Undergrad team wins Big 10 Case Competition in Madison
Plan addresses General Motors leadership structure and strategy
Minneapolis, MN (April 6, 2009)—Carlson School undergraduate students placed first in the Second Big 10 Annual Case Competition held recently at the University of Wisconsin School of Business in Madison. The team made recommendations regarding General Motors leadership structure and strategic plans.
The Big Ten Case Competition brings together the schools in the Big Ten conference to exchange leadership experiences and insights and develop connections by extending the long-lived tradition of competition among Big Ten sports into the academic realm.
A round of applause goes to Carlson School Undergraduates Stacie Goebel, John Pokorny, Emily Rund, and Jo Trahms. Emily Rund says that this case competition was very different than previous case competitions in which she had participated.
“Our team’s preparation time for this competition was two-and-a-half hours, whereas our last one lasted almost 72 hours,” Rund says. “Timing and efficiency were everything. Our team worked really well together - delegating tasks, facilitating productive discussion, and preventing scope creep. The presentation we made to the judges was solid and we effectively fielded their questions.”
The Carlson School team’s case addressed the leadership structure and strategic short- and long-term management plans for General Motors. Team members were given a 25-page packet of recent news articles and press releases and had 2.5 hours to develop materials, prepare a 15-minute presentation, and get ready for a five-minute question-and-answer session. The team developed three sets of materials including a SWOT analysis; a list of key leadership challenges and possible solutions to those issues; and recommended next steps.
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