Singapore Management University students have triumphed in the global final of an international competition for future business leaders in Poland.
SMU’s Tueur Consulting, were crowned champions at the CIMA Global Business Challenge (GBC) 2015 on August 7, beating 25 other talented teams from around the world.
The contest, into its seventh year, is run by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, in partnership with Barclays.
Samuel Tan, Feng Luwei and Han Meng Siew who are in their third year of studies as well as final year undergraduate Tan Jhun Boon made up the team called ‘Tueur Consulting’. They flew to Warsaw after winning the national final in June to represent Singapore.
At the global final they presented a business case which was assessed by a panel of industry expert judges from organisations across the globe including Barclays, Deloitte, Shell and CIMA.
The GBC is an international competition designed to bring out the best in potential young business leaders and provide them with the opportunity to showcase their talent on a global platform.
The team initially beat more than 30 teams to become Singapore champions, then outshone over 14,000 international students to emerge as global champions at the GBC in Poland.
Other competing countries and regions included Australia; Bangladesh; China; Ghana; Hong Kong; India; Indonesia; Ireland; Malaysia; the Middle East; Nepal; New Zealand; Pakistan; the Philippines; Poland; Russia; Singapore; South Africa; Sri Lanka; Vietnam and Zambia.
On discovering they had been awarded top prize, Tueur Consulting’s team leader Samuel Tan who is pursuing a double degree in accountancy and business said: ‘This experience has been incredible. We came to the global finals with the intention of bringing home the first champions’ trophy for Singapore’s Golden Jubilee. We are thrilled that we have succeeded!’
Feng, another double-degree undergraduate (BAcc & BMM (Finance)) recalled the nerve-racking moments in the final hours of the competition. ‘We were given a case scenario and were instructed to come up with solutions to be laid out in a 20-slide for a 15-minute presentation within a couple of hours! I relied heavily on what I have learned in the last two years as a member of SMU’s business case club, Cognitare, to develop a concise and conclusive structure that was logical and simple to follow. I am so glad we managed to put forth a convincing case!’
Although the pressure was intense, the team believed that the camaraderie among themselves and their individual experience in such competitions helped tremendously. “The four of us have worked together on multiple occasions prior to the CIMA GBC, and hence, we are familiar with one another’s working and presentation styles. This synergy allowed us to prepare our presentation quickly, and then delivering it tandem-style very smoothly,’ said Han who is undertaking a double degree in business and economics.
Fourth-year business student Tan, who majors in finance and analytics expressed his gratitude to SMU.
‘SMU has provided us a holistic education, and along with it international exposure and many opportunities to gain the experience that helped us win this competition. Learning both in and out of the classroom, equipped us with diverse and invaluable skill sets,’ he said.
Professor Cheng Qiang, Dean of SMU School of Accountancy concluded: “My heartiest congratulations to Samuel and his team members! Our students have been rewarded as worthy winners for all the hard work they have put into this global competition. Such an experiential learning activity gave them a great opportunity to work as a team efficiently and effectively, and tackle real-world business cases within a very short time. I am very proud of their exceptional performance and would like to thank Assistant Professor Yuanto Kusnadi who has given considerable amount of time and energy to guide the SMU team towards attaining this fantastic achievement on the world stage!”
The winning team received the champion’s trophy and an Apple Watch for each team member.
Runners-up for the overall title came from Asian universities namely the Sardar Patel Institute of Technology in India and the De La Salle University in the Philippines.
[Featured photo: (From left) SMU students Tan Jhun Boon, Samuel Tan Hin Thye, Han Meng Siew and Feng Luwei winning the top prize at the international CIMA Global Business Challenge 2015 in Warsaw, Poland. They beat 25 teams from across the globe to clinch Singapore’s first victory at the seventh edition of the prestigious competition.] (Photo credit: CIMA)
