Drucker School MBA team fares well at the ACG Cup

Four MBA students from Claremont Graduate University’s Drucker School of Management advanced to the regional round of the ACG Cup, a case study competition designed to give students from leading MBA programs across the country real world experience and valuable insights into mergers and acquisitions, investment banking, financial advisory, and private equity.

Team members were Phillip Leathers (JD/MBA), Joshua Maldonado (JD/MBA), Kenjiro Nemoto (MBA), and Qing “Vanessa” Yang (MBA). The financial experience of Nemoto; consulting experience from Yang; legal and business experience from Leathers; and legal and project management from Maldonado propelled the team into the final round of the regionals, where they were eventually bested by a team from the University of Southern California.

“We were able to complement one another by taking advantage of each member’s strengths,” Nemoto said.

The competition required teams to present valuation, capital markets, and M&A strategic advice to a panel of seasoned M&A professionals from within the ACG community. The competition is carried out through a series of intra-school and regional rounds, with regional winners awarded the prestigious ACG Cup title and cash awards.

“Not only did I get the chance to meet and connect with prominent M&A professionals, I got my first look into level of work required to compete and succeed in the finance industry,” Leathers said.

The students plan to compete again in next year’s competition.