UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A team of four students from the Penn State Smeal College of Business Nittany Lion Consulting Group (NLCG) placed second in the preliminary case of the Corvinus Undergraduate Business Experience International Case Competition (CUBE) held April 11-17 at Corvinus University in Budapest, Hungary.
Colton Shiry, a third-year student majoring in finance; Hunter Badamo, a third-year student double majoring in management information systems and accounting; Faith Ann Finch, a fourth-year student majoring in corporate innovation and entrepreneurship major; and Justin Heckler, a fourth-year student majoring in finance, collaborated in Smeal’s first time competing in the CUBE.
“Our team agreed the trip to Budapest was one of the most valuable and memorable experiences of our college careers,” said Shiry, the team captain. “In one week, we had the chance to challenge our critical thinking, immerse ourselves in a European city and expand our global perspective by connecting with students from around the world. We are incredibly grateful to Dave, Alla and Penn State for giving us the opportunity to represent the University on an international stage.”
Dave Lenze, associate teaching professor in the Department of Management and Organization and program director of NLCG, served as the team’s faculty adviser. Alla Hatfield, academic advising manager and director of engagement and outreach for the Office of Undergraduate Education, accompanied the team as its adviser.
The Smeal team was selected to complete after a highly competitive evaluation process that identified 16 teams from Europe, Canada, Asia and the Middle East.
The theme of the case was Hewlett Packard Enterprise Hungary: Empowering Customer Journeys, Leveraging Solutions for Transformative Experiences.