MBA students in final of Oxford Global Private Equity challenge
A team of MBA students fought off some of the world’s best business schools to make it to the final of the Oxford Global Private Equity Challenge Competition - a prestigious Private Equity case competition - and present their business cases to a judging panel with representatives coming from companies such as Grant Thornton, Ares Management and Graphite Capital.
In the end, the Strathclyde team did remarkably well, finishing second overall, sadly being pipped at the post by Chicago Booth School of Business at the final event on May 25-26. For achieving second place, the team was awarded a cheque of £1,000.
The Strathclyde team – Akash Singh, Minh Tran, My Hoang and Rahul Sharma – was one of four teams alongside Chicago Booth School of Business, INSEAD and Said Business School, Oxford, in the finals of the Said Business School-organised event which saw fifteen of the world’s top business schools participating in the 2023 competition.
The goal of the competition is to bring real-life experience in executing a private equity deal to MBA candidates from all around the world. Those taking part have to act as the head of a deal team in a global private equity firm. The team is asked to bid for a global publicly traded company valued between USD1-4 billion. Using widely available resources (such as company data and equity research reports), each team has to develop an investment case for a leverage buyout of its chosen target. The team’s recommendations are then evaluated by a professional panel of judges and assessed on the quality of analysis and recommendation.
Akash said, “We had to make a presentation deck to acquire a publicly listed company; research various industries and companies to find one company for the case; prepare a growth strategy value creation; industry overview; competitive analysis; ESG strategy, and a leveraged buyout model. In a nutshell, we had to analyse the company both on quantitative and qualitative parameters to make it a high potential acquisition target for private equity firms.”
He added, “The entire experience has given us another opportunity to challenge ourselves to go beyond usual norms. Being in the top four and getting the second prize after competing with the best in the world required determination, passion, and courage, which have been shown by each of my team members, Minh Tran, My Hoang and Rahul Sharma, to deliver the final outcome.
“Moreover, presenting our business case before judges was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a process that has helped us gain confidence, given us a real board room experience, solidified our MBA learning, and sharpened our presentation skills. Lastly, representing our school at this global platform and getting into finals was a significant experience for all of us.”
Minh said, “This competition was a great experience for me. It gave me significant confidence in my ability after competing with some of the best minds. Going forward, I will leverage the self-awareness, experience, and recognition I gained from this for my future career and many other aspects of my life. During the event, I really got influenced by other MBA folks like Tim Kelly from Chicago Booth to push myself out of my comfort zone.”
Published: 1 June 2023
