Emerging Markets Institute team advances to quarter-finals in prestigious international competition

Johnson team among top 36 out of more than 600 original entries in National University of Singapore’s ‘Celebration 2011’

The Emerging Markets Institute (EMI)at Johnson at Cornell University is pleased to announce that a team has advanced to the quarter-finals round in the Celebration 2011 business plan competition, hosted by the National University of Singapore.  Bill Culley, Sudheer Bayanker and Tiger Xu, all Accelerated MBA (AMBA)candidates from the class of 2012, submitted a proposal to dramatically expand business prospects in India for one of the competition’s sponsors.

We are exceptionally pleased by the recognition of the quality of their submission,” remarked Richard J. Coyle, executive director of the Emerging Markets Institute.  “This competition is well known as a rigorous exercise, as participants come from the top MBA programs around the globe.”

Given the rapid pace of the Accelerated MBA, the Johnson team needed to move fast. “We formed the team within two days of learning about the competition,” noted Sudheer Bayanker, one of the team members. “Our proposal was developed during the intensive summer academic coursework. Within three weeks, we completed our submission for the first round of the competition.”

As one of the top 36 teams selected out of more than 600 entries, the Johnson team must now submit a more detailed business plan, explaining how their proposal will yield business success. Only six teams will be selected to advance into the next round in October, to be held in Singapore.