First-Year MBAs Represent UA on the Global Stage

It all began in Fall 2014 when first-year full-time MBA students Brett Leverett and Richard “Ricky” Triana decided to join together for the annual Henkel Innovation Challenge. In its eighth year, the global competition challenges student teams of two to develop an innovative product or technology for the year 2050. In addition, the innovation should focus on one of Henkel’s business sectors: Adhesive Technologies, Beauty Care, or Laundry and Home Care.

Leverett and Triana, or “Team Ophidian,” presented their idea for a groundbreaking beauty care product, which would change the way consumers apply makeup, to the Henkel team in Scottsdale, Arizona. Competing against students from around the country, Team Ophidian was chosen to represent the United States at the international final in Vienna, Austria.

“Before starting my MBA at Eller, I would have never thought that I would be competing on a global level, much less in such renowned case competitions,” remarked Triana, who also represented the UA at the Illinois MBA Strategy Case Competition, and will soon be heading to the first round of 3M’s “Invent a New Future” contest.

After a proper congratulatory send-off, complete with a certificate of appreciation from the City of Tucson, the duo flew off to Vienna to compete against 22 other countries, early in April. Although the victory went to Team Belgium, as Eller MBA’s first student team to make it to the international final round, Team Ophidian plans to pay it forward to next year’s teams.

“Some of the Top 8 teams in the global final have been coming from the same universities year after year, so they seem to have a leg up over the new competition. Ricky and I want to make sure that the teams from Eller are on that same playing field,” says Leverett. “We want to act as mentors to get Eller into the Top 8, and quite possibly the overall win.”

Top photo: Ricky Triana '16 MBA (left) and Brett Leverett '16 MBA (right) with a fellow competitor from India at the Henkel Innovation Challenge. Photo courtesy Ricky Triana.