Melissa Jones (right), director of the Trent Lott Leadership Institute at the University of Mississippi, presents Lee Baker, an accountancy and law student from Augusta, Georgia, with his prize as the overall winner of the 2024 Speaker's Edge competition. Submitted photo
Sixty-five Ole Miss students show off public speaking skills in the 20th annual contest
By Jeanine Rauch
After two decades, the annual Speaker’s Edge workshop and competition at the University of Mississippi continues to help students gain confidence and skills in public speaking to jump-start their professional careers.
The 20th annual competition wrapped up this year’s edition of Speaker’s Edge on January 11–12 at the Jackson Avenue Center. Master’s-level students in business, accountancy, and law competed individually by responding to ethical dilemmas and presenting their own marketplace pitches. They also worked with partners to deliver compelling team pitches.
Lee Baker, an accountancy and law student from Augusta, Georgia, took the overall award, which included a $1,000 prize.
“Before taking this class, I was always anxious to speak in front of people, to the point I dreaded it,” Baker said. “Speaker’s Edge, through Dr. (Ellie) Moore’s unique approach, with its blend of challenging competitions and practical skills training, made me a more confident speaker.
“I now feel I can speak with more clarity and conviction, even in high-pressure situations. I have no doubt that these skills will serve me well in my business career, and I consider Speaker’s Edge one of the most beneficial classes I’ve taken at Ole Miss.”
Moore, the program’s coordinator and director of the university’s Speaking Center, said the annual event fills a need for aspiring professionals.
“The founders of Speaker’s Edge in 2003 aimed to answer this call by developing a course that leverages speaking assignments into a competition allowing graduates to ‘road test’ their professional communication abilities in an intensive two-week ‘boot camp’ for advanced public speaking,” she said.
This year’s winners in the ethical dilemma category were:
- Lee Baker, first place
- Mac McMullan, accountancy/law student from Kennett, Missouri, second
- Jackson Tournillon, MBA student from Covington, Louisiana, third
For the marketplace pitch category, competitors created ideas that ranged from advanced air mobility for FedEx, at-place robot and AI-generated car dent repair, and chef-created meals at home. This year’s winners are:
- Cole Runyan, MBA from Ashland, Alabama, first place
- Lee Baker, second
- Daniel Hinke, MBA, from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, third
In the Team Pitch category, participating students randomly selected companies and applied the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, or SWOT, analysis to evaluate them. The goal was to determine and address points of vulnerability or opportunity and how best to present a solution or highlight a strength.
The winning pitch was for Vivint. This team created a new product line for a pet protection service that is both cost-effective and efficient while still in line with smart home technology and security, making sure customers are assured that their pets are safe while they are away.
Members of the winning team are:
- Emily Britton, accountancy major from Jackson
- Kit McCormack, MBA student, Jackson
- Jeremy Obregon, MBA student, Columbia, Illinois
- Marc Gorski, MBA student, Atlanta.
Speaker’s Edge is co-hosted by the university’s School of Business Administration, Patterson School of Accountancy, Trent Lott Leadership Institute, Department of Writing and Rhetoric, and Division of Outreach and Continuing Education.
