First-year BBA students wrap up BU111 with dynamic case competition

Dec. 16, 2022

By: Archana Jagannathan, first-year BBA/BSc Double Degree student 
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Along with tuition, rent, and other day-to-day expenses, university students often find themselves experiencing a lot of uncertainty, anxiety, and stress related to managing their personal finances. This recent trend, along with Generation Z’s increasing level of comfort with technology, provides fintech companies with an opportunity to better address their needs using their various products and services. As part of BU111: Understanding the Business Environment, a first-year course in the Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) program at the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics at Wilfrid Laurier University, students presented innovative solutions to one of Canada’s leading financial technology companies, Wealthsimple. 

BU111 is a required first-year course that gives students the opportunity to examine factors affecting internal and external business environments, develop critical thinking and analytical skills, and gain hands-on experience working through case studies.  

One of the first projects introduced in the course is the Company and Industry Insight Project (CIIP). During CIIP, students work in groups to research a company in a particular industry and recommend future success. Taking the skills acquired from this project along with a variety of lecture content and lab activities, students then participate in the Live Case Competition to wrap up their first university term.  

As a first-year BBA student currently enrolled in BU111, this was a critical learning experience in my academic career. The course allowed me to develop skills and make connections that I would not have had made. Although there are many students enrolled in BU111, the networking activities and weekly labs gave me an opportunity to form meaningful connections with my peers and to get involved in the school community. 

After CIIP, we were introduced to the Live Case Assignment. We created our own unique and innovative idea and were placed in groups fora joint recommendation.  

The Live Case Assignment provided me with valuable teamwork and leadership skills and allowed me to consider perspectives that were different from my own and build off my peers’ ideas. This experience has increased my interest in business as a career path and has and inspired me to participate in other case competitions and experiential learning opportunities offered at the Lazaridis School. As one of the first business classes I have taken, this course feels like a strong start to my personal and professional development. 

The first-round of Live Case presentations took place in our labs. Then, 48 teams advanced to the semi-finals, from which six teams moved on to the finals. Finalists presented to a panel of industry judges consisting of: 

• Srin Sridharan (BBA/BMath ’14) – Managing Partner, Thought. 
• Melissa Donato (BBA/BMath ’19) – Senior Manager, Strategic Insights, Loblaw 
• Natasha Saviuk - Senior Manager, Growth, Wealthsimple 
• Prity Naik (BBA ’21) - Specialist, Growth, Wealthsimple 
• Madi Fuller - Lead, Campus Recruitment & Early Talent Programs, Wealthsimple 
• Victoria Hartviksen (BBA/CS ’20) – Software Engineer 1, Wealthsimple 

Of the six finalist teams, the first group to present was 6 Consulting Group who proposed creating an investing community within the Wealthsimple platform to facilitate discussion about financial literacy, planning and investing, and to make students more self-sufficient. 

Next, the group Wealth Worldwide Consulting suggested introducing a stock simulator platform. The platform would target students based on their current field of study and allow them to learn more and eventually purchase stocks of companies related to that field.  

The third group, Team Plutus, suggested a partnership with Spotify, outlining how Wealthsimple could leverage Gen Z’s familiarity with the platform to introduce their own products and encourage engagement. 

Epsilon Consulting Group proposed that Wealthsimple create a Monopoly-style game where students would search for various QR codes across campus. Each code would tell the student more about a specific company, providing key information to educate players before making an investment. 

Phoenix Consulting recommended a model for customers to compete for rewards including cash, stocks, and crypto. The group felt this strategy would enable Wealthsimple to align with Gen Z’s competitive nature.  

Presentations concluded with the group BU Consulting, who suggested gamification to encourage Gen Z to engage with Wealthsimple products. They outlined how the gaming aspect would be complemented with lessons and learning apps for customers to expand their knowledge of financial concepts. 

After much contemplation, the judges awarded the first-place prize to BU consulting, whose team consisted of Britney Duong-Nguyen, Xiao Yang Yu, Danela Zaya, Arnav Cheema, and Jin Feng Cao. 

“A live case challenges students with the realities of the workplace - they must understand the problem, conduct good research, and formulate a feasible solution that will create competitive advantage for the company,” said Sofy Carayannopoulos, Lazaridis associate professor and BU111 course coordinator.  “It's messy and hard but brings the real world into the class from the first day students arrive on campus.  To my knowledge, only the Lazaridis School challenges and creates unique but real learning for first-year students in this way.” 

Several finalists shared their experiences participating in this competition, stating that it a good opportunity to play the role of consultants and apply their course content to real life scenarios. They also remarked that it was an incredible way to develop their interpersonal skills by working with peers.  

The Lazaridis School would like to thank Wealthsimple for participating in this invaluable learning experience. Learn more about the Lazaridis Bachelor of Business Administration program here.