Human Resource Practices & Workplace Behavior/Ethics

Cody Smith, Verrazzano Class of 2026, completed major in Business Management and minor in Business Finance

As a Business Management major, I decided to focus on workplace harassment for my capstone, as that is an important part of human resources. Most of my classes were heavily focused on human resources and how to help employees in the right way, which helped with my decision for my research.

I expected the capstone to be quite difficult, as I don't consider myself great at writing long research papers, but it wasn't so bad overall. I see myself as a quick and to-the-point writer, so I'm not good at writing long detailed answers. I also find searching for valid research to be difficult, as I find most articles aren't viable or relate to my topic well enough, especially if it's a niche topic.

If I expanded my research on this topic I would begin by looking at additional articles that talk about strategies to prevent and control harassment. What I've found out from this research is that companies have several steps to control and prevent harassment, and that prevention is key to a healthy work environment.

Working with a mentor was interesting, as I've never done a project that involved a mentor before. It was a fun and unique experience, and I enjoyed presenting my poster at the Undergraduate Research Conference this spring.

Impact of Emotional Intelligence and Managing Mental Health in the Workplace

Emily Albano, Verrazzano Class of 2025, completed major in Business Management, and minors in Finance and Marketing

In my spring semester I had the opportunity to take MGT 320 as an honors course, led by Dr. Holly Bonner. When I proposed my capstone idea to her at the beginning of the semester, she welcomed me with open arms and was ecstatic to allow me to join her in all parts of her work. Dr. Bonner is a well-known figure in the community, both academically and culturally. The number of accolades she has is far too many to list; I knew I had chosen a professor who would be able to add to my college experience far beyond any I had before.

In the Organizational Behavior honors course, I able to gain new experiences in all sectors of the world, each tying back into the curriculum. Dr. Bonner had me shadow her in her preparation for this year's social work conference that took place on March 24th, 2024. Dr. Bonner allowed me to help her prepare her speech, and do interactive preparation for public speaking, along with reviewing her research to make sure it would appeal and be understandable to the public.

A core ideal in Organizational Behavior is addressing the work place, and how to get higher ups to properly communicate with their employees while avoiding noise. Dr. Bonner allowed me to have firsthand experiences in the method, something the ordinaries of the textbook could never give me.

Another important concept that is heavily emphasized in Organizational Behavior in DEIA. This acronym breaks down into Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility. Diversity encompasses the range of human differences, including race, gender, ability, and more, while equity seeks fair treatment and access to resources for all individuals. Inclusion promotes embracing people of diverse backgrounds, and accessibility ensures equal access to information and services, creating environments that are welcoming and equitable for everyone. Dr. Bonner’s entire teaching style resembles this concept and she is constantly trying to get her students and the community involved with one another.

Along with the numerous informative lectures on the topic, Dr. Bonner allowed a group of students and me to help in this year’s Beeping Egg Hunt held at the Lavelle School for the Blind. This event is for people of all abilities; however, it specially caters to the visually impaired, the blind and disabled. The eggs beep, allowing everyone to participate and be engaged in a tradition that children with disabilities may miss out on. My classmates and I made candy filled eggs to circle the beeping eggs for children to find. This was just another hands-on experience that Dr. Bonner provided to help amplify the classroom.

My experience in MGT 320 with Dr. Holly Bonner was enriching and impactful. Through her guidance, I gained valuable insights into Organizational Behavior and learned about the importance of DEIA principles in fostering inclusive and accessible environments. Dr. Bonner's teaching style, coupled with hands-on experiences like the beeping egg hunt, provided a practical understanding of these concepts and their real-world applications. I'm grateful for the opportunity to learn from such a respected figure in academia and the community, and I'm confident that the lessons I've gained will continue to influence my personal and professional growth in the future.

Applying Lessons Learned and Achieving Financial Success

 Aqsa Naz, Verrazzano Class of 2022, completed majors in Accounting and Business Management 

 

I have been fortunate enough to apply the lessons taught by my professors and develop habits that will last a lifetime. My mentorship with Professor Petrucelli began with my FNC 111 class. At the time I had a goal of helping my family with the American dream of homeownership, but my efforts lacked key characteristics of a solid plan. Over the next year and half, I practiced and implemented as many financial planning habits as I could into my goal of buying a property with the intent to take the first step towards financial freedom and generational wealth, and before senior year the goal had become a reality.

As a banker I became more curious about the effects of implementing financial planning. I started analyzing common characteristics between clients who portrayed healthy financial planning habits and those who did not. What I learned was too important not to share.

Through my research and observations, I found that high debt levels, low savings, and high-cost money management behaviors are linked to financial fragility among the millennial generation. Financial constraints have even put people’s health at risk by skipped doctors' visits, medical tests and prescriptions.

The ability to make informed financial decisions and successfully manage one’s personal finances has become an essential process in today’s complex environment. If a generation is personally financially aware, the population can be better rounded to combat the unexpected variables that every one of us face each day. Those who are not proactive in their financial planning approach are struggling to pay off debt and buy assets later in life. My paper discusses how the upcoming generation can accelerate themselves to financial security and freedom by incorporating a financial plan in their routine geared towards their desired life.

Big Data and Data Mining

Miriam Shmueli, Verrazano Class of 2019, Completed Major in Business Management

In the Fall of 2018, I took the opportunity to pursue a research project under the supervision of Professor Chandan Acharya. The explosion of technology and the frequent use of the terminology “big data” in my business courses throughout my academic career led me to complete my first research project: A Literature Review on Big Data and Data Mining.

In starting this literature review, big data was an abstract term to me and I was motivated to explore its impact in the field of business. I answer the following questions in this literature review: Why is the use of big data becoming a necessity in business models? Why are big data and its analysis essential to get insights into organizations and its various stakeholders?

This project has enriched my academic career by giving me a sense of the effort that is put into the research that governs our knowledge. In conducting my own research, I have been given a new appreciation for the published work that I read and the functionality of libraries. The use of technology is a common thread that ties my paper together. As this trend of new technology has entered the academic field and allowed students to conduct their research online, the library has become less of a student workspace. In doing this project, I spent many hours in the library looking through books and working with librarians, and grew my appreciation for the library as well. 
I have learned extensively the meaning, strategies, challenges, and affordances of big data, specifically within the field of business. I have distinguished between big data, data mining, and analytics. By examining success and failure stories of the use of big data, I have learned of the importance of creating good strategies to meet specific goals and of remaining transparent with your consumers regarding their privacy. With the introduction of “FAANG” companies came the consistent rise in technology that has transformed the small data we were collecting but utilizing incorrectly, into big data that can be processed and analyzed in minutes to inform decision makers of good business practices. 

If I could develop this further, I would follow up this literature review by conducting empirical research, collecting data on the relationships between companies that use big data and their performance. By collecting primary data like this, it will give further and quantitative support to the argument that big data is becoming a necessity in business.