Eight SUNY Potsdam Students Advance to Business Competition Semifinal in Buffalo April 6

Two Groups of Business Students Vie for Team and Individual Prizes Totaling $10,000

Potsdam, NY (04/05/2019) — Two SUNY Potsdam business teams have been selected to compete in the University at Buffalo Undergraduate Case Competition semifinals. The eight students, four in each team with two seniors and two juniors, were selected to make 20-minute presentations of their business ideas to a panel of judges on Saturday, April 6 in Buffalo, N.Y.

Ten undergraduate teams from around the country will compete for a chance to win a top prize of $5,000 for the best team analysis of a real-world business scenario. The four top teams from the semifinal round will advance to the finals held later that day. The SUNY Potsdam business students will compete against teams from Syracuse University, the University of Rochester, RIT, SUNY Binghamton and the University at Buffalo for a chance to reach the finals.

For the preliminary round, the students were tasked with presenting a written business analysis for a case study about an entrepreneur trying to enter the jewelry business. The case provided details about the viability of an entrepreneur looking to sell Chinese pearls in North America. That's where the SUNY Potsdam business students stepped in.

After advancing through the preliminary round, the eight business students are now preparing for the semifinals. On Wednesday, April 3 the two teams shared their business ideas with SUNY Potsdam faculty, staff and students during a full-dress rehearsal presentation at Dunn Hall where they received feedback for the next round.

"Dr. Bette Bergeron, provost and vice president for academic affairs, and Dr. Walter Conley, interim dean for the School of Education and Professional Studies, offered valuable perspectives for the students to think about when making presentations," said Professor Dr. Ed Portugal who is serving as the teams' faculty advisor. "They also offered words of encouragement that the students appreciated," he added.

Graduate students in the M.S. in Management program also challenged the students with tough questions to simulate the judging in the competition. "Those questions by the graduate students in the Leadership in Organizations course, made the teams pause and think hard about how to answer difficult questioning by judges," said Portugal.

For more information about SUNY Potsdam's Department of Business Administration, visit www.potsdam.edu/academics/SOEPS/BusinessAdmin.

Founded in 1816, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of America's first 50 colleges-and the oldest institution within SUNY. Now in its third century, SUNY Potsdam is distinguished by a legacy of pioneering programs and educational excellence. The College currently enrolls approximately 3,600 undergraduate and graduate students. Home to the world-renowned Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam is known for its challenging liberal arts and sciences core, distinction in teacher training and culture of creativity. To learn more, visit www.potsdam.edu.

SUNY Potsdam

Eight SUNY Potsdam Students Advance to Business Competition Semifinal in Buffalo April 6

Two Groups of Business Students Vie for Team and Individual Prizes Totaling $10,000

SUNY Potsdam

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