Smeal MBA Team Places First In Case Competition

Reginald Amoa, Carl Asher, and Tai Parks, three second-year MBA students, won first place in the fourth annual MBAE Minority Case Competition sponsored by Howard University and LMI Government Consulting. At the Howard University competition, held October 31 and November 1 in Arlington, Virginia, the Smeal team received the case one week prior to the competition and worked each night to research, solidify, and practice their argument. The case focused on a supply chain issue that the U.S. Department of Defense faced early in Operation Iraqi Freedom regarding how containers could be managed on the front lines.

The team previously competed in the National Black MBA Association Case Competition in September, and they credit the experience they gained there with their success at Howard. "Each of us has a different concentration in the MBA program, and we learned how to work well together and know each other's strengths and weaknesses," says Parks. "We've become good friends and really enjoy working together, which makes a difference in any situation."

The team is also thankful for the support of retired U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Richard Kelly, a member of Smeal's Board of Visitors.