Wikler Finance Case Competition Showcases Smith Undergrads

With the spring 2024 semester winding down, Smith undergraduates taking the course Advancement Financial Management showcased their abilities, while simulating roles in the financial management profession, in the annual Joseph M. Wikler Finance Case Competition.

The students, in three-to-six-member teams, developed and supported a solution and strategy for a real-world organization’s current issue. This year, the case was “Krogers and Albertsons - A Good Match?” coauthored by Clinical Professor Emerita Susan White (and selected as one of six winning cases used at the 2024 John Molson MBA International Case Competition).

A team of Areeba Asim, Ana Kavtaradze and Saloni Patel won first place and a $1,000 prize.

Second place ($500) team: Kristelle Chamandy, Kaoutar Cheji, Kevin Garcia, Abdullah Hijaz and Emma Tun.

Tying for third place: A team consisting of Derek Diaz, Samuel Drucker, Udayveer Makkar and Danny Villamayor and a separate team of Zachary Brodsky, Edward Guterres, Tariq Marouf, Graham Vaeth, Grayson Vintz and Hannah Willetts.

“The student presentations were very impressive. They were polished and professional and provided sound solutions to a very difficult business problem,” says White. “I’m very proud of all of the participants.”

She further noted the competition judges and their continuing service to the competition: retired wealth advisor and Smith graduate Norm Oremland, consultant and Smith graduate Cris Parcelles, real estate investor Jay Gouline and wealth advisor and entrepreneur Andrew Ma. Assistant Clinical Professor of Finance Terrence O’Brien, who recently joined the Smith faculty, also was part of the panel.

The Wikler case competition at Smith originated in 2004, thanks to yearly donations from Wikler, a prominent investment professional. The contributions are continuing thanks to his widow, Madeline Wikler.

Read more about the Finance Department at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business.