By Web Communications
Each year, PepsiCo — parent company of Pepsi, Frito-Lay, Tropicana, Gatorade, and Quaker — sponsors a case competition at the Texas Christian University (TCU) Neeley School of Business. First-year, full-time MBA students apply as individuals and are placed on teams with students from other schools. Teams compete for a total of $15,000 in prize money: a $7,000 grand prize, a $5,000 second place prize, and a $3,000 third place prize. Zach Orbeck (MBA’20) was on the team that took home the first-place prize this year, and he recaps his experience below:
Zach Orbeck (MBA’20)
As a first-year MBA student at Owen, I’ve heard the word “case” used in just about every way imaginable. Professors draw upon cases in class to reinforce core concepts, and interviewers utilize cases to see how candidates approach business problems — and of course, there are many opportunities to participate in case-based competitions. It was clear that cases would be an important part of my development at Owen, so naturally, I wanted to find an opportunity to participate in a case competition to take what I was learning in the classroom and apply it to a current business challenge.
In early September, the Career Management Center posted information for the Fourth Annual PepsiCo Invitational MBA Marketing and Finance Case Competition, which caught my interest. As a student looking to focus in finance and operations, I thought this competition would be a great way to add to my finance experience. In addition, the event aligns with PepsiCo’s recruiting schedule for summer internships, making the competition a great way to learn more about the company and network with employees. I applied to represent Owen and was later accepted. The competition was held in Fort Worth, TX on October 26-27, and Owen was generous enough to cover all my registration, hotel, and flight accommodations.
Orbeck (second from left) and the rest of his team
Friday’s events consisted of a welcome dinner and cocktail reception with senior PepsiCo finance and marketing executives, plus one more twist: team selection for the case competition. Teams were randomly selected from the 13 schools participating, so I found out I would be working with students from Columbia, Texas A&M, and TCU for the case competition. During the reception, I connected with my team and we discussed the roles we gravitate to and brainstormed strategy for the next day’s competition.
On Saturday morning, we received our case, along with a five-hour deadline to prepare a 25-minute presentation to be judged by senior executives and talent acquisition team members from PepsiCo. The case focused on how the Frito-Lay business unit could improve its marketing mix for the convenience store customer segment by looking at different ways to innovate, display, brand, and price products. This case gave my team the opportunity to deep dive on the financial and marketing strategies the Frito-Lay business needed to be successful in this endeavor. The five hours flew by, and I vividly remember the mad dash to finalize PowerPoint slides and rehearse content prior to presenting.
Before I knew it, the presentation was over, and we received feedback on our content and delivery. Getting constructive feedback from PepsiCo executives, acquisition team members, and TCU faculty helped us understand how the team could improve our presentation skillsets in the future.
Orbeck (middle) celebrates winning first prize with his team
After the presentations concluded, we gathered for the awards ceremony, which was held at a famous Fort Worth restaurant called Joe T Garcia’s. The dinner was another excellent chance to network with students from other schools and various members of the PepsiCo organization. I was able to learn more about the finance structure at PepsiCo and the myriad of finance opportunities across divisions. My team ended up winning the case competition, taking home $7,000 (to be split among the team) and a great learning experience.
All in all, the case competition was a great opportunity to collaborate with other MBA students, work on a current business challenge for PepsiCo, and learn more about the career opportunities PepsiCo has to offer. I am grateful to Owen for providing this opportunity, and many others like it, to the student body! —Zach Orbeck
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