Case competition

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In a case competition, participants strive to develop the best solution to a business or education-related case study within an allocated time frame, typically with teams of two or more individuals pitted against each other in a head-to-head or broader relative ranking. [1] [2] Teams deliver presentations for judges and, while competitions vary in composition, a standard format and purpose exists. In terms of cumulative number of participants, the HSBC/HKU Asia Pacific Business Case Competition is the world's largest case competition, with over 130,000 participants since 2008. [3]

Contents

History

The case competition concept originated in the United States and originally included participants from domestic universities. The notion of expanding to include international competitors emerged later, with the concept eventually taking hold across North America and Western Europe. Today, a wide range of international competitions are hosted in various countries in North America, Europe, Oceania, and Asia. [1] International case competitions have also begun expanding beyond the undergraduate level, as competitions like the Wharton China Business Society International Case Competition offer high school divisions. [4]

Format

Formats vary according to a number of dimensions. The following dimensions are often used to classify and compare competitions: Host: corporate versus educational institution; Participant selection: "by invitation" versus "by application"; and, Level: undergraduate, graduate. Formats may vary along practical dimensions, including: Case specificity (whether the case has been written especially for the competition or not); Number of teams; Organization (student-run, professional etc.); Rules, e.g.:Time (common formats are 3-4 or 24 hours), Materials, Degree of access to expert advice (either from within the competition or externally, and electronically or face to face).

Some competitions add complexity to create a more interesting challenge. For example, Ohio State University (OSU)'s Center for International Business Education And Research (CIBER), in its annual Case Challenge, created teams from the overall pool of participants, regardless of school, dissolving the usual school-based team format. For the Ohio State scenario, once the students are assigned to teams, a full day of team-building exercises is run for competitors.

Competitions can be internal to a business school, or they can involve teams from multiple schools. Sometimes the competition includes several rounds, with the final round typically judged by outside company executives (sometimes the panel consists of executives from the actual company in the case). For example, the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business' 2010 round of its Global Business Case Competition featured a customized case on the Boeing Company, [5] and Boeing executives acted as judges. [6]

Participation

Participants exercise skills and knowledge on a "real world" case for an actual organization, with the support of representatives who can provide professional advice. [1] Other competitions select an issue based on its degree of importance, and employ the competition as a means to both highlight the issue and create potential solutions through the efforts of the competitors. [2] Participants can also be assessed as potential candidates for analysis-based jobs within the targeted companies.

Teams in case competitions are tasked with assessing the situation facing the organization, analyzing available information, crafting a solution, and defending their recommendations. In general, teams adhere to a time limit and specific rules. Each team is judged independently, and the judges' decision is final, although a confidential summary evaluation is generally provided. [7]

Notable competitions

Invitational competitions

CompetitionCountryUniversityLevelTeamsInaugural Year
Alberta International Case Competition (AIBC)Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Alberta School of Business, University of Alberta Undergraduate12 teams2016
Asian Business Case Competition @ Nanyang (ABCC)Flag of Singapore.svg  Singapore Nanyang Technological University Undergraduate12 teams2007
Australian Undergraduate Business Case Competition (AUBCC)Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia QUT, UNSW, University of Melbourne Undergraduate16 teams2013
Belgrade Business International Case Competition - BBICC Flag of Serbia.svg  Serbia University of Belgrade Undergraduate20 teams2013
BI International Case Competition - BIICC Flag of Norway.svg  Norway BI Norwegian Business School Undergraduate12 teams2016
CBS Case Competition [8] Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark Copenhagen Business School Undergraduate12 teams2002
CaseIT MIS Case CompetitionFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Beedie School of Business Undergraduate20 teams2004
Central European Case Competition (CECC)Flag of Hungary.svg  Hungary Case Solvers & Corvinus University of Budapest Undergraduate20 teams2019
Champions Trophy Case Competition Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand University of Auckland Undergraduate12 teams2008
Chulalongkorn International Business Case Competition (CIBCC) [9] Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand Chulalongkorn University Undergraduate20 teams2014
Citi International Case Competition Flag of Hong Kong.svg  Hong Kong HKUST Undergraduate20 teams2003
Engineering and Commerce Case Competition(ENGCOMM)Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Concordia University Undergraduate12 teams2013
Global Business Case Competition (GBCC)Flag of Japan.svg  Japan Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University Undergraduate16 teams2015
Global Microfinance Case Competition (GMCC) Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia University of Melbourne (Melbourne Microfinance Initiative)Undergraduate & Graduate16 universities2011
Global Business Case Competition [10] Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States University of Washington Undergraduate15 teams1999
Grossman School of Business Family Enterprise Case Competition (FECC) Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States The University of Vermont Undergraduate & Graduate24 teams2013
HSBC/HKU Asia Pacific Business Case Competition Flag of Hong Kong.svg  Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong Undergraduate24 teams2008
International Graduate Competition Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada HEC Montreal Graduate08 teams2012
International Case Competition @ Maastricht Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands Maastricht University Undergraduate16 teams2009
Japan MBA Case Competition Flag of Japan.svg  Japan Tokyo-based MBA programsGraduate - MBA09 teams2013
John Molson Undergraduate Case Competition (JMUCC)Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada John Molson School of Business Undergraduate28 teams2009
John Molson MBA International Case Competition Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada John Molson School of Business Graduate - MBA36 teams1981
Lazaridis International Case Conference (LazICC)Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Lazaridis School of Business and Economics Undergraduate16 teams2018
Marshall International Case Competition (MICC)Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States University of Southern California Undergraduate20 teams1997
McGill Management International Case Competition [11] Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada McGill University Undergraduate12 teams2001
McIntire International Case Competition [12] [13] Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States University of Virginia Undergraduate06 teams1982
NUS Case Competition Flag of Singapore.svg  Singapore National University of Singapore Undergraduate20 teams2009
RMA Credit Risk Case Competition [14] Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Sobey School of Business Graduate08 teams2013
Rotterdam/Carleton International Case Competition Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands / Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences and Carleton University Undergraduate16 teams2020
RSM STAR Case Competition [15] Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University Undergraduate16 teams2012
Sauder Summit Global Case Competition Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada UBC Sauder School of Business Undergraduate16 teams2013
Solvers' Cup Flag of Hungary.svg  Hungary Case Solvers Undergraduate09 teams2016
Sydney International Business Competition Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia The University of Sydney Business School Undergraduate12 teams2017
Thammasat Undergraduate Business Challenge (TUBC)Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand Thammasat University Undergraduate16 teams2007
University of Münster Case Competition (UMCC)Flag of Germany.svg  Germany University of Münster Undergraduate - MBA12 Teams2017
University of Navarra International Case Competition (UNICC)Flag of Spain.svg  Spain University of Navarra Undergraduate16 teams2013
University of Technology Sydney Global Case Competition (UTSGCC)Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia University of Technology Sydney Undergraduate16 teams2020
WBS Case Challenge Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom Warwick Business School Graduate08 teams2013
Capitox Case Competition Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom University of Oxford undergraduate08 teams2019

Competitions by application

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