LEAD Challenge Provides Real-World Experience to Students

Seventy students chosen from the first-year cohort competed in the 4th annual LEAD challenge on November 20, and the most helpful part of the day, students said, was the commentary from the alumni judges.

There was pointed feedback on our presentation skills, which is a really rare experience, said Lisa Walker, who presented a case on a merger.

Alumni in senior positions volunteered to spend the day listening to students present on four cases, one each in mergers and acquisitions, strategy and decision making, a company restructuring, and new product development. The Chicago GSB Fund sponsored two of the cases; the other two were sponsored by Merrill Lynch and Level 3 Communications.

At the end of the day, the 35 judges selected the Rockefeller cohort as the overall winner. Students, alumni, and staff agreed, however, that succeeding in the competition was less important than the real-world practice students receive.

I think it’s really good for the students to have to get up in front of a group and think on their feet and then listen to how they were perceived, said Suzanne H. Gilbert, ’85, retired vice chair and CFO of Initiative Media.

Evelyn Williams, the faculty chair of the LEAD program, said that this year’s group was particularly strong. This is an amazing opportunity for students to learn from the master craftsmen who are our alumni. And the cases are hard enough that even our best students need to raise the bar on their skill set in order to compete.

 

Jennifer Vanasco