In business case competitions, participating students are tasked with resolving challenges encountered in business. In the course of this process, they develop an acute sense of the skills they need to enhance prior to entering the real world. Experiences like this produce a dramatic leap in the development of these students' own abilities.
Additionally, the multinational and multicultural environment that defines APU affords its students the ability to gain more than just the experience of participating in a case competition. The teams of students from the College of International Management (APM) participating in case competitions are made up of members of diverse nationalities, each of which have their own cultural background, way of assessing challenges, and processes for reaching a solution. In order for these teams to produce a positive outcome each team member needs to have an understanding of their role among the diverse members that comprise their team and work with the other team members to derive the best solution. Through leveraging the cross-cultural skills and knowledge they have gained at APU the teams and their members are able to actively resolve these challenges, gaining valuable experience as they develop new skills.

When asked what students can get from participating in case competitions, Professor OTAKE Toshitsugu (Dean of the College of International Management and Graduate School of Management) said, "I hope that our APM students use business case competitions as forums for grasping exactly what kind of skills they will need to enhance when considering their postgraduate scenario. After they have systematically studied the areas outlined in the four Learning Goals* of APM (business ethics, fundamental knowledge of discipline, intercultural communication skills, and global perspectives), I implore them to take part in case competitions to experience just what kind of skills they must enhance in order to play a role in the real world and make their way in the world of business."

* Please refer to the following link for information on the Learning Goals of APM:http://www.apu.ac.jp/home/study/content46/

• Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, May/June
• UOB-NUS Case Competition, National University of Singapore, September 7 to 11
• Asian Business Case Competition, Nanyang Technolological University, Singapore, September 13 to 17
• International Business Case Competition, Thammasat University, Bangkok, Thailand, August 11 to 15
• Citi International Case Competition at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, October 24 to 28
• CBS Case Competition, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark, February 27 to March 5, 2016
• Sauder Summit Global Case Competition, University of British Columbia, March 5 to 7, 2016

• APU Students Excel in Overseas Business Case Competitions
  http://en.apu.ac.jp/home/news/article/?storyid=2704
  Audi & Robert Walters Global Business Case Competition (GBCC) Held at APU
• Audi & Robert Walters Global Business Case Competition (GBCC) Held at APU
  http://en.apu.ac.jp/home/news/article/?storyid=2635
  APM hosted the Audi & Robert Walters Global Business Case Competition (GBCC) at APU in June 2015.
  This event brought together business students and their advisors from thirteen universities spread across nine countries and regions.

Future Initiatives in APM

APM is in the process of examining future initiatives like holding exclusive case competitions for its
students so that all of them can take part in such an event at least once by the time they graduate,
and is also considering support for students who participate in high-profile case competitions and
establishing a link between case competitions and the APM curriculum.