University of Hawaii Students Take Top Honors in the 2021 TrueUp Student Innovation Challenge
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RALEIGH, N.C. - ncarol.com -- A student team from the University of Hawaii at Manoa was announced winner of the 2021 TrueUp Spring Student Innovation Challenge (https://www.improvetheworld.net/student-innovat...) after presenting a solid case for measuring company performance and introducing alternative methods aimed at increasing results and overall business success. The team, consisting of Michelle Yim, Isaiah Lopez, Camrie Kubota, and Victoria Kashiwai, earned a $1,000 financial award and their winning video will be featured online.

A virtual collaboration of students representing Irvine Valley College, Georgia Tech, and Wake Forrest took second place winning $800, while students from University of North Dakota rounded out the top three teams and received a financial award of $600. In addition to financial awards for the top three teams, student participants who completed the challenge will gain complimentary access to innovative learning opportunities to maximize their talent, positioning them for career success.

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In partnership with the Center for Accounting Transformation, TrueUp, and Northern Illinois University, the competition brought together nearly 70 students making up more than 20 collegiate teams spanning the globe and testing their data analytics, accounting and management skills. Teams analyzed raw data sets for their client, dug for insights, discovered alternative metrics, and decided on new ways to measure the company's performance. Submissions were evaluated by a panel of academic and industry judges with scoring compiled from two different components of the competition: each teams' Data Mine virtual game score as well as their presentation score.

"Data analytics is an increasingly critical skill for business success," said competition judge Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA, of IntrapriseTechknowlogies LLC. (https://www.intraprise.us/donny) "I was impressed by the level of thought and variety of analyses that we saw from the teams. No longer is data analysis an "IT thing", this competition showed how accountants can upskill to help provide insights that help identify business improvement opportunities beyond just finance. These students rose to the challenge and are setting themselves on the path for success."

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Teams were given practical application problems with which to assess their technical knowledge, problem-solving skills and communications skills in an effort to demonstrate their understanding and ability to do more with their classroom learning by implementing it into a real-world scenario.

Jody Padar, CPA, vice president of strategy at Botkeeper.com (https://www.botkeeper.com/accounting-partners), echoed many of Shimamoto's sentiments adding, "I was really impressed with the submissions from the teams.  Not only were they great from an analytical standpoint, they were able to communicate their results is unique ways... data story telling at its finest!"

Case competitions like the TrueUp Student Innovation Challenge (https://www.improvetheworld.net/student-innovat...) provide a platform for students to gain knowledge in areas such as accounting, finance, technology and other varying business-related fields.

The 2021 Spring Student Innovation Challenge was sponsored by the AICPA and Crowe, LLP.