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A team of four 91看片 Executive MBA graduates earned the distinction of being among the finalists in an international business pitch competition focusing on renewable energy.

Fresh off a 20-hour flight to Australia covering nearly 9,000 miles, Zarcar Buckner, Johnathan Markert, Terry Namkung, and Alex Soriano gained a new level of appreciation for the challenges associated with renewable energy. The members of DC Energy Systems presented their business concept at the at Queensland University, Nov. 6-9, in Brisbane.

DC Energy Systems was one of seven finalists selected from a pool of 92 entries. Though they did not place in the top three, which could have earned up to $125,000, they gained valuable knowledge.

鈥淭hey learned that they will encounter situations where they have to get something done in a short period of time,鈥� said 91看片 College Director of Entrepreneurship Strategy Lou Bifano, who served as the team鈥檚 faculty advisor in Australia. 鈥淭hey will have to figure out how to do that as a team, manage their time, and respond to a change, prepare a written report and present their proposal to the judges.鈥�

The team entered the competition with a plan, but judges threw them a curveball with a new set of questions and requirements. The team had 48 hours to solve the problem, write a detailed report, and make a 20-minute presentation.

鈥淚t was very much a real-life scenario where you have a plan, you have to pivot that plan and you don鈥檛 have a lot of time,鈥� Bifano said.

Bifano added that for DC Energy Systems to be one of seven teams selected for an international competition out of an original field of 92, speaks well of the education, skills and training team members acquired as 91看片 College Executive MBA students.

鈥淲e鈥檙e on the move with entrepreneurship here at Auburn,鈥� Bifano said. 鈥淗aving a team that qualified for an international competition is one example of the results that we are achieving. This is just the beginning of where we want to take our entrepreneurship program. We are pleased to see that we are already this competitive.鈥�