52nd Waikato Management School Case Competition 2024

For more than half a century, the Waikato Management School Case Competition has showcased the talents of some of our brightest students from the capstone paper STMGT303 Applied Strategy.

Working in teams, students are given a detailed case study of a real New Zealand company to analyse over a two-week period, much as if they were employed as real-life management consultants.

This year's client for the 52nd Case Competition is Ozone Coffee, a pioneering specialty coffee company founded in New Plymouth in 1998, before expanding to London in 2012. In addition to selling wholesale roasted coffee beans to clients around the world, there are five Ozone cafes in New Zealand, plus an additional four eateries in London.

Ozone's mission is to revolutionise the way that coffee is valued, grown, produced, and enjoyed. But after 26 years in business, what does the future hold for this ambitious Kiwi company, and how can it achieve its full market potential?

Our students have now been tasked with creating a five-year business strategy for Ozone, outlining their recommendations on how to grow the company's revenue and profits, by leveraging its core strengths and expanding into new national or global markets. 

The best four teams will be chosen as finalists for the Waikato Management School Case Competition on 9 October, where they will pitch their strategy to a panel of external judges in front of a live audience.

The winning team will take home a $2,500 prize generously provided by PWC; our longtime sponsors of this historic competition.

All members of the public, students and staff are invited to join us for this exciting showcase of business innovation and strategic thinking.

You don't need to RSVP, just come along on the night!

Parking: Gate 10, The University of Waikato (Silverdale Road entrance)