From coast to coast – 33 teams to compete in the 10th Vanier College BDC Case Challenge

Montreal, January 30, 2015. Thirty three top-notch teams from across Canada  will  face-off against one another in the hopes of winning a medal at the Vanier College BDC Case Challenge, February 6-8, 2015. Now in its tenth year, the Vanier event has become Canada’s biggest and most prestigious, bilingual collegiate marketing competition with contestants hailing from British Columbia to Newfoundland.

“Reaching our 10th year anniversary is something we are truly proud of,” says David Moscovitz, Case Challenge organizer. “We started this event with three local colleges in our student cafeteria. Today with the tremendous support from so many different people we have, in only 10 years, made this 2-day event one of the most elite competitions at the college level in Canada.”

During a case competition students, in teams of three, are isolated for three hours to analyze a business problem they have never seen before, create a Power Point presentation then present a realistic marketing plan in front of a panel of judges. The competitors are graded on the value and practicality of their proposed solutions, along with the quality of their presentation styles.  Students can present in English or in French.

Judges this year include: Bryan Barbieri, Concordia University; Carolyn Di Murro, Eptix Electronics; Giovanni Di Girolamo, McGill University/HEC; Constantina Ioannou, Scotiabank; Wendy Keller, Concordia University; Chris  Ross, Concordia University; Real Chabot, CIM; Roy Toffoli, UQAM; Dave Stratton, Nelson Education; Kevin Gardner Gregory, Distributel Communications; Alexandra Mohsen, National Bank; Stephanie Etco, BDC; Bruno Delorme, Marionapolis College; Vincent Georgie, University of Windsor; Jane Somerville, BDC.

Round One of the 2015 competition will take place on Saturday, February 7, 2015, at the Marriott Courtyard Hotel (Montreal Airport), 7000 Place Robert-Joncas, (514-339-5333). Presentations begin at 10:00 AM and run until 5:00 PM on Saturday. Because of the large number of participants, there will be three theatres of eleven presentations on Saturday. That evening, the top two teams from each of the three theatres will be announced at a gala dinner at 7:00 PM. These top six teams will then go on to compete Sunday morning, February 8, 2015, following which, an awards luncheon will take place.

The colleges and cegeps signed up this year are Cégep André-Laurendeau, Collège Lionel‐Groulx, Cégep régional de Lanaudière à Joliette, Champlain College, St‐Lambert, Collège Édouard‐Montpetit, Dawson College, John  Abbott College, Vanier College, Collège Rosemont, Collège Ahuntsic, Cégep de Victoriaville, Collège Montmorency, Collège de Valleyfield and Collège Bois-de-Boulogne from Québec; Algonquin College, Durham College, George Brown College, Humber College, Mohawk College, Niagara College, Seneca College, Sheridan College, St Lawrence College - Cornwall, St Lawrence College - Kingston, and St. Clair College of Applied Arts and Technology, from Ontario; Red River College from Manitoba; SAIT Polytechnic from Alberta; Camosun College, Okanagan College and Acsenda School of Management from British Columbia; New Brunswick Community College, St. John, New Brunswick; Nova Scotia Community College from Nova Scotia; College of the North Atlantic from Newfoundland.

The Business Development of Canada is the principal sponsor of the Case Challenge.

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For information please contact:

Marguerite Corriveau, Vanier Communications 514-744-7500 ext. 7596 marguerite.corriveau@vaniercollege.qc.ca