Fourth Annual Schulich International Case Competition Focuses on CSR Communication
Over 70 students and 35 representatives from mining companies, industrial groups and other stakeholders attended the 4th annual Schulich International Case Competition (SICC) held from October 24th – 25th at Schulich School of Business.
Driven by the global, innovative and diverse nature of modern day business, SICC gives future business leaders a chance to break through the environmental, social, and ethical complexities of operating in today’s world. The SICC case is developed by the Schulich School of Business’ Global Mining Management MBA Specialization and is based on topics considered most relevant to the mining sector.
The event was kicked off with an engaging keynote presentation by Denita C. Stann, Vice President, Investor and Public Relations at Potash Corp, who addressed current CSR reporting standards within the industry and threw some light on Potash Corp’s own CSR efforts. In her address, Stann discussed the struggles of mining companies to disclose information to different stakeholders – providing the right amount and type of information to satisfy a specific stakeholder group’s interests.
Nine global business schools from Australia, North America, Europe and Asia competed in the final SICC round on October 25. This year’s case explored the extent to which resource development companies effectively communicate to stakeholders the opportunities and risks associated with their responsibility to develop their mines in a sustainable manner.
The winning team from the University of Western Australia Business School took home the first prize of $10,000. Teams from Schulich School of Business won second and third place for awards of $5,000 and $2,500, respectively.
SICC 2014 was generously sponsored by: CIBC (Platinum Level Sponsor); Barrick, Kinross Gold, Resource Capital Funds and New Gold Inc. (Gold Level Sponsors); and Sherritt International, PotashCorp and PwC. (Bronze Level Sponsors).