Case Competition

Overview

Smith Soc's multi-chapter case competition ("Case Comp") provides student chapters with the opportunity to compete against one other to devise a potential business solution to an issue with ethical, political, and philosophical implications. Each year, student chapters may apply to host the competition on their home campus or apply to send a team to compete in the Case Comp. This event was first inaugurated by the BYU Marriott School of Business in 2018.

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Spring 2021 Case Comp

Learn about our first-ever virtual case comp, which took place March 8-10, 2021.

Case Comp Madness! 2021 focused on Big Tech and antitrust. Teams competed in a regional first round. Selected finalists received a case update to incorporate into a second, final round of presentations.

2021 Winners

• 1st Place: MIT Sloan
• 2nd Place: UVA Darden
• 3rd Place: Columbia Business School

2021 Participants

• BYU Marriott
• MIT Sloan
• Duke Fuqua
• Carnegie Mellon Tepper
• Columbia Business School
• CU Boulder
• Chicago Booth
• Vanderbilt Owen
• Dartmouth Tuck
• UVA Darden, Rice Jones

2021 Judges

• John Nantz, Founding Partner at Redwood Advisors
• Michael Cherkassky, Management Consultant and McKinsey & Company
• Andrew McClure, Principal at ForgePoint Capital
• Patrick Elyas, Head of Strategy and Operations, International Expansion at Snap Inc.
• Michelle Chang, Investor at Group 11
• Laura Miller, Director of Operations at Plug and Play Tech Center
• Allison Ball Swope, Partner and Hanover Technology Investment Management
• Elise McDonald, Senior Manager at Bain & Company

Winter 2020 Case Comp

The 2020 in Los Angeles, California focused on the challenges that international firms, such as Apple, face in regard to tariffs and trade tensions among the United States, China, and Europe. Participating chapters:

• BU Questrom
• BYU Marriott
• Cornell Johnson
• NYU Stern
• Pittsburgh Katz
• Rice Jones
• Wash U. Olin
• UNC Kenan-Flagler
• UVA Darden

2020 Winner: UVA Darden

• Runner-up: BU Questrom
• Third Place: Cornell Johnson

2020 Keynote: Michael Auslin

2020 Judges: 

• Doug Gold
• Robert Kaufman
• Randy Xu
• Michelle Chang

Winter 2019 Case Comp

"All About Driverless Cars"

Hosted by our Rice Jones chapter in Houston, Texas, Case Comp 2019 focused on the challenges that driverless cars pose for traditional carmakers.

2019 Partipcants:

• UCLA Anderson
• BYU Marriott (2018 winner)
• Columbia Business School
• UVA Darden 
• Georgetown McDonough
• NYU Stern
• Notre Dame Mendoza
• Rice Jones (host)
• Yale SOM

2019 Winner: UCLA Anderson

• Runner-up: BYU Marriott
• Third Place: UVA Darden

2019 Keynote: Wendell Walach, Marilyn Fedak

2019 Judges:

• Sven Beiker, founder of Silicon Valley Mobility and a lecturer at Stanford GSB
• Mark Mills, Manhattan Institute senior fellow
• Alessandro Piazza, Rice University professor
• Stephen Wu, Silicon Valley legal expert

Read a full recap of Case Comp 2019 here.

Winter 2018 Case Comp

"Facebook at a Crossroads"

2018 Participants:

• Baylor (Hankamer)
• BYU (Marriott) - Host
• Chicago (Booth)
• NYU (Stern)
• Rice (Jones)
• UNC (Kenan-Flagler)
• USC (Marshall)
• UVA (Darden)
• Yale (School of Management)

2018 Winner: BYU

• Runner-up: USC
• Third Place: UVA/NYU

2018 Keynote Speaker: Douglas Schoen, political consultant

2018 Judges:

• Brian Tanner, social media professional
• Eliot Jacobsen, entrepreneur
• Grant Calder, Founder and CEO of Wispeo
• James R. Copland, Senior Fellow at Manhattan Institute
• Scott Kaufman, Managing Partner of Lucid Agency
• Wade Eyerly, Founder of Surf Air and Beacon

Read our full recap of the inagural Case Comp here.