Ateneans in runner-up spot at PwC M&A Challenge 2020

A team of BS Management Engineering students from the John Gokongwei School of Management placed 2nd runner up at the PwC Philippines Mergers and Acquisitions Challenge 2020. The team is composed of Tiffany Diane P. Golangco (3 BS ME), John Michel C. Lee (3 BS ME), Beatriz Ysabel C. Reyes (3 BS ME), and Hazel Anne Louise L. Si (3 BS ME) with Enrique Jaime S. Soriano (Department of Financing and Accounting) as mentor.

The competition, participated by 78 teams representing 35 universities, is a merger and acquisition focused case study competition that tests students’ analytical abilities and understanding of business concepts in Philippine settings. It ran from October to December 2020.

“Joining this competition was a step out of our comfort zones! Despite the challenges, we’re grateful for learning more than what we expected,” the group said. "We’re thankful for the opportunity to work together, while learning from our coaches and from industry professionals. From the first time analyzing our target company up to the final moments leading up to the Q&A, we grasped the many ins and outs of the diverse M&A field. We are humbled to participate in this online competition, and hope that we inspired other students in adapting to this new normal while giving their team's best!”

Soriano, the team’s coach, said that it was truly a well-deserved win. "All credit really belongs to the team, whose presentation was exceptionally well-made, especially considering that their competition was composed mainly of 4th and 5th year students. I was witness to their diligence, dedication, and hard work, as they came up with the best possible output for each round. I am immensely proud of John, Hazel, Tiff and Bea."

The team was recognized with a trophy and a check of PhP 25,000.