UB MBA Team to Advance to National Competition

By Jacqueline Molik Ghosen

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A team of four University at Buffalo MBA students will advance to a national competition in Washington, D.C., after winning the UB MBA Second-Year Case Competition.

The winning team, Rehman Baig of Buffalo; Benjamin Nold of West Seneca; Robert Piaia of Washingtonville; and Peter Szalowski of Fairport, was chosen from among four teams of finalists who presented the results of their case analyses on Feb. 13 at the UB School of Management.

Judges evaluated participants on the quality of their analyses and use of case data, the creativity and clarity of their recommendations, the quality and detail of their implementation plans, the quality and style of their oral presentations, and the quality of their question and answer responses.

The team will travel to Washington, D.C., to compete in the 13th Annual George Washington University/KPMG MBA Case Competition on March 20 and 21.

The UB School of Management competition was sponsored by Columbus McKinnon Corp., Ernst & Young LLP, and Moog, Inc. The judges for the final round of the competition were Arjang Assad, dean, UB School of Management; Joseph Bell, general manager, Moog; and Karen Howard, vice president of finance and CFO, Columbus McKinnon.

Prizes also were awarded to the second, third and fourth place teams.

The Wall Street Journal has ranked the UB School of Management No. 9 in the nation among schools with strong regional recruiting bases. In addition, BusinessWeek has ranked the school as one of the country's top 5 business schools for the fastest return on MBA investment, and Forbes cited it as one of the best business schools in the U.S. for the return on investment it provides MBA graduates. For more information about the UB School of Management, visit mgt.buffalo.edu.