Smith MBAs Put Skills to Test in Annual MBA Case Competition

Undoubtedly the one of the most anticipated events of the Smith MBA program, the annual MBA Case Competition puts strategic thinking and analytical skills of full-time second-year MBA students to the test. The six-day competition started on Friday, Jan. 25 when 20 teams of students received a case about Teva Pharmaceuticals. Students went through three rounds of competition and the final four teams competed for a grand prize of $1,000 per person. The winners of the competition were "Team A" (pictured l to r): Rukhe Aghomo, Joseph Ardo Miravalles, Teya Tuccio-Flick, Dean Howard Frank, Mindy Daniels, and Selim Geron.

"From the beginning, we believed we had a great story to tell. After every stage of the competition, we learned something new that we used for the succeeding stages. Overall, it was a fun and intense learning experience," commented Selim. The team was very happy about the win, hugging each other when the results had been revealed. Teya had the following to say about their win, "It was an honor to win, especially given the level of competition here at Smith."

The competition started with the first round, which included a written report and teams had until Monday morning to develop a strategy and write up their recommendation. It was a long weekend for the students and many teams worked into the early hours of the morning on Sunday to complete the task. Even though the process may have been grueling, it was one that the students were dedicated to and many enjoyed.

Once the recommendations were turned in, eight Smith School professors judged the work and four teams were eliminated. The next round of the competition -- dubbed the "Sweet 16" -- took place on Tuesday Jan. 29. Each team had to prepare a 15-minute presentation that showcased their strategy and then go through a 10-minute question and answer session. In this round of the competition there were four different judging rooms and a winner was picked from each room to advance to the finals. Once again the students did not have much time to put together their presentations, but the judges in each room noted that the results were very impressive. This round of judging was done by both professors and professionals who were able to provide some insight into the students work from their non academic viewpoint.

The competition finals were held on the evening of Jan. 30 in Van Munching Hall's Frank Auditorium. The place was filled with second-year MBA students, family members, Smith faculty and staff, and alumni. Each team presented in front of the panel of judges that was lead by Dean Howard Frank. The distinguished panel also included Pete Howton, the founder of Kingfisher Systems; Alan Jacobs, from Heller Ehrman, LLP; Laurie K. Stewart, vice president of Tonnage Gases, Equipment and Energy Controller at Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.; and Smith School professor, Dr. Curt Grimm.

Dean Frank noted that it was not an easy decision for the judges. Each team had done an excellent job and the students were a wonderful representation of the caliber of students that Smith attracts. Two teams tied for third place: Members Only and Perfect Balance. The second-place team was Pangaea Consulting, LLC.

The audience also had the opportunity to weigh in on the judging process and they agreed with the judges. Team A won the "People's Choice Award" by earning one vote more then Members Only. The audience also got to decide who they thought had the most potential as a consultant. This honor went to Ike Kim. The final award was the "Bull Smith Award," which was awarded to Selim Geron.

The competition was followed by a reception where students had the opportunity to network with alumni and chat about their experiences during the case competition. While it was an exhausting six days for the students it was an event that allowed them to apply their classroom experience and do so in a compressed time. Second-year Smith MBA student Rukhe Aghomo made the following observation about the event: "I believe the case competition gave the MBA class a true in-road to the real world of business, where management does not have all the answers and a lot of final decisions are eventually based on gut feelings. This stresses the thin divide between success and failure for organizations today." In the end it was a great experience to prepare everyone for what is to come when they graduate in four months.

Loretta Goodridge, MBA Candidate 2008, Smith Media Group