Competing against a record-breaking 37 teams, all three of Hope College鈥檚 student teams who competed in the recent ACG Cup Competition, held on Saturday, Feb. 22, advanced to the final round. Team BCG from Hope College finished runner-up.
The competition, which is sponsored by the West Michigan Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth, is held each year on the campus of Grand Valley State University at the Seidman School of Business. This year, 136 students, in 37 teams from 15 colleges and universities, and 34 judges took part in the event.
The four students placing second were senior Daniel Ferrier, junior Alyson Kelly, senior Keegan McNamara and senior Michael Stechschulte. Hope students also advancing to the final round and finishing in the top seven were senior Benjamin Bush, senior Thomas DeVries, senior Jack Guerrera, junior Mark Morris, senior Wyatt Schindeldecker, junior Peter Standaert, senior Kyle Sytsema and freshman Tyler Van Grinsven.
As part of the challenge, students are presented with a high-level valuation case and are charged with presenting their recommendations to a panel of judges 鈥� all professionals in the field. Judges hail from the commercial and investment banking industry, private equity, corporate law, accounting and valuation firms.
For upper-level finance and accounting students, the challenge is often cited as a paramount experience in preparing for highly competitive roles, while also providing an invaluable opportunity to network with top professionals in the field. boasts a long-standing reputation as one of the most premier across ACG鈥檚 54 North American chapters and places a strong emphasis on merger and acquisitions, valuation, compelling presentation skills and more.
鈥淟eaving the competition, I can say I鈥檝e learned so much in such a short time,鈥� Sytsema said. 鈥淪eeing all three Hope teams advance was an awesome experience.鈥�
Students who participate in the competition often graduate with a range of professional connections and enhanced skills based on the experiences gained through ACG.
鈥淭he ACG Cup Competition provides an incredible opportunity to network, expand one鈥檚 financial skillset, and gain real-world experience,鈥� DeVries said. 鈥淚鈥檇 argue that the competition played a major role in securing both my investment banking internship and my now full-time role.鈥�
This year, a variety of colleges and universities from around Michigan sent teams of finance students to the event. Students also compete from institutions across the nation, including The Ohio State University and California State University at Fullerton.
Hope students won the challenge in 2017 and have consistently placed in the top tier of finalists in the years since. Hope has also secured a series of successful finishes in the annual Commercial Lending Competition hosted by the Risk Management Association. In 2023, teams from the college placed 1st and 4th in that competition, with Hope becoming the only school to place both of its teams in the top five.
ACG Western Michigan is a chapter of the global Association for Corporate Growth and was founded in 1999 by West Michigan business leaders who recognized the need for a local organization to serve as a resource to executives actively involved in deal making and internal and external growth of their companies.