This semester, a team of
students from the Lally School of Management at Rensselaer won the regional
round of the 2018-2019 ASCM Case Competition that took place in Boston.

The annual competition,
sponsored by the Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM) and Deloitte
Consulting LLP, requires students to present solutions to supply chain
management problems based on real company experiences.

The winning team included Janey
Hoefler, Colin Kreder, Yu-chin Tseng, and Niko Davis, students enrolled in the supply
chain management master’s program at Rensselaer. The students were coached by
T. Ravichandran and Hakan Hekimoglu, faculty members in the Lally School who
specialize in supply chain management.

At the regional round of
the competition, the students were challenged to analyze Amigo Toys, a company
that was having problems meeting customer demands, and develop solutions that
address those problems. They then had to pitch their solutions to a board of
the company’s directors.

“The competition challenged
us to address a tough business problem under strict time constraints,” said Kreder.
“It gave us real-world problem-solving experience and allowed us to make
important connections with industry professionals.”

The Lally School has participated in the regional round of the ASCM competition for the past five years and for the second year in a row, had its students take first place.

“It’s a really great
outcome and a reflection of the quality of students we have at Rensselaer,” said
Ravichandran. “Winning this competition is definitely going to have some
lasting value for our students. They had the opportunity to meet professionals
in the field who they will likely connect with down the road.”

The students are now invited to the international competition, which will take place in October of this year at the ASCM 2019 conference.