Experiential / Reality-based Learning / May 3, 2010

Smith School Hosts 7th Annual Wikler Finance Case Competition

The seventh annual Joseph M. Wikler Finance Case Competition took place on April 16, 2010, at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. The competition, which is open to juniors and seniors from the BMGT 440 Advanced Financial Management class, began with nine teams selected by the instructors of the Fall 2009 and Spring 2010 sections.

As in years past, student teams were given a real-world business problem to solve. This year’s case, “Dow Chemical’s Bid for the Privatization of PBB in Argentina,” was distributed to teams on Friday evening, April 9. Teams were tasked with developing a solution to the case using financial analysis skills and presenting their recommendations to a panel of judges by 7 a.m. on Friday, April 16.

“The student teams did a great job presenting a very difficult case,” said Sue White, Distinguished Tyser Teaching Fellow and event organizer. “They had a very short time to prepare a quantitative and qualitative analysis of an international firm - so in addition to the usual valuation problem, they needed to deal with international issues, as well. The students that I talked with all said this was one of the most valuable experiences in their undergraduate careers.”

This year’s winners were: Wilson Ahn, Vishal Bansal, Harris Iqbal, Anant Kotak and Charlie Manhoff. The first place team is from the Emerging CFOs Finance Fellows section of BMGT 440 and recently won the Emerging CFOs case competition. One of the first-place winners, Harris Iqbal said, “I will be graduating this May and can assuredly say that the Wikler Case Competition was the most rewarding, exciting and challenging experience I had at the Smith School.”

This year’s competition was judged by: Joseph Wikler, competition sponsor and a director of Oppenheimer Family of Mutual Funds and numerous privately held companies; Alex Triantis, Professor of Finance and the Chairman of the Finance Department at the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland; Chuck Hasper, experienced financial and accounting manager and owner of CAH Associates and Jay Gouline, president of Springlake Corporation and Mayfield Associates LLC, wholly owned companies engaged in real estate acquisitions, development and property management.

Scott Lewis, MBA Candidate 2010, Smith Media Group

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About the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business

The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research. One of 12 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time and flex MBA, executive MBA, online MBA, business master’s, PhD and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning locations in North America and Asia.

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