Four Shantou University Business School Students recently went to Canada to participate in the Scotiabank International Business Case Competition. From the 22nd to the 26th of March, 2012, the 23rd Scotiabank International Business Case Competition (SICC), which was sponsored by Scotiabank, was held by The Richard Ivey School of Business at the University Of Western Ontario, Canada. Xi Zeng (Accounting, 2008), Huachao Cheng (Business-management, 2009), Menglu Yi (International Trade, 2009) and Yan Feng (International Trade, 2010), who composed the Phoenix Consulting Group, represented Shantou University Business School at the competition. Led by Professor Dan Trotter, the team from the Shantou University Business School engaged in a spirited competition with the other students at the competition, who came from eleven top business schools from Denmark, Singapore, Germany, Spain, Poland, Brazil, Mexico, New Zealand, Thailand, Hong Kong and Hungary.
The event was divided into a Country Presentation, Social Events, a Campus Tour, the Case Competition, and a Corporate Visit. These events fully embodied the spirit of the IVEY Business School’s unofficial motto, which is “Work hard, play hard".
【Country Presentation】
The 23rd Scotiabank International Case Competition (SICC) especially added a Country Presentation this year. According to the SICC Chairman of the Competition Committee, Head of the Richard Ivey School of Business, Professor Mary Heisz explained that when global trade is more frequent and business people do business without borders, business school students must learn to think globally. The country presentations were designed to help people have a better understanding of the economy, business and culture in different regions.
The Country Presentations were delivered in the Ivey Honors Business Administration (HBA) international commerce classrooms, and the audiences were students from Ivey. Because the Phoenix Consulting team consisted of four female students, they all wore traditional Chinese qipaos. Having been chosen to present first, they stood confidently on the stage. At the beginning of the lecture, Huachao (Jessica) Chen started the country presentation humorously. Afterward Yan (Tracy) Feng and Menglu (Lulu) Yi presented specialized professional analyses of the history and development of the Chinese ceramic industry. Finally, Xi (Nicole) Zeng ended the lecture by interacting with the audiences. During the lecture, the Ivey students paid close attention. In the Q&A section, the Ivey students not only focused on the ceramic industry, but were also very interested in Shantou University's educational model as well as the team member's educational system. The Phoenix Consulting Group members replied splendidly and once more received applause.
After the Country Presentation, the Phoenix Consulting Group members shared their experiences with other teams. Some of the other national teams appreciated the performance and praised our team as the most unique team and asked to take a group photo with us dressed in the traditional clothing.
【Case Competition】
All the case materials were distributed on the second day at noon to the seminar room where each team was located. The Phoenix Consulting Group competed in the first round with Singapore Management University, Corvinus University of Budapest and Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico, ITAM. Each team was required to complete the analysis of nearly three hundred pages English case materials, and was required put forward feasible proposals within fifteen hours. After fifteen hours’ preparation, our team was selected to be the first one to present to the judges. When entering the classroom, our four team members shook hands with the judges and gave a short self-introduction. Then our team performed under pressure, because they were the first team to present. During the presentation, the screen stopped working twice. Our team members were forced to adjust the equipment calmly in the midst of the presentation, which deeply impressed the judges with a sense that the Shantou team knew something about crisis management. Although the team did not reach the final round, during the feedback of the judges, the judges noted approvingly the team’s PowerPoint and presentation skills. The judges also noted twice that they appreciated how difficult it was for Chinese contestants to compete using English.
【Corporate Visit】
After the case competition, all of the teams were invited to the most famous local beer company—Labatt’s Brewery. During the visit, students learned how to make a bottle of beer, and they were presented with the history of Labatt’s. Ending the tour, students from 12 different countries enjoyed themselves by tasting fresh local Canadian beer.
【Team Reflection】
Flying for over sixteen hours, we came to a totally different culture. After experiencing jet-lag, unusual climate, and differences in food, it cost us a lot of discomfort, but we gained a lot more than we lost. In just several days, we established friendships with each team from different parts of the globe. Participating in an international case competition, we not only had more study experiences, we also opened our minds to experience different cultures; we enhanced our professional knowledge; we improved our English skills, and we also established communication with top level colleges in the world.
The team members still remember the hard training by Professor King Wu and Professor Dan Trotter before going to Canada, and we feel that this experience was a treasure and it will last for our lifetimes.
Our experiences have the potential of being the experience of everyone in Shantou University, especially the Business School, because all the materials we received at the competition and all the suggestions that were given to us at the competition will be shared with all other Shantou University students who desire to participate in future international case competitions entered into by Shantou University.
