March 5, 2003

Undergraduate Team Wins Case Competition

A case-study team comprised of seven undergraduate students recently won the right to represent the University of Illinois at a case-study competition sponsored by Johnson & Johnson. Team members (clockwise from top left) Megan Martin, Brian Russ, Heidi Koontz, Ken Park, Aaron Lorber, Thomas Finnegan (faculty advisor), Ying Wang, and Tami Swits received a $1,000 check from Johnson & Johnson that was donated to the University of Illinois School of Business.

The winning team from the University of Illinois will be competing on April 10 at Johnson & Johnson in New Brunswick, New Jersey, against ten other schools for first place at the third annual Case Study Competition. The winning school will receive a $2,500 donation.

The case required students to use their accounting, financial, and marketing expertise to help determine which product and new overseas market were most suitable for a fictional multinational over-the-counter pharmaceutical products company. Each of six teams prepared a sales forecast, strategic plan, and financial analyses that supported their recommendations, which were formally presented to a five-person Management Review Board.

The local competition fielded six teams of over 35 students. The winning team will be honored by a wall plaque with their names and the Johnson & Johnson logo.

Robert E. Campbell, director of Finance Leadership & Development at Johnson & Johnson, notified Dean Avijit Ghosh of the team's accomplishment in late February. FORTUNE magazine ranked Johnson & Johnson sixth on their recently released list of most-admired companies.