Haslam College of Business - UT Haslam Wins Multiple Categories in International Business Case Competition

Two teams from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Haslam College of Business were victorious in April’s International Business Ethics and Sustainability Case Competition (IBESCC) in Los Angeles, California. The IBESCC hosted both virtual and in-person case challenges in three different formats: a 25-minute presentation followed by a question-and-answer session, a 10-minute presentation and a 90-second pitch. Haslam’s virtual and in-person teams took first place in three different categories.

Winners in Multiple Formats

“Phoenix,” Haslam’s in-person team, included captain Ethan Ward (HCB, ’26), a recent finance grad from Knoxville, Katie Tolene a senior finance and economics major also from Knoxville, Don D’Arcangelo-McDonald (HCB, ’26), a recent public administration (economics and political science) graduate from Miami, Florida, Clark Vaughn, a third-year finance and accounting major from Knoxville, and Scarlett Krafft, a second-year finance major from Baltimore, Maryland. Phoenix won first place for their 25-minute presentation.

The virtual team, “Bend and Snap,” consisted of captain Kate Crass, a sophomore Heath Integrated Business and Engineering Program (IBEP) student from Knoxville, Mia Picchietti, a double major in economics and statistics from Nashville, Cameran “Cami” Quick, a business analytics major from Cookeville, Tennessee, and Marlene Ngo Song, a finance major with an international business collateral and statistics minor who has lived all over the world. Bend and Snap won first place in the 10-minute and 90-second categories.

While he was proud of the teams’ achievements, Tory Kinson, team coach and lecturer in Haslam’s Department of Management and Entrepreneurship, was proudest of the resilience, teamwork and professionalism the students showed while balancing school, work and competition preparation, spending many hours honing their ideas, sometimes working late into the night.

“Defending our title and winning three first-place awards at IBESCC is a tremendous accomplishment, especially against more than 250 students from 41 schools and seven countries,” Kinson said. “Haslam gave these future consultants the opportunity and resources to test their ideas in front of compassionate but very tough judges, and it was a joy to watch them craft compelling, data-driven stories, give and receive critical feedback and seamlessly handle both their presentations and Q&A.”

Making the Case for Sustainability and Livability

For IBESCC, each student team chooses its own real-world business problem, explaining to the judges its ethical, legal, financial and sustainability aspects and recommending a solution viable across all those dimensions.

Bend and Snap’s case tackled textile waste for Shein, a China-based, global e-commerce platform specializing in fast fashion. The students proposed partnerships with recycling companies to repurpose discarded clothing into products such as artwork and construction bricks.

Crass, the team’s captain, called winning both the 10-minute and 90-second presentation categories an incredible honor.

“I’m so proud of everything our team accomplished together,” she said. “This recognition reflects weeks of hard work, collaboration and creativity from an amazing group of teammates. The biggest ‘thank you’ to our coach, Tory Kinson, for his guidance and support throughout the competition — and to the rest of the ‘Bend and Snap’ crew for being the brains and brawn behind the operation!”

For Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust, a global leader in real estate investing, Phoenix answered the challenge of unwalkable, unhealthy American cities with a strategic solution for developing walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods centered around accessible public transportation. According to Ward, the team captain, the 25-minute category required the full team to prepare and present under considerable pressure.

“I’m incredibly proud of the collaboration, research and confidence my teammates brought to the presentation,” he said. “I would like to thank Loyola Marymount University for hosting the competition, along with our coach Tory Kinson and advisor Hadiya Javed, whose support made all the difference throughout the process.”

About the 2026 International Business Ethics and Sustainability Case Competition

Sponsored by Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, the 2026 IBESCC drew 59 teams from 41 universities and seven countries. With more than 270 total participants (students and advisors), more than 85 judges presided over 42 divisions covering the three separate formats. The competition employed blind judging, with participating schools listed separately from their challenges on the website, and the student teams were identified to the judges using fictitious team names.

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CONTACT:

Scott McNutt, senior business writer/publicist, rmcnutt4@utk.edu