Students from Salford Business School welcomed young people from Hogeschool van Arnhem en Nijmegen (HAN) University of Applied Sciences, Netherlands to Univeristy of Salford to battle it out in the North Sea Student Challenge Competition 2023. Aspiring future business leaders from Salford Business School and the HAN collaborated in the competition this week, all vying to take home the crown. The event hosted in partnership with Edmundo, across two days on 7th and 8th November, the North Sea Student Competition saw 18 student teams from across both universities compete to take home the winning spot by taking part in a two-day series of business simulation challenges which saw them create and manage their own business. Students were set tasks such as developing a clear growth strategy, and during a series of rounds react to fluctuations in the market to make business decisions to allow them to meet their strategic objectives…or exceed them! The challenge used Edmundo’s Phone Ventures management simulation, which allows students to develop their own smart phone brand in the hope of making a profit, giving them real experience of running a business that they can apply to their studies and into the working world. The winning team was Team Pineapple, featuring Salford student Maria Adeniran, who took home the crown after two days of tough competition. Third year Salford Business School student Alita McLaughlin, studying Business Management with Marketing, said of the experience: "The North Sea Student Edumundo Competition was a great experience for me in terms of gaining some insight into the challenges of running a business. I'm very grateful for this opportunity to network with students from the Netherlands and happy we achieved 2nd place!" Basma Zouggari, Student from HAN University of Applied Sciences, Netherlands, added: "I was so excited to collaborate with students from the University of Salford in an engaging simulation competition. This experience has been nothing short of amazing as it has provided me with valuable insights into the world of business and a wealth of new knowledge to absorb.” Professor Vish Maheshwari, Associate Dean Academic Student Experience, at Salford Business School, commented: “This has been a great opportunity for our students to make international connections, collaborate with peers, and get invaluable experience of understanding business development using entrepreneurial and creative mindset, in a global context. I’m really proud of our students for the way they applied themselves to the competition, and of course a huge congratulations to the winners. My thanks to Edmundo for helping to organise the competition and providing the platform which allowed our students to put their knowledge and skills into practice, in a simulated business environment. This is just one of the fantastic opportunities we offer to students studying at Salford Business School.” Milo Hendriks, Director at Edmundo, added: “I’d like to thank students at both Salford Business School and Han University of Applied Sciences for their enthusiasm and dedication shown throughout the two-day competition. Our Phone Ventures simulation allows for learners who are new to the world of business to experience what it would be like to start and run a tech business such as a smart phone company. It’s a great opportunity for students to put their academic teaching into practice in a real world scenario.”
