Four Martha and Spencer Love School of Business students represented Elon University in a competition hosted by the Society for Human Resource Management.
The team consisted of management majors Michael Dufour ’16, Rebecca Karpinos ’18, Amelie Speer ’16, and Chris Soloway ’16. Associate Professor Brian Lyons accompanied the team and served as their faculty mentor.
The annual competition charges students to apply their classroom knowledge to a realistic human resource situation, integrating HR thinking, ethical decision-making, and strong communication and presentation skills.
Teams analyzed and solved a business case, and prepared both a written executive summary and 15-minute oral presentation.
“This competition taught me more about the importance of working as a team to accomplish your goals,” Dufour said. “It showed me the how necessary planning is to prepare you for every outcome. It also taught me more about myself and gave me the opportunity to connect and bond with people I never thought I would.“
The students also had the opportunity to attend seminars and network with peers and HR professionals.
“Not only have I gained vital experience working on a team to solve a real-world problem facing top organizations today,” Soloway said, “but I also had the opportunity to connect with HR professionals who gave me great insight into building a successful HR career.”
The University of West Florida placed first in the East Division I category. Elon finished ahead of 13 schools, including Indiana University-Bloomington, Penn State University, University of Tennessee-Knoxville, Quinnipiac University and Texas A&M, and first among the participating North Carolina institutions, Meredith College and East Carolina University.
This was Elon’s first time participating in the competition.