IE University to Participate in Global Business Case Competition 2014

During the week of April 7-12, four undergraduate students and their advisor will be representing IE University at the annual Global Business Case Competition. The competition will take place at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA, USA. The GBCC has been taking place since 1999, and is recognised as one of the most challenging and respected case competitions worldwide. Ten other universities from five different continents will also be sending their representative teams, including Concordia University, the University of Melbourne and the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

The competition, sponsored by large multinationals such as The Boeing Company and Starbucks Coffee International, will give students the opportunity to meet new people, build relationships, and participate in a real-life case study and prepare a business recommendation. During the 48-hour case cracking period, the teams will not be allowed to contact with their advisor or with other teams, testing their ability to work under pressure and deliver a sustainable solution.

The team comprises of two 3^rd year BBA students, Louis De Clercq and Ola Kvalheim, and two 4^th year BBA students, Joséphine Kant and Serena Mujtaba. They will be supported by their case advisor, Sondos Abdelgawad, who is an Entrepreneurship professor at the University. The team has been preparing hard by reviewing past year’s cases and developing case analysis frameworks, but they will not find out the subject of this year’s case until the live kick-off on April 10^th. This year’s competition will prove to be as challenging as the previous ones.

On April 12^th the teams will present their case solution to a panel of five corporate judges, who will evaluate their recommendations. Four finalists will be chosen to move on to the final round presentation, competing for the prestigious GBCC Trophy. Previous champions include Concordia University and the University of Hong Kong. We wish the best of luck to the IE University team!