The competition follows a round-robin format (where each team meets every other team), featuring seven engaging business cases. Open to elite business schools worldwide, this competition is recognized as the largest of its kind. Its mission is to foster collaboration between the corporate and academic worlds, providing invaluable learning experiences for students while delivering fresh perspectives to industry leaders.
Nine teams made it to the semifinals, and our LUSEM team was one of those. Erik Hollmann, Annika Horstmann, August Jörding and Fiona Kusche made up the LUSEM team together with Mats Urde, coach for the team.
We had the privilege of speaking with the team to learn about their insights and experiences participating in the case competition.
What was your overall impression of the John Molson MBA International Case Competition?
“It is tough to put in words. This competition is the world’s largest of its kind: 6 days, 30 teams, 15 countries, 1000+ attendees. It is nerve-wrecking, challenging, breathtaking and rewarding all at the same time. We got to meet people from all around the world, solved and presented one or sometimes even two cases per day, got to celebrate wins and had to deal with losses as a team, too”, Annika explains.
She continues:
“Besides the cases, we attended ice-breaker events, networking evenings, sponsor and doner fairs, ceremonies, and parties. We were basically busy from 7am until late at night, accompanied by a lot of adrenaline, nervousness and excitement. What we lived through was absolutely exceptional, a true highlight of our all academic journeys that will last a lifetime. If we could, we would do it all over again”, Annika says.
This competition is a rollercoaster and, as our coach Mats would say, not for the faint-hearted.
– Annika Horstmann
“This for sure has been one of the best things during my whole master studies, it is an incredible experience that is hard to describe. You learn so much so fast, there is immense stress and pressure but also immense reward. One of my absolute favorite moments of the competition was the live case for Air Canada which was presented to us by the COO. Later that evening we got 1-on-1 feedback and praise from a senior executive from the company who was very impressed with our presentation”, Erik says.
Training strategies
What kind of training did you do before traveling to the competition?
Fiona explains that the team had a learning by doing-strategy:
“The selection of team members was final at the end of October 2024. From then on, we met up multiple times a week to solve cases together – learning by doing. Since all of us were studying full time, we usually met up from 4pm to 10pm. Every training session included three hours of case solving, a 25-minute presentation, a 15-minute Q&A, and an in-depth discussion and analysis of what went well and what needs improvement. Our coach Mats Urde was there for almost every session but we also had guest coaches and judges joining us to challenge us even more and give additional input”.
Other interesting parts before the competition were the training camp in Mölle, visit to a company and LUSEM's own competition:
“In November, we participated in the LUSEM Case Competition, which portrayed a great practice opportunity for us, too. Besides, we spent a weekend away in Mölle where we solved three cases, were joined by a former Executive from Ikea, and simply had time to work on our progress even more intensely as a team. In December, we also had a meeting with Axel Urde, Manager at Simon-Kucher, who gave us additional insights on strategy from a consultant’s point of view. So, as you can imagine, we invested a lot of time and energy into the preparation to represent LUSEM as well as we possibly could in Montréal”, Fiona tells.
Would you like to share some advice for future participants?
“Enjoy every second of it, the tough and the rewarding moments! There will be moments of doubt and exhaustion, but you will be rewarded and grow in ways that you cannot even imagine. This experience is something that only a very few students get to live through. Make the most of it and give it your all. This competition is going to be a major milestone in your life!” Annika says.
Great resources to use for case learning are available, and Erik shares his best tips:
“There are so many resources out there on how to solve cases and you can even watch some of the presentations from the JMICC on their YouTube channel for inspiration. Try to structure how you approach a case and try to make the most of everyone’s abilities and strengths, because at the end of the day that is what will set you apart and a team is only as strong as its weakest link.”
Would there be any benefits of case training that you could use in your future studies? Or in a future job?
“Case solving is extremely useful for the future. The fact that you have to work and perform as a team, that you have to think critically, analytically and out of the box, that you have to present on the spot in front of a jury and an audience over and over again, that you have to push through every challenge. You are simply forced to leave your comfort zone all the time. And the beautiful thing about this is: this is exactly where growth happens”, August says.
“The skills that you develop during case training are vital in both your personal and professional life and will truly take you to the next level.”
– August Jörding
“Don't think twice, just sign up and embrace the process.”
For students interested in Case competition – what is your best advice to them?
“Go for it!” Annika says enthusiastically.
She continues:
“Don't think twice, just sign up and embrace the process. To be honest, three out of four team members of our team never solved cases before and we did not know what we were getting ourselves into. We can only encourage you to join the case academy or any similar initiative and get involved – no matter whether bachelor or master student, a lot or very little experience with cases. Face the challenge, enjoy the progress, and see where it takes you – who knows, maybe even to Montreal!”