Matching Items (6)
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- All Subjects: Supply Chain
- Creators: School of Accountancy
- Member of: Theses and Dissertations
- Resource Type: Text
Description
The main goal of this study was to understand the awareness of small business owners regarding occupational fraud, meaning fraud committed from within an organization. A survey/questionnaire was used to gather insight into the knowledge and perceptions of small business owners, while also obtaining information about the history of fraud and the internal controls within their business. Twenty-four owners of businesses with less than 100 employees participated in the study. The results suggest that small business owners overestimate their knowledge regarding internal controls and occupational fraud, while also underestimating the risk of fraud within their own business. In fact, 92% of participants were not at all familiar with the popular Internal Control \u2014 Integrated Framework published by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. The results also show that small business owners tend to overestimate the protection provided by their currently implemented controls in regard to their risk of fraud. Overall, through continued knowledge of internal controls and occupational fraud, business owners can better protect their businesses from the risk of occupational fraud by increasing their awareness of fraud.
ContributorsDennis, Lauren Nicole (Author) / Orpurt, Steven (Thesis director) / Munshi, Perseus (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Information Systems (Contributor) / School of Accountancy (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
Within this paper I summarize the key features, and results, of research conducted to support the development, design, and implementation of an internal control system at a startup small business. These efforts were conducted for an Honors Thesis/Creative Project for Barrett, the Honors College at Arizona State University. The research revolved around deciding which financial policies, procedures, and safeguards could be useful in creating an internal control system for small businesses. In addition to academic research, I developed an “Internal Control Questionnaire” for use as a ‘jumping off point’ in conversations about a business’ existing accounting system. This questionnaire is applicable across many industries, covering the major topics which every small business/startup should consider.
The questionnaire was then used in conjunction with two interviews of small business owners. The interviews covered both the overall financial status of their business and their business’ pre-existing accounting system. The feedback received during these interviews was subsequently used to provide the business owners with eleven recommendations ranging from the implementation of new policies to verification of existing internal controls.
Finally, I summarize my findings, both academic and real-world, conveying that many small business owners do not implement formal internal control systems. I also discuss why the business owners, in this specific circumstance, did not yet implement the aforementioned eleven suggestions.
The questionnaire was then used in conjunction with two interviews of small business owners. The interviews covered both the overall financial status of their business and their business’ pre-existing accounting system. The feedback received during these interviews was subsequently used to provide the business owners with eleven recommendations ranging from the implementation of new policies to verification of existing internal controls.
Finally, I summarize my findings, both academic and real-world, conveying that many small business owners do not implement formal internal control systems. I also discuss why the business owners, in this specific circumstance, did not yet implement the aforementioned eleven suggestions.
ContributorsDuncan, Spencer James (Author) / Garverick, Michael (Thesis director) / Casas Arce, Pablo (Committee member) / School of Accountancy (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
New Leaf was founded with the mission to address the environmental, health, and sustainability consequences of paper production today. We explored the sourcing and foundations of paper needs, supporting our assumption that paper can be created from agricultural waste. We solidified a business plan using agricultural waste after considerable sourcing research and expert and consumerism input. We determined that using forest foliage that is a potential fire hazard from a national forest could be used as a source to make alternative paper as well as contribute to sustainability efforts.
ContributorsTryon, Matthew (Author) / Frechette, Joseph (Co-author) / Herzog, Tighe (Co-author) / Taylor, Kenzie (Co-author) / Coon, Chantel (Co-author) / Byrne, Jared (Thesis director) / Larson, Wiley (Committee member) / Kneer, Danny (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Accountancy (Contributor)
Created2023-05
Description
In order to graduate with honors from Barrett, the Honors College at Arizona State University, I have completed the following thesis under the direction of Dr. Craig Carter and Dr. John Eaton. The purpose of this thesis is to perform preliminary and proprietary research on the sustainability of components of the supply chain of local business within the greater Phoenix, Arizona area in order to determine practices that can lead to and even increase success in a competitive niche of already competitive industries, especially during times of supply chain stress. My hypothesis is that preliminary and proprietary research will both display that the consumer aspect of the supply chain of local business is the most essential, especially if other aspects of the supply chain experience distress. My preliminary research involved breaking down the title of this thesis into four parts: sustainability, supply chain, local business, and the Phoenix local business market and then performing internet research and interviews in order to form a solid understanding of such concepts. Then, I performed my proprietary research, which involved conducting a consumer survey and three interviews with local business owners. Though my hypothesis is not supported, I have learned a lot on the topic of this thesis itself, as well as on the thesis writing process.
ContributorsBrunacini, Maria Abigail (Author) / Carter, Craig (Thesis director) / Eaton, John (Committee member) / WPC Graduate Programs (Contributor) / Department of Information Systems (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor) / School of Accountancy (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Meeting the food needs of a growing population, estimated to reach 9 billion by 2050 (Dou et al., 2021), is a global challenge as society continuously invests in technologies to increase food production. Meanwhile, inspired by sustainability and environmental stewardship initiatives, food production practices themselves have begun to shift. The production of alternative proteins is one such food technology that continues to attract the attention of the investors, the media, and stakeholders along the food supply chain. Dominating the market for alternative proteins are plant-based meat alternatives (“PBMA”) meant to satisfy consumers’ tastes and preferences for animal-derived proteins while minimizing environmental impact. Not only are PBMAs positioned to alleviate the effects of the livestock industry on the environment and climate (Dou et al., 2021), but also contribute to ancillary improvements related to animal welfare and human health issues. The current barriers to entry for food manufacturers interested in participating in the PBMA sector relate to research and development and product formulation, as well as the scalability of production given the extensive processing required to produce PBMA products. With this in mind, food manufacturers must anticipate production requirements and their relationships with input suppliers to support the growing demand for PBMAs. This analysis examines, in detail, the landscape of new product introduction of PBMAs, the production requirements for sustaining their global food demand, and presents insights into what is necessary to maintain and preserve flexibility in the supply chain for PBMAs.
ContributorsAdamo, Brianna (Author) / Chenarides, Lauren (Thesis director) / Chaturvedi, Hitendra (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / School of Accountancy (Contributor)
Created2022-05
Description
This thesis examines real experiences of how small businesses responded to the COVID-19 pandemic in order to generate recommendations for said businesses post pandemic from a finance and supply chain perspective. A literature review finds that several trends that emerged over the pandemic, such as supply and demand changes, workforce difficulties, financing struggles, and the effectiveness of the Payment Protection Program. Next, we conducted a survey of local small businesses based on the findings in the literature review. The survey aimed to examine managers’ struggles, strategies, and responses to the pandemic. The survey responses were examined and then analyzed to find how they compare to the statistics from the literature review. The findings from the results and other sources served as the basis for which small business recommendations are made on how to prepare for future unprecedented economic crises and better situate themselves to respond.
ContributorsOnyszchuk, Ethan (Author) / Thomas, Ryan (Co-author) / Simonson, Mark (Thesis director) / Printezis, Antonios (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor) / School of Accountancy (Contributor) / Department of Information Systems (Contributor)
Created2022-05