BYU Students Take First in Capital One Case Competition

PROVO, Utah – Jan 28, 2014 – Helping people use credit wisely is no easy feat, but three Marriott School of Management undergrads took on the challenge and won first place in the 2013 Capital One Case Competition after attending the final round of presentations in Plano, Texas.

Student teams assessed the auto loan market and created systems to help customers take out peer-to-peer auto loans. They were asked to consider the recent recession and think of ways to help consumers pay bills on time, understand what credit is and how to spend it wisely. As a part of their solution, BYU’s winning team proposed using a social media and TV ad campaign, along with a phone app to help people sign up for auto loans.

“In their presentation they focused on how Capital One would implement their strategy,” says David Benson, an assistant professor of organizational leadership and strategy who helped advise the students. “All the teams had great analytics, but what set the winners apart was that they had thought about the process from start to finish.”

Students Austin Pollard, a strategy junior from Cedar City, Utah; Bowman Bagley, a neuroscience junior from San Diego; and Blake Faulkner, a strategy junior from San Diego, were the winning team members in the competition, held last semester. The students won $1,000 each for their clarity and creativity of thought, presentation skills and analytical ability. They were among five finalist teams, with one from Stanford, two from Notre Dame and one other team from Brigham Young University.

Bagley, Faulkner and Pollard credit their win to many hours of work and preparation by participating in other competitions such as BYU’s Business Strategy Club cases. They say this competition was a good learning experience and enjoyed getting feedback from Capital One executives.

“It was a great opportunity to present a solution to VPs that were actually working on that case,” Bagley says. “They gave every team feedback before they announced the winner, and that helped me learn how to present with confidence.”

The Marriott School is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. The school has nationally recognized programs in accounting, business management, public management, information systems, and entrepreneurship. The school’s mission is to prepare men and women of faith, character and professional ability for positions of leadership throughout the world. Approximately 3,000 students are enrolled in the Marriott School’s graduate and undergraduate programs.