COLUMBIA, Ky. – When Louisville, Kentucky, small business owner Kyle Edwards was looking for a new perspective on his decade-old company, he turned to his alma mater for help.
Edwards, who is president of Edwards Managed Technology Computer Consulting, enlisted the help of students in Lindsey Wilson’s “Business Policy Class” to develop a strategic plan for his company.
Seven teams of students spent three weeks studying, examining and analyzing every angle of the information technology consulting company, then presented their recommendations to Edwards in a competition. The winning team was selected based on scores compiled from a panel of judges that included the class’ professor, Cathy Boatright, who is a business administration professor and coordinator of the college’s business program.
The winning team featured business seniors Alessia Bergesio of Serralunga d’Alba, Italy, Elisa Burzio of Chieri, Italy, Anastasiia Ivanchenko of Chernivtsi, Ukraine, and Anastasiia Vorobiova of Odessa, Ukraine, and business junior Alejandra Martinez of Cochabamba, Bolivia.
“The students generated some really good ideas and thoughts,” said Edwards, who is a 2006 Lindsey Wilson graduate and is a member of the Lindsey Wilson School of Business and Communication Advisory Board. “Some things they mentioned I had already thought about, but hearing someone from the outside bring it up brings a good perspective to what we’re looking at.”
Boatright said she was also impressed with the students’ work.
“One of the best parts about this was that students got to make a real-world application of what they have learned in the program,” she said. “They had the opportunity to sit down with a company, analyze it based on what they have learned in every business course they have taken, and then make informed recommendations. This live case study resulted in the company receiving seven diverse analyses, sets of recommendations, and plans for implementation that can be used to improve their company.”
Bergesio said she was “really excited about this class because it was really cool to prepare a project like this.”
Bergesio noted that all five members of her team were international students, which she said gave them a “different point of view to share with the business.”
“I was really surprised about how open-minded the company was,” she said. “They were really interested in what students were telling them.”
Burzio said the experience will be something she includes on her resume and discusses with prospective employers after she graduates from Lindsey Wilson in May. It also helped her discover an area of business where she’d like to work after college.
“Doing this, I figured out that I really liked the marketing aspect of companies,” said Burzio.
Ivanchenko said she also plans to include the project on her resume because of the valuable experience she gained from working on it.
“I really like the idea of working with a real client because I think it motivates students to try harder than just in a regular class when you’re making a presentation about something that doesn’t really exist or is imaginary,” she said. “If you see the real owners with the real problems, it kind of inspires all of us to be more creative, research more and put more effort into our work.”
Vorobiova also underscored the value of presenting her work in front of a client.
“That was my first time presenting in front of a real company, and I was very nervous,” she said. “But I’m so grateful for this experience because I had never done that before. Now I can say that I have stepped into the real world, which is going to help me a lot in the future.”
Martinez said she also appreciated the project’s emphasis on teamwork.
“It helps you prepare for your future, and it was also great to collaborate with the amazing teammates that I had,” said Martinez. “They all had wonderful ideas, and we learned how to work together and how to collaborate with each other. Those were the keys to our success. … And also having such a good instructor like Dr. Boatright really helped us out a lot.”
Photo: LWC BUSINESS POLICY CLASS 01 – The winning team in the Lindsey Wilson College “Business Policy Class” class are joined by Kyle Edwards, a 2006 Lindsey Wilson alumnus who is president of Edwards Managed Technology Computer Consulting, and one of Edwards’ business partners who appears on the computer screen. From left: Anastasiia Vorobiova ’25 of Odessa, Ukraine; Anastasiia Ivanchenko ’25 of Chernivtsi, Ukraine; Edwards; Alejandra Martinez ’26 of Cochabamba, Bolivia; Alessia Bergesio ’25 of Serralunga d’Alba, Italy; and Elisa Burzio ’25 of Chieri, Italy. The business competition was held in the J.L. Turner Leadership Center.
Photo: LWC BUSINESS POLICY CLASS 02 – The winning team in the Lindsey Wilson College “Business Policy Class” class presents their analysis and recommendations to Kyle Edwards, a 2006 Lindsey Wilson alumnus who is president of Edwards Managed Technology Computer Consulting. From left: Anastasiia Ivanchenko ’25 of Chernivtsi, Ukraine; Anastasiia Vorobiova ’25 of Odessa, Ukraine; Alejandra Martinez ’26 of Cochabamba, Bolivia; Alessia Bergesio ’25 of Serralunga d’Alba, Italy; and Elisa Burzio ’25 of Chieri, Italy. The business competition was held in the J.L. Turner Leadership Center.
(Duane Bonifer – Lindsey Wilson College)