College of the North Atlantic�s Business Case Competition

Business
December 9, 2008

The following statement was issued by the Honourable Paul Oram, Minister of Business. It was also read in the House of Assembly:

College of the North Atlantic�s Business Case Competition

On November 14 and 15, the College of the North Atlantic held its third annual Business Case Competition in Grand Falls-Windsor.

Taking part this year were eight teams of business students and their coaches from campuses across the province, including, for the first time, a "virtual campus" team that participated by distance through the use of technology.

The two-day competition provided the students with a unique and valuable opportunity to test their technical know-how developed in the classroom by analyzing a business issue and putting into practice their skills and knowledge of accounting, marketing, and HR management in a real-world, problem-solving exercise.

This year�s case focused on a small business struggling to grow. The teams were handed the case that Friday afternoon and given a deadline of 8:30 the next morning to analyze it and provide a final report for a panel of judges. Each team also prepared a presentation and Question and Answer session on their findings and recommendations. They worked late into the night and well into the next day identifying the problems, researching, and developing possible solutions for the company.

I was pleased to be invited to speak at the awards banquet where the winners were announced. The team from the Bay St. George campus took bronze; the virtual campus, silver; and winning gold was the Grand Falls-Windsor team of Amy Ballard, Linda Davis, Sarah Kelly, Eun-Jae Yu, and coach Susanne Ivey, who earned the right to travel all the way to Qatar next March to compete in an intercontinental case competition being hosted by the College of the North Atlantic campus in that country. I am sure that will be a thrill and an honour for them.

The energy and effort that the students and coaches put into this competition went well beyond the intensive two-day period. They prepared for several weeks, team-building and honing their analytical and presentation skills.

On behalf of honourable members, I want to recognize the college for providing such opportunities for students to apply their skills and gain valuable practical experience. I congratulate the winning team, and applaud the professionalism, dedication, and commitment to excellence demonstrated by every student that participated. I know they will pursue the rest of their education and careers with the same vim and vigour they displayed in the competition, which certainly stands them and our province in very good stead.

2008 12 09 1:55 p.m.

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