Business Commons^™

Engaging The Plus-Size Community Through Social Media And Public Relations, Esperanza Chavez

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores which platform, TikTok or Instagram, best supports engagement andcommunity building for the plus-size audience. Grounded in theories by Goffman, Berger & Luckmann, and David Meerman Scott’s 85-10-5 Rule, the study combines strategic PR methods with digital media tools to elevate plus-size voices. The campaign included 30 Instagram posts, 35 TikToks, street interviews, and a podcast series, all designed and executed for this project. Engagement was measured through likes, comments, shares, saves, follower growth, and qualitative audience feedback.

Angela’S Bakes And Brews: The Business Of Running A Bakery, Angela L. Centeno

Whittier Scholars Program

This project explores the development of a comprehensive business plan for Angela’s Bakes & Brews, a bakery located in Manhattan Beach, California. The plan integrates foundational business and hospitality principles to create a unique concept featuring seasonal pastries and curated beverages. By conducting market research, analyzing competitor offerings, and estimating financial requirements, the project addresses the core question of what it takes to operate a successful small business bakery in the competitive Los Angeles metropolitan area. Emphasizing community connection and customer experience, the plan incorporates innovative marketing strategies, a prime location selection, and long-term growth objectives, including a food truck …

Feeding Jersey: A Fresh Look At Food In The Garden State, Zachary E. Zawila

Capstones

New Jersey is the Garden State. The food business is in its nature. But how the state's foodways work, and particularly how they shape the cities of North Jersey, brings vitality to some neighborhoods while leaving others behind. The cities of Orange, Elizabeth, and Paterson have especially interesting food pasts, and particularly promising food futures.

https://sites.google.com/view/feeding-jersey/home

Book Review: Ai [Artificial Intelligence] Fundamentals For Business Leaders, Eya Mahouachi

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Artificial Intelligence Fundamentals for Business Leaders: Up to Date with Generative AI (Byte-sized Learning Book 1) is a recent book in a series of four on Artificial Intelligence. It is authored by I. Almeida, the Chief Transformation Officer at Now Next Later AI, an AI advisory, training, and publishing business that supports organizations with their AI strategy, transformation, and governance.

This book is organized around understanding AI, Data and Data Management, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Model Selection and Evaluation, and Generative AI. The last chapter incorporates an assignment for leaders. This book employs an effective approach to help readers grasp …

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc Strategic Audit, Carter Herchenbach

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Abstract:

This case study focuses on Take-Two Interactive, Inc (TTWO). Take-Two is a video game developer and publisher most well known for their 2K Sports and Grand Theft Auto video games. By focusing on issues critical to strategic management, this paper provides a detailed analysis of Take-Two Interactive and its subsidiaries. To accomplish this, the paper uses different analysis to examine how, where, and what actions Take-Two uses to compete in the video game industry. The analysis implemented to accomplish this includes a PESTEL analysis, Porter’s Five Forces analysis, and an analysis of Take-Two’s senior leadership team and corporate strategy. …

The Practical Adoption And Application Of Blockchain Technology Within The Beverage Industry, Alexander Adams Jr

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Abstract

The beverage industry is facing heightened scrutiny as the demand for transparency and accountability reaches new heights. In the age of information technology, companies must prioritize enhanced traceability to ensure product safety, comply with government regulations, maintain customer trust, and protect brand integrity. This thesis explores the potential of blockchain technology as a solution to these challenges, focusing on its ability to decentralize data, improve traceability, and expedite response times during safety recalls. The research provides an overview of the evolution of food safety regulations, beginning with the first establishment by Upland Sinclair, and examines current traceability practices and …

Navigating Market Volatility: Risk And Return Insights From Indian Mutual Funds, Davinder K. Malhotra, Rahul Singh, L. Ramani

School of Business Faculty Papers

This study evaluates Indian mutual funds using a variety of criteria, demonstrating a historical tendency of lower monthly returns and volatility when compared to benchmark indexes. This positive risk profile implies that it will appeal to investors who want stability. Despite COVID-19-induced market volatility, mutual funds persistently outperform benchmark indices in terms of average return per unit of risk, highlighting their potential as a dependable investment option for stability seekers. Furthermore, Indian mutual funds routinely beat benchmark indexes in risk-adjusted terms. Despite having a positive alpha, it lacked statistical significance, indicating a possible reliance on market volatility rather than managerial …

Researching Company & Industry Data, Sandra Teft

Handouts

This in-class assignment was designed to get students started on gathering data required for their MKT 351 project, Consumer Based Marketing Insights Report. The students were required to divide into evenly distributed groups (with my assistance) and work within the databases I demonstrated during class to find data. The students selected one student from each group to report their findings.

The Status Of Women Leaders In Utah Business: A 2024 Update, Shirlayne Quayle, Susan R. Madsen, Robyn Blackburn

Marketing and Strategy Faculty Publications

In 2014, the Utah Women & Leadership Project (UWLP) released a research and policy brief titled “The Status of Women Leaders in Utah Business.”¹ The brief was updated in 2018 to determine what, if any, progress had been made in women’s leadership within Utah’s business sector.² Unfortunately, in most areas, instead of making progress, the percentage had decreased. Now, six years later, we are providing yet another update. In each brief, we compare Utah data with national data and review the applicable literature addressing women in the highest levels of business leadership, including C-level positions and presence on …

Ulta Beauty, Inc. Industry And Strategic Analysis, Shawn Joubert

Management Student Publications

Ulta Beauty, Inc. stands as a leading beauty retail store operating in the United States and has established itself at the top of the beauty industry with its strong financial results in recent years. In the latest year, the company reported $1.21 billion in earnings and $11.32 billion in revenue, showing an impressive performance in the industry, capturing a significant market share. In Ulta’s 1,411 stores and counting, they employ over 56,000 employees. Ulta consistently shows growth while focusing exclusively on the United States Market.

Zero Textbook Cost Syllabus For Mkt 3000 (Marketing Foundations), Ram Bezawada

Open Educational Resources

This course is designed to introduce business students to the fundamental concepts and principles of marketing. The knowledge you gain in this course should help you understand how well-thought out and carefully implemented marketing strategies can help businesses succeed in a competitive environment. This understanding and skills you will have to practice in this course (i.e., analytical, and oral/written presentation skills) will help you to become a more valuable employee whether you choose a career in marketing or in other fields.

For students majoring in marketing, this course will provide the foundations for more advanced courses and work experience. For …

Busn 3125: Principles Of Selling, Ngoc Cindy Pham

Open Educational Resources

Course Objectives: 1. Define the Selling Process: Understand and apply the selling process to various forms of sales, including personal, professional, and digital sales. 2. Identify Communication Elements: Recognize and utilize the key components of the communication process between buyers and sellers in business, focusing on clarity, persuasion, and relationship building. 3. Examine Ethical and Legal Aspects: Analyze ethical issues and legal restrictions in American business that impact sales practices, ensuring compliance and integrity in all sales activ

Busn 3140: Consumer Behavior, Ngoc Cindy Pham

Open Educational Resources

We will explore consumer behavior, focusing on its influence in your life, business strategies, policy making, and society. Our emphasis will be on understanding and analyzing how consumers acquire, use, and dispose of products. In other words, we will examine the ways consumers think, feel, and interact with retail environments, products, services, brands, and ideas.

Sin In Business: The Contributions Of Perversion, Defilement, And Idolatry, Jason M. Stansbury

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

Far from being a parochial concern with the ritual observances of the faithful, sin is the fundamental problem of life for all people. It encompasses all of the violations of the peace that a person has or should have with God, themselves, others, and even the natural environment. These violations occur as people pervert parts of God’s good creation away from their created purposes and toward unworthy ones, disrupting the interdependent order of creation and defiling themselves and their objects in the process. It moreover is self-reinforcing, gaining a power over people that makes future sins more difficult to resist, …

Syllabus: Workplace Motivation, Alice M. Brawley Newlin

Open Syllabus Collection

This syllabus is for an upper-level undergraduate class in workplace motivation that utilizes a combination of open, free, and library-licensed material. The course is designed to provide students with a “toolbox” of work motivation theories to critically select from and use well. This open syllabus also includes an annotated reading list with stable links to materials and availability notes.

From Vision To Venture: Investigating Small Business Entrepreneurship, Lindsey N. Lapinta

Honors Projects

This research explores the challenges and opportunities faced by small business startups, focusing on the critical factors contributing to their success or failure. More than two-thirds of small business startups fail to deliver a positive return to investors, often discouraging aspiring entrepreneurs. Through an in-depth analysis of existing literature, interviews with successful entrepreneurs, and case studies, this research identifies common patterns and underlying reasons for these failures. Key insights from Tom Eisenmann’s book "Why Start-ups Fail" and Eric Ries’ book "The Lean Startup'' highlight the importance of validated learning, strategic stakeholder management, and the need for startups to pivot or …

Black-Owned Businesses In The Mountain West, 2017-2020, Riley Ruff, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet examines data on Black-owned businesses in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The report “Who is driving Black business growth? Insights from the latest data on Black- owned businesses" from the Brookings Institution includes data on Black-owned businesses in metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) across the United States.

Leadership In Extreme Contexts: An Emerging Typology, Ashley Williams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the relationship between leadership and extreme contexts through the lens of rural hospitals facing environmental jolts. Rural hospitals offer a unique setting for this research, given their inherent geographic isolation, lack of resources, and the critical role these facilities play in their communities. Through a qualitative analysis of interviews with Chief Executive Officers of rural hospitals, this research takes a grounded approach to build theory surrounding how leadership not only shapes but is shaped by extreme contexts and environmental jolts. The research results in four primary contributions. Namely, this study extends existing typologies on leadership in extreme …

Impact Of Esg Ratings On Company Stock Price Returns, Benjamin Mccormick

Honors College Theses

ESG, Environmental, Social, Governance, is a new business philosophy that asserts that businesses have a duty to the environment, their communities, and to act legally and ethically. ESG rating agencies are built around grading public companies on their fulfillment of these objectives. Critics of ESG cite that ESG dilutes the primary purpose of business, to create value for shareholders. This paper uses regression analysis to test whether these perspectives are mutually exclusive. With stock returns as the dependent variable and ESG ratings as the dependent variable of interest, this paper finds a slight correlation between lower returns and companies in …

Building A Business: A Close-Knit Relationship Between Marketing & Entrepreneurship, Gabrielle O. Ysteboe

Honors Capstones

This project explores how best to build a knit blanket business with respect to several parameters including market research to determine price point, where to sell the product, with options including Etsy, brick and mortar, larger retail stores, personal website, craft fairs, and pop-up retail locations, and determining the target market and demographics, which will shape the marketing strategy to be used. It shows the ties between the 4 P's of marketing and entrepreneurship. Through surveys and primary research, data was found that allowed for one option for business placement to come out on top. It also allowed for the …

Supply Chain Management Internship Thesis – The Mercery, Katherine Chamberlin

Supply Chain Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

The main purpose of this thesis is to evaluate my internship with The Mercery, enabled by the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation’s VIP Internship program. This provides background information on both the company and the program, along with the different projects and skills I worked on throughout this semester-long internship. This is accompanied by a self-assessment and learning objectives, implications for the company, and the main project results. Finally, this concludes with the summation of all my learnings and growth, and an assessment of the experience.

Finance And Artificial Intelligence, Luke Schawang

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into finance represents a significant evolution in the industry, one that has been ongoing for years but is now accelerating rapidly. This paper explores the various forms and functions of AI, from reactive machines to the potential for superintelligence, and examines its impact on banking, business finance, and investing.

In banking, AI has bolstered cybersecurity and fraud detection, leveraging machine learning algorithms to continuously improve accuracy and efficiency. Similarly, in business finance, AI tools like chatbots and algorithms streamline processes, enhance productivity, and reduce costs. In investing, AI-driven solutions such as robo advisors offer …

A Fish Out Of Water: An Examination Of Self-Identified Introverted Business Students' Perceptions Of Their Leadership Ability, Katie J. Jolicoeur

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Current American cultural and societal ideals favor personalities that are outgoing, positive, and talkative in nature, due to the rise of the Culture of Personality (Wilmot, 2019; Kim, 2012; Cain, 2013). Beginning with the industrial revolution and expanding rapidly midcentury, parents began to view children who are quiet as less favorable than those who are more gregarious, thus children and parents began forced socialization at an earlier age (Wilmot, 2019; Cain, 2013). Very little, if any, research has been conducted to understand the impact that the cultural ideal of favoring extraversion has upon undergraduate students seeking a degree in business, …

Sports Science: An Entrepreneurial Venture, Nicole J. Jones

Senior Honors Projects

In sports science, ensuring maximum athlete safety and optimizing data utilization are pivotal yet leave room for further work. My project, Unbeaten SafeWare, addresses these critical issues by focusing on two primary concerns: preventing heat-related and cardiac illnesses, which are significant causes of athlete fatalities, and enhancing the transparency and utility of sports data. This initiative involves developing a shirt integrated with sensors to monitor vital signs and an athlete management system to handle data input, storage, analysis, and accessibility for athletes.

The project has advanced through the efforts of a multidisciplinary team, which includes biomedical engineering undergraduates, two faculty …

The Hidden Scams In Business & Finance, Jake Patten, Carter Harrell, Claude Auguste, Sheldon Jerome Downing Ii

ENGL 1102 Showcase

For our research papers, we chose to look into different kinds of scams lurking in the business world, and how they can affect businesses and society as a whole. There are hundreds of different scams at any given time, but we decided to focus on lesser-known scams that the majority of people don't even think about. These scams include rigged casinos, charity fraud, business email compromise, and embezzlement within smaller businesses.

We chose this topic in an attempt to bring more attention to the criminal side of the business world that people otherwise see as harmless. Especially with the recent …

Credit History Controls The Ability Of Small Businesses To Obtain Working Capital: A Case Study, Tiffany Leeona Thompson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this research was to understand how a potential failure of business owners exists and how owners use business credit. In addition, this research includes understanding how business owners obtain working capital within small businesses, resulting in the inability of small businesses to gather the necessary funds to cover the operational costs. I used a flexible design using a qualitative method to gather knowledge from current literature regarding how a lack of credit history in small businesses results in the inability of business owners to obtain working capital. I used a flexible design to identify four elements that …

Artificial Intelligence In Business, Mallory Marsac

Honors Projects

The central focus of this project is to research different types of artificial intelligence that are present and emerging in the world. By looking into the current and future possibilities of artificial intelligence in a business setting, a better understanding of the technology itself, along with the potential benefits and costs associated, can be gained.

Exploring Stem Opportunities: A Focus On Economic Potential In East Texas, Manuel Reyes-Loya, Cecilia Cuellar

Hibbs Brief

No abstract provided.

Consumers' Brand Loyalty Towards Small Family-Owned Businesses, Christo A. Bisschoff Prof, Christoff Botha Prof, Marco Van Schoor Mr, Doret Botha Prof

AMTP Proceedings 2024

Family-owned businesses constitute a substantial portion of the workforce and GDP in South Africa and, with limited work opportunities in the public sector, play a significant role in job creation. As a result, family enterprises significantly influence South Africa's economy. This study aims to understand consumer loyalty towards family-owned businesses as brands by investigating family-owned businesses in the small mining town "Stilfontein" in the North-West Province, South Africa. Qualitative data collection involved semi-structured interviews with customers of family businesses to gather insights into brand loyalty. The identified themes and sub-themes highlight the importance of community bonds, personalized services, product quality, …

Standard & Poor's Capital Iq Netadvantage Revised, Michele Costello

Publications and Research

Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Capital IQ NetAdvantage is an integrat- ed Web-based market intelligence platform. NetAdvantage offers global news, market analytics, counterparty analytics, fund analyt- ics, industry research, powerful screening tools, and people search capabilities, offered separately in many competitor products, un- der one platform using transparent and trusted industry-standard sources. Users can analyze the global business operating environ- ment with information on public markets and indices, basic in- formation on foreign exchange rates and interest rates, sovereign profiles, peer groups generated with S&P Capital IQ’s proprietary relevancy score, and detailed CFRA Industry Research Reports. The streamlined interface with mostly …