Students present unique solutions to launch SoundsUnite at ICE Spring 2023

Aug. 3, 2023

Third-year Bachelor of Business administration (BBA) students came to impress the audience and judges at the Spring 2023 Integrated Case Exercise (ICE) at the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics and Wilfrid Laurier University. ICE asks students to pull from all the functional areas of business to present a business solution to a real-world problem a company is facing right now. The competition has been putting students to the test for more than 40 years and is a key requirement of the Lazaridis BBA.

This term’s case company was Audioworks Inc. Made up of a team of music educators, audio software and engineering professionals, producers and musicians, their app, SoundsUnite, offers a variety of features that allow aspiring musicians to create music, distribute it and to easily collaborate with others in the process.

With a passion for growing the Canadian music industry, a recognition of how that industry has changed in recent decades, and a focus on collaborative recording, high-quality lessons, and supporting new artists, Audioworks asked students to evaluate the SoundsUnite app as it exists and recommend a go-to-market strategy that includes target market and partnership recommendations, and monetization opportunities.

Students were tasked with applying the business knowledge they have gained through their Lazaridis BBA to develop and present their unique solutions. Teams provided in-depth alternatives, recommendations, and their implementation plans.

After preliminary rounds of competitions, four teams were chosen to be finalists, presenting to a panel of AudioWorks judges:

• Gil Moore, Founder and CEO, MetalWorks
• Brian Huston, Co-Founder and CEO, AudioWorks
• Craig McDonald, President, MetalWorks Institute

“I want to thank all the finalist teams for some impressive presentations. Making it through the semi-finals to the finals is a feat and you should all be proud,” BBA program director, Chima Mbagwu told the students before introducing Moore to announce the winners.

Congratulations to each of the finalist teams (in presentation order):

• Team 65 – Adam Bounsall​, Ajay Groves​, Victoria Lin​, Mukund Rana​, Anna Vo
• Team 52 – Adam Eldridge​, Ji Soo Kim​, Sarah Noor​, Chloe Snider
• Team 100 – Nolan Dunbar​, Nathalie Keunen​, Alex Nagy​, Gurjit Singh
• Team 61 – Celine Chung​, Luke Jansz​, Liam McKelvey​, Mia Sawma​, Michael Ye 

A commonality between the teams was the use or introduction of more gamification within the application. Either using animated characters, like Duolingo or with the use of exciting sounds and eye-catching animations.

There were some differences between each team’s target audience and marketing plans. Team 100 targeted aspiring musicians, and Team 61 targeted younger music enthusiasts. Team 65 suggested a music creation contest, and Team 52 would hire low and mid-tier influencers.

The judges were encouraged to ask difficult questions after the presentations, and they did not hold back. The teams were asked a variety of questions related to music education, social impact, AI in the music industry, revenue streams and more. Even with these diverse questions all the teams were well prepared to answer the questions that came their way.

Before announcing the winning team Moore said “All of the teams impressed us with their recommendations, and we could really see the amount of preparation that each of you put in. It was a really difficult decision to pick just one team to name as the winner, which is a testament to what is being done here and what work you are all doing”.

The winning team - team 100 -  encouraged SoundUnite to include a total of four pillars in their goals and in the application. The newer one being a Connect feature that would allow users to see nearby gigs, people to collaborate with and live events.

Each of the students on the winning team expressed personal music interests and skill, on top of being Lazaridis students.  From playing the drums to being classically trained in singing, this team does it all.

Congratulations to all of those who participated and to those who made it to the semi-finals. A special congratulations goes out to the teams in the finals, teams 65, 52, 100, and 61 and especially to the winners – Team 100!