Management, marketing finance, and hospitality are all significant industries in the business world. Marketing entails bringing customers to a product or service through a variety of channels, such as sales campaigning, social media, and advertising. To ensure financial stability and progress for both organizations and individuals, finance requires managing and investing money. In sectors like tourism, hotels, and restaurants, hospitality focuses on offering excellent customer service and establishing a pleasant environment. Management entails overseeing and directing the activities of an organization or corporation including making strategic decisions, defining goals, and managing staff. Because of their connections, these industries frequently need to work together to succeed commercially. Revenue may be increased through efficient marketing, and the financial security of the company can be guaranteed by prudent financial management.

On a high school level, it is incredibly important to have (at the very least) basic knowledge of the business world. Students who study business gain a firm foundation in the management, marketing, economics, and finance concepts that are fundamental for all careers. Students learn how businesses function and how to make the decisions that can affect a company’s performance by learning about these subjects. Also, learning about businesses can aid students in acquiring useful abilities that are applicable to any job, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, and teamwork. Having a fundamental understanding of business principles can provide students with a competitive edge, which is necessary as the business market gets more and more competitive. Overall, business education in high school is crucial because it can lead to a variety of job prospects and equip students with the tools and abilities they need to succeed in their futures.

ACP’s DECA team recently competed in the State Career Development Conference (SCDC), in which business professionals evaluated the members’ performance in the format of role-plays, case studies, and prepared presentations. Of the 80 students who participated in the competition, 16 of them made it to the International Competition in Orlando Florida this spring. Congratulations to Aarav Dugar (elected as an Arizona State Officer), Ethan Kaufman-Warner, Raikkoe Manese, Samik Mathur, Jackson Heinkel, Jared Chumley, Anika Kulkarni, Logan Woodruff-Hubler, Sarah Ebe, Roman Goebel, Ryan Kuru, Presley Brewer, ThaiLee Gerding, Molly Rhodes, Denise Magarinos, Raghav Athreya, Karambir Singh.

I had the opportunity to talk to Matt Tran (12), who has been a member of the club for three years. In the club, members participate in role plays, projects, and written events against other schools. When asked what the best part of the recent competition was, Matt responded by saying “definitely spending time with my friends at the AZ Grande Resort, and meeting new people from other schools.” Meeting new people and building stronger connections is a skill that can be used in all careers, so starting the skill in high school is a great idea. Because this is his senior year and his last competition, Matt felt that this competition was exhilarating and fun, with his favorite memory from the event being “finding out if we qualified.”

Congratulations to everyone who competed in the competition, and don’t forget to strive for the impossible and be extraordinary, Go Knights!