Wine, Dine and Strategize

Tonight, the 9th floor of the BU SMG Building dazzled. It wasn't just the chandeliers and the wine, but the high-spirited teams from around the world, the encouraging words of an Ericsson executive and the welcoming bunch from the organizing committee, that lit up the night.

As I wandered about and spoke to the teams, I got some interesting insights into their dynamics. Considering the amount of travel most of them went through, plus the jet lag that many were experiencing, the energy they exuded was beyond amazing. They chatted incessantly with each other, displayed tremendous interest in competing teams and obligingly answered the questions I hurled at them.

Captains of Teams Ericsson Delhi and Ericsson Sao Paulo were clearly the most confident of the lot. The former is, as a matter of fact, a returning champion, who was on one of the winning teams last year. While teams Ericsson Buenos Aires and Ericsson Jakarta choose to leverage their geographical as well as experiential diversities, teams Ericsson Bangalore and Ericsson Sydney expect to draw strength from their similarities and technology backgrounds.

The one thing all teams had in common, was enthusiasm and I hope it will sustain through the rest of the weekend!

At the end of a round of drinks, pasta and socializing, Matt Spewak, our dynamic Committee Chair, addressed the crowd and introduced Steve Newman - Program Director for Executive Development at Ericsson. Mr. Newman enthusiastically declared that it was a no brainer for Ericsson to be involved in this Case Competition. He stated that he was thrilled to have the world in one room, and that Ericsson was eager to get opinions and ideas from the participating teams. He reflected on a similar experience he had 45 years ago, when, at the end of the competition that he was a part of, nobody kept in touch. Steve Newman ended his address with the message that the teams should keep in touch after the competition and do something constructive for the future.

Dean Lawson then took center stage and conveyed his best wishes to all the teams. At this point, each team was assigned a team name and Dean Chalykoff did the honors. Professor Venkatraman, the author of the case, was the final staff member to address the teams. He was particularly thrilled that this year, we have 4 additional international teams participating. He will be briefing the teams on the case early tomorrow morning.

The evening has now ended, with happy(?) teams heading back to their hotel with goody bags from Ericsson and BU. While I'm thinking about having missed Thirsty Thursdays at T's Pub, I'm still reveling in the exuberance of tonights reception and googling the "harmful effects of excessive coffee consumption".