BY SETH MENSING | University Communications Manager
A second Western team lands in the top five, hinting at program dominance.
It’s easy to pigeonhole the business world as a place where unethical behavior gets rewarded. But that’s not always the case. Six Western Colorado University students recently proved that sometimes it takes good moral instincts to come out on top.
Emma Wilke and Kareena Hoover, both seniors at Western, won the Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative (DFEI) Case Competition in Colorado Springs on November 2. To take the top honor, the duo masterfully navigated a complex ethical dilemma and presented their chosen path to a panel of judges. A second Western team – made of Delaney Bartko, Brady Abt, Bini Barila, and Nathan Catchings – also placed in the top five in a field of 13 teams.
A Strong Showing: A Second Western Team in the Top Five
The Case Competition is an annual event for the members of the Southern Colorado Ethics Consortium, which includes Adams State, CSU Pueblo, Fort Lewis, Lamar Community College, Odyssey Early College and Career, Otero Community College, Pikes Peak State College, University of Colorado Colorado Springs (UCCS), which hosted the event, the U.S. Air Force Academy, and Western.
“We always score pretty well,” Michael Vieregge, a professor of business administration who co-mentors the team with Assistant Professor of Business Administration CJ Clugston. “Every year, Air Force is normally the team to beat, and this year, we were able to. So now Western has won twice out of the eight times we’ve gone. That’s pretty good.”
The Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative, which began in 2016, provides students with a framework for making ethical decisions and then provides a platform to apply that framework to real-world dilemmas. “An ethical dilemma can be a career-defining moment,” Clugston explained. “This competition immerses students in scenarios that mirror actual business challenges, preparing them for complex moral decisions they’ll face after graduation.”
Preparing for the Challenge: Ethics BootCamp and Team Selection
To prepare, Vieregge and Clugston convened a group of students and faculty on October 2 at the School of Business for the annual Ethics BootCamp, when the group has an open discussion about ethics and the kinds of moral quandaries students might encounter as professionals.
“Ethics education is critical for business students,” Clugston said, “because it develops their capacity to recognize, analyze, and navigate complex moral challenges before they face them in their careers.”
During a preliminary competition two weeks later, on October 16, 45 students studying business, finance, economics, engineering, and computer science came out to test their ethical instincts and analytical skills in an event that would decide which two teams would represent Western on November 4.
The Ethics Challenge: A Test of Analytical and Presentation Skills
The case study itself tested both analytical and presentation skills. Teams were tasked with identifying and addressing a company’s complex situation. Upon arriving at the competition in Colorado Springs, the two Western teams had a single day to develop and defend their recommendations before a panel of five judges acting as the company’s board of directors.
“The small class sizes at Western make it really easy to learn to speak in front of people you may not know very well,” Wilke said. As a finance and accounting major, she found the experience invaluable, adding, “Our judges were all professionals in their field, so their judgments, thoughts, and concerns felt like the closest to real life that you can receive in college.”
Hoover, who joined the competition at Vieregge’s invitation, discovered a newfound appreciation for teamwork and self-assurance. “One big thing I took away from this competition was confidence in myself after practicing so much with Emma,” she said, “being able to work together and do the best you can for yourself and the team.”
Looking back on her experience, Wilke said she couldn’t have been more grateful for the experience. “I knew that this experience would only enrich my time at Western and recognized that I have this opportunity because I am at Western,” she said. “I couldn’t have been more thrilled to represent Western.”
Courtesy Photos
