This year’s UW-Whitewater American Marketing Association (AMA) chapter continued its long legacy of success by turning heads at this year’s Regional Conference.
On October 6th and 7th, the UW-Whitewater AMA chapter hosted its 15th Annual AMA Regional Conference. Students from around the world attended both live and virtually to watch keynote presentations, compete in competitions, and connect with companies at a career fair.
The event was a tremendous success. UW-Whitewater AMA senior advisor, Jimmy Peltier, commented on the massive turnout compared to past years, “It was our largest live event ever, with over 550 total attendees; about 20% were virtual. We had almost 30 universities involved, from as far away as Florida, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, Germany, and the Netherlands.”
Of the 343 individual competitors, UW-Whitewater students won the most 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places of any chapter – by far.
UW-Whitewater Student Winners:
1st place winners: Trace Morrisey (Victor Envelope Perfect Pitch Competition), Madison Niezgoda (Henry Schein Mock Interview Competition), Noah Bulgrin (Gartner Sales Competition), Allie Sheline and Brielle Bird (AcuRite Digital Strategy).
2nd place winners: Emily Vorphal (Victor Envelope Perfect Pitch Competition), Colin Zander (Henry Schein Mock Interview Competition), Ethan Zgorzelski (Henry Schein Mock Interview Competition), Emily Vorphal (Gartner Sales Competition), Trace Morrisey (Gartner Sales Competition), Avery Goehring and Abby Daniels (AcuRite Digital Strategy), Almira Ajdini and Carmen De Cabo (AcuRite Digital Strategy).
3rd place winners: Claire Labecki (Victor Envelope Perfect Pitch), Joe Banish (Victor Envelope Perfect Pitch), Nick Walczak (Enterprise Virtual Perfect Pitch), Claire Labecki (Gartner Sales Competition), Abby Hodnik and Jacob Weston (AcuRite Digital Strategy), Ashlee Platta, Jillian Hansen, and Julia Wiggin (Sherwin-Williams Design), Avery Goehring, Lauren Arndt, Abby Daniels (Sherwin-Williams Design), Jacob Weston, Brielle Bird, and Alexis Johnson (Sherwin-Williams Design).
UW-Whitewater AMA Co-President, Madison Niezgoda, was among the top finishers overall taking 1st in the Henry Schein Mock Interview Competition and 2nd in the Gartner Sales Competition. “I thoroughly enjoyed competing against some of the best sales and marketing students from across the world. The opportunity to compete in and run one of the largest AMA Regional Conferences was one I will never forget!” added Niezgoda.
There were several highlights of the conference for Niezgoda, but she believed the most successful part was “creating an environment for students all across the world to network for the first time in person since 2019!”
A sizable event like this comes with a considerable number of hurdles. Planning efforts began several months in advance to set the chapter up for success. One of the largest challenges was the number of logistics that needed to be managed. “We had seven different competitions, all of which needed sponsors, judges, and students. The sheer number of competitions, students, food, room reservations, etc., created a logistical challenge – which our students handled with ease.” Peltier explained.
Several people were vital to the success of this conference beginning with the AMA Presidents Madison Niezgoda and Avery Goehring. Peltier was especially grateful for their dedication as he shared, “hats off to our two AMA Presidents. These young professionals drove everything, and while the stress was immense, they came through with flying colors.”
Niezgoda saw how the contributions of many came together to create a successful event. “I am extremely proud of the work the AMA Conference Team, advisors, and board put into making this event happen. We have been working on it since April and it was amazing to see all the details come together better than we ever expected!”
The experienced group of AMA advisors was a critical part of this conference’s success. Peltier noted how important their contributions were by adding he has “deep gratitude for AMA advisors Andy Dahl, Dan Herlache, Pavan Chennamaneni, and John DeGraff for their leadership and Stephanie Church for her assistance.”
UW-Whitewater’s AMA chapter has won International Chapter of the Year, an extremely prestigious accomplishment, for the past 11 straight years. This year’s chapter is preparing to make another run for the top finish at the 2023 AMA International Collegiate Conference in New Orleans, LA this spring.
