We are the champions



MBAst 2006 students Erica Chean, Madhavi Karanam and Fabiana Peixoto de Mello emerged as the MBA level winners of the 2006 The L'Oréal e-Strat Challenge National Finals held in Montreal yesterday. Some 338 teams from Canada had registered to compete.

The simulation is carefully designed to illustrate diverse yet realistic business marketing situations that L’Oréal managers face every day. Teams of three students are asked every week to make strategic decisions such as corporate social responsibility, brand strategy and marketing. In turn, they are measured based on their Share Price Index (SPI) which includes brand market shares, the firm’s revenues, the quality of research and development, as well as consumer satisfaction.

After eight weeks competing in the virtual realm, the top six teams nationwide were invited to L'Oréal's head office in Montreal to bring their business plan to life before a panel of L'Oréal executives at the company's headquarters in Montreal. These top teams had already successfully proven their ability to navigate the business realities of managing a cosmetics company in the virtual realm. But yesterday was a test of their ability to effectively communicate their strategic vision that made the difference. Luc Nadeau, president of the jury and President of Luxury Products stated, "Queen's University distinguished themselves by providing real insight and relevance. Their presentation was logical and their delivery excellent!"