2023 - 2024 Capstone Cup Annual Report

College of Business Administration

Capstone Cup

Fall 2023 - Spring 2024 Annual Report

CELEBRATING 10 YEARS

FROM THE DIRECTORS

The UNO Capstone Cup was piloted in Spring 2014 and has evolved into a truly exceptional experience and event for our students and business partners alike.

Since its inception in 2014, the Capstone Cup has had a singular goal: to provide our students with a unique and valuable educational experience. This goal could not be met without the support of our community What we [naively] did not anticipate was the enthusiastic and continuous support and engagement of our local partners

We started the Capstone Cup (formerly the Case Study Competition) to simply ‘bring strategy to life’ for our students and engaging with businesses seemed like a great way to make everything more real Over the years, the competition has gone through many iterations but one thing has remained consistent and that is the support we ’ ve had from employers. Fast forward to today, we have employers using the Capstone Cup to identify and recruit talent! It is hard to describe the feeling we get when students tell us how they got an interview following their Capstone Cup performance – it truly brings everything full circle.

As we take another moment to reflect on that singular goal, what we have come to realize is how that goal has resulted in a community of shared experience The Capstone Cup is more than a singular event each semester, it has truly become a flagship experience for our students and a program that our local employers continue to come back for. We now have alumni coming back to judge and share their stories with current stories.

We continue to be incredibly grateful and thankful for our local employers support and engagement through the years – their time and generosity is what makes the Capstone Cup a truly remarkable program for CBA

Through its many iterations, one thing has remained consistent – and that is the support and engagement of our local employers.

Dr. Erin Pleggenkuhle-Miles

Dr. Erin Bass

classroom Undergraduate students are typically far-removed from the strategy process and decision-making that happens where they work Yet, strategy is the cornerstone for every organization. The Capstone Cup was born in 2014 and was designed to help students make the transition from student to young professional. It pushes them to be polished while showcasing their business acumen, skills, and knowledge to members of the Omaha business community.

The involvement of community partners is what truly brings the competition to life. The support of members of our local business community as judges or sponsors helps bring the boardroom to the classroom This gives the competition a “real world” feel as our student present to “real” business people But the benefits are not just felt by the students Our sponsors and judges have a first-hand look at our students in action We have had a number of our students’ land interviews from these presentations, with some eventually landing the job. And that’s ultimately what we ’ re here to deliver a valuable experience that showcases the talent of our students and helps employers identify and recruit from this talent pool.

The competition has evolved since its inception thanks to the faculty that serve as the lifeblood of the event, including Dr. Brent Clark, Dr. Leif Lundmark, Mr. Ed Cochran, and co-directors Dr Erin Pleggenkuhle-Miles and Dr Erin Bass Each iteration is aimed at enhancing the student experience while achieving our goals of professional development and strategic thinking Excitement and acceptance of the program has continued to grow each year. The faculty are committed to continuing to innovate and work with community partners to deliver a program that is not only a flagship for the university, but a flagship for showcasing young talent for Omaha’s thriving business communi

THE COMPETITION IN BRIEF

The Capstone Cup is a semester-long competition comprised of a kickoff event and two rounds of competition. The Capstone Cup was born at the UNO College of Business Administration and is unique to our school and our identity as a metropolitan university focused on preparing our students for success.

During the Capstone Cup, teams of undergraduate business students have to digest a complex business situation, develop a creative and practical solution, and build a presentation that communicates their analyses and recommendations to a panel of judges comprised of faculty, business community members, and alumni.

Every College of Business Administration student enrolled in the undergraduate capstone strategy course (Corporate & Business Strategy) during the fall and spring semesters participates in this competition, impacting more than 125 students each semester.

A UNIQUE EXPERIENCE

Kickoff Event

All students attend

Team introductions

Information session

Alumni panel

Discussion with client

Round One

25-50 teams

4 rounds of presentations

Poster competition format

50+ external judges

Final Event

5 teams

Formal presentation showcase Judges from sponsor companies

Prizes for all teams

The Capstone Cup is delivered by a team of CBA strategy professors and a graduate assistant in the Department of Management

Dr. Erin Bass

Dr. Brent Clark

Dr. Leif Lundmark

Dr. Erin Pleggenkuhle-Miles

Ed Cochran

Dr. Nick Arreola

Connor Berg

Sanith Ray

The Capstone Cup Graduate Assistant is the ‘engine’ that makes this event go. Kaleb Heckens joined the team in Fall 2023 and hit the ground running He wrote the case briefings under the guidance of the Capstone Cup Director (Erin Miles); coordinated with our case partners, photographers, and volunteers; and in general made sure things went as planned.

The Capstone Cup was by far the most challenging and most rewarding experience of my college career It taught me how to have grit when working with colleagues to analyze and present information. Although we were competing against other teams from our senior class, we all connected and supported each other - ELLEN VOGLTANZ (SPRING 2024 WINNER)

DISPLAYING CBA TALENT THROUGH DIFFERENT MEDIUMS

Poster Competition Format

Round One took place as a poster competition (very similar to a science fair). Teams designed research posters that would effectively display their research, analyses, and recommendations as they verbally presented their findings to a series of different groups of judges Each team was given 15 minutes to present and answer questions from judges, presenting a total of four times throughout the event

Formal Presentation

Five teams from Round One were selected to showcase their strategic recommendations in a formal slide deck presentation that took place in the Mammel Hall auditorium Teams were given 12 minutes to present, followed by a Q&A session from the panel of judges made up of employees from the 2023-2024 Capstone Cup sponsors.

Efforts Rewarded

Since 2020, the Capstone Cup has been able to provide professional headshots for all students due to the generous support from the competition’s sponsors

To recognize students’ efforts, sponsors furnished a variety of amazing prizes for the first, second, and third place teams, as well as the finalist teams. Prizes included Yeti coolers, Bluetooth speakers, luggage, tumblers, Amazon and Southwest Airlines gift cards, and a variety of strategy board games including Risk, Ticket to Ride, and Battleship.

GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND

FALL 2023 WINNERS

Left to Right:

Dan Guenther, Accounting

Ellen Vogltanz, Human Resource Management

Meagan Dauel, Accounting

Filo Habib, Legal Studies

Left to Right: Kate Dittman, Accounting

Joel Pleskac, Business Finance

Ayden Smith, Marketing

Amanda Callaghan, Marketing

SPRING 2024 WINNERS

THE NUMBERS

43.1% 5.5% Participants Since Fall 2015 Of Participants Were Female This Year Of Participants Were International This Year

Concentration Breakdown

MESSAGE FROM DEAN MICHELLE W. TRAWICK

“The Capstone Cup is applied business education at its finest.”

- Michele W.

Trawick,

Dean, College of Business Administration

The Capstone Cup is a perfect example of what a culminating experience should look like for graduating business students and distinguishes our College of Business Administration from others in the area because of the real-world experience students have. At UNO CBA, we don’t just focus on textbooks and tests we encourage students to participate in internships, we bring experts from the community into our classrooms, and we cap everything off with a real-world business case for students to explore The Capstone Cup is applied business education at its finest

For students, the Capstone Cup is an incredible learning opportunity that students are able to talk about and apply in job interviews. Not only are students tasked with thinking strategically and applying everything they have learned during the past four years, but they are able to develop the collaboration and teamwork skills that employers value

One of the things that I believe makes our CBA stand apart from so many others is the complete investment we have from the Omaha business community By sponsoring this competition, local employers show that they value the business education we are providing because it shows up in the students they hire This competition is a difference-maker in our community, and it could not happen without the generous support of our sponsors

I want to thank our dream team of strategy faculty for all the effort they put in to create this experience for our students. The Capstone Cup is one of my favorite things we do here at UNO CBA—it’s an amazing thing to see and is a milestone to celebrate for our students.

Future Capstone Cup Dates (Fall 2024 - Spring 2025)

Oct. 4 Nov. 8 Dec. 6 March 7 April 4 April 25

Mark your calendars now!

PARTNER WITH US

Over the years, we have been honored and pleased to partner with businesses and professionals across Omaha Support has come in many forms, including sponsorship of prizes, distinguished judges’ time and attention, as well as valuable input Without our generous partners, the Capstone Cup wouldn't be possible. In return for their contributions, valued partners are recognized through communication messages on our media channels and have an opportunity to access the best talent that UNO CBA has to offer The Capstone Cup thrives on its partnerships with the local business community

For the 2023–2024 Academic Year, we welcomed twelve sponsors from the Omaha business community. These sponsors not only had the opportunity to get in front of our students, but also directly recruit for full and part-time positions. In addition to these sponsors, we also welcomed more than 100 judges from more than 30 local employers

“The Capstone Cup gives the students a taste of how the business world operates –operating in teams and rallying together to solve real business problems using each member’s expertise. I enjoy seeing the progression of the teams from the first round to the final and watching them incorporate the feedback along the way just as a business leader would expect.”

- Brian Woolfolk, Executive VP & Head of Institutional Division at Pacific Life

“As a judge, I really enjoy watching the UNO Business students apply course lessons to real-world corporate challenges The teams never fail to impress me with their creativity, confidence, and ability to field questions from the judges It’s a great testament to the Capstone Cup leadership to provide this opportunity for the students and sponsor companies to interact and learn from each other.”

- Teresa Queen, VP Product Development at Fiserv

PREMIER SPONSORS

FALL 2023 BUSINESS CASE

Each case is written by the Capstone Cup team and provides unique and current insights on the companies studies Select cases are submitted for publication Since 2021, business cases have been written on local companies Representatives from these companies were interviewed and recorded in a podcast format, allowing the case to be provided to students in a multimedia format of a written report with accompanying audio clips. Representatives from these companies attended the Kickoff event each semester to field questions from students, and were also present for student presentations during Round One and the Finals event.

“We are deeply honored to have collaborated with the esteemed students and faculty of UNO, who showcased our company as the featured brand in their 2023 Capstone Cup. Through engaging one-on-one interviews and comprehensive business analysis, we were profoundly impressed by the innovative ideas and compelling pitches presented This experience has been invaluable to our team, and we enthusiastically endorse it to fellow businesses in our community.”

- Emily Undajon, Former SVP of Strategic Operations at Right at Home

RIGHT AT HOME: LET’S START TALKING ABOUT LIVING

Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, Right at Home is an at-home care company providing numerous health and companion services to seniors. Right at Home has over 600 franchises in America and across the globe with 430,000 plus hours of care being provided by caregivers per week Services range from helping a senior fold their laundry to administering hospice care and everything in between. While Right at Home has seen growth year-over-year, they are facing the challenges of recruiting and retaining caregivers and franchisees becoming complacent. In addition, the at-home care market is highly crowded and receives very little funding from the government. Consulting teams in the Capstone Cup have been tasked with developing a strategic recommendation for Right at Home as it works to achieve its goals for future growth

SPRING 2024 BUSINESS CASE

OMAHA SUPERNOVAS: OUR TIME IS NOW

In January 2024, the Omaha Supernovas kicked off the inaugural season of the Pro Volleyball Federation in front of over 11,000 fans at the CHI Health Center in downtown Omaha. This unique venture, co-owned by City+Ventures and pop star Jason Derulo, is the first of its kind with a full season of professional women ’ s volleyball on American soil The popularity of volleyball in the US is increasing with Nebraska at its epicenter By 2025, the Pro Volleyball Federation will consist of 10 teams with rosters of 14 players each earning healthy wages comparable to the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). In a new environment, there are many exciting opportunities for both the team and fans alike. However, the Supernovas are faced with the challenge of growing their main revenue streams of ticket sales and corporate sponsorships while simultaneously finding success on the court. Consulting teams in the Capstone Cup have been tasked with developing a strategic recommendation for the Omaha Supernovas to help position itself for the future

2023-2024 CAPSTONE CUP PARTICIPANTS

FALL 2023 PARTICIPANTS

Faisal Albarakati

Jose Albarran

Mahmood Al Aljmi

Hamood Alzadjali

Makenna Anderson

Donovan Anderson

Delanie Anderson

Alissa Archer

Lillian Baylor

Benjamin Beaudin

Sage Bekish

Carlos Benitez *

Tyler Brattain

Katherine Breit

Brittany Buckingham

Amanda Callaghan *

Cali Carritt

Owen Carusi *

Joanna Castillo *

Aaron Castillo

Jessica Charron *

Drake Childress

Leticia Coronado-Ariza *

Gonzalo Cuevas *

Emma Daniels

Bradley Daniels

Frances Denny

Katelin Dittman *

Mariah Dondlinger

Noah Edwards

Adam Einsel

Gary Evans

Michael Falbo

Alexander Frisbie *

Ethan Gates

Cade Gerdes

Ahmed Al Ghaithi

Michael Goehring

Myka Goeken

Lucero Gonzalez

Brandon Grooters

Marcus Gross

Noah Grot *

Joshua Hadden

Makinzie Hamilton

Kilestan Hamy

Ja-Hyohk Han

Morgan Hanel

Zachary Hansen *

Brian Hernandez-Lemus *

Nathaniel Hron

Ryan Huppe

Ryan Jack

Zachary Jackson

Brooke Jasch

Allison Karr

Zyler Keller

Daniel Kenealy

Garrett Kennedy

Franck Ketchouang

Colton Kinen

Ciera Kobold

Cody Krabbenhoft

Harrison Kreiling

Lynsie Kruse

Brian Lacy

Devon Larsen

Michele Lee

Preston Lincoln

Michael Lopez

Joseph Losee

Nicole Luna

Kirsten Luskey

Tyler Lyster

Chanelle M A Yah

Sahra Mahamud

Lahiza Malvais Rosas *

Eric Manuel *

Shane Martincik

Jennifer Martinez-Silva

Madeleine Mather

Brian Mena

Matthew Miller

McKinley Miller

* Indicates Finalist

Jamie Miranda Rivera

Jacob Mock

Tanner Morrissey

Carina Muse

Zaher Nabulsi

Christian Navarrete

Rena Nelson *

Clayton Nelson

Lisa Nishimura

Carter Nordstrom *

Miu Oka

Chiori Okada

Mason Owens

Taylor Parkinson

Samantha Parr

Kayden Pearson

Marco Pena

Makayla Penner

Carly Peterman

Anh Pham

Thomas Pham

Myang Phaw

Emily Pineda Martinez

Joel Pleskac *

Danyell Price

Enrique Ramos

Jocelyn Rebolorio-Hernandez *

TJ Renner *

Brandy Rettele

Nolan Reynolds

Andrew Rieck

Tyler Robinson

Acosta Romero

Tyler Rosplock

Reagan Salcedo-Gliwa

Preston Sherwood

Jaxson Simmerman

Ayden Smith

Reo Soeda

Chantel Southall

Ashlee Thalman *

Neha Thapa

Rachelle Tomasek

Anna Trout

Daniel Ulrich *

Anthony Violi *

Dagen Voigtman

Mitchell Vorel

Brittany Vosika

Yuka Wagata

Jack Ward

Ashlynn Wheeler

Connor Wilkinson

Elizabeth Wine

Jackson Wohlenhaus

Sengsanla Wuyawng

Mika Yonezawa

Azizkhon Youldashev

Casey Young

Nathan Zeitner

Nalleli Zermeno

SPRING 2024 PARTICIPANTS

Aubrey Agosta

Andrea Aguilar

Hamed Al Jashmi

Al Mundhir Al Masrouri

Ahmed Al Waili

Albaraa Alzadjali

Siomara Amaya

Kwame Amponsah-Appiah

Gage Anderson

Yuki Asai

David Avalos-Vargas

Hailee Bakhit

Allison Bartz

Kathryn Becker

Michael Begley

Alyssa Bell *

Joel Benes

Jennifer Benitez-Jaimes

Greyson Bents

Logan Bockmann

Hannah Boehler *

Savannah Brym *

Steven Buer Jr

Luis Bustamante-Salgado

Grace Buttermore

Sarah Calgaard

Hailee Camacho *

Connor Cargile

Calli Carlson

Vince Carper

Miya Carson

Natalie Casson

Jayden Ceballo

Vivek Chand

Mariana Chavez

Karlie Chonis

Max Cipolla

Claire Clausen

Ethan Clements

William Cohen

Grant Coleman

Lauren Cook

Chase Cordes

Joseph Cordova

Itzel Cortes-Lopez

Christopher Crouch

Mary Cudly

Antione Curtis

Meagan Dauel *

Bee Davis

Reagan De Koning

Erik Degener

Olga Delgado *

Zeljko Demirovic

Hannah Devitt

Hunter Domina

Tristan Duin

Thomas Dye

Taylor English

Andrew Fabian

Halley Falkena

Dylan Fedde *

Mauricio Felix-Alvarado

Kelsey Forman

Anthony Gallardo

Paris Gardner

Cole Gideon

Mya Glassman

Elyse Globe

James Glynn

Carter Gochanour

Mara Golden

Bianca Gonzalez-Zamora

Alfred Grenon

Daniel Guenther *

Logan Guy *

Andrew Haas *

Flopateer Habib *

Zachary Harrison

Jake Harrison

Brendan Heida

Clay Hendricks *

Mackenzie Henson

Eric Hernandez

Jolien Hernandez

Joshua Herout

Ryan Higgins

Avery Hill

Cason Hoeke

Matilyn Hronek

Cherry Htoo

Jayden Hunter

Monica Huse

Michael James

Morgan Jennings

Jack Jenson

Landon Jewell

Johan Jimenez

Garret Johnson *

Melanie Johnson

Joshua Jones

Mallory Kangior

Le Kar

Aubrey Kasbohm

Benjamin Keaschall

Reece Kelly

Emma Kennedy

Keegan Kenney

Noah Klein *

Clarissa Kosch

Patrick Kowalski

Nolan Krenzen

Payton Krug

Kaylee Lahti

Keanu Landolt

James Larson

Katelyn Latoundji

Brady LeJeune-DeAcutis

Christian Licea *

Kyaw Linn

Jarret Linscott

Brody Lubbers

Nathan Maloy

Jaimee Marshall

Marissa Martinez

Leslie Martinez-Garcia

DeWayne Mattas

Joseph Mccarter

Nathan Mccombs

Luke McKinney

Dillon Meyer

Aolani Mickles

Coven Miller

Chelsea Molina

Omar Monge

Matthew Morales

McKayla Most

Nicole Nadres

Christen Nall

Vincent Nelson

Catherine Newlin

Theresa Nguyen

Viet Nguyen

Margaret O'Brien

Brennan O'Keefe

Flores Oliveros

Dejah Olsen

Owen Olsen

Alexandra Olson

Daisy Ornelas

Daniel Osborn

Austin Oswald

Melissa Pacheco

Sidney Pecha

Anastassia Pelegrin

Galilea Pena-Villagrana

Maria Perez

Kevin Peterson *

Hailey Petri

Suzanne Piitz

Alexander Price

Cassandra Ramsey

Alexis Regler

Chase Rehder

Clayton Rhodes

Amanda Riedl

Jacob Roberts

Abner Rodriguez

Israel Rodriguez

Constance Roeber *

Madisyn Rogert

Dante Rossini

Katelin Russell

Kimberly Salas-Eloisa

Emiliano Salgado *

Luke Schawang

Grant Schmidt

Zach Schumacher

Caden Schutte

Aanul Shah

Marin Shanno

Stella Shull

Jeremy Silvas

Sara Singleton

Matthew Somlai

Alexis Sovereign

Carlee Sovine *

Lillian Stafford

Joshua Steenhoek

Olivia Steffen

Phillip Stelling

Livia Steskal

Mackenzie Storey

Eden Stranglen

Lah Su

Abygail Tarver

Preston Tenney

Olivia Theil

Kaden Therkildsen

Anne Thomas

Tanner Thompson

John Tickle

Travis Tilley

Jesse Tomair

Ryan Trout

Augusto Virgillito

Kelly Vo

Ellen Vogltanz *

John Voner

Gabriella Wagner

Kyson Warner

Evan Weaklend

Andrew Wells

Shelby Wetzel

Morgan Willms

Nicholas Winchester

Jackson Wray

Logan Wyscarver

Adam Yowell

Diego Zayas-Espinal

Aaron Zenon

Junkeng Zhu