Competition Information
We are looking forward to welcoming you to Nashville for the 2011 Human Capital Case Competition, funded by GE and Deloitte Consulting, on October 27-29. Nashville will be hosting several exciting events this weekend and, for this reason, we ask that you be aware of your surroundings as you enjoy our city, and that you allow ample time to travel to all destinations.
Prizes will be awarded to the winning teams: First place: $10,000 Second place: $3,000 Third place: $1,000
Below is an overview of the logistics for the competition weekend. Detailed hotel and transportation information can be found on the 2011 Competition Logistics page, or in the Logistics document that will be sent to all participating team members. Any questions can be directed to the Competition Director, Melissa Skinner, at melissa.skinner@owen.vanderbilt.edu.
How To Participate:
Participants must form a team as provided in the section entitled “Team Composition.” Once participants have formed a team in accordance with the terms, each team must submit an application online at www.humancapitalcasecompetition.com by 11:59pm CST on September 23, 2011. The application will include a resume for each team member, in addition to answers to questions and essays as indicated therein. The judges may request additional information from each team after such date.
The 2011 Owen Case Competition Leadership Team will select twelve (12) teams as the finalists for the Competition based on the candidate teams’ appreciation of human capital issues, personal and professional background and experience related to the Competition. The Selected Teams will be notified via email of their selection on September 30, 2011.
Once teams are selected, each team member will sign a copy of the Official Rules to signify agreement to the Official Rules. The signed copies must be submitted via email to melissa.skinner@owen.vanderbilt.edu by October 4, 2011 at 5:00pm CST to confirm participation in the competition. Failure to provide the required documentation by the specified dates may result in disqualification from the Competition.
Case:
Each Selected Team captain will receive one electronic version of the case materials approximately 1 week prior to the Competition presentations.
Each Selected Team is expected to come to the Presentation Site on October 28, 2011, by 8:30am CST with its solution and presentation ready to present to the judges (all presentations must be in PowerPoint; no other aids or additional materials are allowed), at which time the Selected Teams may receive additional details or information related to the case materials. If your team does not come prepared, your team will be at a serious disadvantage.
Each Selected Team should be prepared to give a second presentation on October 29, 2011. No additional advance preparation is required for this presentation.
Other information which your team will receive in advance and should plan to bring with you include:
• Copy of the case materials
• Questions your team examined as they developed recommendations for the solution
External Assistance:
Each Selected Team is permitted to identify one faculty advisor from their university to utilize for one hour total as the team sees fit before receiving the case. Teams are expected to follow an honor code and we expect each team will adhere to the one-hour time limit. This interaction may be in the form of the faculty advisor assisting with general strategies for the Competition, presentation skills feedback, formulating a plan to analyze data, suggestions around organization, presentation format, style of presentation, etc. The faculty advisor is not allowed to attend the Competition presentation. Please see the Terms of Agreement for specific guidelines applicable to each Selected Team member.
Preparation:
Preparation Rooms: On Friday, each team will be assigned its own small room, which it can use to practice and refine its presentation.
Thumb drives, paper, pencils, dry erase boards, and dry erase pens will be provided in each room.
Rooms will be assigned Friday morning.
Equipment/Software:
Each team must bring its own laptop computer(s). Software approved for case analyses and presentations includes: Microsoft PowerPoint, Excel, and Word. Directions for logging on to Vanderbilt internet will be provided in your welcome folder upon arrival.
Reference Materials
Only information/data that teams brought with them and the Internet may be used during the days of the competition. You may not speak with anyone outside of your team regarding the case or your presentation.
Presenters: All team members, 1st and 2nd year, must present. Your team will be evaluated on all team members’ participation during the presentation.
You are strongly encouraged to practice your presentation as well as think through questions that might be asked of your team prior to arriving in Nashville.
Dress Code:
Friday Competition: Business Professional
Friday Social: Casual (jeans, boots and hats are encouraged!)
Saturday Competition: Business Professional
Judging:
Each Selected Team’s presentation will be evaluated and awarded points by the Deloitte Consulting and GE judges in their sole discretion as follows:
- Content (60 points) -Business Implications -Human Capital Implications
- Realism vs. Innovative Solutions (20 points) -Originality of Ideas and Recommendations -Realism of Recommendations
- Delivery (20 points) -Team Dynamics • Q&A
All twelve Selected Teams will present to the judges on October 28th. The three Selected Teams with the highest scores, as determined by the judges in their sole discretion, will be notified on the morning of October 29th and will then give a second presentation to the entire audience on October 29th. The judges will award each of the three teams, in their sole discretion, with first, second or third place based solely on this second presentation.
Winner Notification:
Winners will be notified at a ceremony on October 29, 2011 following all final presentations. The decision of the judges is final and binding on all matters.
Prizes (per team):
One (1) First Place Prize: US$10,000
One (1) Second Place Prize: US$3,000
One (1) Third Place Prize: US$1,000
Sponsor will distribute the prize money through its accounting system upon execution of required forms by each individual on the team. The winning teams may decide whether to receive individual checks from Sponsor or to have the winnings transferred to their respective universities for disbursement. Each team member is solely responsible for any and all federal, state and local taxes (including any income and withholding taxes) that may be imposed upon the prize money paid to him or her. Please be aware that federal/IRS regulations will require additional information from any international student that wins prize money in the 2011 Human Capital Case Competition. In some cases, an international student is not eligible to receive a monetary prize (dependent on visa type). If your team has any international team members, please take steps to ensure that money can be transferred appropriately to each member.
Code of Conduct / Honor Code:
Professional behavior is expected. Each team is required to maintain the highest standards of integrity throughout the Competition. Any violation of the Official Rules or breaches of integrity will subject a team to immediate disqualification.
General Conditions:
Sponsor; Deloitte Consulting; GE; their respective past, present, and future parents, subsidiaries and affiliates; and all of the foregoing entities’ partners, principals, members, directors, officers, employees, stockholders, agents, representatives, attorneys, heirs, executors, administrators, transferees, and assigns (collectively, “Released Parties”) are not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, inaccurate, stolen, misdirected, undelivered, delayed or garbled document submissions, registrations, or email; or other errors or malfunctions of any kind, whether human, mechanical, electronic, network, typographical, printing or otherwise, relating to or in connection with the Competition, including, without limitation, errors or malfunctions which may occur in connection with the administration of the Competition, the processing of document submissions and registrations, the announcement of the prizes or in any Competition-related materials. Participants, by participating, agree that Released Parties will have no liability whatsoever for, and shall be held harmless by participants against, any liability for any injuries, losses or damages of any kind, including death, to persons, or property resulting in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, from acceptance, possession, misuse or use of the prizes or participation in this Competition.
Governing Law/Disputes:
By entering the Competition, participants agree that (i) any and all disputes shall be governed by the laws of the State of New York, USA to the extent permitted by law; (ii) any legal action or proceeding relating to the Competition shall be instituted in a state or federal court in Nashville, Tennessee, USA; (iii) they will submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of, and agree that venue is proper in, these courts in any such action or proceeding, to the extent permitted by law.
Winners List:
Winners’ names will be available on the Website on or after October 29, 2011.
Sponsor: Owen Graduate School of Management, 401 21st Avenue South, Nashville TN 37203
