ACG Cup Details

When:

February 22, 2020 

Where:

GVSU Seidman School of Business

50 Front Avenue SW 
Grand Rapids, Michigan 49504 

    Important Dates*

• Team Registration Deadline January 20, 2020
• Valuation Seminar February 1, 2020
• MBA and Undergrad Competition Day + Career Conversations February 22, 2020
• Outstanding Growth Awards for Cup Finalists March 18, 2020

About ACG Cup

ACG Cup is an intercollegiate competition among students from colleges and universities in Michigan.  Student participants will gain invaluable experience in a real-world context, receive feedback from leaders in the local business community, create networks, and compete for a cash prize. During the competition, students analyze complex business cases and present strategies involving merger and acquisition alternatives, valuation, capital markets, finance options, and corporate strategy.

ACG Cup Students:

• Receive exposure to the Mergers and Acquisitions Industry in the West Michigan region
• Participate in a Career Conversations opportunity with leading corporations in West Michigan
• Gain an understanding of the diverse industries served in West Michigan
• Have an opportunity to network with ACG members, judges, and representatives from local businesses
• Have the opportunity to place resume in the ACG Program book
• Meet ACG Young Professionals and Women in Finance

ACG Cup is divided into two divisions. The first is comprised of MBA students, while the other is made up of junior and senior level undergraduate students.  Participants must be officially registered at least half-time at participating schools during the 2019-2020 academic year. Undergraduate participants are generally finance, accounting, marketing, international business, and management majors.  ACG Western Michigan is the only chapter in the country offering a competition for both Undergraduate and MBA students.

The case study will be a real-world business situation offering students a learning perspective that differs from a textbook.  Faculty advisors are encouraged to provide guidance to the students but no detailed solutions. 

Graduate and Undergraduate students may not participate on the same team.  Each team, either in the Graduate or Undergraduate division, must consist of at least three members. To be considered for the competition, professors will submit their registrations to ACG by January 20, 2020. Each school is encouraged to select two to four teams in each division to participate in the competition.

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The Rules

1. Teams should be made up of at least three members from the same school who will present the case study in both Round 1 and the Final Round.  Schools are encouraged to register at least two teams in the competition.
2. Teams should register with the competition no later than January 20, 2020.
3. Graduate and Undergraduate students may NOT participate on the same team.
4. Each school is limited to four teams per division.
5. Participating students must be officially registered at least half-time at participating schools during the 2019-2020 academic year.
6. Teams may NOT use outside resources to prepare the case study for the competition. They may only use the materials made available to them with the case study.  Any deviation from this will result in disqualification.
7. Teams will prepare a 20-minute presentation that may consist of a variety of the following:
   • A live presentation to judges who represent key entities with the case study
   • Time for question and answer from the judges based on the components of the presentation
   • PowerPoint presentations and handouts
8. Student teams are responsible for determining how they will split their time between presentation and Q&A, handle any questions, and manage their presentation time. Students should anticipate the possibility of being interrupted by questions from the judges during their presentation.
9. Teams that make it to Round 2 will present the same case as in Round 1.
10. Liaisons will be assigned to each school and will help answer questions about the competition and its components. 
11. ACG Cup Committee Members are available to help students prepare for the competition and answer questions.
12. Students may seek general finance, presentation training, and mentoring from faculty, ACG members, and outside resources before the case is distributed. They may also use preparation materials located in the course pack. 
13. Once the case has been distributed, teams may not enlist help from outside the team for any aspects specific to the competition case.

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How to Register

Contact the Professor Liaison at your school to register. 

Contact the ACG Western Michigan office for additional questions at: acgcup@acgwmich.org or (616) 732-7149.

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The Competitions

MBA Competition

Student teams will receive access to the case on February 7, 2020 and have two weeks to complete their analysis as well as develop their presentations. Team members will receive an email with the case and supporting case materials.  The MBA case will be provided by ACG Global and created by finance industry experts.  

Round 1 and the Final Round of the competition will be held on the same day -  February 22, 2020 at Grand Valley State University’s Seidman School of Business in downtown Grand Rapids.  The winner from each round will move on to the Final Round in the afternoon competing for the top prize.

Round 1

The Round 1 objective is to provide students with an opportunity to present their analysis of the case and recommendations to the panel of judges with real-world business experience.  Teams will compete against their own schools if there are three or more teams from that school; otherwise the teams will compete against other schools. 

Following the morning portion of the competition the judges will provide overall feedback and advice and announce the highest scoring teams that will move on to the Final Round.

Final Round

The Final Round competition will be held in the afternoon following lunch.  Scores do not carry over from Round 1.  A new panel of judges will be convened to judge the Final Round competition; no judges will evaluate the same team twice.

During the Final Round, each team will present on the same case from the First Round. The team can make tweaks to their presentation based on the judges’ feedback. They will not have access to an additional printer, so the updates will only be from a presentation prospective. Each team in the Final Round will again be allowed 20 minutes to present their recommendations to the judges. Students should anticipate the possibility of interruptions and questions from the judges during their timed presentation. After the last presentation, the judges will convene for an allocated amount of time to determine the winning team and rank the other finalists.

Winners of the Final Round will be announced at the annual ACG Western Michigan Outstanding Growth Awards on March 18, 2020.  

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Undergraduate Competition

Student teams will receive access to the case on February 7, 2020 and have two weeks to complete their analysis and develop their presentations. Team members will receive an email with the case and supporting case materials.  The undergraduate case will be developed by ACG Western Michigan members who are finance industry experts.

Round 1 and the Final Round of the competition will be held on the same day, February 22, 2020 at Grand Valley State University’s Seidman School of Business in downtown Grand Rapids.  The winner from each round will move on to the Final Round in the afternoon competing for the top prize.

Round 1

The Round 1 objective is to provide students with an opportunity to present their analysis and recommendations from the case to the panel of judges with real-world business experience.  Teams will compete against their own schools if there are three or more teams from that school; otherwise the teams will compete against other schools. 

Following the morning portion of the Undergraduate Competition the judges’ panel will provide overall feedback and advice and announce the highest scoring teams that will move on to the Final Round.

Final Round

The Final Round competition will be held in the afternoon following lunch and the Lightning Round competition.  Scores do not carry over from Round 1.  A new panel of judges will be convened to judge the Final Round competition; no judges will evaluate the same team twice.

During the Final Round, each team will present on the same case form the First Round of competition. The team can make tweaks to their presentation based on the judges’ feedback. They will not have access to an additional printer, so the updates will only be from a presentation prospective. Each team in the Final Round will again be allowed 20 minutes to present their recommendations to the judges. Students should anticipate the possibility of interruptions and questions from the judges during their timed presentation. After the last presentation, the judges will convene for an allocated amount of time to determine the winning team and rank order the other finalists.

Winners of the Final Round are announced at the annual ACG Western Michigan Outstanding Growth Awards on March 18, 2020 Date at 20 Monroe Live.

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Competition Day Agenda

This is a sample of what the day will be like – this is NOT a final agenda

The Lightning Round 

The “Lightning Round” is a FUN, fast-paced, quiz-bowl type competition.  It will consist of familiar technical and quantifiable finance and valuation questions.  All teams (Undergraduate and MBA) may compete in the Lightning Round.  There will be ONE winning team and they will receive a cash prize of $1,000.

The Lightning Round has become a highly anticipated event as well as a rousing break in a day of serious competition.  Many of the judges, professors and ACG Cup Committee members often participate in the competition (although they are not eligible to win the cash prize).

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The Case

February 7, 2020 – Case for the competition is released to competitors. Check back for more details.

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For Professors

The cost to participate in this competition is $400 per division.

Each College/University is encouraged to:

1. Assign a faculty member to work with the ACG Cup representative and the appropriate student organizations within their school.
2. Promote the competition to encourage student participation.
3. Provide or facilitate training and mentoring for the student teams.
4. Distribute information on forming teams and working the case study.
5. Register teams no later than January 20, 2020 .

In addition, each school may decide to have a student representative to act as liaison for the ACG representative and assist in disseminating information. If you are a student liaison, email ACG staff at acgcup@acgwmich.org to share your contact information.

Advisors should assist the student teams in adhering to the timeline.  Each team should consist of at least three members who will present the case study in both Round 1 and the Final Round. Schools are encouraged to register at least two teams in the competition.  

Colleges/Universities are encouraged to make information from prior competitions available for students to better understand the level of detail expected.  Online videos of previous MBA competitions are available for school liaisons.  Please contact the ACG Western Michigan office at acgcup@acgwmich.org for online access information. 

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The Rewards

• Cash prizes!

  • The winning MBA team will receive: $4,500 cash prize
    • Each team member will also receive a free ACG Western Michigan membership for one year.
  • The winning Undergraduate team will receive: $4,500 cash prize
    • Each team member will also receive a free ACG Western Michigan membership for one year.
  • The Lightning Round winning team will receive: $1,000 cash prize

• Free tickets to the Outstanding Growth Awards

  • All participating colleges and universities will receive a limited number of free tickets to the Outstanding Growth Awards (additional tickets may be purchased at the ACG Member rate)

  • Winning teams from both divisions will be announced and recognized during the Outstanding Growth Awards Ceremony on March 18, 2020.

  • The annual Outstanding Growth Award honors a local company that demonstrates sustained growth in sales, profitability, employment, and community.  Past winners include Profile Films, Wolverine World Wide, Inc., Founders Brewing Company, Zeeland Farm Services, Herman Miller, Perrigo and more!

• Networking and Job Opportunities with ACG members, Local and Regional Business Leaders

• Visibility for future job opportunities

• Resume placed in our ACG Cup Program book

  • This book is distributed at ACG events, including the Outstanding Growth Awards which has over 350 attendees, our breakfast programs, and other large events.

• Incredible opportunity to gain valuable real-life skills in mergers and acquisitions.  This kind of exposure and training in M&A is not found anywhere else!

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Finance Feud - November 21, 2019

Finance Feud is a fundraising event to support ACG Cup. This is a fun and high energy Trivia Night pitting teams from accounting and law firms as well as corporations and universities against each other, for the Iron Man trophy and bragging rights. ACG Cup participants and universities are welcome to compete and enjoy the fun!

Check back for registration information

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Valuation Seminar - February 1, 2020

The Valuation Seminar is an introduction to M&A from different perspectives including a Private Equity Group that uses the Leverage Buy-Out (LBO) methodology to acquire companies and the Strategic Buyer that could use all cash or stock to acquire companies. The seminar focuses on theoretical and technical approaches to valuation, as well as qualitative factors that influence the value of a Company. The seminar also provides participants the opportunity to network with other students and ACG members.

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Career Conversations

During the day of the ACG Cup competition, students will have the opportunity to connect and network with representatives from West Michigan companies, as well as the competition judges, who represent many prestigious local and regional firms. Retaining and recruiting talent in West Michigan is the objective of this competition. ACG Western Michigan members are actively looking for Graduate and Undergraduate students with a finesse for finance who possess the skills and qualities that enable them to become experts in corporate finance, investment banking, financial advisory and private equity.

The structure of Career Conversations is more casual than a traditional job fair, affording students the chance to hear more about West Michigan Companies: what they do, who they hire, and what kind of employee(s) they are looking for. 

Career Conversations is an opportunity for both ACG members and sponsors to create awareness about the deal making community and to expose students to the career openings in this field.  Career Conversations represents a chance for students to GET CONNECTED with high profile local firms.  In addition, ACG Western Michigan is partnering with Hello West Michigan to help participants connect with employers and the community in West Michigan.  Every year student competitors are hired as a direct result of participating in this competition.

Past Career Conversation Participating Companies

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ACG Cup Committee

Judges From the Following Companies Participated in Prior Years