University of Richmond team excels in international case competition
The email hit the inboxes of four seniors on Sept. 3. It was an invitation to represent the Jepson School of Leadership Studies at an undergraduate case competition at the International Leadership Association (ILA) Global Conference. Six weeks later, Jack DeKorte, Elizabeth Milliot, Natasha Troike, and Everett Weaver made their pitch to the judges during a poster session at the ILA conference in Prague.
Their team was one of three to advance on Oct. 17 to the final round. Ultimately, a team from Christopher Newport University placed first. But for the University of Richmond students, the entire experience was a win from start to finish.
The ILA had charged each team with identifying a social problem related to sustainable economic growth and decent work for all — and then proposing a leadership solution to it. The Jepson team embraced DeKorte’s suggestion to focus on Bangladesh’s ready-made-garment (RMG) industry. This market sector has experienced exponential growth in the last few decades, although often marred by poor working conditions and low pay for its majority female workforce.
“In November 2026 when Bangladesh graduates from its UN-designated status as a least developed country, it will lose its preferential market access, which comes with low export taxes,” DeKorte said. This will cut into Bangladesh’s competitive advantage in RMG exports, said the leadership studies and political science major.
“We applied transformational leadership in our proposed solution,” said Troike, a leadership studies and psychology major. “We recommended improved training for middle managers, most of whom are men, and for workers, most of whom are women. Better training would address the power dynamics that can lead to sexual assault and coercion. It also would help develop women’s skills and provide them with opportunities to move up to managerial positions.”
“We also suggested working with Bangladesh’s European trading partners to extend the country’s preferential market access for three years beyond the November 2026 deadline,” said Milliot, a leadership studies and philosophy, politics, economics, and law (PPEL) major.
Given the accelerated timeline to prepare for the competition, each team member focused on a different aspect of the presentation: DeKorte researched the Bangladesh RMG industry; Milliot, Bangladesh’s least-developed-country status; and Troike, leadership theory. Weaver prepared the analysis and conclusion. Making time to meet — whether late at night or early in the morning — “was a testament to how involved everyone was,” said Weaver, a triple major in leadership studies, political science, and economics.
Leadership studies professors Guzel Garifullina and Crystal Hoyt offered targeted feedback on the team’s drafts and executive summary. Andrew Ilnicki, director of the University of Richmond’s Innovation Studio, provided insight on the team’s poster and slides.
“But the students came up with the ideas, brainstormed and prepared the necessary materials,” Garifullina said. “I learned how capable Jepson students are and how much they can achieve in a limited time. In a competition like this, confidence and the ability to land on your feet and react to unexpected questions with intelligence and grace are paramount — and they demonstrated that for sure.”
A generous gift from the David B. Lynch Foundation provided the funds that covered the students’ conference travel, accommodations, and attendance. Three of the seniors had visited Prague in 2024 when studying abroad in other European cities, but it was DeKorte’s first trip outside North America. All four extended their trip by a few days to explore Prague, where they marveled at the beauty of the city’s Gothic cathedral and shared meals of goulash and mulled cider. Roommates Milliot and Troike even squeezed in quick visits to Bratislava and Budapest.
In their spare time, the teammates also attended conference sessions, including one on female leadership presented by four Jepson faculty. “Jepson was everywhere at the conference,” DeKorte said. “We are learning from the innovators in the discipline. Leadership theory is our bread and butter.”
“Since coming to Jepson, my understanding of leadership has moved into actionable steps,” Weaver said. “Presenting at this conference was the culmination of my Jepson experience.”
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