Isenberg Students Make it to Finalist Round of Harvard’s Global Case Competition

The pros and cons of corporate mergers and acquisitions have been a topic of discussion and debate for many years. A group of three Isenberg and two computer science students tackled this issue at Harvard’s 2024 Global Case Competition and made it to the top 10 finalists out of 252 groups.

Over the course of the intensive three-week case-solving process, they were introduced to a wide range of financial knowledge and topics and performed industry analysis, company analysis, and financial analysis and valuation to formulate a solution to the central question that they were given. Specifically, the group was asked to analyze and make a recommendation on whether IBM should acquire Equinix to bolster its cloud and hybrid cloud computing offerings. They analyzed financial metrics, strategic alignment, and market positioning to assess whether a potential acquisition of Equinix would give IBM the competitive advantage it was looking for.

On top of this, they explored the alternative option of IBM instead acquiring Rackspace, a company with a strong presence in managed cloud services. “We compared the strategic and financial implications of acquiring Rackspace versus Equinix, presenting a balanced view of both options,” said Khanh Le ’25, a finance and informatics double major. “Our recommendation was based on a comprehensive evaluation of which acquisition would better align with IBM's long-term strategic goals while offering the most value-creation potential.” Clearly, their recommendations hit a chord, as they made it through to the in-person finalist round and gala at Harvard, where they gave a 75-slide presentation in front of a jury of experienced industry professionals.

Keys to Success

What’s perhaps most impressive about this accomplishment is that three of the five group members were entirely new to the finance world, and that they did all of it pretty much on their own. Duy Pham ’24 MSBA shared that because of this, they weren’t necessarily expecting to succeed at the level that they did. “I would say the thing that makes us stand out among the top 10, having attended the gala in Harvard and met all the other teams, is how ‘unlikely’ we are to make it that far.”

Le emphasized the importance of teamwork in helping them excel in the competition. “Our team was not formed with a conventional hierarchy; instead, we thrived on shared leadership and mutual support, especially when faced with challenging problems.” They worked to get to know one another and play to each other’s strengths, and this approach clearly shined through in their results.

Despite the intense timeframe and workload, the team really enjoyed participating in the competition. Kien To ’24 MS shared that he wasn’t sure what to expect at first, but it ended up being a great experience. “It turned out to be a blast! … I would personally recommend every student regardless of their major participate in this competition in the future.” And Pham encouraged further participation in years to come. “To all Isenberg students out there: you can do it, you can make Isenberg proud.”