UCT wins top international business school competition

A team of MBA students from the University of Cape Town (UCT) Graduate School of Business, led by senior lecturer and MBA alumnus, Johannes Schueler, has won the 39th annual John Molson MBA International Case Competition ─ the oldest and largest MBA company analysis competition in the world.

The competition receives many applications every year, with only 36 business schools being accepted.

“The barrier for entry is high. And as the only business school from Africa, the competition gave the GSB the opportunity to demonstrate its competence and strengthen its standing in the international context,” said Schueler.

“I’m particularly proud of the fact that an African business school has prevailed against heavyweight competition from all over the globe. This reminds me of my favourite Mandela quote, ‘It always seems impossible until it’s done.’”

This year’s winning team included MBA students Shivani Ghai, Van Zyl van der Merwe, Jane Obree, Kate Herringer and Rihana Hoosain. This is the eighth time the GSB has participated in the competition.

“Our team was amazing and hardworking, but more importantly, I believe we all had a thirst,” said Ghai.

“It had been eight years in the making and this was Africa’s time to shine. We took the responsibility of representing not just our school and country, but also the entire continent very seriously.”

Bridging the gap

Held annually in Montreal, Canada, the John Molson MBA International Case Competition sees hundreds of MBA students representing business schools from more than a dozen countries compete for a first prize of CA$10 000.

Schueler said the competition aims to encourage thinking that can transform academic knowledge into practical, applicable tools and solutions.

“A key purpose of the competition is to bridge the gap between the academic and real business worlds,” he explained. “The competition also leads to collaborative projects with other schools and an exchange of knowledge and expertise.”

“The competition gave the GSB the opportunity to demonstrate its competence and strengthen its standing in the international context.”

The theme for this year’s competition, which took place from 6 to 10 January, was “The future of business”.

A panel of judges made up of more than 300 senior business executives from different industries assessed the competing teams’ abilities to analyse business cases and come up with solutions in a set time.

Key criteria included creativity, insight, substance and plausibility of implementation of the solutions and plans submitted. A round-robin format allowed teams to analyse seven unpublished case studies that were focused on how culture, globalisation, environmental issues, technology, the economy, and customer experience will impact business in the coming years.

The highlight of the event each year is a “live case” involving a current business challenge facing a major company – this year featured online travel agency FlightHub.

“The transformation I noticed in both myself and my team mates throughout the process was quite amazing.”

“The teams are given three hours to analyse each case using what they’ve learned while doing their MBA and then develop and submit their solutions and give a detailed plan of action to the panel. They are allowed very limited use of Microsoft Office software and no access to the Internet,” Schueler explained.

“The entire exercise helps students learn how to work in teams, analyse data quickly and translate theory into practice.”

Preparation leading to victory

The team spent many weeks preparing for the competition by doing in-depth industry research focusing on the key dynamics in the largest industry sectors, as well as country-specific research that considers emerging market dynamics, economic strength and natural resources.

Herringer recalls the preparations as being very intense and focused.

“The transformation I noticed in both myself and my team mates throughout the process was quite amazing. This progress was attributable not only to our team’s time and dedication, but also to the incredible patience and constructive feedback given by our coaches. It was so rewarding to see all the technical skills we learnt in our MBA programme come to life in the real world.”

According to Hoosain, team co-coach and 2019 participant, “It has been a gruelling week, ending with a monumental and well-deserved victory. We are all extremely grateful and honoured for the opportunity to have represented the GSB, South Africa and Africa at this prestigious event.

“I speak for the team when I say that this has been the highlight of my MBA, especially from a learning and development perspective.”