Students in Rider's Small Business Institute win award

In the national 2016 Small Business Institute's Project of the Year (POY) competition, three former Rider University undergraduates finished in the top 10 in the country. Participants and winners were Kyle Anacker ’15, Jessica Layton ’15 and Reed Thompson ’15. Their winning consulting report was created as part of Dr. Ron Cook's Seminar in Small Business Consulting class, that was taught in the fall of 2014. In this course, students act as consultants to small firms or organizations in the nearby area. The client for this particular project was Trilogy Partners, a consulting firm located in Princeton, N.J. Hal Levenson, CEO, and Bill Voltmer, alliance partner, worked with the students to develop a re-branding and marketing strategy to help Trilogy increase its sales through better brand awareness and improved marketing activity. Projects in this competition were from reports done in the 2014-15 academic year, when the Rider students were seniors. 

"Their project was unique and challenging as they were consulting to a consulting company," Cook says. "However, the students really stepped up and developed strategies to help the firm grow."

Rider undergraduate students in the SBI program have had substantial success in this competition. Since just 2010, undergraduates have had three top 10 national finishes, three third place finishes and one national championship. As Cook explains, "Rider competes against other universities who require an SBI project in certain majors or programs. Our students' projects were evaluated next to more than 25 other high-quality entries."

Overall, since Rider started competing in POY, students have had 28 top 10 or better finishes in both graduate and undergrad categories. In part, they accomplish this through the support of the Rider faculty, corporate sponsor Grand Bank, and the assistance of volunteer mentors, who work with teams to enhance their projects over the course of a semester.

Since the competition, Thompson, Anacker and Layton have all continued to pursue excellence in their professional lives. After getting his degree in entrepreneurial studies and management, Thompson is now working as a program associate for Mathematical Policy Research in Princeton, developing survey information systems and government policy evaluations. Anacker decided to continue his studies and is now a student in Rider's MBA program. Layton, who majored in entrepreneurial studies and marketing, enrolled in the mortuary science program at Mercer County Community College where, after passing national and state board exams, she will receive her funeral directors license. She is currently working at her family's funeral home and has plans to expand their current operations.  

To learn more about Rider's Small Business Institute, visit www.rider.edu/sbi.