Business Commons^™

Exploring The Potential Effect Of Google Chrome’S Removal Of Third-Party Cookies On Paid Display Advertising, Zhenya (Yevgen) Naydonov

Honors College Theses

The digital marketing industry continues to experience tremendous challenges caused by rising consumer privacy concerns. One of the industry’s most notable challenges revolves around the constant technological advancements and changes that these advancements pose on the advertiser’s strategies. My study explores the relationship between advertising expenditure and key performance indicators, such as impressions in paid display advertising. Google Chrome’s removal of third-party cookies could potentially affect this relationship. I chose this topic because of my passion for online consumer behavior and the role of technology and advertising in the continually evolving field of my study, where consumers’ behavior plays a …

Classifying Forecasts, Michael S. Drake, James R. Moon Jr., James D. Warren

Faculty Publications

We employ a novel machine learning technique to classify analysts’ forecast revisions into five types based on how the revision weighs publicly available signals. We label these forecast types as quant, sundry, contrarian, herder, and independent forecasts. Our tests reveal that a greater diversity of forecast types within the consensus is associated with increased consensus dispersion and improved consensus accuracy. Additionally, consensus diversity is associated with an improved information environment for firms, as reflected in reduced earnings announcement information asymmetry and volatility, higher earnings response coefficients, and faster price formation. Our study sheds light on how analysts revise their forecasts …

Optimizing Nonprofit Impact: A Comprehensive Approach To Donor Data Management, Gracie Shippen

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

This Honors Capstone project aimed to support the Malouf Foundation’s initiatives to combat sexual violence exploitation and abuse through three main components: developing a participant survey for the Smart Defense self-defense program, conducting research to identify male survivor speakers for the Malouf Summit, and implementing a comprehensive donor data management system.

The Smart Defense survey was designed through an extensive process involving meetings with instructors, stakeholder input, personal participation in the program, and multiple reviews. The resulting survey captures critical feedback from participants to guide instruction adjustments and ensure the program’s continued effectiveness. To promote the inclusion of diverse perspectives, …

Does Contingent Reward Leadership Enhance Or Diminish Team Creativity? It Depends On Leader (Un-) Predictability, Debjani Ghosh, Martin Buss, Amita Shivhare

Management Faculty Publications

Although prior research has shown that reward provision might sometimes increase creativity, little is known about how leadership that clarifies effort-reward contingencies (i.e., contingent reward leadership) is related to team creativity. Drawing on the theory of learned industriousness, we argue that contingent reward leadership can enhance team knowledge exchange and, in turn, team creative performance. However, we propose that this relationship is moderated by leader unpredictability, which can create uncertainty about resource allocation, thereby undermining the otherwise positive effect of contingent reward leadership. In a two-source, lagged design (three-wave) field study with data from 60 organizational teams, we found a …

Robo-Advisers And Investor Behavior, Benjamin Loos, Pengfei Ma, Alessandro Previtero, Andres Hackethal

Sim Kee Boon Institute for Financial Economics

Using data from a large German retail bank, we investigate the effects of the introduction of a robo-advisory tool on clients’ portfolios. Robo clients experience a significant increase in financial risk-taking and improve portfolio efficiency along several dimensions (more diversification, less home bias, more investment in passive funds, reduced investment fees). Our evidence is consistent with robo-advisers being a more cost-effective approach for offering financial advice, especially to less sophisticated investors.

Can I Get A Witness? Employee Reactions To Witnessing Visible Self-Compassion At Work, Sara Krivacek

All Dissertations

Self-compassion is defined as a tripartite process whereby an individual notices their own suffering, feels empathetic concern for oneself, and responds to alleviate or address the suffering. Research on self-compassion has proliferated in the last decade, and a major theme in the literature posits that it is beneficial for the practicing individual. However, less attention is given to the impact of self-compassion expression on other individuals in the workplace – partly because one major assumption is that self-compassion is an internalized process. In this dissertation, I conceptualize self-compassion as a social process and draw from affective events theory to make …

Evaluating The Effects Of A Noninvasive, Commercial-Grade Neurofeedback Technology And Mindfulness On Sleep Quality In Elite Athletes, Sydney Anne Hammit

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Abstract Proper sleep is a vital element in the lives of elite athletes due to its effects on recovery, performance, and mental and emotional health. However, despite the importance of sleep quality, elite athletes are experiencing notable difficulties with both sleep quantity and quality. While sleep is necessary for all individuals, it is specifically essential for elite athletes. Sleep quality issues can be accompanied by both physical and psychological struggles, which is concerning for the population of elite athletes who are struggling with sleep quality at higher rates than the general population. Despite the increasing awareness of sleep quality struggles …

Understanding Young Adult Consumers’ Attitudes And Intentions Towards Showrooming Behavior, Juliana Marconi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With the rapid advancement in information technologies, retailers integrate omnichannel marketing strategies to provide consumers with low prices, good products, and unique shopping experiences. Omnichannel retailing brings changes to consumer decision-making processes. Consumers use all channels (online and offline) simultaneously at the same time during the product search, purchase, and aftersales stages. Some consumers prefer to check out a product in a brick-and-mortar store, but purchase it online. This is referred to as showrooming. Since the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the use of mobile devices and smartphones in shopping, consumers search e-commerce sites using mobile devices while they shop in …

Navigating Uncertainty In Tax Strategy Surrounding The Tax Cuts And Jobs Act Sunset, Tate Smith

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Throughout history, taxpayers have relied on tax strategies to reduce the proportion of income that is deemed taxable by the government. Today's tax environment is no exception, and with the changes surrounding the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) Sunset, taxpayers need to prepare their tax plans. In 2025, much of the current tax legislation for individual taxpayers will potentially revert to the pre-TCJA legislation. Preparing a strategy during this time period will be difficult because when the current legislation sunsets in 2025 many of the legislation changes will depend on which political party controls the presidency.

This paper seeks …

Cultivating Atmosphere In Independent Coffee Shops: Reflections On How Atmospheres Are Created Through Sensory Experiences, Brooke Bierhaus Sutton

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Affective atmosphere is a fundamental component to the allure of coffee shops that is cultivated through sensory experience. In this thesis I examine how the sensory experience of sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch, create atmospheres in coffee shops. I ask, “how do coffee shops cultivate an affective atmosphere?” Through an exploration of material culture, design, affect, and the intentional production of third places, I illustrate the ways in which independent coffee shops have their own unique identities and atmospheres. By using memoir and reflexive analysis of my decade in global coffee culture, as well as an extensive literary review, …

Co-Creating A Process Of Tacit Knowledge Seeking Using Appreciative Inquiry: An Exploratory Case Study, Kristina Lewis

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In today’s dynamic workplaces, knowledge exchange among employees is vital for organizational innovation and competitive advantage. However, existing literature on knowledge management has primarily focused on knowledge sharing, neglecting the proactive process of knowledge seeking, particularly regarding tacit knowledge. This study aims to bridge this gap by exploring the social process of tacit knowledge seeking in the workplace. Using appreciative inquiry as a method for collecting data, this qualitative exploratory single case study examines how employees seek tacit knowledge in an international consumer products organization. Guided by a social constructionist framework and appreciative perspective, the study seeks to understand the …

Creating An Evaluation Instrument For Governing Board Chairs At Institutions Of Higher Education, Kristi Shackelford

Dissertations, 2020-current

The goal of this mixed methods study was to design an instrument that evaluates the board chair of an institution of higher education’s governing board chair using criteria identified by current and former board members as contributing most to their perceived success as a leader, according to fellow board members. The assessment would provide feedback on the work of the board chair, providing a metric for accountability and guidance for continuous improvement.

The study uses a three-phase exploratory sequential design, using social construction as a theoretical framework. Qualitative data was collected through a literature review and semi-structured expert interviews, then …

2024 May, Morehead State University. Office Of Communications & Marketing.

Morehead State Press Release Archive, 1961 to the Present

Press releases for May of 2024.

Resilience To Supply Chain Disruptions: An Investigation Of The Roles Of Innovativeness And Green Supply Chain Management Practices During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Lindsay Givens

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

The number of global supply chain disruptions is increasing at an alarming rate. These disruptions vary in terms of source, duration, and scope, but all pose major threats to the continuity of firms worldwide. Because of this increase in turbulence, there has been heightened interest in recent years surrounding the development of firm-level resilience to such disruptions. The supply chain sustainability research stream is relatively well-developed; less is known, however, about specific strategies for strengthening resilience. This study aims to contribute to the resilience literature by examining the viability of innovativeness and the adoption of green supply chain management practices …

Examining Outcomes Of Privacy Risk And Brand Trust On The Adoption Of Consumer Smart Devices, Marianne C. Loes

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

With more connected devices on earth than there are people, Internet of Things (IoT) is arguably just as innovative as the original introduction of the Internet. Though much of the research on technology acceptance and adoption has been conducted in organizational settings, the consumer use of IoT technologies, such as smart devices, is becoming a fertile field of research. The merger of these research streams is especially relevant from a societal perspective as smart devices become more embedded in consumer’s daily lives, particularly with the introduction of the “meta verse.” While original technology acceptance research is limited to two system-specific …

Enhancing Audit Quality Through Artificial Intelligence: An External Auditing Perspective, Jonah Mitan

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

The evolving landscape of the audit profession has been significantly influenced by the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation, marking a pivotal shift in audit methodologies, the auditors' roles, and the overarching quality of audits. This thesis delves into the breadth of AI's impact on the industry through a comprehensive review of academic literature, professional publications, and industry insights, highlighting the transformative effects of AI on audit processes. AI-driven tools, including machine learning, deep learning, and natural language processing can expedite laborious audit tasks, enhancing data analytics capabilities, and enabling more accurate risk assessment and fraud detection. AI technologies …

Faculty-Led International Business Seminar In Dublin, Ireland: An Account Of Personal Experiences And Reflection Of The Difference In Work-Life Balance Between Ireland And The United States Of America, Megan Hanigan

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

The study abroad program consisted of four weeks of learning through cultural immersion, tours, classes, travel, and personal experiences. I was granted the opportunity to travel abroad to a foreign country with fellow University of Arkansas students. While abroad, I learned about international business affairs and participated in local Irish activities. The purpose of the study abroad trip was to provide the students in attendance with the chance to immerse in another culture while learning about the differences between office structures in America and Ireland.

Has Electricity Deregulation Eliminated The Nuclear Option?: Rethinking The Coasian Ios For Project-Finance Investments, Stephen Dansky

Theses and Dissertations

Installed electric generation capacity in the United States is expected to grow significantly over the next two decades. This raises concern about climate change as several common methods of electricity generation emit greenhouse gases. Nuclear power, which doesn’t create greenhouse gases while generating electricity, has been heavily promoted by the nuclear industry and a segment of the environmental community ever since it was codified by the United Nation’s 26^th Climate Change Conference of the Parties as an acceptable energy source to fight climate change. However, this dissertation establishes that the increased revenue risk and uncertainty created by the deregulation …

An Inconvenient Truth About ‘Bundling’ Commitment, Engagement, & Embeddedness: Unbundling To Extend Theory On Turnover Motivations And Beyond, Carl Maertz, Clark D. Johnson, Brittney C. Bauer

School of Business: Faculty Publications and Other Works

This paper critiques a research practice that we call “bundling,” which has produced highly popular constructs in the organizational behavior literature, including organizational commitment, employee engagement, and organizational embeddedness. We show how these bundled constructs, using broad labels from common parlance, have produced overlapping meanings, confounded theoretical mechanisms, and imposed limiting “ideal employee” conceptions in the literature, organizations, and ultimately, societal discourse about employees. We argue that “unbundling” these constructs can provide multiple benefits to theory, empirical inquiry, and practical assessment of complex employee motives. As a demonstration, we unbundle the three focal constructs to integrate and clarify their component …

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 Future Of The Organization Of The Petroleum Exporting Countries, Mikayla Gross

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is a multinational and intergovernmental organization that dictates the petroleum exportation policies of 13 countries: Algeria, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, the Republic of the Congo, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela (About Us, 2023). The mission of OPEC is to ensure a stable supply of petroleum through its shared policies for its Member Countries and consumers (Our Mission, 2023). Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela founded OPEC in 1960 under the foundations and principles that dictated the international world order. Those foundations and principles …

Lululemon Strategic Audit, Tessa Mozingo, Olivia Eno, Molly Mitchell, Connor Morrissey, James Eshleman

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This case study focuses on lululemon, a prominent athleisure apparel company. Our team conducted an audit of the company revolving around strategic business management principles. Our research used publicly available information that included the company’s website, SEC filings, news articles, lululemon’s annual reports, financial statements, IBIS industry reports, and online sources. The goal of this strategic audit is to develop an understanding of lululemon’s business activities and strategies, collect and analyze both internal and external data, and evaluate lululemon based on strategic management concepts.

In this strategic audit, we conduct internal, external, performance, and competitive analyses and an examination of …

Jp Morgan Chase Strategic Analysis, Carson Swartzbaugh

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

JP Morgan Chase is an American financial institution that touches all sides of the financial sector, including commercial banking, consumer banking, investment banking, and asset management, to name a few. JP Morgan Chase is the largest American Bank and a global leader in the financial industry. A PESTEL analysis of JP Morgan Chase and the financial sector of the United States will give an overall view of the industry while providing critical insight into the opportunities and challenges faced by JP Morgan Chase and its competitors. Additionally, Porter’s Five Forces will focus on the competitive environment in which JP Morgan …

A Strategic Audit Of Instacart, Taylor Durbin

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Instacart is an online grocery delivery and pick-up service that allows users to order groceries and other household items from local and large stores and retailers through its website or mobile app. Apoorva Mehta founded Instacart in 2012 with the intent to help people conveniently access the food they enjoy, and the service now reaches over 14,000 cities across the United States and Canada. This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the company as its rise to becoming a prominent player in the online grocery delivery industry has skyrocketed demand for the service and presented numerous operational challenges for the …

Target Strategic Audit, Ashley Mcrae

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Target is a prominent American retail chain known for its wide array of affordable yet stylish products. The company has built a strong reputation over several decades for its commitment to offering exclusive brands and unique shopping experiences to its diverse customer base. This strategic audit specifically focuses on the dynamic mass-market retail industry and analyzes Target’s ability to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage in an evolving industry. This report will specifically focus on an overview of the company and its operations, analysis of the competitive advantage Target possesses, and an examination of the strategy Target utilizes. Tools, like Porter’s …

Design Of Off-Grid Lighting Business Models To Serve The Poor: Field Experiments And Structural Analysis, Bhavani Shanker Uppari, Serguei Netessine, Ioana Popescu, Rowan P. Clarke

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

A significant proportion of the world’s population has no access to grid-based electricity and so relies on off-grid lighting solutions. Rechargeable lamp technology is gaining popularity as an alternative off-grid lighting model in developing countries. In this paper, we explore consumer behavior and the operational inefficiencies that result under this model. Specifically, we are interested in (i) measuring the impact of inconvenience (of travelling to recharge the lamp) along with the impact of liquidity constraints (due to poverty) on lamp usage, and (ii) evaluating the efficacy of strategies that address these factors. We build a structural model of consumers’ recharge …

Untangling Influence: The Effect Of Follower-Followee Comparison On Social Media Engagement, Yi Peng, Liling Lu

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Social media platforms and marketers are keen on identifying truly influential creators. Number of followers (i.e., those who follow creators) and number of followees (i.e., those who are followed by creators) serve as cues to infer creators' influence. However, a cue of creators' actual influence is under-addressed and its effect on social media engagement remains to be explored. This research fills the gap in the literature by investigating how the cue of creators' actual influence (i.e., follower-followee comparison) may affect followers' engagement behavior. The study further examines the moderation effects of media-, topic-, and creator-related factors. The present work leverages …

Financial Literacy And Ipo Underpricing, Xiaoran Jia, Kiridaran G. Kanagaretnam, Chee Yeow Lim, Gerald J. Lobo

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

Using an international sample of IPO firms and two country-level measures of financial literacy, we find strong evidence that financial literacy is negatively associated with IPO underpricing. In cross-sectional analyses, we find that the effect of financial literacy in reducing IPO underpricing is more pronounced when the information environment is less transparent. Employing path analysis, we document that information friction, firm transparency, and stock market participation are mechanisms that mediate this relationship. Our study contributes to and extends the literature by providing strong evidence that citizens' financial literacy has an important and consistent influence on IPO underpricing.

The Governance Of Director Compensation, Lily Fang, Sterling Huang

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

The average total compensation of directors in U.S.-listed companies was $342,030 in 2020, 5.06 times the median household income. Directors set their own pay, giving rise to potential self-dealing. We argue and document that in the presence of self-dealing, external mechanisms such as legal standards act as effective means of governance. Following a landmark Delaware court ruling that subjected director pay to a more stringent legal standard, Delaware-incorporated firms reduced director compensation relative to non-Delaware firms and experienced positive and non-transient stock price reactions. Our results indicate that proper governance of director compensation enhances firm value.

Do Firms With Technological Capabilities Rush In? Evidence From The Timing Of Licensing Of Stanford Inventions, Young-Choon Kim, Reddi Kotha, Mooweon Rhee

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This study investigates the influence of licensees’ technological capabilities on the timing of technology licensing in university technology commercialization. Drawing on the appropriation-collaboration tension from the literature on university technology licensing and intellectual property management, we propose that while the licensee’s technological capabilities drive early licensing by averting technological obsolescence, this effect diminishes significantly with an overlap in the technological domain of the focal invention due to expropriation concerns. Cox regression analysis of Stanford University’s invention dataset confirmed our hypotheses. This research reveals that technology licensing experiences delays with the most suitable licensees, namely, those with strong technological capabilities in …