A team of German and 阿宾顿 students holed up in a Center City Philadelphia hotel to develop their presentation.
A global tech firm intent on reshaping its customer engagement model wanted honest feedback and fresh ideas. 所以一群 QAD系统 executives some of whom are 宾州州立大学阿宾顿分校 alumni, presented the challenge for the campus' fourth international business competition.
Each year about 18 students from 阿宾顿 and its European partner, Hof University of the Applied Sciences in Germany, are selected for the real-world collaboration, 官方课程是BA 494. They don't work from a standard case study, which is the norm. And instead of forming teams by school, the Americans and Germans intermingle.
The Germans arrived in Philadelphia, split into five teams with the 阿宾顿 students, 时钟开始了. 48小时内, they had to perform primary research, develop a solution and present it to a panel of QAD系统 executives -- all while surmounting cultural and communication hurdles within their teams.
"We were put together with people from different cultures as our teammates,——布蕾妮·施奈德, an 阿宾顿 corporate communication major, 说. "It's what I can expect in the professional world.”
"I learned to communicate, but it wasn’t just language. I have a sarcastic personality so the Germans didn’t quite understand what I meant,乔·库萨克, 一位商科大四学生说. "But we worked it out, and then it was smooth sailing.”
"We were put together with people from different cultures as our teammates. It's what I can expect in the professional world.”
-- Breanne Schneider, 阿宾顿 student
The group traveled to the company's New Jersey offices for the discovery phase, gathering data and grilling employees for more. QAD系统 executives were invested in the process, making themselves available afterward for additional information just as they would for a consultant or vendor.
最后, the teams hunkered down in their Center City Philadelphia hotel to complete their research and massage their proposals into cogent presentations.
评委们注意到了一支队伍, 被称为BBFM营销, in particular that treated QAD系统 as a client of their fictional agency. They also reinforced their ideas with a handout for later review.
Two nontraditional 阿宾顿 students gave their teams seasoned perspectives. 赫尔曼·陈, an entrepreneur and parent on an intense track to earn his degree in two years, 灵活处理异议. 还有布沙尔小姐, who works full time at an accounting firm, set the tone for her team with a calm and confident demeanor.
克里斯接触, senior vice president of Global Customer Support at QAD系统, 对他们的成果印象深刻吗.
"Your presentations were thought provoking," he 说. "Your maturity level was off the charts."
The students also received unexpected feedback from members of the QAD系统 leadership team visiting from offices in Germany, 印度, 澳大利亚和英国.
"You educated us, and the constructive criticism of our current model was great," one 说.
At the close of the competition, the students were exhausted but feeling accomplished.
"It was an unprecedented opportunity to apply our knowledge and our ability to discuss the reasoning behind our decisions,陈说.
To learn more about global programs, go to www.阿宾顿.事业单位.edu/global-programs 或者商科专业，去 www.阿宾顿.事业单位.edu/business.
The case competition was organized by Gary Calore, coordinator for intercollegiate and interdisciplinary programs at 阿宾顿, 和马克西米利安·沃尔特, professor of economics at Hof University and visiting scholar at 阿宾顿. 克里斯接触, senior vice president of global customer support, 埃德加·威尔伯恩三世, 客户支持顾问, 领导QAD系统团队.
Students enrolled in BA 494: International Business Case Competition are selected to participate in the course by 阿宾顿 faculty.
