First-Year BBA students share what it's like to take part in the Lazaridis Live Case experience

Nov. 29, 2019

The BU111 Live Case finals took place on Saturday, Nov. 16 at Wilfrid Laurier University's Lazardis School of Business and Economics when six finalist teams presented their ideas to executives from HP Canada. This year’s case asked students to identify new printing products, partnerships, programs or incentives that HP could provide to position itself as the printing provider of choice and increase the value of printing for younger generations.

The annual Live Case Competition is an integral part of the BU111 course 'Understanding the Business Environment'. The competition is the culmination of a course assignment, where students in their first term of the BBA program get the opportunity to consult on a real problem faced by a real company. 

"This was a tough case. The problem and the research truly challenged both the thinking and the creativity of the students.  As always, I was incredibly impressed by the professionalism and quality of their solutions and presentations. If this is where they are beginning, I can only imagine what these students will accomplish in four years." said Sofy Carayannopoulos, associate professor of policy and course coordinator for BU111. 

This year's finalist teams were asked about their experience and here’s what they had to say:  

How was your first university live case experience?

“My first experience in a university live case competition was exhilarating. Having competed in business case competitions throughout high school, the ability to work with issues directly related to a huge company such as HP, and having the opportunity to then present our recommendations to HP executives really just solidified the amazing opportunities Laurier has to offer. All of the competitors had such strong ideas and presentations.  I truly felt proud to be a golden hawk.”
– Cynthia Mirandola

“It was such an amazing learning experience and I felt that it really helped me apply in-class concepts to a real, tangible case. It also motivated me to actively engage in learning about business and related concepts.”
– Shi Han Qin

“My first university live case experience was very rewarding and an amazing learning experience all around. Although It required a number of late nights and a lot coffee, I feel as though this experience has definitely set us up for success moving forward, as there will be many more case competitions to come in the next 3 years.”
– Adam White

“My first university live case experience was simply unreal. Truthfully, we never thought that we would make it to semis, and even more, make it to finals. Every time we moved on, we were shocked, but I worked with an amazing team and it was nice to see our hard work pay off. I found that the team members were like-minded and driven, just like myself, which was not an experience I often got in high school. I also felt that the case competition allowed me to learn more than in a classroom, as learning by doing is, in my opinion, the best possible experience to have.”
– Grace Bilodeau

How did having the case company involved in the presentation and evaluation impact your experience?

“I think that having the case company involved in the presentation and evaluation thereof made the experience feel much more realistic and made it feel like our case could have a real impact in the world.”
– Min-Kyu Lee

“Having such a well-respected tech company sponsoring this competition really applied the right amount of pressure on me. I see HP as a very influential corporation, so being able to look at some of their real-world problems made me feel like I could someday make an impact of their scale. That pressure definitely motivated me and my teammates to go above and beyond to give our best work.”
– Tailai Wang

“Having the case company involved led me to do additional research and it also forced me to consider real-life complications and risks. It made me more aware and considerate about all the details that need to be included in a recommendation, so it greatly enriched the entire experience. The types of questions they asked were very realistic and relevant, so it was a nice contrast to my usual, hypothetical and theory based classes.”
– Shi Han Qin

“Having the case company fully immersed in the project, through the Q&A session as well as judging the finals, made this experience all the more valuable. Whenever we were struggling with an aspect of the assignment or just stressed out in general, it helped to remember that we are not only doing this for the marks but also for the opportunity to help a real company with a real problem that they are facing. It was also a way to begin networking and demonstrating the skills we possess to a potential employer.”
– Adam White

How would you describe the case experience to someone who hasn’t done it before?

“Simply put, it is a roller coaster. It has its ups and downs and requires a lot of hard work. However, if you are willing to put in the work, it will be a great learning experience and an excellent introduction to the case competition scene.”
– Dhruv Shah

“As an international student from a Chinese high school, I would prefer to describe to the international friends: in the beginning, please take this seriously. Don’t think that you cannot do well just because you are a taking English as a second language – everyone can do well with enough practice. In my normal life, I still have problems communicating with people here, but in practicing my presentation many, many times, I could speak naturally for my part of presentation in the front of the executives of HP Canada. Do believe in yourself and just make it!”
– Xiyin Luo

“Case competitions are an intense, exciting experience that enabled us to apply what we have learned thus far in our business studies while feeling that we have the ability to make a real impact in a huge corporation. It is empowering to first-year students who are still finding our ways at Laurier and really solidifies that what we learn in the classroom really will make an impact in the real world.”
– Cynthia Mirandola

“In my opinion, although potentially stressful and overwhelming at times, the live case experience is the best way to grow as a business student. It allows you to apply all of the knowledge learned in lectures to a real-world problem, which is exactly what you will be doing as you move into the workforce. Not only that but it allows you to show off your creative side and come up with an interesting way to solve a seemingly straightforward problem. Overall, case competitions provide students with a different, yet applicable learning experience which will definitely set them up for success moving forward.”
– Adam White

Do you have any advice for future Live Case participants?

“Get creative and excited. It is such an amazing opportunity to practice speaking to significant individuals in a multimillion-dollar corporation and is such a great opportunity to grow as a first-year student. Be creative and be willing to step outside of your comfort zone both with your recommendation itself and your presentation. Be reasonable with what a company will actually be willing to do, but don’t be shy to be remarkable.”
– Cynthia Mirandola

“I would definitely tell future participants to be creative and to go with their instincts. As BBA students, trusting your intuition will prove to be an invaluable asset. But at the same time, remember to practice hard to be able to stay calm and collected when presentation time comes.”
– Tailai Wang 

“Do not enter the case competition with any expectations. Every team has worked to be there, every strategy has its pros and its cons. Put in your best effort and hope for the best. Even if you don’t go to semis or finals, you’ll know where you can improve, and also know that you did the best you could.”
– Grace Bilodeau 

“Be unique. Every company has teams of people constantly searching for new ways to grow; they have already considered all of the safe options. Find the idea they haven’t thought of and sell it with confidence!”
– Adam White

What was your favourite part of this experience? 

“My favourite part of the experience has to be the opportunity to speak directly to HP’s representatives, and to hear their feedback and questions on our presentation. It made the entire experience of the case from lab to finals real.”
– Kaiya Daly

“My favourite part of this experience was the members of my group.  They were always hard working, confident, and strong and to be able to work with and present with them was truly a pleasure.  They were always accommodating and striving and without the other members, I would have never had the great opportunity to experience what I was able to experience.  Thank you, members of the D01 HP Case group.”
– Min-Kyu Lee

“My favorite part of the experience was truly the excitement and energy that was felt during both finals and semi-finals. The adrenaline before presenting, the ability to witness amazing presentations and the proximity to remarkable ideas was truly such an amazing opportunity. Being surrounded by the intelligent minds of my peers really made the experience all the more significant.”
– Cynthia Mirandola

“My favourite part of the experience was definitely standing on stage in LH1001 in front of my family and peers. Being in front of that crowd and taking questions from the judging panel kept me on my toes, and I felt this wave of energy throughout the entire presentation. It was a fantastic afternoon overall!”
– Tailai Wang

The Judges

Thank you to all of this year's judges who made this such an incredible experience for our students. Their knowledge, expertise, enthusiasm and thoughtful questions provide an important aspect to the case exercise.

Tara Buddo, Category Business Manager, Home and Home Office Printing, HP Canada

Kim Tanner, Category Business Manager, Home and Home Office Printing, HP Canada

Jude Fernandez (BBA '07, BMath '07), Category Business Manager, Supplies, HP Canada

Mike Grantis (BBA '16), Regional Director of Business Development, BarterPay

Leigh-Anne Graham, VP of Marketing and Digital Channel Solutions, Pearson 

The results

1st Place

HP Smart Green Point Reward System
Team Members: Kaiya Daly, Min-Kyu Lee, Xiyin (Terrance) Luo, Cynthia Mirandola, Dhruv Shah

Recommendation: To implement a rewards system and app that allows consumers to track their personal contributions to sustainability initiatives and learn more about what HP is doing around the world. Consumers will accumulate points through purchases and product usage, and once a certain level of points are earned, HP will plant a tree and the consumer will earn an discount towards a future purchase.

Prize: $750 to each group member 

2nd Place 

HP SmartFax
Team Members: Rahma Gillan, Shi Han Qin, Brayden Royston, Lailai Wang

Recommendation: To develop the HP SmartFax file sharing system into existing wireless HP printers, allowing users to share and print documents around the world when a user connected to the receiving device accepts via push notification.

Prize: $650 to each group member

3rd Place

HP Pocket Photo Printer
Team Members: Grace Bilodeau, Kyle Feeney, Daeha Jang, Adam White

Recommendation: To redesign the existing HP Sprocket to a phone-case size, mobile photo printer on the go – allowing users to instantaneously print high quality photos right from their phone.  

Prize: $500 to each group member

Finalists

The finalist recommendations captured the concept of “print to cherish” and included the development of small, portable printers, including one with a “live photo” option using lenticular printing technology. The student presentations were thoughtful, professional, and well-received by the judges. Congratulations to the finalist teams. 

Prize: $350 to each group member

HP Slide
Team Members: Angelina Cheng, Sean Cornelius, Inbar Eshel, Owais Soomro, Lydia Wang 

HP Live Photo Printer
Team Members: Benjamin Carr, Hubert Guan, Joshua Solomon, Rachel Turner, Steven Yeh 

HP Fiesta
Team Members: Obi Iherjirika, Andrew Jackson, Pavan Kumar Rajaguru, Davis Li, Claire Plese

About the BU111 Live Case Competition

The Live Case Competition is an annual event that involves all first-year students in the BBA program’s core course, BU111 – Understanding the Business Environment. The project simulates consulting thinking and approaches. It addresses a real problem, faced by a real company that requires students to identify, research and present feasible solutions. It builds research, writing, critical thinking and presentation skills.

Each year students are presented with a new company and a current issue the company is trying to resolve. The company meets with the students at the end of September for a question and answer session so that students can ask for clarification or additional information that they would like after having read the case write-up and done some preliminary thinking and research.

The project has three phases: 

1. An individual written report.
2. An in-lab group presentation that requires students to critically compare their individual recommendations and determine what they would like to present to the company.
3. A competition phase: Presentations are selected to advance to semi-finals and ultimately six teams are chosen to present in the finals to the company and outside judges.

The company engages with the students to provide them with this experience and provides financial awards to the finalist teams.