McCombs Wins Second Consecutive USC International Case Competition
By Chantelle WallaceFor the second consecutive year, a team of McCombs undergraduates took first place at the Marshall International Case Competition at the University of Southern California.
 Paul Albrecht, Mark Rogers, Haley Robison, Dietrich Schmidt |
Teams from 29 top-ranked international and U.S business schools participated in the competition Feb. 13-17, where they were challenged to advise Target Corp. on its intended entry into international retail markets.
The McCombs team, which included Paul Albrecht, PPA senior; Haley Robison and Mark Rogers, both BHP and finance seniors; and Dietrich Schmidt, BHP and marketing senior, advanced to the challenge after winning the McCombs Undergraduate Case Competition last fall.
On Target for Global Expansion
The team’s task involved creating Target’s global expansion strategy.
Their approach to this daunting duty was to evaluate 28 countries
on the basis of their economic, cultural, governmental and
geographic attributes. Because Target’s brand caters to a
middle-class, fashion-conscious consumer they recommended entering
markets that closely resembled the U.S. in terms of economic system,
fashion trends and political situation, Albrecht said.
“We found Canada, Mexico and United Kingdom to be the most
attractive markets for Target's initial expansion,” Schmidt said.
“Once we decided where to enter we had to decide when and how.”
Collaboration Yields Success
The Texas team had a great group dynamic, which Rogers attributes to much of their success. “We have been close friends throughout college and really enjoy working together,” he said. “We couldn’t do all the work necessary to win if we weren't having fun.”
Many of the other teams hadn’t met each other prior to leaving for the competition, Schmidt added.
“The fact that our team had already worked together was invaluable,” she said.
McCombs requires teams to win an internal case competition prior to representing the school at international competitions.
“Our team was very diverse, with people who were skilled in accounting, finance, marketing, strategy, big-picture and details,” Albrecht said. “It takes all of those considerations to develop a strong recommendation.”
The group’s positive team dynamic was helpful during the 24 sleepless hours of preparation preceding presentation. “Not one of us slept, as the case was sufficiently analysis-intensive to merit at least a few weeks’ preparation,” Rogers said. “Those few weeks all had to be crammed into one night.”
Texas Pride
The team agrees the competition was a memorable and gratifying experience because they were able to represent McCombs in front of 29 teams from around the world.
In a world in which globalization is a way of life, international knowledge and experience is increasingly essential for success, Albrecht said.
“The biggest takeaway for me is branding Texas as an international juggernaut when it comes to our business school and our university,” Rogers said. “Texas is a team that should be revered, as we have won four world championships for McCombs in the last year alone. Being able to perpetuate that feeling of, ‘Uh oh, Texas just walked in … I sure hope they aren’t in our bracket for the competition,’ is what has driven me to excel for the past few years in the international arena.”
Robison echoes this sentiment: “After this weekend, I'm as proud as ever to be a Texas Longhorn!”
For information on specific programs at the McCombs School, consult our contacts page. For media information, contact the Communications Director by phone at 512-471-3314 or by email at CommunicationsDirector@mccombs.utexas.edu.
