2014 Kellogg Biotech & Healthcare Case Competition

Written by:
Kellogg
2 minute read
Sheila Shah with her Kellogg teammates at 2014 Kellogg Biotech & Healthcare Case Competition
Sheila Shah (far right) with her Kellogg teammates at 2014 Kellogg Biotech & Healthcare Case Competition.

Case competitions are a quintessential business school experience. They give you the opportunity to tackle real-world problems with teams of your classmates, while competing against great schools around the nation and world. You learn, you meet some incredible people, and you have fun – essentially business school in a nutshell.

I had the chance to participate in this year’s Biotech and Healthcare Case Competition at Kellogg in January. From Cambridge to Booth to Haas, eleven impressive schools converged upon Polar Vortex-y Evanston to discuss the tragic issue of childhood mortality caused by pneumonia in Uganda. We were given one week to compile our recommendations for how global organizations could utilize a potential $10 million dollar donation over three years to reduce the burden pneumonia poses in Uganda.

Kellogg Professor Tim Calkins talks to student participants during competition.
Kellogg Professor Tim Calkins talks to student participants during competition.

Then, we had 30 minutes to present our plan to the judges – an impressive group in their own right. From leaders at Abbvie to David Milestone, Senior Advisor at the Center for Accelerating Innovation and Impact at US AID, we were speaking directly to people who tackle this issue on a daily basis.

My team was fortunate to receive an honorable mention, but the award was almost beside the point. The best and most memorable parts of the competition were working with my teammates. Believe me, the things you learn from each other while crammed into a conference room for 10-12 hours munching on way too much Chex Mix are those that are going to stick with you for the rest of your life.

Sheila Shah (@Sheila1030618) is a first-year student in the 2-Year MBA program. While at Kellogg, she’s focused on healthcare, innovation, and entrepreneurship and is involved in clubs from Board Fellows to High Tech.