University of Toledo wins third annual GM-WSU School of Business Supply Chain Case Competition

The University of Toledo’s student supply chain team won the third annual General Motors/Wayne State University Supply Chain Case Competition.

GM and WSU’s School of Business Administration brought student teams from 20 universities across the country to the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center, Sept. 19 – 22, to solve supply chain issues and challenges involved in producing the new 2014 Cadillac ELR. 

"The case competition is about as real-world as it gets for these students," said John Taylor, associate professor and chair of WSU’s Department of Marketing and Supply Chain Management. "Students look at and consider purchasing strategy, global vs. domestic sourcing, risk management and battery production locations in their solutions. This year the final case challenged teams to cut $1 billion in logistics costs while maintaining service levels in the supply chain," Taylor said. 

The event also provided student competitors with the opportunity to interview for internships and permanent positions with event sponsors and partners.

"This year we were pleased to have more human resource personnel from GM and our supporting sponsors than ever on-site to interview the students," Taylor said.

Prior to their visit, the students analyzed production plans for the Chevrolet 2014 Cadillac ELR and studied the implications for key suppliers’ production strategies. The teams developed recommendations based on their investigation of the supply chain enterprise, data analysis and study of financial implications, and then presented their findings to a panel of judges during the competition portion of the program.

This year, Colorado State University, Florida State University, Wayne State University, Howard University and the University of Toledo were the five finalists, with first place going to the team from Toledo. Last year, Miami University’s team took home the top honor.

The case was developed by title sponsor General Motors and fellow sponsors DENSO, Delphi, Lear, and Ryder, in conjunction with WSU’s supply chain faculty. The competition also included the sponsorship of the Detroit Regional Chamber and the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG).

Participating universities came from Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Washington, D.C.

Since the first competition, in 2011, more than 200 students have participated.

 

Photos from this year's competition

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