(PRNewswire) High school students from 19 states competed in the National Black MBA Association, Inc. (NBMBAA) 12th Annual Leaders of Tomorrow (LOT) Business Case Competition with total scholarship awards of $30,000 dollars. A youth program offered through local NBMBAA chapters, the two-day event held at Bentley University in Boston, MA, gave high school students an opportunity to analyze an MBA-level business case, and present their findings to corporate executives and business school faculty.
Minority students from Atlanta, Boston, Central Florida, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Washington D.C., Greater Harrisburg, Greater Hartford, Houston, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Raleigh Durham, San Francisco, South Florida, St. Louis,Toronto, Twin Cities and Westchester, were paired into groups of five and were judged by senior executives with over 15 years of experience on quality of presentation, creativity, case analysis, feasibility of recommendations, effectiveness of recommendations, questions and answers, and business case assignment details.
“At a time when so much media attention is about how non-competitive Americans are, especially minorities, these extraordinary young people have proven just the opposite,” said Kim Wilson, Vice President of Strategic Programming, National Black MBA Association, Inc. “For over 12 years now, the NBMBAA has shown that minority high school students, at-risk or otherwise, can perform at up to three times their peer group given an intensity of resources, guidance and adults who set the bar extremely high in terms of expectations and accountability.”
Teams were mentored and coached by NBMBAA local chapter members on how to leverage tools used by business executives – such as a SWOT analysis, a planning approach that identifies the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats involved in a business case, and “Porter’s Five Forces,” a blueprint for industry analysis and strategic development, to evaluate industry competition.
“I am truly impressed by the development and confidence exhibited by youth leaders who participate in the National Business Case Competition,” said Gary Morton, President of NBMBAA Boston Chapter, and previous Managing Director of the LOT program. “Together, this has a major impact as I see firsthand how the experience helps to significantly differentiate them from their peers. As a result, all Business Case Competition participants end up as true winners and are already on the road to continued success.”
Students also participated in a weekend full of activities, which included attending presentations by inspirational speakers, touring Bentley University, and attending an awards dinner that honored all of the more than 100 participants.
The main sponsors of the LOT Case Competition were Bentley University and PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. The NBMBAA Boston Chapter is the host chapter. A list of the winning teams is below.
2013 LOT Case Competition Winners:
1st Place: Greater Harrisburg – $15,000 in scholarship dollars
2nd Place: Houston – $10,000 in scholarship dollars
3rd Place: Raleigh Durham – $5,000 in scholarship dollars
4th Place: Atlanta – LOT Case Competition Trophy
5th Place: Philadelphia – LOT Case Competition Trophy
