September 29, 2004 (Atlanta) - A team of four graduate students from the J. Mack Robinson College of Business won second place at the National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA) National Student Case Competition held at the 26th annual conference in Houston.
Second-year MBA students Melvin Roland (Finance), Jamila Yancy (International Business), Kevin Williams (Finance) and Marc Wilson (Finance) led by faculty advisor Shawn Davis, visiting assistant professor of accountancy, received a total of $12,000 in scholarship money. The competition was sponsored by DaimlerChrysler Corporation and DaimlerChrysler Services North America, the captive finance arm of DaimlerChrysler.
"We are extremely proud of our students for their hard work and dedication during this very competitive process. This national accomplishment speaks volumes for the caliber of our students and the quality of our MBA program," said Davis.
The case study focused on the customer experience in the automotive finance industry. Students were asked to address the competitive nature of customer relationship management and marketing finance products to retail and lease consumers. Elements of the proposals included consumer marketing, point-of-sale programs and brand loyalty initiatives. The teams were judged on the feasibility of their recommendation, quality of their content analysis, the custom solution they provided and their presentation styles.
Student teams participated from institutions across the United States and included Michigan State University (winners of the competition), Emory University, University of Georgia, University of Michigan, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Clark Atlanta University, University of Maryland at College Park, University of Texas at Austin, Columbia University and Hampton University.
"As an international enterprise, DaimlerChrysler Services relies on the brightest, most talented and diverse business leaders of tomorrow for its success," said Juergen Walker, President and CEO for DaimlerChrysler Services North America. "We have certainly seen some extraordinary talent in the Student Case Competition."
The J. Mack Robinson College of Business is one of the top-ranked business schools. The College's Flex (part-time) MBA program has been listed in the top ten by U.S. News for the past nine years and its undergraduate business program is ranked among the top 50 in the nation. The College's Executive MBA program is listed on The Financial Times list of the world's top ranked offerings and BusinessWeek magazine ranks it 24th in the world. Georgia State University's Robinson College of Business has an enrollment for more than 8000 students and is located in downtown Atlanta.
