Dodging a final exam proved profitable for students at Brigham Young University’s Marriott School of Management. Vit Miska, a second-year MISM student and Jeremy Hafen, a second-year MAcc student, earned cash awards and funding for the school with their winning entries in an e-commerce essay contest sponsored by Federal Express.
Miska placed first in the second-year MBA or equivalent degree category winning $2,000 in cash and $5,000 for the school’s Kevin and Debra Rollins Center for eBusiness. Hafen was one of three runners up and received $1,000.
Visiting Marriott School Associate Professor Markus Gappmaier gave students the option of entering the FedEx E-commerce and Supply Chain Strategies Student Essay Contest in lieu of sitting through a final exam in his information systems management course.
“Basically, I wanted to get out of taking a final exam,” Hafen said. “However, writing the essay ended up taking more time and effort, but it was worth it.”
In addition to the financial rewards, Miska’s essay, “Five Steps to Supply Chain Excellence: Re-engineering the Supply Chain in the E-commerce Era,” will be included in the 5 May issue of E-commerce and Supply Chain Strategies, a FedEx sponsored education series read by Fortune 500 executives.
Contest essays were judged on innovative thought, relative business application for senior executives, clear and actionable writing and demonstration of knowledge.
Because Gappmaier’s course addressed e-business process management and re-engineering issues, students were prepared to do well in the contest, said Milen Marinov, teaching assistant to Gappmaier.
“The knowledge gained from Professor Gappmaier’s course prepared me for my essay – The Human Aspect of Implementing Technology into the Supply Chain,” Hafen said. “His class focused a lot on people and the importance of human interaction when implementing new technology.”
The School of Accountancy and Information Systems, part of BYU’s Marriott School, offers master’sdegrees in accountancy and information systems. Public Accounting Report ranks the school’s master of accountancy and undergraduate accountancy programs third in the nation. In addition, Computerworld ranked the school’s graduate information systems program 20th in the nation. The Marriott School is dedicated to educating men and women of faith, character and professional ability who will become outstanding managersand leaders throughout the world.
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Writer: Carrie Beckstead (801) 378-1512
