Students Compete For Winning Strategies

AUTHOR: Deborah Tarrant   DATE: 01.09.05   ISSUE 2, 2005

A team of six talented strategists from AGSM's full-time MBA program (Class of 2006) were the first runners-up in this year’s Boston Consulting Group Strategy Competition.

The competition not only offers students a chance to strut their strategic thinking and analytical skills in a fast-paced, rigorous forum with similarities to a real consulting environment. It also creates an interface between students and the consulting sector, the preferred career destination for many business school graduates.

“The AGSM team result is testament to their focus and dedication, immense talent, superb team skills and expert coaching.” Sharyn Roberts

A total of 55 teams from 36 universities participated across both undergraduate and postgraduate divisions in the event which is increasing in size and dynamism each year, according to sponsors, the international consulting firm, The Boston Consulting Group (BCG). The strategy competition has been run by the University of New South Wales Commerce and Economics Society since 1991.

Judging panels at this year’s event commented on the impressive abilities showcased at the finals held at UNSW on September 28. Judges in the undergraduate section were Mike Pratt (Group Executive, Business and Consumer Banking, Westpac), Peter Tonagh (CFO, Foxtel) and Andrew Cornell (Senior Financial Journalist AFR), and in the post-graduate division Grant Fenn (Executive General Manager, Qantas), Gene Tilbrook (Finance Director, Wesfarmers), Sandra McPhee (Independent Director on boards of a number of organizations including Coles Myer and the Art Gallery of NSW ), and Tom von Oertzen (BCG VP).

In announcing the final decision for the post-graduate section, Sandra McPhee indicated the judges had a hard time choosing between the eventual winner, the University of Western Australia, and AGSM.

“The AGSM team result is testament to their focus and dedication, immense talent, superb team skills and expert coaching,” remarked Sharyn Roberts, the head of AGSM Awards programs following this year’s competition.

Coached by Professor Jeremy Davis and Dr Shayne Gary, the AGSM competitors were full-time MBA students Emma Weston, Ben Hutt, Tom Gleeson, Mark Williams, Richard Tanner and Danny French who, in the final round, took up the very topical challenge of developing a strategy for the introduction of new voice technology to the call centre of an Indian bank. Teams were asked to evaluate the impact of the technology on costs, customers and employees and to recommend an appropriate course of action.

In the regional section of the competition held in July, the AGSM team had shaped up to the task of identifying a new market entry strategy for a soft drinks manufacturer, winning the NSW/ACT division while Macquarie Graduate School of Management was runner up. AGSM has won the national final (postgraduate division) three times since the competition's inception.

This competition is tough, explained Tom von Oertzen, a Vice President of BCG as he summarised the judges’ opinions at this year’s finals.

Teams of up to six members are given just three-hours to read, analyse around 30 pages of written material on a case and devise a hypothetical strategy which must be delivered as a convincing and credible 10-minute presentation to the judges, followed by 10 minutes of judges’ questions.

The thought processes, teamwork and presentation skills required in the competition are relevant to a real consulting environment, von Oetzen said.

“With no idea of the type of complex problem we’d be asked to work on, our aim was to be flexible and able to cover whatever case was presented." Emma Weston

This year’s AGSM team was self-selected and opted for diversity with members coming from a range of backgrounds offering various strengths, according to Emma Weston, a lawyer who has worked as a senior manager in agribusiness. Team leader Danny French brought to the event strong experience in management consultancy shared with Ben Hutt who also previously ran his own manufacturing business; these worked cohesively with Richard Tanner’s background in accountancy, Mark Williams in IT implementation and the fast strategic thinking of Tom Gleeson, a former RAAF fighter pilot.

“With no idea of the type of complex problem we’d be asked to work on, our aim was to be flexible and able to cover whatever case was presented,” says Weston, although she says the team members did not determine their roles until seeing the problem on the day.

“Good time management is crucial,” says French. “On the day, specific responsibilities are assigned to get the job done in such limited time, and our team performance improved with each round.”

Both Weston and French say the course work for the MBA helped with the ability to dissect and analyse competition cases and to present a compelling argument in the finals, and in the lead up to these events.

AGSM students compete to represent the school in the competition with the process led internally by the students’ Consulting Club. Almost all of the Class of 2006 MBA students competed to be part of the team. Three teams made it to AGSM’s internal "decider" and the judges, led by Professor Jeremy Davis, concluded that even at this early stage the decision was difficult.

Beyond honing their strategy skills in a wider environment, students are vying for the opportunity to take part in the competition because it offers the chance to expand their networks and, for some, the possibility of job opportunities. A recent survey of 2,800 MBA students at 37 leading international business schools conducted by academic consulting firm Universum showed management consultancy to be the first employment choice.

"Good time management is crucial. On the day, specific responsibilities are assigned to get the job done in such limited time, and our team performance improved with each round." Danny French

While the competition is a highly effective profile raising exercise for BCG across Australian and New Zealand universities, recruitment is a key motivation for the consulting group’s involvement, confirmed BCG associate Melinda Roylett. BCG took over sponsorship of the event from Andersen Consulting four years ago. Testament to the power of the competition to identify talent, at least four associates or consultants currently working at BCG are previous strategy competition participants.

“The competition gives participants insights into the world of management consulting. The cases competitors are asked to work through are intellectually challenging and not sugar-coated,” Roylett says. “It provides the chance for students to explore consulting as a career and to meet people who are already working in that area.”

Not all participants are from business schools. Students from any discipline can enter. Previous participants have come from diverse backgrounds such as engineering, law, computer science, arts, mining and commerce.

Beyond creating the strategy-based case studies, BCG provides competing teams with training materials including some of the latest thinking on management, as well as problem solving and case study tools.

BCG consultants also offer coaching and mentoring on analysis, presentation skills and slide writing to finalist teams. While the consulting group gives the incentive of prize money and covers team travel, the driver for the growing number of participants, insisted Roylett, is to widen their experience.