A round of applause to the teams that participated in the thrilling MBA Case Competition. Congratulations to the top three teams for their outstanding performance, who will receive sponsorships from the Morris S. Smith Foundation and will participate in an external international case competition of their choice.
WINNER
(Certificate holders of the winning team, left to right: Bowen Li, Lincoln Wu, David Liu, Kelly Liu)
“Our strategy was to find an actionable and feasible plan while focusing on the key points of the requirements of the case. By analyzing the overall situation of the case, conducting competitor research, and evaluating whether an actionable and feasible plan can align with the case itself. After careful deliberation with the team, we decided to approach the case with a counterproposal against the case, which contributed towards us winning the MBA Case Competition.” said Bowen.
1st RUNNER-UP
(Certificate holders of the 1st runner-up, left to right: Camille Hung Chiu Ming, Zach Bradford, Vinith Muralidhar, Stan Ma)
2nd RUNNER-UP
(Certificate holders of the 2nd runner-up, left to right: Vincent Chan, Denise Ho, Sophia Wang, Kartik Singh)
JUDGES
(Judges, left to right: Prof. Stephen Shih, Prof. Chris Doran, Prof. Stephen Nason)
MBA CASE COMPETITION
Welcome to the MBA Case Competition, where teams of four dive into a one-week challenge to research, analyze, and present actionable recommendations for a real-life business case. Showcase your expertise in a face-to-face presentation to esteemed judges within a 25-minute timeframe. Begin with 5 minutes of uninterrupted delivery, followed by an open floor for thought-provoking questions, putting your skills and adaptability to the test.
Following each team's presentation, the judges will engage in a rigorous deliberation process to evaluate the performance of each team. The evaluation will be based on specific criteria that encompass key areas such as Presentation Effectiveness, Recommendations and Analysis, and Q&A. The top three teams will be awarded sponsorships from the Morris S. Smith Foundation and will have the opportunity to participate in an external international case competition of their choosing. The winners of the MBA Case Competition will have the privilege of selecting their preferred competition, with the Roland Berger Case Competition being the highly desired option.
WHY PARTICIPATE?
Participating in this competition will provide you with a high-confidence opportunity to:
Analyze a real-life business case and sharpen your strategic thinking skills
Evaluate various business solutions, enhancing your problem-solving abilities
Collaborate with a diverse team to develop and prepare a top-class presentation
Increase exposure in a global business context, broadening your perspective
Enhance your soft skills, from communication to teamwork and beyond
MEMORABLE MOMENTS
For Pie, “With the topic of the MBA case competition being focused on digital transformation in a bank, my teammates and I were able to learn so many new things from each other. Coming from the Tech industry myself, and having a teammate with a background in banking, the diverse industry perspectives within our team proved to play a crucial role in developing a creative solution [that none of them heard of before]. My team and I received many positive compliments from my classmates and professors.“
APPROACHES FOR NEXT TIME
“We previously had an Ocean Park case during our orientation week. So, going into the MBA Case Competition, this time, we did better as we’ve been enhancing our ‘soft-skills’ by playing to each other’s strengths, organization, and critical thinking.” – says Bowen.
“If we were to participate in the MBA Case Competition again, we would better manage the teams’ timeline, improve our coordination, and play to each other’s strengths. Additionally, we would reduce the amount allocated to the initial and middle sections of the presentation, allowing us to dedicate more time to the crucial recommendations section. Lastly, we would reduce the amount of text on our slides and to speed up the overall build up [to our recommendations] as this was a comment made by the judges.” said Bowen.
In Pie’s perspective, “if given another chance to participate in the business competition, we would spend more time on our presentation skills to make it more interactive and enhance our storytelling so that the audience can feel more engaged during the presentation. Also, we would improve on the Q&A section by being able to handle this part more effectively.”
HOW DOES THE EXPERIENCE OF THE MBA CASE COMPETITION BENEFIT YOU IN THE FUTURE?
“The MBA Case Competition was far from being an easy project. It demanded immense dedication and the ability to thrive in the rigorous environment of the MBA program. From my perspective, there are several noteworthy aspects to highlight from this experience. Firstly, the competition provided valuable training in coordinating and exerting effort to prepare a presentation for key stakeholders. Additionally, it allowed me to develop essential leadership skills. Coming from an analyst position, you don’t have many opportunities to lead a team. I had the privilege of serving as the team lead. Embracing this leadership role proved to be very valuable, and I believe it will greatly benefit me in the future." Bowen remarked.
“There are a few skills and courses during that MBA program that assisted me in the business competition. The financial modeling course equipped me with the necessary skills to evaluate whether an investment proposal with a financial model makes financial sense. Experience from the immersion program [at the start of my MBA journey] assisted me in developing my ability to effectively present ideas by meticulously using hand gestures to communication skills when presenting to the judges. Another highlight was learning how to think strategically, where I was able to gain a deep understanding of the concepts of how my actions can influence the actions of others, helping me anticipate and plan a few steps ahead.” Said Pie.
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