Matching Items (29)
Filtering by
- All Subjects: Procurement
- All Subjects: Technology
- Creators: Department of Supply Chain Management
- Member of: Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Description
The purpose of this thesis is to explore how Blockchain technology can help solve problems large corporations commonly face. For example, it is a common problem for large businesses and organizations to manage sales contracts with thousands of items on them. Likewise, it can be difficult to accurately monitor complex payment histories with thousands of items on them. Another issue is the difficulty that is introduced when making periodic reconciliations based on separate recording systems. At a broader level, some organizations may hesitate to do business with new strange companies or oversea companies for the first time because they do not trust that the other organization can deliver what they promise. Such problems cost organizations a lot of money, effort, and time to solve. However, Blockchain technology, first developed in 2009, could revolutionize how the business community deals with these common problems. The shared and immutable ledger on Blockchain can help organizations to keep track on transactions, manage the contracts in a smarter way, ensure correct purchase history records, eliminate the periodically reconciliation processes, and provide visibility for real-time transactions.
ContributorsHuynh, Phu Thanh (Author) / Popova, Laura (Thesis director) / Pankaj, Sneha (Committee member) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
The abortion debate has been a heated topic since the early 1970's when the monumental case, Roe v. Wade was decided. Roe v. Wade, along side of it's sister case Doe v. Bolton, ruled that no law restricting abortion could be passed and set the precedent that life did not exist before birth. Before this time, people were largely unaware of what life inside the womb looked like and therefore had no reason to believe that life truly began at conception. As medical technology has revealed more about life inside the womb, the pro-life movement has been tasked with the uphill battle to shift the discussion around the topic. Because people now spend so much time using various forms of technology, it has become an effective way for groups and organizations to come in contact with large amounts of people. This is something the pro-life group has not only done, but has excelled at. By successfully utilizing advancing technology combined with new medical tools and discoveries, the pro-life movement has successfully gained an increasingly large momentum and following in a relatively short amount of time. Recognizing that technology alone does not have the ability to change people's hearts, but must be backed up with arguments and strong evidence, this paper will explore the medical advances that helped drive pro-life arguments, the technological advances that have become a platform to disseminate this information, and ways the pro-life movement has utilized each new form of technology. Lastly, this paper will explore the amount of growth the pro-life movement has experienced since the early 1970's. In the end, the pro-life movement has successfully combined all these different advances to create a movement that has reached a vast audience and gained exponential awareness and momentum. They have used everything from social media, the Internet, and videos to spread the truth about abortion. As a result, minds are being changed, people are driven into action, and babies are being saved.
ContributorsSnyder, Lorne Lynn (Author) / Critchlow, Donald (Thesis director) / Anderson, Owen (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor)
Created2014-12
Description
This article summarizes exploratory research conducted on private and public hospital systems in Australia and Costa Rica analyzing the trends observed within supply chain procurement. Physician preferences and a general lack of available comparative effectiveness research—both of which are challenges unique to the health care industry—were found to be barriers to effective supply chain performance in both systems. Among other insights, the ability of policy to catalyze improved procurement performance in public hospital systems was also was observed. The role of centralization was also found to be fundamental to the success of the systems examined, allowing hospitals to focus on strategic rather than operational decisions and conduct value-streaming activities to generate increased cost savings.
ContributorsBudgett, Alexander Jay (Author) / Schneller, Eugene (Thesis director) / Gopalakrishnan, Mohan (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
The purpose of this thesis research project is to explore blockchain technology and its present and future applications within supply chain management. Emerging blockchain technologies, both public and private, are already showing great promise for a number of applications in and outside supply chain management. Our sole focus is to understand the fundamentals of blockchain, smart contracts, current applications in supply chain, and the future possibilities for blockchain to shape global supply chains. Many have theorized about how private blockchains can be implemented and used; however, there is little research to date that has collected and explored the actual use cases in industry today. The mission of this research paper is to separate theory from the current state of the technology and provide a clearer understanding of where the technology is headed in the near future. We aim to produce a work that will provide a comprehensive description and commentary on current use cases for the education of students and industry professionals alike. With any new technological developments, terminology and technicalities can be paralyzing, and this is particularly true for blockchain technology. For this project, our goal was to create a document that cuts through the complexities and allows a non-technical audience to gain a strong foundational understanding of blockchain's potential and current limitations within supply chains. Provided this, some highly technical concepts and implementation details will not be explored due to the complexity and minimal understanding even amongst industry experts. As future supply chain professionals, we are motivated to further our understanding of blockchain technologies and the potential for this technology to shape the future of supply chain management.
ContributorsBecker, Logan (Co-author) / Falco, Alexander (Co-author) / Murphy, Thomas Brian (Co-author) / Taylor, Todd (Thesis director) / Wiedmer, Robert (Committee member) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
The United States is in a period of political turmoil and polarization. New technologies have matured over the last ten years, which have transformed an individual’s relationship with society and government. The emergence of these technologies has revolutionized access to both information and misinformation. Skills such as bias recognition and critical thinking are more imperative than in any other time to separate truth from false or misleading information. Meanwhile, education has not evolved with these changes. The average individual is more likely to come to uninformed conclusions and less likely to listen to differing perspectives. Moreover, technology is further complicating and compounding other issues in the political process. All of this is manifesting in division among the American people who elect more polarized politicians who increasingly fail to find avenues for compromise.
In an effort to address these trends, we founded a student organization, The Political Literates, to fight political apathy by delivering political news in an easy to understand and unbiased manner. Inspired by our experience with this organization, we combine our insights with research to paint a new perspective on the state of the American political system.
This thesis analyzes various issues identified through our observations and research, with a heavy emphasis on using examples from the 2016 election. Our focus is how new technologies like data analytics, the Internet, smartphones, and social media are changing politics by driving political and social transformation. We identify and analyze five core issues that have been amplified by new technology, hindering the effectiveness of elections and further increasing political polarization:
● Gerrymandering which skews partisan debate by forcing politicians to pander to ideologically skewed districts.
● Consolidation of media companies which affects the diversity of how news is shared.
● Repeal of the Fairness Doctrine which allowed media to become more partisan.
● The Citizens United Ruling which skews power away from average voters in elections.
● A Failing Education System which does not prepare Americans to be civically engaged and to avoid being swayed by biased or untrue media.
Based on our experiment with the Political Literates and our research, we call for improving how critical thinking and civics is taught in the American education system. Critical thought and civics must be developed pervasively. With this, more people would be able to form more sophisticated views by listening to others to learn rather than win, listening less to irrelevant information, and forming a culture with more engagement in politics. Through this re-enlightenment, many of America’s other problems may evaporate or become more actionable.
In an effort to address these trends, we founded a student organization, The Political Literates, to fight political apathy by delivering political news in an easy to understand and unbiased manner. Inspired by our experience with this organization, we combine our insights with research to paint a new perspective on the state of the American political system.
This thesis analyzes various issues identified through our observations and research, with a heavy emphasis on using examples from the 2016 election. Our focus is how new technologies like data analytics, the Internet, smartphones, and social media are changing politics by driving political and social transformation. We identify and analyze five core issues that have been amplified by new technology, hindering the effectiveness of elections and further increasing political polarization:
● Gerrymandering which skews partisan debate by forcing politicians to pander to ideologically skewed districts.
● Consolidation of media companies which affects the diversity of how news is shared.
● Repeal of the Fairness Doctrine which allowed media to become more partisan.
● The Citizens United Ruling which skews power away from average voters in elections.
● A Failing Education System which does not prepare Americans to be civically engaged and to avoid being swayed by biased or untrue media.
Based on our experiment with the Political Literates and our research, we call for improving how critical thinking and civics is taught in the American education system. Critical thought and civics must be developed pervasively. With this, more people would be able to form more sophisticated views by listening to others to learn rather than win, listening less to irrelevant information, and forming a culture with more engagement in politics. Through this re-enlightenment, many of America’s other problems may evaporate or become more actionable.
ContributorsStenseth, Kyle (Co-author) / Tumas, Trevor (Co-author) / Mokwa, Michael (Thesis director) / Eaton, John (Committee member) / Department of Information Systems (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law (Contributor) / Watts College of Public Service & Community Solut (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
DescriptionA look at current 3D printing capabilities, and exploring the potential for additive manufacturing to transform the economy in the future.
ContributorsBennewitz, Chase (Co-author) / Paul, John (Co-author) / Parker, Kerry (Co-author) / Maltz, Arnold (Thesis director) / McDowell, John (Committee member) / Fujinami, Chris (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Economics (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
The object of the present study is to examine methods in which the company can optimize their costs on third-party suppliers whom oversee other third-party trade labor. The third parties in scope of this study are suspected to overstaff their workforce, thus overcharging the company. We will introduce a complex spreadsheet model that will propose a proper project staffing level based on key qualitative variables and statistics. Using the model outputs, the Thesis team proposes a headcount solution for the company and problem areas to focus on, going forward. All sources of information come from company proprietary and confidential documents.
ContributorsLoo, Andrew (Co-author) / Brennan, Michael (Co-author) / Sheiner, Alexander (Co-author) / Hertzel, Michael (Thesis director) / Simonson, Mark (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Information Systems (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / WPC Graduate Programs (Contributor) / School of Accountancy (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
The purpose of this research project is to develop a recommendation for Company X on the strategies it should use to enter a new market. This was done through the compilation and interpretation of data from the company and the construction of a financial model capable of analyzing our different proposed strategies. Company X is a leading producer of silicon chips which seeks to remain one of the leading forces in new technologies. Currently Company X wants to assess the value and risks associated with introducing a new packaging technology (FO-WLP) into their products either by developing the technology in-house or outsourcing production. The first portion of the research consisted mostly of gathering the necessary business acumen to be able to to fully understand our research findings. Market research was conducted to discover what competitors exist and what inputs should be included for the model with help from employees at Company X. The research then proceeded with the identification of three possible strategies and construction of financial models to analyze these options. Using the results from our analysis we were able to develop our recommendation for Company X and lay out the next steps which the Company needs to take before investing in the new technology.
ContributorsRubenzer, Jack (Co-author) / Galaviz, Roberto (Co-author) / Mariani, Stephanie (Co-author) / Mecinas, Freddy (Co-author) / Simonson, Mark (Thesis director) / Hertzel, Mike (Committee member) / Department of Finance (Contributor) / Department of Economics (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12
Description
Services procured by government agencies are often ridden with delay and costly change orders. Government agencies may react to these failures by implementing restrictive terms and conditions intended to ensure that the service is delivered on time and within budget. While potentially helpful (and nearly always counterproductive), this approach often fails to recognize the cause of the procurement failure \u2014 inadequate request for proposal (RFP) draftsmanship. The RFP must provide the vendor, or service provider, with a comprehensive understanding of the client's motivations for soliciting the bid, the environment in which the materials and services will be utilized, and accurate specifications for those materials and services. In summary, the RFP must be a clean and concise roadmap of client expectations. This thesis describes, for the novice RFP drafter, a value-based approach to preparing a request for proposal.
ContributorsWheeler, Brynn Marie (Author) / Sullivan, Kenneth (Thesis director) / Savicky, John (Committee member) / Hurtado, Kristen (Committee member) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Smart cities ""utilize information and communication technologies with the aim to increase the life quality of their inhabitants while providing sustainable development"". The Internet of Things (IoT) allows smart devices to communicate with each other using wireless technology. IoT is by far the most important component in the development of smart cities. Company X is a leader in the semiconductor industry looking to grow its revenue in the IoT space. This thesis will address how Company X can deliver IoT solutions to government municipalities with the goal of simultaneously increasing revenue through value-added engagement and decreasing spending by more efficiently managing infrastructure upgrades.
ContributorsJiang, Yichun (Co-author) / Davidoff, Eric (Co-author) / Dawoud, Mariam (Co-author) / Rodenbaugh, Ryan (Co-author) / Sinclair, Brynn (Co-author) / Simonson, Mark (Thesis director) / Hertzel, Mike (Committee member) / Department of Information Systems (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12