A team from the University of Florida has won this year’s U.S.
Accenture Innovation Challenge and will work with Accenture
(NYSE: ACN) to provide management consulting services to help the
nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization, Feeding America®,
address food insecurity and reduce hunger in and around college
communities — the focus of this year’s Challenge.
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The winning team was selected in March following multiple rounds of
competition involving more than 1,100 applicants on 59 teams from more
than 50 undergraduate campuses. The proposal from the University of
Florida called for integration of an existing online app to better
connect food donors with nonprofit relief organizations, extend the
distribution network, and add new campus “ambassadors” to help raise
resources and awareness for addressing food insecurity in and around
college communities.
“Innovation is fundamentally about making things better and doing so
boldly,” said Marty Rodgers, managing director of Accenture’s nonprofit
practice. “In a nation where one in six kids is uncertain of their next
meal and up to one in five college students face some degree of food
insecurity, we can do better. The Accenture Innovation Challenge asked
students to be bold in tackling food insecurity in college communities —
and they did not disappoint.”
Feeding America fights hunger and food insecurity through a network of
200 food banks by reducing food waste and redirecting food to people in
need.
“The passion and ideas the students presented demonstrated this
generation’s commitment to engage in community service,” said Blake
Thompson, Feeding America’s chief supply chain officer. “It’s
encouraging to see as we lean-in more to explore innovative ideas that
help drive our vision of a hunger-free America forward in the coming
years.”
Launched in 2012, the Accenture Innovation Challenge provides college
students from across the United States an opportunity to offer ideas and
solutions to support a priority goal of a nonprofit organization.
Accenture organizes two such competitions each year, one for college
undergraduates and one for students in graduate programs. Winning teams
help implement their proposals with the nonprofit organization and an
Accenture consulting team.
Accenture in the United States
Accenture is a leading professional services company, providing a broad
range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital,
technology and operations. With more than 50,000 people and operations
in 41 cities in the United States, Accenture serves 93 of the Fortune
100 and more than 70 percent of the Fortune 500. In the United States,
Accenture has innovation hubs which bring together key elements of the Accenture
Innovation Architecture — including labs, studios and innovation
centers – to help clients develop and deliver disruptive innovations to
drive growth. With an unwavering commitment to inclusion and diversity,
Accenture is consistently recognized on FORTUNE’s
100 Best Companies to Work For and DiversityInc’s
Top 50 Companies for Diversity lists. Visit us at www.accenture.com.
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