Beedie BBAs continue run of success at JDC West

The 2015 Beedie School of Business JDC West Team.

Undergraduate students at the Beedie School of Business continued their recent run of success at the prestigious JDC West case competition, earning two gold medals and a total of three podium places in individual categories.

The Beedie JDC West team, led by co-captains Grace Yang and Jeremy Chao, took first place in both the Management of Information Systems and Human Resources categories, along with the silver medal in the Business Strategy competition.

JDC West is the largest student-run business case competition in Western Canada. This year’s competition, held from January 16 to 18 at the University of Victoria, featured 575 competitors from 11 top business schools going head to head across a range of disciplines, including academics, athletics, debates, and social pride.

“JDC West is such a rich and multifaceted experience for the competing students, and our team performance epitomized our Be More philosophy to the core – every team performed at an outstanding level and gave it their all,” says Casey Dorin, Executive Director of Undergraduate Programs at the Beedie School of Business. “I could not be prouder of our students, or the work being done by our faculty, alumni, community supporters and staff to facilitate their personal and professional development.”

Consisting of 52 undergraduate students, the Beedie team spent seven months preparing for the competition under the watch of co-head coaches and Beedie School of Business alumnae Erica Rizzo and Pam Hernandez, aided by a further 40 Beedie alumni coaches.

As well, over 38 volunteer judges from industry, along with 18 high school students and teachers helped prepare the team in a series of workshops, meetings and mock competitions, raising $5,000 for local charities and $45,000 in sponsorship in the process.

This year also saw the introduction of a program faculty advisor role, held by Beedie lecturer Christian Venhuizen, as well as the launch of a new development program, Competitors of Tomorrow, targeting first year Beedie students who intend to become JDC competitors in their senior years.

“JDC West transforms the undergraduate experience – it pushes students beyond their comfort zones, challenges them as leaders and competitors, heightens passion and pride in the Beedie community, and ultimately develops skills that are used everyday in the professional world,” explains co-head coach Erica Rizzo. “Connecting with students and watching them flourish in the competition is the best reward a coach could ask for.”

For more information on JDC West, visit http://jdcwest.org/