Peters School of Business Manitoba High School Case Competition

The competition originated in 2017 and was modelled from similar competitions in the neighbouring province of Saskatchewan. The Manitoba competition was initiated by Kyle Prevost and a handful of Manitoba business education teachers and supporting business communities.

A case competition is an event where teams of students are given a business case, which could be a business situation to analyze or a real-life project to complete. Teams are allotted a specific block of time to review the given scenario, brainstorm potential solutions, and assess the pros and cons of each option. After deciding on a course of action, they present their solution to a panel of industry judges.

It is important to remember that while case competitions have a formal competitive element, there is so much more to the overall experience for both students and teachers. Students can network with like-minded business-centric peers, and business educators will find no more valuable form of professional development. When industry, educators from all levels, and the bright young leaders of tomorrow get together to expand their business knowledge – the future is the real winner!

Teams consisting of three high school students can choose to compete in one of four categories: personal finance, entrepreneurship/design thinking, accounting and marketing. The morning (3 hours typically) will consist of teams analyzing and working on their business case or project. In the afternoon, teams present their work to a panel of judges.

Personal Finance

Step into the financial advisor role, analyzing a real-world financial scenario involving a young professional couple balancing debt repayment, savings, and investment decisions. With competing financial priorities and long-term goals to consider, you'll develop a strategic plan that optimizes their financial future. Teams will present an abbreviated financial plan to a panel of judges, demonstrating their understanding of budgeting, debt management, and investment strategies. The presentation will include a budget with recommended adjustments, debt repayment strategies, savings and investment recommendations, and justification for financial decisions and trade-offs. Following the presentation, teams will participate in a question-and-answer period with industry judges.

Are you ready to demonstrate your skills in budgeting, debt management, and investment strategies to help a young professional couple pave a way for a secure financial future?

Entrepreneurship and Design Thinking

Using your entrepreneurial mind, tackle a real-world challenge using Design Thinking—a problem-solving approach used by the world’s top innovators. Your team will be presented with a real-world problem that is impacting businesses or communities, and your goal for the day is to find a creative solution to the problem and bring that solution to life.

Teams will spend the morning using the design thinking process to generate outside-the-box solutions to a problem. They will assess the pros and cons of each solution, and once a single solution is selected, the rest of the morning will be spent building a business idea around that solution and preparing for a final presentation.

In the afternoon, teams will present their solution and process to a panel of judges, showcasing their understanding of problem identification, idea generation, and decision-making. The presentation will include an overview of the problem, key insights from brainstorming sessions, a breakdown of alternative solutions that were considered including pros and cons, and details around the final business idea. These details will include the target market, potential profitability, and other key elements typically found in an elevator pitch for a business idea. Teams are encouraged to support their pitch with compelling visuals such as sketches, digital layouts, mock-ups, storyboards, and other prototypes of their product or service.

Are you ready to think outside the box and create something impactful?

Accounting

Are you ready to put your accounting skills to the test in a thrilling and investigative way? Dive into the exciting challenge of reconciling a bank statement and uncover hidden clues and detect potential fraud. You will put your bank reconciliation skills to the test but also need to follow a trail of suspicious transactions, identify discrepancies, and solve the case. It's not just about numbers; it's about strategy, teamwork, and a dash of detective work!

Teams will present their findings to a panel of judges, sharing how they went about reconciling the bank statement and what they discovered along the way. The presentation will conclude with lessons learned and recommendations to avoid similar problems in the future. Following the presentation, teams will participate in a question-and-answer period with industry judges.

Are you ready to dive deep into the numbers, sharpen your detective skills, and uncover hidden discrepancies in business finances?

Marketing

Learn about and collaborate with a real-life local business to brainstorm creative and innovative ways for the business to promote itself to a desired target audience. Each team will receive detailed background information about a specific local business and will be scheduled for a virtual, one-on-one meeting with the business to gather additional information.

Using the case description and insights from the one-on-one meeting, teams will develop a promotional package to present to a panel of judges. The presentation will include a description of the marketing persona and target audience, an in-depth analysis of all promotional ideas considered (both digital and traditional) with pros and cons, a recommendation settling on three promotional ideas with rationale provided behind those choices, and an implementation plan and budget for the promotional package. Following the presentation, teams will participate in a question-and-answer period with industry judges.

Are you ready to collaborate with a real-life local business, unleash your creativity, and develop innovative promotional strategies to captivate a target audience?

Students will need to bring the following:

• Business clothing for the Wednesday evening banquet
• Business clothing for competition presentations
• Personal computing devices (wi-fi will be provided)
• Flash drive to backup files
• PowerPoint templates, either the team’s own slides or what has been provided on the MHSCC website.

General

• Business Case Competition for Beginners (.PPT)

Videos:

• Indian University, Kelley School of Business - 1st Place | Macy's Case Competition, 24mins
• University of Western's Ivey Case Competition Club Video - Tips to Succeed in Case Competitions, 48mins

Entrepreneurship

• Sample Entrepreneurship Case #1 (.PDF)
• Sample Entrepreneurship Case #2 (.PDF)
• Sample Template for Entrepreneurship (.PPT)
• Judging Rubric for Entrepreneurship (.PDF)

Videos:

• SBTA 2017 High School Business Case Competition - Entrepreneurship

Personal Finance

• Sample Personal Finance Case #1 (.PDF)
• Sample Personal Finance Case #2 (.PDF)
• Sample Template for Personal Finance (.PPT)
• Judging Rubric for Personal Finance (.PDF)

Videos:

• Saskatchewan Business Teachers' Association (SBTA) 2017 High School Business Case Competition Personal Finance Playlist

Lesson Plans:

• National Personal Finance Challenge Coach Toolkit

Case Studies:

• National Personal Finance Challenge Sample Case Studies