By Arial Starks
Nissan will serve as the client sponsor for the 2025 SEC MBA Case Competition. The 12th annual Southeastern Conference case competition will be hosted by Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management in Nashville, Tennessee.
The competition, set to take place March 27-29, 2025 will emphasize the skills and strategic thinking of MBA students, giving them an opportunity to apply their business knowledge to real-world problems.
“The SEC MBA Case Competition is a fantastic opportunity to showcase the talent and collaboration within our MBA programs,” says Tom Steenburgh, Ralph Owen Dean and Professor of Marketing at Vanderbilt Business. “We at the Owen Graduate School of Management are excited to host this event in partnership with Nissan, bringing together the brightest minds across the SEC to celebrate academic excellence and foster meaningful connections.”
Nissan will kick off the competition by introducing the business case to participants on the morning of Friday, March 28. Each university’s team of four students will have 24 hours to develop their proposed solutions. On Saturday, March 29, all teams will present their recommendations to company executives during divisional rounds, after which the top four teams will advance to the final round of the competition.
“Nissan and Vanderbilt have collectively called Tennessee home for more than 200 years, and both organizations have a shared vision of excellence, collaboration and challenging the limits of what’s possible,” said Ponz Pandikuthira, Senior Vice President and Chief Planning Officer, Nissan Americas. “Immersive projects like this allow students to gain valuable experience outside the classroom as well as bring new ideas and perspectives that push us beyond the status quo and drive our business forward, which is critical as the auto industry transforms.”
Following the final presentations, the winners will be announced, along with individual division awards for Best Presenter and Best Q&A.
This event provides a great opportunity for the 16 SEC schools to collaborate in a competition, while shining a light on the exceptional students in each MBA program.
