Marketing

Algonquin Business Students Win GOLD at the 2013 Vanier College BDC Case Challenge

Algonquin College Team members (from second to the left) Andrew Thomson, Coach Bill Garbarino, Tara Sisson, and Jenna Collins. Photo Courtesy of Vanier Foundation.

On February 9th and 10th, 28 colleges from across Canada met at Vanier College in Montreal to compete in the 8th annual Vanier College BDC Case Competition.

This event is for Marketing and Management students and Algonquin College has always been a strong performer with a track record of one gold, 2 silver, and 2 bronze medals. This year’s team consisted of three Business – Management and Entrepreneurship students: Jennamarie Collins, Tara Sisson, and Andrew Thomson. Professors Bill Garbarino and Ian Anderson coached the team.

On the first day of the competition, the teams are split into three divisions. Each team is given a business case to solve. Teams are in “isolation” for 3 hours to solve the case (industry assessment, company assessment, core problem determination, target market decision and positioning, strategic alternative assessment, recommendation, marketing mix tactics to support the recommendation, financials, and implementation plan).

Each team then delivers a 20 minute presentation + 5 minute Q&A with a panel of 3-4 judges. The presentation is also in front of an audience comprised of industry people, faculty and staff from the various Colleges, other competitors who’ve completed their presentations. At the end of the day the judges identify the top two teams from each division who will move on to the medal round. On Sunday the top six teams address a brand new case, follow the same procedures, and deliver their presentations.

The Algonquin students had outstanding performances on both days. The judges noted their professionalism and enthusiasm. They presented strategic alternatives to solve the core problem and their marketing mix tactics were both practical and creative. Their financials and ROI calculations were exceptional. The team also had excellent interactions and really supported each other, both during the presentations and in the Q&A.

Jenna, Tara, and Andrew worked very hard to prepare for this event. BDC competitors are chosen from the members of the team that represented Algonquin in the fall at the Ontario Colleges’ Marketing Competition. These students submitted themselves as a team for consideration and participated in a mock BDC event in December.

Once they were selected as this year’s team, the real work began. They were given research to do over the holiday break and then 2-3 coaching sessions were scheduled per week starting in January. With only five weeks to prepare, the clock was ticking and they had to cover a lot of ground, in addition to their regular school work.

Clearly, all the time and energy the team and their coaches put into preparing for this event paid off. Everyone at the School of Business and Algonquin College are extremely proud of their success. President Kent MacDonald was one of the first to offer his congratulations over Twitter.


Congratulations once again to Jenna, Tara, Andrew and coaches Bill and Ian for a hard-earned and well-deserved win!

By: Laura Campbell and Bill Garbarino

 

Times Flies

Whoever first coined that phrase was certainly correct. It’s amazing that January is now past and students are beginning the 5th week of the winter semester. Some students are focused on the end of term but many more, I think, are looking forward to the winter break which begins in two weeks.

For many students in the School of Business in the fourth semester of their two-year program or the sixth of their 3-year, they are deep into developing capstone projects to complete their studies. One such project is the marketing plan developed for external clients prepared by teams in the Business – Marketing program. If that wasn’t enough for Professor Bill Garbarino to deal with, he’s taking a team to Montreal next weekend to complete in the annual BDC competition at Vanier College. What started as a CEGEP competition with a few invited Ontario colleges (Algonquin being a founding participant) has grown to a true national competition with competing colleges from every region. The applied training provided at colleges lends itself to business case competitions and the participants are outstanding in their analysis and delivery.

With Wiarton Willy prognosticating an early Spring, we can enjoy what’s left for the balance of winter in Ottawa. Winterlude has just begun, the canal is open for skating and the Senators are playing hockey again. For Business students, ten weeks and counting before the end of term but lots to do before summer arrives! The expression ”time flies when you’re having fun” hopefully applies.

Dean Dave Donaldson
Dean, School of Business
Algonquin College

#ACgradchat on Twitter Gives Marketing Students Plenty of Good Advice!

When Business – Marketing Professor Patti Church put the word out that she was looking for a few alumni to participate in a Twitter chat on Wednesday Januray 16 to provide some career advice to her students, she never expected this type of response.

Within about 45 minutes – slightly over the original time budget of 30 minutes – over 160 tweets were generated between everyone from recent graduates, alumni who attended the College over a dozen years ago, and even President Kent MacDonald! The advice was varied but also gave some great insight into how some of our most successful alumni got to where they are today.

“Embrace and be willing to invest in change,” said Jay Scotland, Morning Meteorologist for CBC National News and Radio Broadcasting graduate. “I invested in more school.” Jay’s advice also mentioned the importance of volunteering, the ability to meet deadlines, and he suggested the soon-to-be graduates job shadow someone in their field…advice which another participant promptly acted upon by asking Jay if they could job shadow him!

William Murray, another participant in the chat who is currently teaching in Business & Tourism on the east coast and graduated from Algonquin College in Hospitality & Tourism in 1996, suggested the students should, “take on a sponge-like attitude around new knowledge & techniques but create your own individual style.” He echoed advice given by Jay and Algonquin College Transfer Student Coordinator Jeremy McQuigge in reinforcing the importance of volunteering, networking, and connecting with new people.

Among the other graduates who participated were Brandon Waselnuk, User Experience Program Manager at IBM, Samantha Hartley, PR & Marketing expert, Jeff Mauler, Hot 89.9 Morning Show Host, Stu “Stuntman Stu” Schwartz, Majic 100 Morning Show Host, Liz Babiak, Social Media Community Officer at Algonquin College, Jason Connell, Digital Recruiter at Algonquin College, and Phil Gaudreau, Communications Officer at Algonquin College (yours truly!). The chat was so popular that it attracted some outside attention from organizations such as United Way Ottawa, the Canadian Public Relations Society Ottawa-Gatineau Chapter, and the International Association of Business Communicators Ottawa, and from Scott Stratten, President of “UnMarketing”.

The feedback from the students was excellent, and it looks like many took the advice to heart as they immediately started reaching out to those participating in the chat! It was a great experience and we hope to have many more sessions in the future.

Phil Gaudreau
Communications Officer, Algonquin College

Alumni Spotlight: Brandon Waselnuk

Meet Brandon Waselnuk.

Brandon is a graduate of the two-year Business – Marketing program. He is currently working as a User Experience Manager at IBM. Sounds cool right? His job involves:

  • Development and management of a User Research program across the world
  • Business and Marketing strategy and implementation of a User Experience training program
  • Evangelism of User Experience and Design as drivers for today’s buying agenda

Brandon is also an accomplished blogger and business and marketing strategy speaker. He also manages to find time to volunteer for United Way Ottawa on the NextGen Cabinet and work as a teaching assistant for the School of Business.

Below is one of Brandon’s recent blogs: Strategy is not a one person show. You can view more of Brandon’s work or book him for a speaking engagement at BrandonWaselnuk.com.

Strategy is not a one person show by Brandon Waselnuk

When we’re in the weeds working toward a timeline, or trying to ship on a deliverable, we sometimes forget that there’s a whole team around us. Those of us who have the pleasure of working on strategy, either marketing or business, know how crazy it can be sometimes. It’s not a simple “put in 4 hours of work, get out 10 pages”. In fact, strategy and business planning of any kind more closely resembles the creative process to me.

Here is my best advice for all you strategists out there.

Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson

Get out of the tower!

As strategists, we are sometimes accused of sitting in our ‘ivory tower’ and dictating strategy to our company, basically acting like bullies who tell people what to do simply because it’s “the strategy”. But guess what? If your employees don’t believe in it, your strategy sucks

Yes, I said it. It freaking sucks.

It’s true that certain people have a gift for thinking strategically, just like in creative pursuits. These people should be working on the first draft and getting the work started, but like all good business you have to experiment, test and re-test.

Ship your strategy out to your staff, colleagues, advisors, and mentors.

Make sure everyone gets the chance to see it before you slap that FINAL sticker on it. Take the advice you’ll ask for and inevitably receive. Some of you will think “Well, what if it’s crap advice? What if they just don’t know enough about the big picture?”

You have the right to choose what advice you keep, but just ensure that you recognize everyone’s input, thank them for it, and then choose the best path for your company. Besides, most employees get the big picture, so don’t inflate your ego.

Overall, when invited to participate, your team will have a greater chance of buying into the final strategy and it will lead to greater success for you and your company.

So, will you get your team involved?

How to Get Real Experience for Real Life Careers

Business theory is one thing. Business reality is our thing at Algonquin College. As a student, you’ll go beyond theory and gain the practical skills employers want.

At Algonquin, we believe in providing our students with practical education and experiences that set them on the fast track to career success. We do this a number of ways:

  • Hands-On Experience
  • Internships and Field Placements
  • Co-op Program
  • Opportunity to Qualify for Professional Designations

Hands-On Experience

Learn how people think, how and why people purchase items and what motivates people in our Marketing and Business Intelligence Research program. To hone your skills, you’ll work with real clients in real time and conduct market research from start to finish.

If you’ve ever thought about starting your own business, our Management and Entrepreneurship program gives you the knowledge and skills you need. In fact, in the final semester you’ll develop a detailed business plan that you can use to start your own business!

Many of our programs teach you how to master key Microsoft Office programs and other industry-standard software packages. You’ll be prepared to jump right into a job with no need for extra training on these programs.

Our Office Administration students participate in office simulations to help gain an understanding of day-to-day office operations and develop problem-solving skills.

Internships and Field Placements

A number of the School of Business programs provide the chance for students to participate in an internship or field placement. Qualified students studying Human Resources Management have the opportunity to complete an internship in their final semester.

Paralegal students complete 15 weeks of coursework in their fourth semester and then gain real-world experience with a four-week unpaid field placement.

Marketing Management students complete a field placement that involves developing a marketing plan and strategy for a real-world organization.

Do you have a passion for sports? Turn that into a dream career with our Sport Business Management program. You’ll also work a minimum of 16 hours per week within the sport industry, gaining valuable skills and professional connections.

Co-op Program

We also offer students in certain programs the chance to take part in a co-op placement where they turn their knowledge into on-the-job experience.

Learn the unique procedures and practices of health care offices for a career as a Medical Office Assistant. In the third and fourth semesters, our students participate in field assignments to help develop their practical skills.

The Bachelor of Applied Business (e-Business Supply Chain Management) program includes industry-related team and individual projects, as well as three mandatory co-op placements. Combined with part-time work, you could graduate with 1.5 years of professional experience, making for a seamless transition into your full-time career.

Opportunity to Qualify for Professional Designations

Getting a professional designation shows future employers that you are legally qualified to do the work you were trained for. Usually there are specific courses you need to take in order to get your professional designation. At Algonquin, we’re making sure you’re getting the most out of your program.

Graduates of the International Business Management program meet the academic requirements for the Certified International Trade Professional (CITP) designation.

Our Paralegal program prepares you for a professional career in this industry. It is accredited by the Law Society of Upper Canada and when you graduate you can to apply to the Society to become licensed.

Organizational Quality Management graduates meet the educational requirement needed to write the certification exams for a number of designations sponsored by the American Society for Quality (ASQ).

If you are looking for an institution that cares, gives great hands-on learning and provides you with opportunities for careers and continuing your education then you have found just that. — Sebastien Lylyk, Marketing Graduate