SAN ANGELO, TX - A team of four Angelo State University graduate students in the Norris-Vincent College of Business took first place in Gartner Consulting's inaugural Texas Case Study Competition that culminated Nov. 12 in Austin.
The competition entailed teams of 3-5 graduate business students submitting real-life case studies on implementing artificial intelligence (AI) to increase efficiency and enhance operations across an unnamed Texas government agency. Gartner consultants acted as coaches for each team.
Competing against 11 other teams from Rice University, Southern Methodist University, the University of Houston and the University of Texas, the ASU team won the preliminary round of the contest in October to advance to the finals in Austin.
At the finals, the top three teams from the first round gave in-person presentations of their analyses and strategic plans to a group of five judges that included:
- Will Hilton - Deputy CIO, Texas Department of Motor Vehicles
- Dale Richardson - COO, Texas Department of Information Resources
- Tony Sauerhoff - Chief AI and Innovation Officer, Texas Department of Information Resources
- John Fowler - CIO, Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation
- Nicholas Mahoney - Director, Information Technology Division, Texas Department of Transportation
The ASU team defeated two teams from the University of Texas in the finals to claim first place.
"To say I am proud of our students would be an understatement," said Dr. Jeremy St. John, chair of the Department of Accounting, Economics and Finance. "I am constantly amazed by the dedication and quality of the students at ASU. Their hard work and willingness to take on this challenge is admirable. I am fortunate to work with this talented team of students and look forward to watching them continue to succeed both academically and professionally."
ASU team members included:
- Tatiana Alvarez of San Angelo - pursuing Master of Professional Accountancy (M.P.Ac.) degree
- Ava James of San Angelo - pursuing Master of Science (M.S.) degrees in artificial intelligence and business data science and analytics
- Katelyn St. John of Hamlin - pursuing MBA and M.S. in business data science and analytics degrees
- Andres Ybarra of San Angelo - pursuing MBA and M.S. in hospital and health care administration degrees
It was also a stunning victory, as the ASU team was a last-minute entry into the competition and was almost not allowed to compete as the new contest was originally planned only for teams from Division I universities.
Alvarez, James and Ybarra earned their undergraduate degrees at Angelo State, while St. John earned hers at Abilene Christian University.
ASU Team (with certificates, L-R) Andres Ybarra, Katelyn St. John, Tatiana Alvarez and Ava James; Dr. Jeremy St. John (back row middle) and the contest judges.
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