This dissertation utilizes the event study methodology from the modern theory of finance to examine corporate name changes (CNCs). Data sources include press releases and articles announcing CNCs compiled by Lexis Nexis, annual reports collected from the SEC File microfiche database compiled by Q-Data and the EDGAR database compiled online by Mergent, and the Center for Research on Stock Prices and COMPUSTAT compiled by Wharton Research Data Services. These data sources are used to answer three primary research questions. First, what is the effect of a CNC related to a change in corporate image, as opposed to a change in corporate entity (e.g., acquisition), on a firm’s stock price? Second, what is the effect of a major change versus a minor change to the corporate name during a CNC related to a change in corporate image? Third, what is the effect of a non-brand name altering CNC versus a brand name altering CNC on a firm’s stock price? This dissertation makes its primary contribution to the study of CNCs by finding that CNCs related to a change in corporate image will have a positive impact on stock price whereas CNCs related to a change in corporate entity will not. Moreover, it finds that major changes to the corporate name during CNCs related to a change in corporate image will have a positive impact on a firm’s stock price whereas minor changes to the corporate name during CNCs related to a change in corporate image will not. Finally, it is the first study to examine the effect of CNCs on firms’ brand names and finds that non-brand name altering CNCs related to a change in corporate image will have a positive impact on a firm’s stock price whereas brand name altering CNCs related to a change in corporate image will not.

Previous studies showed that emotional pictures capture attention. Further, this effect was decreased by manipulating spatial attention. In contrast, studies produced mixed findings for effects of perceptual load on attention to emotional pictures. Emotional pictures can be phobic or nonphobic. Because phobia might be an evolutionary adaption, it is possible that effects of phobic pictures on attention differ from effects of nonphobic emotional pictures. The present thesis aimed at investigating attention in spider phobia. Attention to emotional pictures was operationalized as event-related potentials (ERPs) (P1, early posterior negativity [EPN,] and late positive potential [LPP]). Two research questions were formulated. First, do phobic pictures evoke larger ERPs than what can be expected from arousal and valence? Second, are effects of spatial attention and perceptual load on ERPs the same for phobic and nonphobic emotional pictures? To investigate this, phobic and nonphobic negative pictures were presented to spider phobic and nonphobic participants. To determine effects of spatial attention on ERPs, participants were instructed to divert attention to a single letter that was presented in the periphery. To determine effects of perceptual load on ERPs, participants were instructed to perform a letter discrimination task on one, two, or three letters that were presented in the periphery. Study 1 showed enhanced LPP amplitudes to phobic pictures independent of arousal and valence. Further, this effect was present in both phobic and nonphobic participants. Study 2 showed that there was no effect of perceptual load on LPP to phobic pictures. Study 3 showed that spatial attention reduced LPP amplitudes, and to a similar extent for both phobic and nonphobic pictures. Further, perceptual load did not reduce EPN or LPP amplitudes to either phobic or nonphobic pictures. To conclude, the results suggest that phobic pictures evoke larger ERP amplitudes than nonphobic pictures. Still, ERPs to phobic and nonphobic pictures are moderated similarly by spatial attention and perceptual load. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 1: Manuscript. Paper 3: Manuscript.</p>

Event is something that an increasing number of Swedish cities are investing in since it contributes to higher attractiveness of cities and generate economic revenues. New arenas are built around Sweden to meet the increasing demands to host such events. Event projects are carried out in Sweden and it is important that the planning phase is carried out thoroughly to get a successful project. This thesis aims to look more closely at selected organizations and how they plan their projects and whether it is possible to follow project plans in the event projects. Karlstad has many events that recur annually, including the Swedish Rally. The city is investing a lot in events of various kinds, and is currently building a new arena to further enhance Karlstads image as a city with many big events. The organizations that have been studied are: Visit Karlstad, the conference department at Karlstad University, HotSpot and the event organization department at the municipality of Karlstad. All of these organizations work with event in some form. The organizations have been researched by an interview process to chart their way to work on projects and their event planning process. Event is a word that is very popular today and the definition of this concept is of varying nature. Thus, there is no recognized definition of events, which further complicates the use of it. In this thesis, the concept of events has been used as a generic term that includes events, meetings, fairs, congresses, conferences and sports competitions. This is to facilitate for the reader when the use of the term has been found in the studied literature as well. Planning an event project is more complex than planning a traditional project since the implementation occurs at the same time as the event is being submitted to the client. The planning phase can be seen as particularly important in event projects. If the event project is not planned carefully, it is difficult to have time to clear all the parts before it is time for implementation. Thesis results show that decisions are taken at an early stage in event projects which may affect the outcome of the event. For example, hotel rooms need to be booked if the customer chooses to go through with the event. The timeframe is also a distinctive part of the planning of an event since the event can´t be implemented one day later than specified. The planning phase of an event project can be divided into two parts; where one part is linked with the feasibility study. Part two in the planning phase can begin only when the decision comes from the customer. In addition, each event is unique, which suggests that it should be performed as a project, leading to that the planning must be adapted along the customer's wishes and requirements.

Uppsatsens titel ”Work is theatre and every business is a stage” – en studie i möjliggörandet av relationer med hjälp av event marketing Seminariedatum 2008-06-05 Ämne/kurs Kandidatuppsats i marknadsföring, 15 p Författare Sophie Ohlsson och Dina Sabrkesh Handledare Ingemar Haglund Nyckelord Event marketing, relationer, relationsmarknadsföring, evenemang, event. Problemområde Konsumenter idag vill inte dagligen pumpas med nya budskap utan de har blivit mer medvetna och söker efter ett värde från företaget och dess produkter utöver det brukliga. För att tillgodose detta har företagen börjat inrikta sin marknadsföring alltmer mot att försöka skapa interaktion, gemenskap och relation med sin målgrupp och ett effektivt sätt att göra det på är just genom event marketing. Genom dessa möten kan företag skapa och bibehålla relationen till sina kunder samt öka medvetenheten kring varumärket. Ett starkt varumärke bidrar till att möjliggöra relationer då ett välkänt varumärke skapar trygghet hos konsumenten. Syfte Syftet med uppsatsen är att beskriva processen kring planerandet och genomförandet av ett event. Detta för att på så sätt närmare kunna beskriva hur man med hjälp av event marketing kan möjliggöra relationer bland nuvarande och före detta studenter inom ett utbildningsprogram. Metod För att uppfylla syftet med uppsatsen har ett enskilt fall studerats. Fallet, som är ett event, var inte bara något som observerades utan också planerades och genomfördes. För att tränga igenom ytan på problemet och skapa förståelse för vad som specifikt sker i en viss situation har uppsatsen utgått från en fallstudieansats. En fallstudie är av kvalitativ karaktär där ett eller flera fall studeras under ett tillfälle eller över tiden. Den kvalitativa karaktären hjälper till att beskriva den sociala verkligheten vad gäller händelser, människor och handlingar. Slutsats Vid planering och genomförande av ett event är det av stor betydelse att planeringsprocessen genomförs noggrant och att arrangören är strukturerad och välorganiserad. För att möjliggöra relationer vid eventet är det viktigt att det finns en röd tråd mellan upplevelsen, mötet och budskapet som tilltalar den utvalda målgruppen. Vidare bör deltagarna ha en gemensam nämnare förutom eventet då det underlättar konversationer. Det är också viktigt att arrangören och deltagarna har ett stort engagemang. I de fall där relationer skapas eller bibehålls kan det leda till att programmet stärks. Relationer med näringslivet kan innebära praktikplatser vilket är ett attraktivt marknadsföringsargument vid rekrytering av nya studenter. Vidare kan relationer leda till färre avhopp samt en ökad spridning av positiv word of mouth.

The society of today is overflowed with information and commercials. There is a thick media noise that the marketers finds hard to penetrate. Bearing this in mind, we can see that Event Marketing, witch is marketing through events, has grown to be a popular form of communication as it has an ability to work its way through the existing media noise. Through events a company can strengthen its brand and image as well as form a lasting relationship with its consumers. What other functions does Event Marketing possess? In what context is Event Marketing an appropriate marketing strategy to use? These are two questions that we aim to answer through this essay. To be able to answer these questions we interviewed the marketing manager of two different companies, L´oréal and TeliaSonera. One of them sells hair care products and the other one sells telecommunications services. We also interviewed two different Event Marketing bureaus, Subito and BSP-marketing, to be able to create a deeper understanding of the vast area of Event Marketing. At last we interviewed two scientists within the area of marketing, to gain a wider objective of the subject Event Marketing. This essay is based on qualitative, case based research. We analysed the empirics that we sampled from our informants through the different theories that we hade chosen to apply on this study. The results that we acquired helped us to answer our questions about Event Marketing. We found out that Event Marketing, as stated, can help a company to produce lasting relations. Through an event the consumer gets an opportunity to actively participate which is creating a larger engagement from the consumers. This engagement helps the target audience to remember the brand when it is time for them to make a buying decision. By letting the consumer themselves choose what event to attend they will also find the message that the company is trying to convey more trustworthy. Through Event Marketing the companies are given a chance to physically meet and influence their target audiences. This physical contact between the consumer and the company helps the company to be heard and seen in the compact media noise that surrounds us today. We also found out that it is possible to use Event Marketing as a strategy for all companies and on all target audience. It is, however, important that the event created has a clear goal and purpose.

This dissertation utilizes the event study methodology from the modern theory of finance to examine corporate name changes (CNCs). Data sources include press releases and articles announcing CNCs compiled by Lexis Nexis, annual reports collected from the SEC File microfiche database compiled by Q-Data and the EDGAR database compiled online by Mergent, and the Center for Research on Stock Prices and COMPUSTAT compiled by Wharton Research Data Services. These data sources are used to answer three primary research questions. First, what is the effect of a CNC related to a change in corporate image, as opposed to a change in corporate entity (e.g., acquisition), on a firm’s stock price? Second, what is the effect of a major change versus a minor change to the corporate name during a CNC related to a change in corporate image? Third, what is the effect of a non-brand name altering CNC versus a brand name altering CNC on a firm’s stock price? This dissertation makes its primary contribution to the study of CNCs by finding that CNCs related to a change in corporate image will have a positive impact on stock price whereas CNCs related to a change in corporate entity will not. Moreover, it finds that major changes to the corporate name during CNCs related to a change in corporate image will have a positive impact on a firm’s stock price whereas minor changes to the corporate name during CNCs related to a change in corporate image will not. Finally, it is the first study to examine the effect of CNCs on firms’ brand names and finds that non-brand name altering CNCs related to a change in corporate image will have a positive impact on a firm’s stock price whereas brand name altering CNCs related to a change in corporate image will not.

Univ., Diplomarbeit--Lüneburg, 2006.

This work describes the research conducted in the quest for designing better software for discrete-event system (DES) control. The think-aloud data from an exploratory observational study of solving DES control problems contributed to the formulation of a list of recommendations on how to design and improve DES software. These observations, together with other relevant research, led to the proposal of a novel approach to DES problem solving, namely, the template design methodology. This methodology does not require the introduction of new control theory; it is rather an reinterpretation of the existing modelling framework. Software supporting this methodology was implemented and subsequently evaluated using twelve subjects. Significant improvements in the speed of problem solving as well as positive evaluations by the subjects were observed. The usability data do not show any drawbacks to applying the methodology. / Thesis (Ph.D, Computing) -- Queen's University, 2009-08-21 17:11:14.991

Agila arbetsmetoder har uppkommit ur utvecklingsprojekt av mjukvara inom it-branschen. Det behövdes ett mer flexibelt sätt att arbeta än vad som var fallet i traditionell projektledning. Det gällde att kunna förändra planen efter förutsättningar som ändrades under projektets gång. Inom eventprojekt måste olika aspekter fungera för att resultatet ska bli lyckat och även här måste en projektledare vara beredd på att förutsättningarna förändras. Detta gjorde att vi blev intresserade av att undersöka hur agila arbetssätt går att använda för människor som arbetar med eventprojekt. Förklaringen till att vi valde Europamästerskapet i fotboll för damer 2013 för vår fallstudie är ett stort idrottsintresse, samt att vi kände till att den allmänna uppfattningen är att det var ett lyckat event. Syftet med uppsatsen blev att undersöka hur projektledarna och arbetsgrupperna arbetade med mästerskapet och om de använde sig av några arbetssätt som kan liknas vid agil projektledning. För att uppsatsen även ska vara framåtblickande presenterade vi ett antal agila arbetssätt för intervjupersonerna med förhoppningen att deras svar skulle ge en indikation på om agila arbetssätt kan fungera i eventprojekt. För att kunna besvara uppsatsens frågeställningar genomfördes fyra stycken kvalitativa intervjuer med fyra projektledare som arbetade med dam-EM 2013. Deras svar analyserades sedan och tillsammans med relevant teori ledde de fram till vad som sedermera blev uppsatsens slutsatser. Ingen av intervjupersonerna sa att de arbetade agilt, men det framkom redan under en sonderande intervju med turneringsdirektör Göran Havik på Svenska fotbollförbundet att flera av framgångsfaktorerna kan liknas vid agila arbetssätt. Efter att ha analyserat empirin kunde vi dra slutsatsen att det finns likheter i arbetsprocessen kring mästerskapet som kan liknas vid agila synsätt, exempelvis när det gäller kommunikation, ansvar och självstyre samt arbetsmiljö. När det gällde de agila arbetssätt som presenterades för intervjupersonerna fick dessa övervägande positiva reaktioner, även om de i vissa fall kan behöva anpassas från projekt till projekt. Efter genomförd uppsats är vår uppfattning att det finns anledning för projektledare som arbetar med eventprojekt att vara öppna för att använda agila arbetssätt. Dock kan det kanske vara svårt att helt ut använda agila arbetssätt, med de utmaningar som är typiska för eventbranschen. / Agile work methods evolved from developing software in the IT industry. The general opinion was that the industry needed a more flexible way of attacking different duties and the work methods in projects. There was a need to create a way of working that would let them change the original plan of the project if the conditions changed during the process. From this need, agile work methods evolved. In event projects different aspects must work together for the result to be as successful as possible in the IT industry, the project manager needs to be on his/her toes and be prepared for the conditions to change.  Our interest in investigating how and if agile work methods can work in the event industry evolved from this basic similarity. The reason why we chose the UEFA Euro 2013 for women for our case study is that we both have a huge interest in sports in general, and we knew that the general opinion is that this was an event project that was a success. The purpose with our project is thus to create knowledge regarding how the project managers and their teams work and the role of flexibility in their projects and were these project managers stand in the question of agile work methods and working more agile in the event industry. We did interviews with four project managers in different cities who were chosen to host a couple of games during the tournament. Their answers during the interviews were analysed with the help of relevant theory.  None of the project managers that were interviewed said that their work methods were based on agile methods. However, under the exploratory interview with the tournament director Göran Havik from the Swedish Football Association, it emerged that a number of factors that created the success of the tournament were similar in different ways to agile work methods. After the case study was completed we were able to draw the conclusion that event project managers would benefit from being open to learning more about agile work methods. Even though applying the full range of these work methods in the event industry could be difficult, the analysis of the interviews indicates that it is worth exploring further how the event industry could benefit from incorporating more agile work methods.

There is compelling evidence that regular physical activity is likely to play a role in the secondary prevention of stroke and comorbid coronary artery disease. However, structured physical activity programs are not widely available for people following stroke. Cardiac rehabilitation programs (CRP) are well suited to provide exercise training following traditional stroke rehabilitation. However, people following stroke may be limited by a constellation of neurological deficits that may prevent them from effectively participating in and benefiting from an adapted CRP. Accordingly, the objectives of this work were to 1) examine the utility of cardiopulmonary exercise stress testing (CPET) for developing an exercise prescription in people ≥3 months post-stroke with mild/moderate motor impairments 2) determine ability to achieve minimal recommended exercise training levels reported to elicit health benefits during a single standard CR session following completion of a CRP 3) evaluate the physiological, and cognitive effects of a 24-week CRP of resistance and aerobic exercise and the effect of stroke-recovery-time. It was hypothesized that most patients (>50%) would reach a level of exertion on the CPET that would provide recommended exercise prescription target levels and that individuals would be able to systematically reach these target levels during a CR session. Moreover, the established exercise program would result in physiological and cognitive benefit independent of time-from-stroke. Study 1 demonstrated that most patients achieved a level of exertion during the CPET sufficient to inform an exercise prescription. In Study 2 patients with motor impairments were able to meet or exceed minimal recommended exercise target levels of intensity, duration and energy expenditure. In Study 3 a CRP yielded improvements over multiple domains of recovery (cardiovascular fitness, functional ambulation, sit-to-stand performance, and muscular strength). While those referred ≤1 year and >1 year post-stroke derived benefits from a CRP, those who started earlier (≤1 year) had greater improvements in ambulatory performance. In Study 4 combined aerobic and resistance exercise resulted in improvements in cognitive function. Change in cognition was positively associated with change in fat-free mass and change in anaerobic threshold. In summary people post-stroke are able to effectively participate in and benefit from an adapted CRP.