Rutgers Business School Wins National Johnson & Johnson Competition, Beating Nine Other Universities

NEWARK, NJ – A team of Rutgers Business School undergraduates from Newark won the Johnson & Johnson National Case competition defeating nine other business schools to win $3,000 to support student scholarships. The prestigious competition tested student teams on their ability to use economic reasoning, financial analysis, accounting assumptions and creative marketing ideas to persuade the judges of the soundness of their findings and defend their decisions.

“The case was challenging and very exciting,” said team member Fabiola Emilio, a junior Finance major. “It was a great opportunity to apply what we learn in the classroom. We had a very diverse team of different majors, skills and personalities. We became a team even though we didn’t know each other before the competition.”

Faculty advisor instructor Francis Ng also pointed to the depth of the team as the key to victory. “They were able to draw experience and strength from their diverse backgrounds,” said Ng. “This is the beauty of Rutgers Business School at Newark, the most diverse campus in the nation.” The Rutgers Business School campus in Newark has been ranked #1 in diversity nationwide by U.S. News & World Report for 12 straight years.

The Rutgers Business School team was represented from all over New Jersey and internationally by Emilio, who’s family is from Brazil, comes from Newark; Julian Ortiz, who's family is from Colombia, a junior Accounting and Economics major from Morristown; Nimita Mittra, a sophomore Marketing major from West Windsor; Adam Shaarawy, who’s family hails from Egypt, is a junior Accounting major from Bayonne; and Dimple Khatiwala, who’s family is from India, is a junior Finance major from Newark.

Other top business schools in the competition included Florida University, Illinois University and Penn State. The finals were held at Johnson & Johnson’s world headquarters in New Brunswick, New Jersey, on April 4. This year’s case focused on four options to launch an over-the-counter drug into the Asian market. The student teams had to recommend which product and which market to introduce the drug. Based on the team’s financial analysis, SWOT (strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats) analysis, and presentation skills, the students were able to actively partake in a real-world corporate experience.

“The J&J case competition gives Rutgers Business School students the opportunity to prove themselves to the business community by analyzing a real world business case using the skills and knowledge gained at Rutgers,” said Joe Market, Instructor of Management and Global Business and responsible for coordinating Rutgers involvement in the Johnson & Johnson competition. With a focus on business, science, and technology, Rutgers Business School provides students opportunities to excel like the team at the Johnson & Johnson national case competition.

The students relished the experience. “Not only did I have the opportunity to utilize my business skills and abilities, but I now have a better understanding of how business-related decisions are made on a daily basis,” said Shaarawy. “The Johnson & Johnson Case Competition was a challenging experience that boosted my presentation skills and helped me understand academics more clearly,” added Khatiwala.

Participating for the third year in a row, winning this year after coming in second last year, Rutgers Business School continues to offer students real-world corporate experiences like the Johnson & Johnson Case Competition. “I highly recommend others take part in any similar case model competition,” said Mittra. “My experience with the Johnson & Johnson case competition has been absolutely remarkable.”

About Rutgers Business School-Newark and New Brunswick:

Rutgers Business School–Newark and New Brunswick (RBS) is an integral part of one of the nation’s oldest, largest, and most distinguished institutions of higher learning: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey – founded in 1766. Since 1941, Rutgers Business School has been accredited by AACSB International–the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business — a distinction that represents the hallmark of excellence in management education. Today, with a focus on Business, Science, and Technology, Rutgers Business School is educating more than 4,500 undergraduate and graduate students at two main campuses in New Jersey as well as six satellite locations in New Jersey, China, and Singapore. Steeped in academic excellence, with a distinguished faculty and a corps of over 30,000 successful alumni, Rutgers Business School is highly ranked by the Financial Times, U.S. News & World Report, Business Week, and The Wall Street Journal. It is recognized as one of the top three business schools in the greater New York metropolitan area; is ranked #6 nationwide for “Most Competitive Students” by The Princeton Review; and is part of the campus that is ranked #1 in diversity nationwide by U.S. News & World Report, for 12 straight years. For additional information, visit www.business.rutgers.edu.

Media Contact: Dan Stoll
973-353-5879
E-mail: dstoll@business.rutgers.edu