The 2 Business Case Competitions bring together top business/management/economics students from faculties all over the SEE region. The students will be assigned to one of the competition, according to their academic backgrounds and will form teams comprised of three members who will work on a complex business scenario referring to the current situation in Southeastern Europe. As participant, you and your team will have 24 hours to prepare the presentation, which will be held in front of a jury. Presentations do not have to include all team members; it is up to the team to decide who gives the presentation, every team member must be available for the jury's questions after the presentation. The presentation must be given in English.
Teams may not use any other primary sources or contacts outside the three team members. This “no-contact” rule applies throughout the entire competition. Teams will be permitted to bring any printed resource material they feel is relevant (e.g. dictionaries, textbooks, industry magazines or manuals) in preparing their solution.
The jury consits of experts from universities and the international community as well as from local and international companies. The presentations will last approximately 20 minutes followed by 10 minutes Questions and Answers (Q&A).
For each of the business competitions two rounds will be held: the first round will include all teams; in the second round the best three teams of each competition will present their “solution” to the public.
Up to twelve teams will enter each competition. Each team consists of three members. Teams will be selected based on the information provided by the participants in the application form. The teams will not consist of students from a single university, but will be mixed. It is of utmost importance that each team member is a real team player. If you do not feel comfortable with the idea of a mixed team this event is not for you.
Team members should have knowledge of business plan preparation, financial reports and other helpful and comprehensive frameworks used in understanding potential industry profitability (e.g. Porter's Five Forces), in mapping companies based on growth and cash potential (e.g. The Growth Share Matrix) and in laying out the components of marketing programs (e.g. The 5 P's).
The Cases will be handed out to you 24 hours before the presentations are to be made.
For each business competition all teams will receive the same business case and three juries will be formed for the first round, as presentations will be given in parallel. Each jury will consist of experts from universities and from international and national companies and organizations.
Teams will be evaluated in three main areas: case analysis, solution and presentation.
Part of the learning experience depends on the ability of the team to determine what area will be of most importance. Other areas that should be judged include quantitative, qualitative and analytical skills.
Each competition jury has to identify one single team from their respective groups (A, B or C) to take part in the finals. Two juries will judge the finals. This jury will consist of one member from each of the juries from the first rounds so that the same jury does not sit for the first and final round. The jury's job is to identify the quality of the students’ expertise. They should allow the students to present their solution, for which the students have 20 minutes. Then the jury should ask specific questions in the Q&A part of the competition. These questions should focus on the presentation and should clarify any concerns unclear to the jury.
In order to guarantee fairness, all participating students will be given nicknames, so that the jury cannot tell from which University they come. The Organizing Committee intends to run this event for all students across Southeast Europe, without putting any emphasis on their religious or national background. Also, each jury will provide feedback to the participating teams. This should allow you to get detailed information on the strengths and weaknesses of your presentations.
The Business Case Competition will be conducted entirely in English.