations

Latina voices remain largely silent in the scholarship on leadership, and their representation in leadership roles lags behind other minority and majority groups. This research explored the Latina career journey through in-depth narrative interviews with 19 Latinas who told the stories of how they carry out their role, act on opportunities, navigate between cultures, and overcome challenges. Through comprehensive qualitative analysis using a grounded theory approach, a theoretical framework emerged that brings to light the larger social and cultural forces that impact the management arena and function as levers that, when activated, hinder and facilitate the emergence of Latina leaders. …

The Power Of Organizational Purpose In Customer Engagement, Claudio Ludovisi

Theses and Dissertations

In a hyperconnected world, direct customer engagement is becoming a significant competitive advantage. Technologies like database marketing, social media, personalization, and artificial intelligence are widely available to create and support direct relationships with customers at scale; yet, as evidenced by the unabated rise in marketing and paid media costs, firms continue to use third parties to engage their audiences. At the same time, organizational purpose has been shown to drive firm value, but majority of research has focused on internal dynamics of purpose rather than its effect on external stakeholders and customers in particular. Very little has been empirically studied …

An Examination Of Emerging Technologies In Supply Chain Management And Their Impacts On Efficiency In The Automotive Industry, Wafaa A. Barakat

Theses and Dissertations

The automotive supply chain sector is facing immense transformation, particularly with the emerging digital technologies in supply chain management. This paper examines the emerging technologies in supply chain management and their impacts on efficiency in the automotive industry. This research strives to examine the underlying aspects of the automotive supply chain integration in United States companies. For the study, there is the application of the exploratory study. The reason is that there is no vivid perspective of the characteristics and the scope. The study design used is a qualitative analysis of 10 automotive personnel from different multipliers of the automotive …