ORLANDO, Fla. – With a comprehensive plan to turn around a struggling coffee shop, five students won first place at the Integrated Business Competition on Friday, October 23. Students Jedrek Grogan, Brett Houck, June Pablo, Dominique Orr-Tulloch and Davor Scutt of “Team Smitty Werben Inc.” impressed the judging panel to receive top honors in the virtual competition.
The signature event of the Integrated Business Department, The IB Competition, presented by Enterprise Holdings, requires students in the major to form their own teams, draft a business plan to help a struggling firm and develop a 10 minute presentation outlining their entire plan and recommendation. This semester’s competition was the first to be held virtually and Christopher Leo, D.B.A., Associate Lecturer in the Department of Integrated Business, said students remained eager to perform well.
“Running the IB Competition in our new virtual world only reinforced the idea that our trained multi-disciplinarians have transferable soft skills which were not inhibited by a computer screen,” Leo said.
Watch the Winning Presentation
Jessica Bravo, Daniel Muhnoz, LeAnna O’Sullivan, Erica Rivera and Tanisha Turner, representing team “IB WINNING,” earned a second-place victory. Team “Crazy Consulting Firm,” comprised of students Jonathan Fernandez, Carlos Fernandez, Kendall Clark and Mayra F Villamizar, won third place.
At the IB Competition, students are given the opportunity to not only compete, but to also gain experience, advice, feedback and build their network with alumni and corporate partners. Competitors are challenged to apply skills and strategies practiced in the classroom to a real-world case project.
“Our nominated teams executed live presentations via Zoom that were both rich in content and strong examples of professional communication,” Leo said. “I could not be more proud of all our amazing teams!”
Congratulations to all semifinalists: Keri Bagnato, Komal Bhatti, Sarah Gardner, Justin Melville, Nathalia Rogacheski, Yesenia Cardenas, Hannah Burns, Hallie Lange, Miranda Beranek, Joseph Hiznay, Glenaura Lorenzo, Blaze Wallick, Calista Melendez, Kelechi Okpara, Alex Teblum, Amelia Russell, Bivil Thomas, Londyn Swanson, Michael Cuthbertson, Emily Walker, Jiayi and Channing Egrie.
About the UCF College of Business
Established in 1968, the UCF College of Business offers degrees at the bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral and executive levels. All programs, as well as the Kenneth G. Dixon School of Accounting are accredited by AACSB International – the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. The college provides high-quality academic programs designed to give students a competitive advantage in the world of business now and in the future. Learn more at business.ucf.edu.