The history of the United States is rooted in differences and actions that has culminated in the current reality of culturally incompetent behaviors with a lack of diversity, equity, and inclusion prevailing in organizations and society. Through a cultural competence conceptual framework, this research highlighted an action-oriented approach for organizations seeking to engage in efforts to support and integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion. To conduct this research, I developed a cultural competence conceptual framework with eight types of initiatives derived from the scholarly literature on diversity, equity, inclusion, and cultural competence. The types of initiatives point to organizational efforts to engage in developmental and action-oriented strategies that: facilitate leadership engagement, sensitivity, and responsiveness to diversity, equity, and inclusion; specify strategic and operational goals; incorporate cultural awareness and sensitivity in policies, practices, programs, and procedures; integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion into human resource management to build a diverse and representative workforce; cultivate a supportive, inclusive, and equitable organizational culture/climate; reinforce and sustain a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion; employ sensitive and inclusive communications; and implement targeted training and professional development on diversity, equity, and inclusion. The cultural competence framework presented ways for organizations to actively engage in setting action-oriented goals targeting ingrained, systemic, and institutionalized disparities. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2020. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Brand equity is perhaps the most important marketing concept in both academia and practice. The term came into use during the late 1980s; and the importance of conceptualizing, measuring, and managing brand equity has grown rapidly in the eyes of practitioners and academics alike. This has resulted in several often-divergent view-points on the dimensions of brand equity, the factors that influence it, the perspectives from which it should be studied, and the ways to measure it. Many different definitions and ways to measure brand equity have been proposed, and most of them are based upon the definition: the added value with which a given brand endows a product. The two most influential conceptualizations of brand equity are Aaker and Keller. Aaker defines brand equity as a set of brand assets and liabilities linked to a brand, its name and symbol, that add to or subtract from the value provided by a product or service to a firm and/or to that firm’s customers. Keller defines consumer-based brand equity (CBBE) as the differential effect of brand knowledge on consumer response to the marketing of the brand. Currently, all research on brand equity has used the same conceptualization of the construct based on previously determined dimensions with no attempt to argue their validity. Given the importance of the concept of brand equity in marketing, as well as the need for the measurement of brand equity, the literature lacks an empirically based consumer-perceived brand equity scale. Since the brand is the consumer’s idea, the consumer is an active participant in the creation of equity for the brand. So if we want to understand and manage the intangible equity directly, we have to have the consumer’s help. This dissertation enriches and strengthens the current knowledge on brand equity by developing a new conceptualization and scale determined by dimensions that consumers perceive. The new Consumer-Perceived Consumer-Based Brand Equity Scale is made up of five dimensions: quality, preference, social influence, sustainability, and leadership. Previous conceptualizations of brand equity have discussed dimensions that are consumer descriptors. Since perceived brand equity is the value that consumers perceive in the brand, this conceptualization presents dimensions that are brand characteristics. The new robust scale contributes both to the theoretical understanding of consumer-based brand equity measurement, as well as assisting managers, or brand ambassadors, in measuring brand equity and developing successful brand strategies. The value of a consumer-perceived, consumer-based brand equity scale suggests a number of new directions for study and elaboration in what is certain to be a compelling stream of research with vast implications for both theory and practice.

Academic literature on the analysis of value creation in private equity industry is still in its infancy. The approach to value attribution is still a contended subject by both academic and professional writers. The purpose of this research was to determine how South African Private Equity industry generates value in portfolio companies. This was achieved by gathering 24 transactions from institutional investors and private equity firms and disaggregating their returns into value drivers. Identified value drivers were financial leverage, revenue growth, EBITDA multiples and EBITDA margin. Contrary to the common belief that the private equity model is more dependent on cutting costs and less on growing businesses, the findings of the study revealed that revenue growth was the biggest relative driver of value while operational efficiency, the least. Results regarding the importance of financial leverage in value creation in the last 10 years could not confirm the popular argument which states that as the private equity model matures the industry is moving towards other value levers. While descriptive statistics confirmed that the level of gearing and size of companies influence the relative importance of EBITDA margin and revenue growth, results from statistical tests were in several cases inconclusive. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

Equality of condition (Lynch & Baker, 2005) is “the belief that people should be as equal as possible in relation to the central conditions of their lives” (p. 132). Those who strive for equality of condition aim to equalize people’s options in a given situation. In education, inequality may result when teachers assess their students without considering equality of condition's five dimensions: resources; respect and recognition; love, care and solidarity; power; and working and learning. The purpose of this study was to examine how five secondary school chorus teachers create and implement assessments (musically or participatory) for their students, and if/how their views of assessment evolve as a result of their collective understanding of the five dimensions of equality of condition. The following questions guided the study: 1. How did the participants assess students at the beginning of the study? 2. Did participants’ perceptions of student assessment evolve over the course of the study, and if so, how? 3. Did participants modify their student assessments to align with the dimensions of equality of condition over the study’s duration? If so, how? Participants met in a collaborative teacher study group; data sources included meeting transcripts, journal entries, and sample assessments. The data were analyzed using descriptive coding (Saldaña, 2016) and axial coding (Merriam, 2009) to address the research questions. In total, four themes emerged from the data as being central to views on assessment and equality of condition: teaching philosophy, student relationships, democracy, and motivation. Four participants reported their philosophies had changed and two reported they adjusted assessments as a result of this study. Participants indicated barriers were time needed to plan and modify assessments, isolation as a result of being the only or one of only a few music educators in their buildings, and sharing control in a democratic classroom environment. The implications for these findings suggest that teachers are implementing formal assessments inconsistently; therefore, inequality of condition in the classroom regarding assessment may be present.

Private Equity (PE-bolag) är en företagsform som under årtionden bevisats framgångsrik i att köpa upp, förädla och sedan sälja företag. Kortfattat samlar PE-bolagen in kapital i en fond som efter en ungefärlig 10-årsperiod ska återbetalas med avkastning till investerarna. I arbetet att förädla företagen som ingår i företagsportföljen genomför PE- bolagen diverse värdehöjande åtgärder för att i stora drag förbättra lönsamheten, tillväxten och öka den operationella effektiviteten i respektive portföljbolag. Marknadsexpanisoner och kundarbete framgår som viktiga faktorer i arbetet att generera tillväxt och lönsamhet i portföljbolagen. Inom såväl marknadsexpansioner som arbetet med kunder har digitaliseringen vidare inneburit nya möjligheter och utmaningar vad gäller etablering på nya marknader och hur företag orienterar sig i en digitaliserad marknad. På så vis har den här studien inriktat sig gentemot PE-bolags arbete i portföljbolagens sälj och marknad eftersom de funktionerna kan antas spela en betydande roll i hur väl lönsamhet och tillväxt förverkligas under förvaltarskapet. Tidigare studier på PE-branschen i stort har lämnat ett begränsat utrymme för hur PE-bolagen arbetar konkret med sina portföljbolags sälj- och marknadsfunktion. Således har den här studien genomförts i syfte att besvara problemformuleringarna:  ● På vilket sätt är digitala affärssystem en del i den svarta lådan av värdehöjande åtgärder för att skapa operationell effektivitet i portföljbolagens sälj- och marknadsfunktioner?   ● Hur arbetar PE-bolagen med att öka sina portföljbolags operationella effektivitet inom sälj- och marknadsfunktionen?  För att besvara problemformuleringarna valde författarna att genomföra en kvalitativ studie där semi-strukturerade intervjuer gav upphov till en djupare förståelse för vilka typer av värdehöjande åtgärder PE-bolagen tillämpar för att öka den operationella effektiviteten inom portföljbolagens sälj- och marknadsfunktion. Intervjuerna genomfördes med nio olika PE-bolag där nio olika individer med exekutiv befattning över PE-bolagens investeringar och förvaltning var urvalet för studien. Utöver intervjuerna har ett omfattande teoretiskt ramverk konstituerats där ämnen som PE-bolags förvaltarstruktur, sälj- och marknadsfunktionen, digitala affärssystem och digitaliseringens betydelse sammankopplats och jämförts med insamlad empiri. Respondenternas svar tyder på att sälj- och marknadsfunktionen i ett portföljbolag är vital i arbetet att skapa tillväxt och förbättrad lönsamhet. Därmed är det också viktigt att PE- bolag kontinuerligt förbättrar portföljbolagens sälj- och marknadsfunktioner. Det framkommer att resurs- och komptenstillförsel, digitala affärssystem och integrerad sälj och marknad är mest betydande och återkommande typer av värdehöjande åtgärder som PE-bolagen tillämpar i portföljbolagens sälj- och marknadsfunktioner för att öka den operationella effektiviteten. Slutligen har studien även konstituerat en modell som berör de mest vitala delarna i hur PE-bolagen arbetar med portföljbolagens sälj- och marknadsfunktion. Den modellen skapades för att konkretisera de värdehöjande åtgärderna som tillämpas under ett förvaltarskap i syfte att öka den operationella effektiviteten i sälj- och marknadsfunktionen.

The disproportional representation of students from various demographic subgroups within identified gifted and talented populations has long frustrated policy makers, education advocates, researchers practitioners within the field, and those concerned with societal inequality in general. Despite the prevalence of articles in the media reporting on disproportional representation, little research has been conducted to track whether (a) the representation of these student subgroups, particularly students with limited English proficiency or students with disabilities, has changed over time or (b) states with and without policies differ in proportional representation of students identified with gifts and talents. For example, increasingly, gifted education advocates have pushed for mandates that all students be screened for gifted program eligibility as a way to combat disproportionality, despite little evidence that such methods influence proportionality. Therefore, this study sought to understand whether and how state and national gifted program demographics have changed over time and how proportionality is correlated with state mandates for gifted education identification or services. A preprint of this paper as well as additional figures are available at: https://osf.io/325m9/.

No description available.

The purpose of this ethnographic study was to examine the culture of students who are deaf and hard of hearing within the broader context of an inclusive high school, specifically as demonstrated though their learning experiences, socialization, and identity. The researcher gathered qualitative data in the form of observations, in-depth interviews, and participant video diary entries to gain insight into the shared cultural model of students who are deaf and hard of hearing. The data provided a holistic picture of cultural phenomena through the points of view of the subjects of the study. The description of the culture of this group of students may prove useful in shaping effective inclusive environments for students who are deaf and hard of hearing.

This research will contribute the literature of managerial ability and cost of capital. This study is the first to investigate the association between managerial ability and cost of capital to the best of our knowledge using Demerjian et al. (2012). Managerial ability is the measurement methodology which is the most commonly used method to evaluate the managerial ability in the literature. In a previous study, Mishra (2014) investigates the relation between CEO managerial ability and cost of capital by using Custodio’s (2013) CEO managerial ability methodology. This method only measures the ability of CEOs based on their experience. Those who have several experiences in different departments and other sectors are regarded as generalist CEOs, while some others who have one specific experience in a department and/or sector are regarded as specialist CEOs. Mishra shows a positive relation between generalist CEOs and cost of capital; it is regarded as the dark side of managerial ability. Mishra explains this relation by the risky behaviors of generalist CEOs. Mishra argues that generalist CEOs have lots of job opportunities. They also tend not to focus on the long-term financial soundness of the corporations—aiming to increase revenues sharply in short terms to improve their reputation. We extend Mishra’s analysis by employing firm fixed effect to its model. We find that the impact of general CEO managerial ability which is defined by Mishra (2014) as the dark side is not significant once the employ firm fixed effect is considered. This analysis assesses the effect of managerial ability on cost of capital by using Demerjian’s methodology. It was found that the impact of managerial ability on cost of capital shows a negative significant relation in line with expectations. More able managers lead to less cost of capital. This finding is in line with literature of the impact of managerial ability on company performance. We also employ firm fixed effects to our models and confirm the study’s findings. It is shown that the relation between institutional ownership and cost of capital is also significant. Further, there were many channels examined to identify possible causes of this negative relationship. It is expected that able managers disclose more information; they also help to reduce forecast error and eventually improve performance. The relationships between managerial ability and information disclosure, managerial ability and forecast error, as well as managerial ability and performance are significant. The channel effects are also explored by employing firm fixed effect, as mentioned previously. All the models present significant relationship.

No description available.