Team of MBA Students Wins Third Prize in International Business Plan Competition

International Business Plan Competition

James Shirreff (MBA/MAIEP ’14), John Foss (MBA ’13), Mary Vargo (MBA ’14) (holding check) and Morgan Rogge (MBA/MAIEP ’14) (next to Mary) with the judging panel and their award at Davos.

Four Monterey Institute MBA students traveled to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in January to compete in the final round of the international Business for a Better World competition, sponsored by Corporate Knights and the Schulich School of Business. The MIIS quartet beat out teams from 20 other universities around the world to reach the final three.

Mary Vargo (MBA ’14), Morgan Rogge (MBA/MAIEP ’14), John Foss (MBA ’13), and James Shirreff (MBA/MAIEP ’14) said the experience in Davos was “amazing,” and their presentation was very well received. They were awarded the third place, carrying a $2,000 prize. “The MIIS team was the thought leader in this competition,” says Dean Yuwei Shi of the Institute’s Graduate School of International Policy and Management. “Their work treads convincingly beyond corporate social responsibility and shows an exciting direction to businesses that are looking past the one-, five- or even ten-year horizon. We are very proud of the team’s achievement.”

Vargo and Foss are students in the Institute’s Fisher MBA in International Management program, while Rogge and Shirreff are pursuing the joint degree program combining the MBA with the Master of Arts in International Environmental Policy.