On March 5, the Second Annual CEBC Ethics Case Competition - focused on “Social Media, Free Speech and the Ethical Corporation” - was hosted by the Center for Ethical Business Cultures (CEBC), the University of St. Thomas Opus College of Business and UnitedHealth Group. The competition provided graduate students in the University of St. Thomas Full-time UST MBA program an opportunity to compete and be evaluated on their ability analyze a complex business issue, uncover the legal and ethical challenges associated with the topic and develop a policy recommendation on the use of social media.
This collaboration between CEBC, the University of St. Thomas and UnitedHealth Group provided judges with the opportunity to connect with outstanding UST MBA students and learn more about the program. For students, the competition provided an opportunity to engage and learn from Twin Cities business executives and faculty ethics experts.
The judging panel consisted of:
- Kathleen Edmond, chief ethics officer, Best Buy
- Rob Föehl, director of corporate compliance and ethics, Target Corp.
- Ken Goodpaster, Ph.D., Koch Endowed Chair in Business Ethics at the University of St. Thomas
- Jeanne Hickey , vice president of ethics and ethics compliance officer, ev3
- Ron James, president and CEO, Center for Ethical Business Cultures
- Jack Radke, chief ethics officer, UnitedHealth Group
- Linda Soranno, vice president and deputy general counsel, General Mills
- Judith Walker, vice president of regulatory affairs and chief compliance and ethics officer, BlueCross BlueShield of Minnesota.
In addition, Jim Arnold, professor in the Full-time UST MBA and MS Accountancy programs at the University of St. Thomas Opus College of Business, served as communications expert.
Judges selected a team of five students who will now represent the University of St. Thomas in the virtual Intercollegiate Business Ethics Case Competition this spring, which will be hosted by Loyola Marymount University (LMU) and the Ethics and Compliance Officer Association (ECOA). The team will also make a special presentation on June 24 to the ECOA national conference being held in Minneapolis. The team consists of Brittany Barnes, Sean Elder, Roman Savchenko, Brian Slattery and Sara Speiker.
