Big, messy projects? College of Business and Economics Executive MBA (EMBA) participants are up for the task. Every year, EMBA participants wrap up the two-year program with one of these projects for their capstone course. These three-month consulting engagements benefit local companies, and they can range from planning for new product launches to positioning a business for sale.
“The capstone projects cover very complex, messy, often not well-defined problems,” said Brian O’Morrow, senior director of Executive Education and MBA programs for working professionals. “The participating companies have questions and issues with no simple right or wrong answer–instead they are looking for help to find the best path forward.”
The EMBA program’s mission is to create flexible, innovative leaders, and the capstone projects give participants a prime opportunity to apply all the skills they’ve learned. Teams work throughout the semester doing research and collaborating with the client companies, then share a final presentation and recommendations. Because the projects involve proprietary information, they’re typically protected by non-disclosure agreements. However, one company involved with the most recent EMBA cohort was willing to share its story.
Growing Greenscale’s business vision
Greenscale is an indoor farming startup developing a combined aquaculture and hydroponic facility in Boise. Founded by Scott Meikle, a former technology executive, the company plans to grow both fish and leafy vegetables using a manufacturing-like approach to farming, also known as controlled environment agriculture or CEA. This method produces high-quality, pesticide-free food with very low water usage.
Construction on Greenscale’s facility began in the spring of 2025. While the company has a clear near-term plan, they wanted to work with EMBA participants to create a long-term business plan. CEA suffers from one basic deficit which is a viable long term business model that overcomes high upfront capital expense and ongoing operational costs. Troy Stamp, an EMBA participant, founder of Blue Peak Strategic Solutions and senior project manager for Parsons, was on the Greenscale team and confirmed the project fit the “big, messy” criteria…