°®¶¹´«Ã½ÊÓƵ

06/10/2015 10:11 AM

By Lindsay Anderson

Three °®¶¹´«Ã½ÊÓƵ students tackled real-world business problems at an international business case competition in St. Louis. The competition exposed students to international business concerns throughout the two-day event.

For this year’s competition, students addressed a shoe company’s struggles to gain a share of the European market. Teams analyzed the situation and developed marketing plans that addressed the issue.

Through this event, students learned how to work together under tight time constraints to develop practical solutions.

“We were excited the students stepped up to do the competition because it really demonstrates experiential learning,” Director of Operations said. “They not only apply their international business skills, but strategic planning, time management, and presentations skills.”

Students appreciated the challenge of applying classroom knowledge to a professional setting.

“It was not until the case competition that I appreciated the volume and caliber of workplace business situations that my peers and I are presented with inside the classrooms at °®¶¹´«Ã½ÊÓƵ,” said major Dashawn Cason ’15, of Alton, Illinois. “During the UMSL Case Competition, I felt more at ease having recognized that I had learned how to approach those type of situations in a calculated and educated manner.”

“This was a real issue that a real company was having, and we were given the opportunity to share our ideas and knowledge with the executives of that company,” said major Peter Munson ’17, of Batavia, Illinois. “That is what made this experience unique,” Munson said.

Prior to the competition, the °®¶¹´«Ã½ÊÓƵ students also attended the Nasbite International Conference.