UB MBAs take second at KeyBank minority case competition

By Kevin Manne

BUFFALO, N.Y. —  A team of three University at Buffalo School of Management students took second place and won a $5,000 prize at the 13th Annual KeyBank Foundation Minority MBA Student Case Competition, hosted by the Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University on Feb. 24-26.

David Molina, MBA ’17, of Farmingdale; Danielle Vazquez, MBA ’18, of Long Island; and Jill Winter, MBA ’17, of the Bronx made up the team.

“UB’s MBA program has helped me strengthen my presentation skills and has given me the confidence to pitch my ideas to a wide range of audiences,” says Vazquez. “This competition challenged my approach to critical thinking while giving me the opportunity to present in front of a room of 40 top-level executives.”

Twenty-seven teams were invited from universities and colleges across the country to solve a never-before-used case addressing cybersecurity issues with business implications at national and international levels.

“We capitalized on our team’s different backgrounds and experiences to present a solid plan for KeyBank to monetize their security capabilities,” says Vazquez. 

Teams from the University of Pittsburgh and Hampton University captured first and third place, respectively. The top three teams bested squads from business schools around the U.S., including The Ohio State University, Johns Hopkins University, Howard University, University of Albany, Louisiana State University and the University of Southern California.

Registration and travel expenses were provided in part through a donation from School of Management alumnus Steven C. Verney, BS ’80, MBA ’81, an independent consultant and former executive vice president and chief risk officer at Allstate Insurance Co., along with a matching grant from Allstate.