NAMA offers 'ViVO' experience for UF students.It was March 4, 2004, the Thursday afternoon we had been waiting for all semester. In just a few minutes the fruits of countless late nights and weekends in McCarty Hall, tough compromises, and foregone social lives would be decided. It was the final round of the 2004 National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA Na·ma n. pl. Nama or Na·mas 1. A member of a people of southwest Africa. 2. The Khoikhoin language of the Nama. ) student marketing competition, and the University of Florida University of Florida is the third-largest university in the United States, with 50,912 students (as of Fall 2006) and has the eighth-largest budget (nearly $1.9 billion per year). UF is home to 16 colleges and more than 150 research centers and institutes. (UF) team was ecstatic to be among the final four. The team had spent the past two days encouraging marketing and agribusiness professionals to taste life with ViVO, a vitamin- and mineral-packed coconut water Noun 1. coconut water - clear to whitish fluid from within a fresh coconut coconut milk cocoanut, coconut - large hard-shelled oval nut with a fibrous husk containing thick white meat surrounding a central cavity filled (when fresh) with fluid or milk . To Hispanics ViVO means life, and the 18 students on the marketing team had a strong appreciation for its meaning after literally devoting a semester of their lives to this product. Trey Soud, a Food and Resource Economics (FRE FRE French FRE Freddie Mac (stock symbol) FRE Federal Rules of Evidence FRE Freedom Realty Exchange FRE Freedom Party FRE Food and Resource Economics FRE Free Range Eggs FRE French Real Estate ) graduate, said after the competition was over, "I never dreamed that a school project could be so challenging, so time consuming and so involved, and yet so rewarding." Many of us felt the same as Soud about NAMA. Not only did we work hard to produce a marketing plan and presentation, we worked hard to build a better team dynamic. "Being a part of NAMA takes dedication, hard work and way too many hours, but it is all worth it. NAMA truly exemplifies the importance of good teamwork and is one of the most rewarding extra-curricular classes at UF," said Brandon Briggs, a recent finance graduate of the Warrington College of Business. In developing the marketing plan for ViVO, we were able to practice the same principles and techniques used by today's marketing professionals. Lynn Tallman, one of the team members, said about her experience, "I believe the invaluable marketing experience I gained from being a part of NAMA gave me a competitive edge in my search for a job after graduation. I was able to land the job of my dreams--a marketing position with Johnson & Johnson--because of my NAMA experience." The competition gives students not only practical experience, but an opportunity to enhance our resumes as well. We were able to meet and mingle with agriculture marketers and agribusiness professionals from across the nation during the competition, which gave us more doors to open in the future. As we sat waiting for the final results to be announced To be announced (TBA) A contract for the purchase or sale of an MBS to be delivered at an agreed-upon future date but does not include a specified pool number and number of pools or precise amount to be delivered. , each of us was reflecting on what it would mean to win. Illana Plotkin said, "It was great to have such a professional marketing plan to take credit for. I just kept thinking how much more wonderful it would be to have the first-place trophy." Finally, the decision was announced. We did not get second--we had won first! Everyone was jumping up and down uncontrollably. Pablo Rivera, the energy behind our team, practically tackled our sponsor David Barber, but he didn't seem to mind. Not only did we take home the national championship, our fellow competitors also awarded us "Best Product" and "Best Oral Presentation" in addition to our national title. That Thursday has continued to remind the 2004 FRE-NAMA Team how much hard work, dedication and sacrifice can be rewarded. 2005 STUDENT NAMA MARKETING COMPETITION JUDGES Preliminary and Semi-Finals Judges: Cynthia Clanton, Colle+McVoy Leigh Ann Cleaver, BCS (1) (The British Computer Society, Swindon, Wiltshire, England, www.bcs.org) The chartered body for information technology professionals in the U.K., founded in 1957. Communications Evan Davies, McCormick Company Chad Elliott, ADM See add/drop multiplexer. (language) ADM - A picture query language, extension of Sequel2. ["An Image-Oriented Database System", Y. Takao et al, in Database Techniques for Pictorial Applications, A. Blaser ed, pp. 527-538]. Steve Fink, McCormick Company Randy Happel, Ayres Kahler Laura Mayfield, Datacore Steve Mercer, AdFarm Jeff Moore, Brownfield Network Barry Nelson, John Deere Agricultural Marketing Center Warren Riedesel, Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc. Angela Skochdopole, Vance Publishing Corp., Crop Division Marjory Walker, National Cotton Council of America Joy Watson, BASF BASF Bar Association of San Francisco (since 1872; San Francisco, California) BASF Badische Anilin und Soda Fabrik (German chemical products company) BASF Builders Association of South Florida Dee Weeda, Broadhead + Company Greg Wetzel, Colle+McVoy Gerry Whitty, Morgan&Myers Wynnie Zuchowski, Charleston|Orwig Tim Zurliene, Bayer CropScience Finals Judges: Illinois Blasdel, BCS Communications Kathy Cornett For the place in England, see . The cornett, cornetto or zink is an early wind instrument, dating from the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods. It was used in what are now called alta capellas or wind ensembles. , McCormick Company Katana Nihontō (日本刀:にほんとう nihontō Ewbank, AdFarm Jerry Harrington, Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc. Gary Kreckmann, United Phosphorous phos·pho·rous adj. Of, relating to, or containing phosphorus, especially with a valence of 3 or a valence lower than that of a comparable phosphoric compound. Inc. Page Wingate is the current president of the Food and Resource Economics--NAMA chapter at the University of Florida, Gainesville, Fla. |
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