Vipnet Best Solved Business Challenge at the Case Study Competition

The two-day Case Study Competition (CSC) organized by the Croatian Alumni Club of IEDC-Bled School of Management concluded in Zagreb. After the final presentations from teams of all six companies: Cemex, HEP, INA, JGL, Styria, and Vipnet, the competition leader Dr. Nenad Filipović announced that the Vipnet team best solved the assigned business challenge. Dr. Filipović, a professor of management and business ethics at IEDC-Bled School of Management, took this opportunity to teach Croatian managers about the pros and cons of digitalization.

In line with the mission of developing business thinking, confronting young managers with current challenges in companies, and encouraging teamwork, IEDC-Bled School of Management and its Alumni Club traditionally organizes an international competition in solving business cases.

The IEDC Alumni Club Croatia gathers graduates of IEDC-Bled School of Management, aiming to promote additional business education and lifelong learning among young managers and leaders of Croatian companies. More than 700 managers from Croatia have attended longer IEDC programs, with over half completing the Executive MBA. The Croatian alumni club of IEDC organized the first competition in solving business cases in 2008 to demonstrate advanced learning methodology and potential benefits for young managers, and due to exceptional success and great interest from participants, it has already become a tradition in Croatia. The winners of the competition in Croatia will face the winning teams from Romania, Russia, Slovenia, and Serbia at the IEDC Global Case Study Competition, which will be held in September 2018.

Six leading Croatian companies – Cemex, HEP, INA, JGL, Styria, and Vipnet participated in the following challenge: to solve a demanding case from a real business situation within 24 hours. After the final presentations, the jury, consisting of Ivan Matasić, Irena Jolić Šimović, and Dr. Nenad Filipović, declared the winner: the Vipnet team, which proved to have the most thorough approach, balanced analysis, and proposed solution.

“The experience we gained for our team is the greatest in that we proved to ourselves that we can produce a lot in a very short time. With the right focus, we can contribute a lot and be effective,” commented the members of the winning Vipnet team on their experience at the CSC.

After the competition concluded, IEDC-Bled School of Management organized an open lecture called MBA for a day. Dr. Nenad Filipović held an interactive lecture on the topic of the pros and cons of digitalization.