Team from Case’s Weatherhead School of Management is finalist in Thunderbird Global Innovation Challenge
Solution for business problem pushes Case team past 240 other entries
November 16, 2004 | For more information: Jeff Bendix (216)-368-6070
 A team of students from Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management will compete in the final rounds of the world’s largest business school competition.
The Case team is one of 10 finalists in the 2004 Thunderbird Global Innovation Challenge. The finalists were winnowed from 251 entries representing 81 MBA programs from around the world. The last round of judging will take place November 18-20 in Phoenix, home of Thunderbird, The Garvin School of International Management. The winning team receives a prize of $20,000.
Each of the participating teams was assigned to a business problem posed by one of five of the companies sponsoring the competition. The initial round of entrants was narrowed to 50, or 10 for each problem. The top two teams for each of those problems were invited to the finals. The Case team’s assignment was from the appliance manufacturer Sunbeam.
“We’re very excited about making the finals,” said Elliot Reed, who is in the third year of pursuing a joint JD/MBA degree. “We put a lot of work into our proposal and it was gratifying to come out ahead of some of the better-known schools in the competition such as Yale and Kellogg.”
The final round will consist of two parts. In the first part all 10 teams will develop solutions to a problem posed by the hotel company Hilton. Five of those teams will be chosen to advance to the second part, proposing a solution to a problem faced by the automotive products company Valvoline. The Case team is preparing by conducting market research on the companies’ products and services.
Reed said the team is also developing some innovative methods for presenting their plans to the judges, such as in the form of a skit. “We’re trying to do something different from the standard power point presentation that will allow our team to stand out,” he explained.
Information about the competition is available at http://www.innovationchallenge.net/.
About Case Western Reserve University
Case is among the nation's leading research institutions. Founded in 1826
and shaped by the unique merger of the Case Institute of Technology and Western
Reserve University, Case is distinguished by its strengths in education, research,
service, and experiential learning. Located in Cleveland, Case offers nationally
recognized programs in the Arts and Sciences, Dental Medicine, Engineering,
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