9th Annual EuroCHRIE University Challenge Comes to an Outstanding Finish!

The 9th Annual EuroCHRIE University Challenge, delivered by Russell Partnership Technology in partnership with EuroCHRIE, came to an exciting finish on March 24^th.

The 16 schools competing were Strathmore University (Kenya), Stenden University (South Africa), The Budapest Business School (Hungary), Modul University (Austria), The University of Rijeka (Croatia), The University College of Northern Denmark, Hotel Management School Maastricht (The Netherlands), Odessa National University of Technology (Ukraine), Vocational College of Hospitality and Tourism Maribor (Slovenia), Boma International Hospitality College (Kenya), Thomas More University of Applied Sciences (Belgium), Cph Business Academy (Denmark), Özyeğin University School of Applied Sciences (Turkey), Technological University Dublin (Ireland), FHWien der WKW (Austria), and Hotel Management School NHL Stenden (The Netherlands).

The teams, comprised of three to five students and one instructor, competed in a Simulation Challenge in two competitive sets of hotels (with one hotel operated by each school). Each week they formulated strategic plans to drive their hotels’ position in the competitive set, with a focus on Market Performance, Financial Management, Guest Satisfaction, and Associate Engagement. The winning team in each competitive set was the hotel with the best overall balanced scorecard at the end of the four-week competition. The top hotels from each competitive set were then compared against each other using a variety of metrics and a final overall winner was declared.

While competing, the students also completed their Certificate in Hospitality Business Acumen. This was delivered utilizing online learning modules and weekly web conferences.

This was a very dynamic competition with teams devising different strategies to drive their hotels forward in the competitive set. At the conclusion of the competition, it was the team from the University of Rijeka who were declared the winners, with second place going to the Budapest Business School.

This year’s EuroCHRIE Challenge involved 64 students representing schools from 12 different countries – and 27 different countries of birth! The commitment and focus each of the students displayed in meeting deadlines and actively participating during the weekly web conferences was outstanding.

Sincere congratulations to all involved! Russell Partnership Technology will be delighted to honour the top two teams at the EuroCHRIE Conference in Vienna in October.

Heidi Anaya
Head of Education – Russell Partnership Technology
heidi.anaya@russellpartnership.com