Teens Profit at Missouri Business Week Corporate Camp

Columbia, MO, June 23, 2011 --(PR.com)-- They look like any other high school students, but behind the cell phones and ear buds, Missouri Business Week participants are the movers and shakers of tomorrow. They were nominated by teachers and counselors, reviewed and winnowed down to the very best student leaders in the state. June 26-30, about 70 top students will gather at the University of Missouri-Columbia campus to spend five days running a hypothetical company.

“Teamwork and communication is very important to running a successful business,” observed Matt Ely of Florissant, a past Missouri Business Week participant. Volunteer business leaders from around the state serve as Company Advisors through the week. They serve a company of teens in developing a product, bringing it to production and marketing it. Students will compete with other companies. The most profitable company wins, just like in real life.

Students also learn about leadership through a leadership profile from the Forte Institute. Each company will elect a CEO, whose leadership style will be assessed in relation to all the other team members, giving students a model of how different styles of leadership work together.

Games and activities make experiencing business lessons fun. Companies will solve problems and complete challenges in games, and they will create commercials, website and trade show presentations to promote their products. “The hands-on activities and the fun are what keep the kids involved. They really feel a sense of ownership of their products,” says MBW director, Mary LaBarbera.

MBW features presentations by dynamic business leaders such as:

Dave Lankford of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce
Jonathan Sessions, Columbia School Board member and managing partner of Tech2 Consulting
Richard Mendenhall, Owner of RE/MAX Boone Realty; former President of National Association of REALTORS®
Brant Bukowsky, Co-Founder of VA Mortgage Center
Jeff Weise, Director of Undergraduate Advising, Trulaske Business School, University of Missouri-Columbia
Sharon Keating, co-owner RE/MAX of Jefferson City; Treasurer, Missouri Association of REALTORS®
Jamold Little, State Farm Insurance

Company Advisors include:

Tyler Harriman, sr. loan assistant, Boone County Bank
Bobbi Howe, REALTOR®, RE/MAX Professionals
Nina Whiteside-McCord, REALTOR®, Reece & Nichols
Joe Ritter, branch manager, Landmark Bank
Grant Kitch, VA Mortgage Center

Missouri Business Week is in its 25th year. It is operated by The CENTER for Education and Enterprise, a function of Missouri Association of REALTORS®. The CENTER is a 501C non-profit funded through private donations. missouribusinessweek.com

###