Competition Rules and Regulations

PREPARATION

1. Team members may use any reference sources/materials in the public domain (i.e. the university library) in conducting their research. This includes all material in the written case from the organization. The client may NOT be contacted for information.
2. Once the team receives the written case, coaching by faculty members, school staff, or contact with outside experts is expressly prohibited. This includes industry contacts and faculty other than the team advisor. The alternate may participate in case preparation, if applicable. Each team is permitted to have one dress rehearsal presentation with their faculty advisor prior to the competition. Feedback to the team from the advisor should be restricted to the organization, format, and style of presentation only. Feedback on content or strategy aspects is not permitted.

PRESENTATION

1. All four team members must attend and participate in both preliminary rounds and the final round, if applicable. The alternate may step in as a team participant if a regular team member is unable to participate. When not participating, the alternate team member may not assist in any way during the presentations. This includes setting up equipment, the presentation, and the question and answer session. The same rule applies to the team advisor.
2. Each team must bring at least two copies of their presentation to the competition on CD or flash drive. One copy must be submitted at registration on Friday and will not be returned. The second copy remains with the team and they are responsible for bringing it to each round of competition to be loaded onto a laptop and used for presentation. The CD / flash drive itself and the file on the CD / flash drive should be clearly labeled with only the team number, as assigned in your confirmation letter.
3. Each team must also provide 12 printed black and white copies of their presentation slides (3 slides per page), labeled with the team number, for distribution to judges at the start of each round of competition.
4. Presentations should consist of a PowerPoint presentation only. No props, notes, or audio may be used during the presentations or question and answer sessions. The same presentation slides must be used in all rounds. However, teams are free to alter their personal presentation style.
5. Teams are required to bring black and white overhead transparencies of their presentation as well as their own copy of the presentation CD, labeled with team number only, to all competition rounds. Ten minutes will be allotted to fix any technical or equipment problems, after which teams must use the overhead projector.
6. Teams may not reference their University or School in any way during the presentations or question and answer sessions. An automatic 20 point deduction will be taken for every reference.
7. Only faculty and pre-registered guests may observe the preliminary rounds. To pre-register guests, please contact us at 202-994-7538 or casecomp@gwu.edu by March 2, 2007. Audience members may not reference any teams’ University or School name. All participants may observe the final round. Teams in the final round may observe only after they have presented. No one will be admitted to a presentation room once the presentation is in progress.

COMPETITION FORMAT

1. All 20 teams will participate in 2 preliminary rounds, Friday evening and Saturday morning. The assigned team number will determine when your team presents. Each preliminary round will be scored out of 100 points by a 3-judge panel according to a standardized scoring sheet. The three top scoring teams (out of a total of 200 points) will move on to the final round Saturday afternoon. The final round scoring will not be cumulative. Team scores for the first preliminary round will NOT be released until after the second round is completed on Saturday.
2. Each round will consist of a 30-minute presentation and 15-minute question and answer session with the judges.
3. In the case that there is a tie for the third place to enter the final round, a coin will be flipped to decide which team moves to the final round. If there is a tie in the final round, the judges will choose the winner by majority vote.
4. PC Laptops loaded with Microsoft Office XP connected to a LCD projector will be available to each school during their presentations. Teams are also encouraged to bring their own laptops if desired.
5. All competition participants and guests must wear a name badge at all times in order to enter presentation and reception events.
6. The team that wins the final round will receive a cash prize of $3000. Second place will win $2000 and third place will win $1000. All award payments will be made by check after the competition. Winners who are not United States citizens will be subject to tax withholdings on the prize money. All participants will receive a certificate.

CANCELLATION POLICY

1. Teams canceling on or before 5:00PM EST on February 7th will not be penalized.
2. Teams canceling after February 9th but before distribution of the case will be refunded 50% of their registration fee.
3. Teams canceling after distribution of the case will forfeit the registration fee.