Fordham University Takes Top Honors at 19th Annual Deloitte FanTAXtic National Case Study Competition

Announcements | Jan 24, 2020 | admin

A team of five students from Fordham University Gabelli School of Business claimed victory at the Deloitte FanTAXtic national case study competition held on January 17-18 at Deloitte University, Deloitte’s learning and leadership development center, in Westlake, TX.

Meghan Keough, Gabriel Garrido, Tinglan (Shirley) Du, Siyao Wang, and Benjamin Haney defeated eight other universities by presenting the best analysis on a complex, issues-driven business tax case. This year’s case challenged students to analyze the impact of using debt versus equity to expand operations for a startup venture.

In November, nearly 60 teams representing over 40 colleges and universities participated in regional qualifier events at Deloitte offices throughout the U.S. The other team of students from Gabelli came in second place, receiving honorable mention. The students on that team are Siqi (Nini) Li, Kaitlyn Radesca, James Dougherty, Yufei Zhao, and Katherine Delahunt.

Each student on the winning team was awarded $2,000 in scholarships and Fordham was awarded $10,000. The students on the team that took second place in November each took home $200, and Fordham was awarded $2,000.

According to Deloitte University, the winning team demonstrated the ability to work collaboratively to solve a complex business case simulation and was also recognized for the quality of their overall presentation to a panel of live and virtual judges.

Thanks to Kimberley LaMarque Orman and other faculty at the Gabelli School, students were taught and practiced technical proficiency, teamwork, and innovative thinking to solve the complexities of the business case challenge students for the competition. Participants in the competition gained real-world experiences that provides the opportunity to build their skills and be exposed to the types of challenges that will face them as they prepare for the tax profession of tomorrow.

“The Deloitte FanTAXtic case competition provides an invaluable setting for students to prepare for a career in tax, interact with peers from other universities, and be inspired by Deloitte professionals,” said Stan Veliotis, Gabelli associate professor and team adviser. “Its use of real business challenges provides our students with the opportunity to hone their communication, analytical and research skills. We appreciate the opportunity to participate in this case competition, the Deloitte judges’ time and insights, and Deloitte’s commitment and sponsorship of this program.”

For more about the victory in Accounting Today.