Lazaridis team wins first place at business competition in Ireland

Feb. 12, 2020

A team of undergraduate business students from Wilfrid Laurier University’s Lazaridis School of Business and Economics won first place in Dublin, Ireland at a competition hosted by the Technological University, Dublin (TU Dublin). They earned the top spot for their recommendations for Irish whisky company, Tullamore D.E.W., who asked students to assess the value of adding a new product. The solution identified the ideal target market for this new product, as well as campaign strategy and tactics that could be used to reach that market.

“In three short hours the team put together a solution that was insightful, innovative and aligned with company capabilities and market trends. The judges were impressed with the solution but also the fact that in three hours our team had managed to deliver analysis that was exactly how the company understood the industry and market. The judges also commented on how engaging, relaxed and clear the presentation was,” said Faculty Coach Sofy Carayannopoulos, associate professor of policy at the Lazaridis School.

Undergraduate Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) students Megan Corbett, Leanne Hirabayashi, Kathryn Porretta, and Angela Zhou were accompanied by Carayannopoulos. This is the first time the Lazaridis School has attended the TU Dublin competition. Seven participating schools from seven countries competed, including University of South Carolina, University of Technology Sydney, and Rotterdam Business School to name a few.

“All four of us who competed are also part of the JDCC team and were able to utilize the skills we have gained from that course to prepare for this competition,” said Hirabayashi. “Case competitions, whether international or at JDCC have been a great learning opportunity on how to analyze, develop solutions and structure issues that businesses face, and have given us a platform to apply concepts that we learn in school to real problems.”