Students from once again showed they are among the best in the country, notching three podium finishes 鈥� including a first-place and two runner-up finishes 鈥� at Canada鈥檚 oldest and most prestigious case competition.
For fourth-year Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) student Madison Blancher, the path to competing at the Inter-Collegiate Business Competition (I.C.B.C.) at Queen鈥檚 University became clear when she and her teammate Adrianna Knuth advanced through a challenging preliminary round in November.
The pair didn鈥檛 rest on their laurels after becoming finalists, however, and in the weeks that followed they spent countless hours preparing for the competition, with one goal in mind: winning.
Their preparation paid off. The duo from Okanagan College, coached by Dr. Robert Groves and Roger Wheeler of the OC School of Business, took first place in the Human Resources category, besting finalists from Simon Fraser University, Concordia University, McGill University, Saint Mary鈥檚 University and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
鈥淲e were definitely nervous going up against the best business students in the country and internationally,鈥� says Blancher. 鈥淏ut the level of support we received from our coaches was incredible. We couldn鈥檛 have done it without their knowledge and expertise.鈥�
鈥淲e were ecstatic when the results came in,鈥� adds Knuth. 鈥淭he best part about studying business at OC is that you have real-world opportunities like this to push yourself beyond your comfort zone 鈥� it鈥檚 the best way to learn.鈥�
Blancher and Knuth weren鈥檛 the only ones celebrating as Okanagan College recorded one of its best ever showings in the competition.
The Accounting team comprised of BBA students Kyla Bernardo and Kirsten Pitzoff placed second (coached by Adrian Fontenla and Randy Newton), as did the Management of Information Systems (MIS) duo of Jared Hubner and Anthony Peterson (coached by Dr. Glen Coulthard).
The Debate team (coached by David Cram and Devin Rubadeau) also put in a strong effort, although they failed to crack the top three.
鈥淎ll of us at the School of Business are extremely proud of our students who competed and the professors who volunteered as coaches,鈥� says Dr. Heather Banham, Dean of Okanagan College鈥檚 School of Business.
鈥淭hese amazing results speak to the effort, dedication and commitment of both the students and professors. They all represented Okanagan College and themselves with professionalism and poise on a competitive, international stage.鈥�
The Inter-Collegiate Business Competition (I.C.B.C.) is Canada鈥檚 oldest and longest-running undergraduate business case competition.
There are eight different categories in which students can compete, including Accounting, Business Policy, Ethics, Debating, Finance, Human Resources, Marketing, and Management of Information Systems.
Held annually in Kingston, the event hosts more than 100 competitors from leading business schools across Canada and around the world.
鈥淚 came away from the competition with so much more confidence in myself and my abilities,鈥� says Blancher. 鈥淚 know that will carry forward into future competitions and my career.鈥�
Blancher and Knuth are back in class this week, but both are already focused on their next challenges.
The pair has been invited to participate in HRC West, Western Canada鈥檚 top HR Case Competition, in Vancouver in early March. Both students will graduate this year, Blancher with a BBA with a specialty in Human Resources and Knuth with a BBA Honours degree, specializing in Human Resources (which she is on track to complete in just three years).
Even before graduation, Blancher鈥檚 career in HR has already taken off. She currently works full-time as a Junior Human Resources Advisor at KF Aerospace, while finishing her last four classes this semester at Okanagan College.
More information about the competition is available
