A team from Stantonbury Campus in Milton Keynes beat off stiff competition from five other teams of sixth-formers to win the final of the Cranfield Business Challenge for schools across Milton Keynes which is organised by Cranfield School of Management.
Professor Joe Nellis, Deputy Director of Cranfield School of Management presented the winning team with the 2015 Cranfield Business Challenge Winner Shield. Each member of the team also received £100 worth of Amazon vouchers.
Now in its 19th year, the Cranfield Business Challenge is an annual business competition hosted by Cranfield for first year A-level students studying in and around Milton Keynes. Students are given the opportunity to visit the Cranfield campus to apply their learning in a fun but competitive environment.
Businesses all over the world have benefited from Cranfield’s management simulations which enable teams to test their reaction to different business scenarios in a challenging but risk-free environment.
Event organiser Karen Valverde, Business Simulations Director in the Centre for Customised Executive Development (CCED) at Cranfield said: “The teams were as eager as ever this year with an enthusiasm to engage and learn and of course win! The competition gives students a taste of what it’s like to run a real business and provides them with a wonderful opportunity to work with mentors from local businesses as well as apply their strategic thinking with classroom theory. We are again very grateful to all of our mentors and sponsors who continue to make the event the success it is today.”
Each team taking part was assisted by a mentor from a local business. Mike Adamson of Metro Bank mentored the winning team, he commented: “I was delighted for the team from Stantonbury who, from the outset of the competition, were fully engaged in seeking to learn about the wide ranging facets of running a business through a number of trading cycles. At Metro Bank we are committed to supporting the education of school children; whether that is key stage 1 and 2, supporting their understanding of budgeting, or mentoring senior pupils looking to gain an insight into the finance and sales and marketing of a business.”
Jordan Smith a student from the winning team commented: “Over the two weeks I was able to bring together theory with practise. It’s given me a focus and motivation to take an undergraduate degree in business management followed by an MBA in order to pursue a career in corporate strategy. However, this process hasn’t just been about the nitty gritty of data crunching and meeting targets, it’s been thoroughly enjoyable as I’ve been able to work in a community of colleagues and professional mentors. I’d happily repeat the process as it’s aided my studies immensely and has inspired me further to succeed.”
The Stantonbury team will meet the winners of the Bedfordshire challenge, which took place earlier this year, in the grand final this autumn.
A team from Denbigh School in Milton Keynes was awarded the prize for the Best Marketing Campaign.
Thank you to the following companies for sponsoring the event and their representatives: Unify (Catherine Ambrose, Paul Garside), Wolverton and Stony Stratford Rotary Club (Chris Byard, Brian Stuart), Woodfines Solicitors (Neil Gibbs), Metro Bank (Mike Adamson, Paul Davis), Nissan (Verity Stainsby), Shelton Development Services (Phil Shelton), Marshall Amplification (Martin Green, John Lewis Partnership (Colin Hughes, Phil McComb), Amtech (Steven Randall), Novacroft (Jenny Robertson).
About Cranfield University
Cranfield University is a specialist postgraduate university that is a global leader for education and transformational research in technology and management.
