UToledo Places 5th at KeyBank Minority M.B.A. Student Case Competition
A two-woman team from the John B. and Lillian E. Neff College of Business and Innovation, comprised of Bria Harris and Chinelo Ezenwelu, placed fifth in the 2021 KeyBank Minority M.B.A. Student Case Competition. This placement came with a $1,000 prize amount.
KeyBank and the Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University hosted its 17th Annual Minority M.B.A. Student Case Competition virtually on February 26-27, 2021.
During the competition, the KeyBank Foundation supervised the selection of a contemporary and never-before-used case topic that addressed business issues with varied implications at either a national or international level.
Teams of three presenters were invited from universities and colleges across the country to compete.
The UToledo Neff College of Business and Innovation team’s success did not come without adversity. The duo went up against other three-person teams, as one of the members of the group had to withdraw in the days leading up to the competition and while working on the case; competition rules did not allow for a replacement. Dr. Ainsworth Bailey, the faculty advisor for the team representing The University of Toledo, had to petition the organizers to allow the team to continue with only two students.
“I believe that this accomplishment by Bria and Chinelo should be highlighted as an example of what our students are capable of,” said Dr. Bailey. “Their persistence, optimism, and skillful efforts paid off greatly.”
Harris and Ezenwelu worked on a real-world case put together by staff at KeyBank. The judges praised the team’s strong SWOT analysis, innovative solution and out-of-the-box thinking. The UToledo pair was described as very professional with great confidence.
The judges also noted: “This team was the only team to mention the impacts of COVID-19 and the mention of Diversity & Inclusion and ensuring that low to moderate-income communities are not left out of this solution demonstrates an understanding of Key’s commitment to D & I and the need in the current landscape.”
Each team benefited from the opportunity to develop important professional skills such as analyzing and responding quickly to often complex business issues. The teams also had a chance to hone their communication and team-building talents while learning from the expertise of business executive judges and moderators.