A personal win for my First Ever Case Competition!

Friday, December 4, 2020
by Tiffany K. - AFM

Photo of Tiffany
Recently, I participated and won 2nd place in the senior tier of my very first case competition - the Strive Conference! The Strive Conference is the largest accounting conference in Ontario, allowing undergraduate students to apply the knowledge learned within classrooms. I had the opportunity to work with four other outstanding students from the AFM program: Bianca, Murtaza, Nathan, and Rocky.

Participating in the Strive Case Competition showed me just how beneficial it is to push myself out of my comfort zone. At first, I was nervous and worried that I would not perform well. Before the competition, my group and I got together to get to know one another and to share possible strategies. That is when I knew that all that worrying was for nothing!

On the day of the competition, we had four hours to analyze the case data and come up with a creative idea. As a team, we assigned half of us to do the qualitative analysis and the other half to do the financial analysis. After conducting the analyses, we came together and everyone contributed by conveying their unique ideas. With my amazing experience, I realized that Waterloo's Accounting and Financial Management Program (AFM) has prepared us for real world scenarios. With the knowledge and strategies we gained from AFM courses, we were able to complete an impressive quantitative and financial analysis. The thorough analysis allowed us to pitch our recommendation confidently to the judges.

Thus, I would recommend participating in case competitions as it is a WIN for yourself to meet new people and to learn and grow with the outstanding experience. Regardless if we win or lose, I believe that it is special to represent your school at these kinds of events as it encourages us to STRIVE to be the best we can be!