Historical performance: GTK students win the Business and Management Case Competition in Mexico

With an exceptional performance students representing the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration of the Babeș-Bolyai University (BBU) and the GTK Business Consulting Club have won first place in the final of the Business and Management Case Competition, the international case competiton hosted by Universidad Panamericana in Guadalajara, Mexico. Several prestigious business schools have taken part in this years’ event, the second place of the competition being won by HEC Montreal (Canada), while the third place of the podium by the students representing the University of British Columbia (Canada). This result has a historical relevance for the team from Cluj, being the first ever win of a Romanian university at a truly global case competition with exclusively undergraduate student participants. A previous first place has only been won by master students of the BBU at the competition hosted by the University of Calgary (Canada).

Members of the team winning the case competition in Mexico were Anna Bugár (Finance and Banking, 2nd year), Péter Szekernyés (Finance and Banking, 3rd year), Evelin Székely (Business Information Systems, 3rd year), and Dóra Szőke (Management, 3rd year). In the qualifying round the team from Cluj was competing against a team of the University of Vermont (USA) and the local team representing the Universidad Panamericana (Mexico). BBU students have won both preliminary rounds, qualifying thereby to the final of the competition from the first place of their group.

In the qualifying stage particpating teams had to come up with an organizational development plan for Zeyco, a multinational company, while in the 24 hours round they had to develop an expansion strategy for Cloe, a mexican fashion company specialized in the design and manufactuiring of bags and suitcases. BBU students have proposed innovative solutions in both rounds, qualifying thereby to the grand final of the competition, where they had to present their 24 hours solution again in front of a jury to ultimately win the competition.

BBU team cordinators were Levente Szász, Lehel Györfy, Kincső Kelemen and Béla-Gergely Rácz.

Another specific feature of this competition was the organization of an international round, where participants had to form mixed teams of students from different universities and present their solutions in front of a jury, gathering thereby valuable experience related to how to work in international, multicultural environments. This round was won by an international team composed of US, Canadian and Mexican team members, and Bugár Anna from Cluj, thus placing BBU once again on the highest position of the podium.

Congratulations to all GTK students and their advisors for this exceptional performance!