In May, we — Luka, Jai, Hemadri, Charlene, and Josh — had the honour of representing the University of Waterloo at the Global Finals of the prestigious CFA Institute Investment Research Challenge. Competing against the top teams from more than 1,000 universities worldwide, we were tasked with conducting a deep-dive analysis of Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. (BRP) and delivering a well-defended investment recommendation. Our verdict? A confident “buy,” backed by months of rigorous research, industry interviews, and strategic adaptability. Over the course of this seven-month journey, we refined our financial and analytical skills while also learning powerful lessons in teamwork, resilience, and professional growth — lessons that will stay with us far beyond the competition.
Teamwork & Alumni
Before starting the competition, our team had some experience working with each other on school projects, extracurriculars and other competitions. This gave us a good starting point with our ability to work with each other and lean on each of our strengths. As we progressed throughout the competition, we learned how to work seamlessly together, especially as we balanced our schedule differences. Leading up to the competition, we dealt with challenges that included having group members across co-op terms, on the international study trip and more. We worked to continue building our team’s chemistry, and we made the most of our time together during in-person dry-runs, internal team Q&A practice sessions and alumni calls.
In the early stages of the competition, Professor Balaban hosted an event where our team connected with previous teams that had competed in the CFA Research Challenge. This allowed us to build a relationship with them and get helpful advice. These former competitors and the alumni that helped mentor us throughout the competition were integral to our success, taking time out of their busy schedules to support us in various ways. Learning more about their perspectives through conversations, their questions about our pitch and more propelled our team throughout the competition.
Adaptability
During the several months of the competition, our company faced several major challenges that greatly impacted our pitch. From tariffs to a broad hit to consumer sentiment, we had to constantly adapt to ensure we addressed all potential concerns. This allowed us to continually learn more about the business from different angles and update our view on how the company would continue to succeed. This also gave us the opportunity to follow-up on aspects of the primary research we initially conducted, speaking with industry experts, powersports dealerships and customers to see how the macroeconomic changes were impacting their perspectives. Our team’s effort on staying up to date on all major factors helped us succeed in many rounds as we had adjusted our views and valuations based on current conditions before other teams. Our continual grit and consistency throughout the long competition was key to our success, leaning on continual learning and each other to avoid burnout.
Looking back at the experience as a whole, our team learned a tremendous amount about the company, how to approach a long-term competition and about ourselves. The cherry on top was the time we were able to spend together as a team exploring the city of Chicago, where the global finals were held. We would not have been able to make it nearly as far as we had without the support of our faculty advisor Professor Steve Balaban, our industry mentor Jeannine LiChong, our extremely supportive alumni and each of our team members.
Although we were not the global champions this year, we look forward to taking the lessons we learned into future competitions, work placements and more, and hope to continue to support future teams as UWaterloo continues to succeed in the CFA Investment Research Challenge.