8th Annual WML Academic Symposium

Time: 11:30
Room: 312
Presenter(s): Vance Anderson, William Ashburn, James Blackman, Mackenzie Koeller
Title: Consulting Practicum: A Real-Life Business Case Study
Developed under the guidance of Dr. Shahriar Mostashari , Business

Teams of MBA students put the knowledge, skills, and attitudes developed in their coursework to use in a “live case” consulting project focused on assisting local family-owned or privately held small businesses. Working in small teams, the MBA students established a trusted advisor relationship with their business owner clients to examine aspects of business performance and small business management. Acting as consultants, the students worked to 1) identify critical issues, 2) analyze and understand the business model, and 3) generate viable recommendations to improve the firm’s competitiveness and profitability for their clients. Each team prepared a written case report of their consulting project and made a formal presentation to their peers and faculty members of the Lundy-Fetterman School of Business. In addition, the students were evaluated on their consulting competency and overall project performance by their client-companies.