Analytics for Good Hackathon at U of M Twin Cities’ Carlson School
Junior Megan Gehling, who has a double major of Consumer Insights and Analytics and Linguistics, and Laura Tsai, a junior Consumer Insight and Analytics major, were part of LSBE’s six-person first place team. Team members each brought different technical skills and strengths to the group.
“Each of us took a different approach to analyzing the data, and we divvied up the work accordingly,” Gehling said. “This resulted in all of us having a hand in cleaning, analyzing, and visualizing our data before using those insights to craft our final story and presentation.
“What I think set our team apart was the soft skills and presentation story building that we had learned—that really sold our analysis and recommendations.”
Tsai also helped develop the solutions for the AI tutoring app feature and supported the team with time management and organizing ideas for the final presentation.
“Our success came from collaborating effectively and leveraging each team member’s strengths,” Tsai said, “which allowed us to tackle the problem from various angles and present a well-rounded solution.”
National Collegiate Sports Analytics Championship, Nashville, Tennessee
Saydie Olson, a junior Consumer Insights and Analytics major, earned second place in the Networking Challenge—a bonus feature of this competition.
“We went around and gave our elevator pitch to different analytical professionals,” she said. “Then we had the opportunity to learn about what they do and the companies they work for. This was invaluable as I got to hear about the different types of companies and numerous types of roles one can have as an analyst.”
Dicks Sporting Goods and Pitt Business Strategic Case Competition in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
LSBE had two teams at this competition with the team of Max Bollesen, Jaxon Maki, Caleb Kroeger, and Natalie Stiegel moving on and traveling to compete in the finals with seven other teams.
“Competitions are important as they provide real-world examples of what we will be experiencing in our future careers,” said Stiegel, a senior with a double major of Consumer Insights and Analytics and Healthcare Management. “We have the chance to think creatively on our feet, which we might not get in a classroom.”
She credits the learning of software applications, such as Excel, Tableau, and Power BI, as being especially beneficial for the competition.
Other spring competitions are featured in "First Place for the Second Time" and "Students Come in Hot at the Frozen Showdown."