Delta Sigma Pi team wins UB Target case competition

By Matthew Biddle

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Four undergraduates in the University at Buffalo School of Management will share a $2,000 prize as winners of the annual On Target Undergraduate Club Case Competition, sponsored by Target Corp.

Representing the UB chapter of Delta Sigma Pi, the winners were senior Scott Hanrahan of Pittsford, sophomore Anthony Regan of East Amherst, sophomore Trevor Shaw of Amherst and junior Zhiming Xiao of Brooklyn.

Each team member will receive a $250 prize, and the remaining $1,000 will go to Delta Sigma Pi, a professional business fraternity.

The competition aims to help undergraduate students strengthen their analytic, communication, presentation and teamwork skills beyond the classroom by investigating and issuing recommendations for real-world business challenges.

“Working with a real company, we were able to use real numbers and real products and see how new innovations are developed in the business world,” Regan says. “I enjoyed brainstorming creative ideas and presenting them to the judges, and learned important research skills I’ll be able to use later in my career.”

This year, 17 teams representing 68 School of Management students and nine student clubs entered the competition.

Teams were asked to analyze emerging technologies—such as virtual reality, gaming and connected devices—to determine which platforms would best help Target engage with shoppers and increase sales in four key product areas: style, baby, kids and wellness. At the final round on Feb. 26, five teams delivered their analyses and recommendations to a panel of Target leaders.

This year’s judges were Target store team leaders Nancy Farrell; Megan Kane, BS ’03, PMBA ’08; Michael Pollutro, BS ’00; and Matthew Pritchard, BS ’08, as well as Nikki Royal, district team leader.

Minneapolis-based Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) serves guests at 1,792 stores and at Target.com. Since 1946, Target has given 5% of its profit to communities, which today equals more than $4 million a week. For more information, visit target.com.