Professor Reshma Shah (far left) and Emory President James W. Wagner (center) with the GMSC team that is developing a branding project for the university: (back row from left) Heather Crary, Corey Provine, Brandon Smith, and Richard Wright; (front row from left) Sarah Greenberg, and Sherikay Perry.
Changes mark 2004 competition
As if studying for exams isn’t enough, first-year MBA students at Goizueta have the opportunity to compete in the Goizueta Marketing Strategy Competition, the school’s signature of marketing excellence.
“The program has been in operation for twelve years, and it keeps improving every year,” says Vishy Padmanabhan ’04MBA, president of the current competition. “It is run by a student team of second-years and sponsored by a faculty member in the marketing department, Reshma Shah. This year we have forty-six students working on eight different projects.” Client companies include BellSouth, Emory University, Alliance Theatre/BBDO, and Song.
For 2004, organizers made several major changes based on feedback from the 2003 participants. The program was shortened to one semester, beginning in January, so students can focus on their core classes in the fall. Because of the tighter schedule, second-year team guides have assumed more responsibility, from collecting valuable industry information to facilitating the problem solving process.
Organizers also customized the educational experience, so team members can choose which educational sessions to attend, says Kunal Sahgal ’04MBA. All teams have mandatory weekly meetings with their team guide and the faculty sponsor.
Shah, assistant professor in the practice of marketing, notes that Goizueta has decreased the number of clients this year to focus on stronger companies and brands. “By doing this, we enabled all of our students to work on their first or second choice of client,” she says. “This is very important for developing strong student commitment to the project and maintaining a high level of interest and involvement.”
Shah continues, "The most important thing for students to take away is a model for approaching and solving real business problems that can be used in their internships and in their careers down the road. The ability to integrate the theories they learn in other classes with the application to real business problems in a consulting internship-like setting is unbeatable. The program is a real differentiator for Goizueta."
GMSC winners (all students are 2005 MBA Class members unless noted):
1st Place - Cibavision
Dolly Devgan
Jeremy Duguid
Anne Easterly
Fauzia Haq
Ainsley TeGrotenhuis
Neera Waingankar
2nd year team guide - Angela Koch ’04MBA
2nd Place - Emory
Heather Crary
Sarah Greenberg
Corey Provine
Brandon Mikel Smith
Richard Wright
2nd year team guide - Sherikay Perry ’04MBA
3rd Place - Roosevelt
Mathew Hayes
Catherine Keller
Brandi Mathews
Whitney Parker
Justin Parnell
Christina Yarnold
2nd year team guide - Emi Shaffer ’04MBA
Team guide awards
1st - Angela Koch ’04MBA
2nd - Kunal Sahgal ’04MBA
3rd - Emi Shaffer ’04MBA
—Sarah Banick