IIM-B wins Accenture's B-School Challenge for innovation
The annual Accenture B-School Challenge – a competition for top disruptive ideas – has come to a close. The Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM-B) has taken home the first prize, followed by the the Faculty of Management Studies (FMS) and the Indian School of Business (ISB).
IIM-B came out ahead of a range of competitors, including other IIMs from Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Lucknow and Kozhikode. The Xavier School of Management (XLRI) was also among the participants at the event. The list of prestigious business schools from across the country competed to develop winning disruptive ideas.
The theme of the contest was ‘Innovating in the NEW,’ indicating a focus on modern ideas that would drive growth in the contemporary marketplace. Accenture has been conducting extensive work around this motif in India, particularly when it comes to identifying promising and innovative new business ideas.
The firm has been amongst the most vocal about the role of innovation in driving growth, and has been part of a number of initiatives to promote this ethos across the county's business environment. In August, the firm concluded its Applied Intelligence Challenge, which recognised startups working on innovative ideas in the deep tech capabilities.
The global management consultancy is also currently engaged in a partnership with Microsoft to identify and support promising startups in India, where innovative startups are proliferating at a rapid rate.
As part of its agenda, the firm recognises that innovative thinking can come from anywhere in the ranks, and has been working to give students a chance. The Applied Intelligence Challenge is an example of this, as is the B-School challenge, which began shortly after the Applied Intelligence Challenge concluded in August.
More than 5,000 students participated in the first round in August, and the top 10 teams were shortlisted and given a chance to present their idea at a big event in Gurugram.
The contest unfolded across four stages, starting with an online quiz where 1,600 teams participated. 30 teams from each of the school campuses were then shortlisted for a second round, where students had to simulate the role of a CEO to make their idea profitable.
The third round consisted of a case study challenge, where ten shortlisted teams competed, while the final four teams participated in an overnight case study challenge to decide the winners. The focus of many of the ideas was in the digital sphere, in accordance with current market trends.
