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In Part 1 and Part 2 of this case competition series, I shed some light on how case competitions work while sharing my experience of flying across the globe to compete in one. In Part 3, the final edition of this three-part series, I share my experience of hosting a case competition. This time, I will share what it looks like to be on the organizing committee of a competition and what it takes to successfully host a massive event with international participants.
What is the Alberta International Business Competition?
The Alberta International Business Competition (AIBC), is a student-run group based out of the Alberta School of Business at the U of A. AIBC was born in 2015 with the ambition to invite the best and brightest students from universities in Canada and around the world to come to spend a week in Jasper. During their time in Jasper, the teams would not only get to compete in a week-long case competition but also experience the beauty of the Canadian Rockies. Seems like a once in a lifetime opportunity, right?
By hosting this international Case Competition, we sought to accomplish three goals:
- Create a platform for students & businesses to innovate
- Provide networking opportunities for delegates
- Offer a chance to experience the beauty of Jasper
AIBC provides a platform for students to get the opportunity to work on solving real-life problems faced by businesses. From working on a local restaurant’s marketing needs to reframing the organizational structure of a growing accounting firm, we partner with businesses to help students with an opportunity to think outside the box and help their business overcome the challenge it is facing.
Traditionally, we invite teams from 6 universities from around the world and 6 universities from Canada to participate in the Alberta International Business Competition. Continuing with our traditions this year, on the 5th edition of AIBC, we welcomed 6 international schools and 6 Canadian Schools. Here's a list of the participating institutions:
- Concordia Montreal (Canada)
- Chulalongkorn University (Thailand)
- University of Technology Sydney (Australia)
- HEC Montreal (Canada)
- Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (Canada)
- Rotterdam Business School (Netherlands)
- University of Alberta (Canada)
- University of Indiana (United States)
- University of Panamericana (Mexico)
- University of Prince Edward Island (Canada)
- University of South Carolina (United States)
- University of Toronto (Canada)
When did you start planning for this competition?
I remember the day when Marlow and I heard the good news back in February 2022– wee had been selected as the new Co-Chairs of AIBC. It was exciting yet nerve-wracking at the same time. Seven months ago, the Alberta International Business Competition team consisted of just myself and Marlow, two friends with only a few case competitions under their belt and almost no experience with student organizations. We were planning on hosting a competition which at that time neither of us really understood the importance and magnitude of, but would soon become a project we devoted many sleepless nights to completing. It was an unreasonable journey we decided to take and one that left us with great memories and life-long friendships.
The official turnover of the club took place in April. One of the former Co-Chairs, Yegor Musechka, took us to Jasper to meet our hotel partners in order to transition the club’s finances and introduce us to our long-standing sponsors. We could feel the responsibility being put on our shoulders, and the two of us were ready for this challenge!
Executive Recruitment
After a successful turnover, Marlow and I decided to commence our recruitment process as soon as possible in order to form a team before the end of the Winter 2022 semester. From reaching out to friends to presenting at every single introductory business class, we did everything we could to garner interest in AIBC’s executive team. We were glad to have received over 20 applications for just 7 executive roles. Things were starting to take place, and we knew it was just the beginning. We were pleased to have welcomed seven candidates who were the best fit at the time for AIBC.
- Competition Portfolio
- VP Academic - Zoe Lau
- Academic Director - Aneerudh Aravindan
- VP Logistics - Manu Malotra
- Logistics Director - Aditi Singh
- VP Events - Carla H. Deza
- Events Director - Omer Syed
- Branding Portfolio
- VP External Relations - Shanon Indrawan
- VP Marketing - Pranjal Thapar
- VP PR & Sponsorship - Elianna Yemenu
- Sponsorship Portfolio
- VP Finance - Raghav Bathla
- VP Corporate Relations - David Sunderwald
(Alberta International Business Competition executive team at Jasper Park Lodge in Jasper, AB)
Summer of 2022 : This is when it all happened!
After having recruited an executive team from different backgrounds and cultures with decorated credentials, it was now time to work on the logistics of the competition, find sponsors for the 5-hour and the 30-hour cases, revise the competition schedule from 2019, invite guest speakers, find in-kind sponsors, allocate budget to each portfolio and get started on bringing AIBC back to Jasper after a break of two years because of the pandemic. From spending sleepless nights to following up on emails from industry professionals, the summer of 2022 was a true test of perseverance for our team, and we passed it with flying colours. We not only secured the club’s biggest sponsor in history, the Edmonton Elks Canadian football team, but also confirmed participation from 6 international and 6 Canadian teams with a long-standing waiting list in case one of the schools decided to drop out. One of us gave up on their cruise trip to the States, one attended team meetings from 10,000 feet up in the sky from their helicopter when on duty, while one of us sacrificed their internship to bring AIBC back to Jasper. If anything, AIBC 2022 was destined to be a success after all the hard work we put in! We had no other choice but to succeed and oh boy, did we bring it back in some fashion!
(AIBC team bonding trip at the Columbian icefields in Jasper in August, 2022)
Pre-Competition
After having confirmed our 5-hour and 30-hour case sponsors, from RedBull and the Edmonton Elks respectively, it all came down to the logistics and the execution of our plans. The club was in a decent financial position, and we had to make sure we planned well for the event in order to mitigate any unforeseen circumstances; including unexpected expenses and logistical contingencies. The Fall 2022 semester was just around the corner, and we knew things were going to get super busy. It was quite a challenge to manage school, attend weekly team meetings at 8 AM without a Cafe Mocha, and minimize any contingencies for the competition. As we approached the competition, we expanded our team to 25 people as we welcomed 12 Team Ambassadors to help us pair each one of them with a competing university.
(AIBC Team Ambassadors at Maligne Canyon in Jasper, AB)
The Competition, November 7 - 11, 2022
All teams were in Jasper by the evening of Sunday, November 6, and it was now time to begin AIBC 2022. The competition was divided into 5 days:
Day 1: Opening remarks & ceremony
We welcomed all teams on Monday, November 7 with some opening remarks about the schedule for the week and the pool they would be competing in. Later on in the evening, we had an impressive opening ceremony where Lazina McKenzie, co-lead of the November Project in Edmonton, gave a wonderful talk on building a community and how this competition will leave us with lifelong friendships. We couldn’t have asked for a better start to the competition!
(AIBC executives Shanon and Omer, after being motivated from Lazina’s wonderful talk)
Day 2: Case One
It was now time for all teams to work on their first case of the competition, a 5-hour case on Red Bull’s marketing strategy. The teams presented their solutions soon after making their case submissions later in the day.
(AIBC executives with team UofA in Jasper during the competition)
Day 3: Tour of Jasper
After a stressful day of working on Case One, all teams got a short break on Wednesday morning to experience the beauty of Jasper: the heart and soul of Alberta. SunDog, our long-standing partner and sponsor, took all teams for a tour of Jasper, where they visited Maligne Canyon, Pyramid Lake and a few other cool spots in the park. Later in the evening, all teams were supposed to receive the 30-hour case, graciously sponsored by the Edmonton Elks. Then they would spend the next 30 hours in their hotel rooms working on a solution to present to Victor Cui, the president and CEO of Edmonton Elks and Adrienne Bridgeman, the team’s VP of Corporate Partnerships.
(Delegates during the tour of Jasper at AIBC 2022)
Day 4: Case Two
The executive team had some downtime as teams cracked the 30-hour case.
(Our VP Logistics, Manu Malotra, having a great time during our team meeting as he records content for his YouTube video)
Day 5: The Gala Night
All the teams had presented their final solutions, and it was now time to conclude our week-long adventure in Jasper. We had Victor Cui, the president and CEO of Edmonton Elks, share his experience of co-founding One Championship, the third biggest sports property in the world, with the delegates and how undertaking an “unreasonable” journey can lead you to “unreasonable” success as it did for him. We then congratulated all the teams, announced the winners and had a toast for the success of AIBC!
(AIBC team with Adrienne Bridgeman, VP of Edmonton Elks, at the Gala night)
(AIBC executives celebrating after the Gala night)
What was it like hosting a competition?
It was stressful, time-consuming, and breathtaking yet beautiful at the same time. From having one-on-one conversations with my team about reflecting on our growth as individuals to finding a new family in AIBC, it was an experience that left me with a better understanding of people and made me a leader who now strives to listen before he acts. As they say, join student clubs to meet new people and enrich your undergraduate experience. I can vouch for it, it is very true!
(AIBC family in Jasper, AB)