Four students from the Faculty of Commerce and Business Administration (CBA) took first place at the 2023 HRC West Case Competition (HRC West) for their innovative solutions to a complex human resources dilemma.
Every year, hosted by CPHR Alberta and CPHR BC & Yukon, HRC West challenges HR students from across Western Canada to solve a timely human resources case study. They also gain opportunities to network with industry professionals and with one another.
Douglas College’s four delegates – Lambert Tenorio, Niloofar Maleki, Juliana De Costa Avila and Damaris Munoz Hernandez – competed at HRC West at Bow Valley College in Calgary, Alberta under the team name Harmony Accord.
The conference tested Harmony Accord with an HR case about the challenges of recruitment, retention, and occupational health and safety at a construction business with offices in B.C. and Alberta. They were tasked with analyzing the case and developing probable action plans to be presented to two judging panels. They had only three hours to outthink 15 other teams, and they won.
“Harmony Accord offered elegant solutions that applied industry best practices, and then went even further,” says Jeff Ha, a CBA instructor. “They addressed the wider impact of a company’s HR decisions upon the fundamental considerations of business: cost, risk and culture.
“Through this case analysis, our students proved that they are well on their way to becoming future leaders in the human resources field.”
The members of Harmony Accord come from both the Post-Baccalaureate Diploma (PBD) and the Post-Degree Diploma (PDD) in Human Resources, as well as the Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in Accounting.