UConn’s CIBER Case Challenge Proposes Solutions to Real-World International Business Issue

October 23, 2013

From October 9-12, the UConn School of Business hosted students from universities across the globe to participate in a case competition to solve a real-world challenge.

Now in its third year hosting the CIBER Case Challenge competition, the UConn School of Business Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) has taken charge in its mission to increase the competitiveness of U.S. business in the global marketplace, as set forth by the U.S. Department of Education. This year’s competition brought together students hailing from 12 different colleges and universities located within the U.S. as well as higher education institutions as far away as Tokyo, Japan.

Kelly Aceto, managing director of the CIBER Case Challenge, led the event, proposing a challenging problem derived from the global business marketplace for which teams of students were required to envision a solution. The problem was kept secret until its official announcement at 9 a.m. on Friday, October 11, at which point the case was distributed. This year’s challenge? To determine if Gillette should bring its Guard razor into the U.S. market. “I have participated in several case competitions, and this one was very different not only because of the international nature of the problem, but also because everyone on our team had a different area of study, whether it was marketing, accounting, operations, or finance,” says Ningwei Li, a finance and economics major at the University of Maryland, College Park, who came in among the top three finalists for “Best Presenter” in the preliminary round. Each team was comprised of four students from four different universities, each studying a different business discipline.

Unlike traditional case competitions, the CIBER Case Challenge tasked students to demonstrate their ability to work in teams consisting of students from varying cultures and nations. Students first met their teammates virtually two weeks before arriving on the Storrs, Connecticut campus. To facilitate greater bonding within teams prior to the case distribution, students traveled to Mystic, Connecticut to participate in a series of team challenges set against the backdrop of Connecticut’s historical seaport. “My team had students from Italy, California, Arizona, and Rhode Island. I’ve never traveled out of the country, so this experience enabled me to make a lot of connections I wouldn’t have made otherwise,” says Joseph Bona, a management major at Bryant University.

On the third day of the event, students presented their case solutions to a panel of judges composed of international business executives from the local tri-state area business community. Presentations were evaluated based on content (60%) and presentation (40%), considering whether the students did their research, logically supported their conclusions, and whether those conclusions would realistically be accepted by management. “They [the presentations] exceeded my expectations,” says Phil Ferrari, CFO at Virginia Industries, Inc., one of the event judges. “The students were intelligent, cohesive, and desirous to do an outstanding job. Quite impressive.”

The evaluations of the judges held serious weight for the student competitors; only three teams advanced to the final round later that day. “It was hard work to differentiate between the groups as they were excellent,” adds Ferrari. “Groups like this will bode well for the future of business in the U.S.”

The finalists were announced at an awards dinner on Saturday evening, where they were presented with plaques acknowledging their accomplishment:

First Place

GianMarco Taverna, University of North Carolina
Ellie Lin, Purdue University
Margaret Wong, Bryant University
Ihinosen Dibua, Pittsburg University

Second Place

Dallin Shaner, Brigham Young University
Nicole Green, University of Connecticut
Sergio Alessandro Castagnetti, University of Trento
Ben Hsieh, University of Maryland

Third Place

Daisuke Honjo, Rikkyo University
Leah Gonzalez, University of North Carolina
Esther Buck, Belmont University
Josh Emmett, University of Connecticut

Best Presenter
Dallin Shaner, Brigham Young University

Best Q&A
Leah Gonzalez, University of North Carolina

“This experience has been amazing,” says Li. “Despite our differences, most, if not all, of the students are like-minded with how we approach school, career, and our aspirations – with an ambitious, positive attitude. That’s how we connected.” he says.

This year marks the first time that two UConn students have placed among the top three teams in the CIBER Case Challenge. “They were well prepared,” says Aceto. “Paul Borochin, assistant professor of finance at the School of Business, spent a lot of time with the students as they got ready to face the challenges of a case competition.”

In an ever-changing international business climate, the United States has public universities like the University of Connecticut to depend on to challenge their own students to work with students of different backgrounds and nationalities. UConn is one of 33 universities nationwide designated as national resource centers for international business, with UConn CIBER in existence since 1995.

For more information:

About CIBER
CIBER Case Challenge

Pictured: One of the student teams, awarded first place for teamwork during their excursion to Mystic, poses in the School of Business atrium: Raaheela Ahmed, finance and economics major at the University of Maryland; Mike Masso, finance major at the UConn School of Business; Mac Bellingrath, marketing major at Belmont University, and Johanna Kuehl, an accounting major at Manchester Business School.

38th NABA Eastern Region Student Conference Prepares Students for Corporate World

October 22, 2013

Six members of the UConn chapter of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA) attended the organization’s 38th Eastern Region Student Conference (ERSC) on October 10-13, 2013. The conference featured two and one-half days of workshops, seminars and interview sessions designed to better prepare minority students for careers in accounting and financial management disciplines. Continue Reading

From Food Delivery to Junk Removal: An Entrepreneur’s Journey to Success

Josh Cohen ’05 came to the School of Business to study real estate, but through his on- and off-campus activities, discovered an entrepreneurial drive that led him in another direction.

As a delivery guy at Wings Over Storrs, Cohen learned quickly that the faster he was able to deliver wings—and communicate accurate delivery times to customers—the better tips he would receive. This knowledge stayed with him as he seized every business opportunity that came his way as a student, remembering timeliness and communication as key guidelines for providing excellent customer service.

Partnering with his roommate, his first entrepreneurial venture was to develop themed t-shirts for UConn’s annual Spring Weekend, which they then sold to students and around town. Cohen also served on the UConn Co-op Board of Directors.

“I had a great experience at UConn,” says Cohen. “I made great friends and picked up quite a few entrepreneurial skills.”

Those skills have served him well; the ability to identify and capture opportunity has taken Cohen on a path he had never imagined.

Junkluggers: The Idea

During a semester abroad in Wollongong, Australia, a new friend mentioned to Cohen that he had made $100 hauling away a neighbor’s refrigerator. Cohen immediately saw an opportunity waiting to be seized back at home. Though he already had a real estate internship lined up upon his return to the States, Cohen used his spare time to make some extra cash by removing unwanted items from people’s homes. Advertising his removal services by handing out flyers, Cohen started receiving phone calls and service requests.

Upon graduation, he moved on to a corporate career in commercial real estate sales and development, but chose to continue the removal service on the side. Over time, Cohen came to realize that there was a bigger demand than he was able to service in the “junk-lugging” business. Taking a leap of faith (and a significant cut in pay), he left the real estate industry to pursue his entrepreneurial passion and grow his own business: Junkluggers.

Starting in a small location in Fairfield, Connecticut, Cohen quickly started to hire friends to help with the manual labor needed to run the business, and the company began to expand.

“The foundational knowledge I received from the UConn School of Business really helped,” says Cohen. “I knew that differentiation would be important, and that we would have to clearly communicate our key selling points to customers.”

So what is unique about Junkluggers? It’s green, eco-friendly focus.

“We don’t just take items to dumps,” says Cohen. “We donate whatever we can, recycle, and then trash what is left. For donated items, we mail customers the receipts so they can use them for their tax returns,” he adds.

From his work experience in real estate and even at Wings Over Storrs, Cohen knows that communication and timeliness are of the essence in any customer-facing business.

“I [also] knew from my IT classes how helpful technology can be for communication and for managing a business. Using that knowledge, we built our proprietary software to help us communicate and identify where to allocate resources,” says Cohen.

Junkluggers Today

Today, Cohen has grown his one-man side job into a full-fledged business, with approximately 65 employees servicing three company-owned locations and five franchises. One of the franchise owners is his brother, Zach Cohen ’09. An accounting major, Zach worked on Junkluggers’ bookkeeping while he was a student at the School of Business. Now he’s also honing his entrepreneurial skills as a business owner.

Junkluggers has grown to service the New York tri-state area, from south of Hartford, Connecticut to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The company expects sales for this year to reach three million dollars, and doesn’t plan to stop there. Junkluggers has big plans for expansion, aiming to add ten more franchises between Boston and Virginia in 2014.

2nd Annual Connecticut Risk Management Conference: Aligning Risk Management with Strategy

October 17, 2013

The second annual Connecticut Risk Management Conference will be hosted by the UConn School of Business at the Stamford Marriott in Stamford, Connecticut on November 14, 2013. This year’s conference, Aligning Risk Management with Strategy, has been designed to bring together professionals engaged in risk management, senior management, and regulators, as well as faculty members and students in UConn’s MS in Financial Risk Management (MSFRM)* program. Continue Reading

Professional Business Fraternity Alpha Kappa Psi Welcomes First Faculty/Staff Member

October 11, 2013

The Psi Rho Chapter of Alpha Kappa Psi recently welcomed Kelly Kennedy, program manager at the UConn School of Business Career Center, into the fraternity as its first faculty/staff member. Alpha Kappa Psi was founded in 1904 at New York University on the principles of promoting institutions of business education, developing future leaders and fostering appreciation for higher ideals in business. Kennedy’s invitation to the Psi Rho Chapter at UConn was the result of her continued mentorship and resourcefulness to the group, and her dedication and support to School of Business students. Over 35 students gathered to welcome Kennedy into this unique, prestigious association of students, professors, graduates and professionals with a common interest in business.

Ambassador Paul W. Speltz ’69 ’72 MBA Engages Students During Visit to His Alma Mater

October 10, 2013

Ambassador Paul W. Speltz ’69 ’72 MBA, chairman and CEO of Global Strategic Associates, LLC, visited with UConn Business Connections Learning Community (BCLC) and Delta Sigma Pi (DSP) students on Tuesday, October 1 to discuss the importance of leveraging international experience in their undergraduate studies.

Speltz founded the Theta Iota Chapter of Delta Sigma Pi, a coed professional fraternity organized to foster the study of business in universities, at UConn in 1970.

Speltz, former U.S. Executive Director and Ambassador to the Asian Development Bank, also made a formal address during his time on campus. His talk, “The Status of U.S. – China Geopolitical and Financial Relations: Global Impacts and Greater Asia Ramifications,” served as the basis for an engaged and lively discussion about U.S. – China relations at an event sponsored by the Office of Global Affairs, the Department of Political Science, and the Asian American Studies Institute.

Ambassador Speltz has served on the Board of Advisors for the UConn School of Business since 1998 and also serves as a member of the Dean’s Leadership Cabinet. He is a member of the Board of Directors of The Pacific Pension Institute (PPI) and concurrently also serves on their Membership Committee. Speltz is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Asia Foundation, The Asia Society, The Bretton Woods Committee, and the National Committee on United States – China Relations.

Pictured: Speltz with Delta Sigma Pi brothers and sisters.

EBV Program Welcomes Veterans for 2013 Bootcamp

October 7, 2013

Kicking off the annual week-long Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV), the UConn School of Business welcomed this year’s incoming class of veterans at a dinner reception on Friday evening, October 4.

Following a welcome from Michael Zacchea ’12 MBA, EBV program manager, keynote speaker Dawn Halfaker inspired the crowd by sharing her story. A decorated war hero and entrepreneur, Halfaker is a former Military Police Officer in the United States Army who commanded a military police platoon in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. She was subsequently wounded during a combat patrol near Baghdad in 2004, earning a Purple Heart and Bronze Star for her service. Halfaker is now president and chief executive officer of Halfaker & Associates, LLC, an award winning professional services and technology solutions firm founded in 2006, and employs more than 100 people including a workforce of almost 50 veterans.

Entertainment for the evening was provided by UConn a-cappella group, Conn-Men.

About the EBV

In 2010, UConn’s School of Business was honored to become one of eight members of the EBV Consortium of business schools and universities. The EBV program offers cutting edge, experiential training in entrepreneurship and small business management to post-9/11 veterans with disabilities resulting from their service to our country.

The School of Business is proud to participate in this very special program that helps give back to individuals who have sacrificed for our country. EBV demonstrates the power of entrepreneurship in our communities by fostering an essential route for job creation and economic vitality.

To date, the UConn EBV has helped 42 veterans open 45 businesses, and to place another eight veterans in full-time jobs.

Pictured: Dawn Halfaker, Michael Zacchea, Justin Nash ’14 MBA, a 2012 EBV graduate and founder of Veteran Construction Services, and School of Business Dean John A. Elliott. (Photo courtesy of Lynn Luczkowski, L2 Communications)