A team of Ithaca College students took Third Place and a prize of $500 at the Manhattan College Business Analytics Competition and Conference, held May 24-27 at Manhattan College. It was the first time Ithaca College sent a team to the event that aims to give students an opportunity to engage in the “art & science” of decision-making, as well as to practice their ability to draw business insights through comprehensive analysis of data in creative ways.
This year, student teams were given a data set from online retailer Gilt.com and, with minimal context and no additional guidance, charged with conducting analysis and making business recommendations. The Ithaca College team, advised by Professor Bill Tastle of the Management Department, consisted of three School of Business students: JB Allred '17, Lisa Famularo '16, and Amanda Lee '16. Over the course of several months, the team applied a variety of tools and strategies, presenting along the way to faculty and members of the Business Advisory Council. Their findings and recommendations culminated in a poster presentation at the event and a 24-hour second round that included analyzing additional data.
The competition featured teams from colleges and universities across the country, including those with data analytics and decision science programs. Dean Sean Reid commented, "This was our first business analytics competition experience our students did us proud placing in our first contest! Special thanks to Dr. Bill Tastle for his tireless support as the team’s faculty advisor as well as the many faculty who worked with the team over the course of the spring semester."
Participation in the competition was made possible by the generous support of donors to the Ithaca College Annual Fund for Business.
