Three well-trained case competition teams, formed by both our undergraduate and MBA students, shined in three case competitions held abroad by taking home the championship trophies.

Business Analytics Case Competition in Canada

A team of UG students accepted a challenge by joining the first International Business Analytics Challenge Case Competition held in Montreal, Canada.  The competition, organized by the Institute for Data Valorization, attracted many top schools with both undergraduate and graduate programs in business analytics and data science participating. The other teams included Columbia, IE Business School, British Columbia, and McGill. With the growing importance of analytics in today’s business community, many renowned consulting companies and corporations showed their support by contributing to a large pool of financial rewards, totaling CAD$60,000 for this competition.

Four ISOM students from HKUST, including Ruby CHEN, Daniel WANG, Cedric WONG, and Elaine ZHANG, formed a team and started their first round of competition in January, when all teams were provided with the data files for analysis. After working intensively with the data and applying different statistical models for a few weeks, the team submitted their findings and insights in a report. They were subsequently shortlisted as one of the 20 teams from around the world to compete in the final round in Montreal. They presented their recommendations and won the competition on March 29.

“Winning the world championship title couldn’t have come at a better time because the School’s BBA in Operations Management Program is in the process of introducing a minor in business analytics for UG students at HKUST in the coming year,” says Prof Ronald LAU, supervisor of the winning team.

Energy Case Competition in the US

A team formed by four MBA students bagged another championship title at the inaugural Energy Case Competition organized on April 6 by the Kellogg School of Management in Evanston, US. They outperformed 12 other teams from leading business schools, including the home team Kellogg, Yale, Duke, NYU and Columbia. The four students are Yutaka IKEDA, Wilbur YOUNG, Leo TIAN, and Laurent YE.

Laurent shared his winning tips in this highly competitive contest against some of the brightest minds in the world. Even though none of the team members have real-life experience in the energy industry and English is not their native language, they managed to impress the judges and take home the trophy.

Laurent expressed his gratitude to some people whom have provided the much-needed support and invaluable advice, including faculty Prof Chris DORAN, Prof Larry FRANKLIN, Prof Stephen NASON, and Zoe WAN from the MBA Office.

Entrepreneurship Competition in Shanghai

Just before the end of the first quarter, another MBA team claimed top spot at the InnovateChina 2019 at the CEIBS Entrepreneurship Competition. 

Held in Shanghai, the theme of this year’s competition was Transcending Entrepreneurship that attracted strong teams including Ross, HEC Paris, CEIBS and ESADE. The HKUST team, formed by Pimolpat THANUSUTIYAPORN, WANG Luxi, Luke HSIEH, CHANG Jongsoo and GENG Yun, impressed the judges with their venture idea.

This is another addition to the School’s new string of remarkable achievements in case competitions, with five championship titles from abroad, and in the first quarter alone.