September 11, 2014

MBAs from University of Marylands Smith School of Business Win National MBA Case Competition

College Park - February 9, 2005 A team of four MBA students from the University of Marylands Robert H. Smith School of Business took first place in the MBA case competition at the 2005 Reaching Out MBA conference in Boston, on February 4-6. The Smith team successfully competed against students from Berkeley, Thunderbird, Vanderbilt, Iowa, and Kellogg in a case that addressed the effects of high HIV/AIDS rates on workforce and overall productivity for a large South African mining conglomerate.

The Smith team included Michael Carney and Catherine Sheehy, both first-year MBAs, and Ivan Cayabyab, and Christina Nichols, who are second-year MBAs. All four are members of the newly-formed Smith Pride Alliance, which was created to raise awareness about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) issues in the workplace, encourage dialogue within the community, build alumni relations and promote progressive diversity within Smith.

Reaching Out MBA conference in BostonOur academic experiences at Smith definitely helped prepare us for the competition, said Sheehy.

This win is a great reflection on the outstanding quality of Smith students and demonstrates students' concern for corporate responsibility, said Cherie Scricca, associate dean of the masters programs at the Smith School.

More than 500 participants and 40 sponsors attended the conference, which was hosted by Reaching Out MBA, a student organization that promotes the education, visibility, and networking capabilities of LGBT business leaders worldwide. The annual conference provides a forum for students, recent alumni and business leaders to share information, build networks and promote cooperation. It was founded in 1999 by students at Harvard Business School and the Yale School of Management.

The MBA case competition was sponsored by Booz Allen Hamilton. Teams were judged on three criteria: the quality and strength of analysis; the strategic recommendation and solution; and communications and presentation skills. Judges included John Newsome, co-author of the case and manager at Bridgespan Group, a non-profit strategy consulting firm affiliated with Bain & Co.; Wendy Alexander, small business solutions unit leader at Capital One; Joaquin Avino, associate at Booz Allen Hamilton; Ron Dostal, senior manager at Deloitte and Touche, and J.D. Schramm, associate professor at New York Universitys Stern School of Business.

Smith students also organized a panel on Achieving Workplace Equality, where panelists covered the opportunities and challenges of implementing equality in the workplace. The panel was moderated by George Robinson, associate of strategic planning and operations at Intel, and a 2002 Smith MBA graduate.

About the Robert H. Smith School of Business
The Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research for the digital economy. The school offers cross-functional study options in its six academic departments, which include accounting and information assurance; decision and information technologies; finance; logistics, business, and public policy; management and organization; and marketing. More information about the Robert H. Smith School of Business can be found at http://www.rhsmith.umd.edu

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About the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business

The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research. One of 12 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time and flex MBA, executive MBA, online MBA, business master’s, PhD and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning locations in North America and Asia.

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