This past summer, CHS Senior, Sienna Maskin, traveled to Anaheim, California to compete at the FBLA National Conference where she won 7th place in Business Management after earning first place at the state level in that category.
Sienna said that the most memorable part of the conference was placing in the top ten on the national stage. “At the national level, it is more difficult to stand out and prove you are the best, especially because the other competitors are now at your same skill level. Standing on that national stage, holding a big fancy award, and hearing thousands of people cheer for my accomplishment is a moment I will never forget.”
FBLA, Future Business Leaders of America, is a national organization that prepares students for careers in business through leadership and educational workshops as well as competitions. These events allow students to network with their peers and professionals as they prepare for future careers in the business world.
“Many classes at Central, especially my Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate classes, challenge me to think critically and dive deeper when interpreting and analyzing questions. Those two skills are incredibly helpful when performing because they help you to fully understand how to resolve a problem and make yourself stand out.“
The first part of the national competition is a one hundred question objective test. The top fifteen scorers on this test then move on to the performance round, where they are given a real-world business management problem. The students then present their ideas about how to address and solve the issues to a panel of judges who are working business management professionals.
Sienna placed in the top fifteen on the written test, and for the presentation round she assumed the role of the supervising manager for a regional coffee shop with six locations. The shops faced multiple problems, including a low employee retention rate, customer dissatisfaction, and increased competition, contributing to a decrease in the company’s profits.
“To resolve these issues, I presented solutions that included providing bi-weekly training sessions to continue educating employees, creating online resources where customers could voice their complaints, and establishing a presence on social media to expand our target audience and bring in more customers.”
Sienna also understands that her support system extends beyond the halls and classrooms of Central High. “I want to express my deepest gratitude to the CHS Foundation for sponsoring my trip. Their contributions mean the world to me and the hundreds of other students they support. I had the most incredible experience in Anaheim this summer representing Central, and I am extremely thankful that the CHS Foundation was able to help me participate in this opportunity.”