Hanoi 10th graders win Asia's largest business simulation competition

A group of seven 10th-grade students from Hanoi have won the ASEEDER Business Simulation – Vietnam Regional Round 2024.

The seven-member Visionaries team wins the competition. Photo: giaoducthoidai.vn

The winning team, The Visionaries, includes 10th graders named Le Anh Thu, Dang Chi Hieu, Nguyen The Quang, La Nam Anh, Hoang Bao Ngan, Hoang Le Hai Dang (from Hanoi-Amsterdam High School for the Gifted), and Nguyen Tran Phuoc Dung (from the High School for the Gifted, Vietnam National University).

This competition, a business simulation where activities are gamified, provides a fresh learning experience in entrepreneurship. It lays a strong foundation for students to unlock their potential and aspire to be future business leaders.

Le Anh Thu served as CEO of the virtual company, while the other members managed different departments, including human resources, finance, technology, production, marketing, and sales.

This year's competition theme revolved around the business of smart eyewear products.

The two-day competition was intense and high-pressure. On the first day, the teams went through rounds of bidding, fundraising, and two operational sessions. On the second day, the challenge escalated with a "business arena" and three more operational rounds.

Throughout four rounds, The Visionaries leveraged their business knowledge to work as an effective team. Their strengths lie in innovative technology, quick, rational decision-making, and smooth collaboration.

Determination and the ability to perform under high-intensity conditions helped the team pull ahead in the final stretch to win.

Their competitors were strong, especially those from international and bilingual schools, said Dang Chi Hieu of Hanoi-Amsterdam High School for the Gifted.

"Everyone in this simulation had unique talents. I was impressed by others' speaking skills and their ability to think on their feet during the business arena, which showed how well they understood their products," he said.

"The competitors also showed their ability to think and calculate like real future business leaders," Hieu added.

Maximizing members’ abilities as a team

As a team leader, La Anh Thu's biggest challenge was to balance the different perspectives of a team with talented and motivated members.

Team members participate in a discussion. Photo: giaoducthoidai.vn

"We argued a lot during the discussions. Everyone wanted to defend their ideas. In the operational round, we had two main approaches. Some wanted to invest in technology to improve product quality, while others wanted to analyze competitors to find our own business advantages," she said.

With capital constraints, they had to make a choice, which was difficult but the hardest part was making timely, accurate decisions for good results.

"We stayed up until 2 a.m. to prepare our slide presentation to be ready the next morning to present and defend our project in a debate format," said Nguyen The Quang.

Reflecting on the lessons learned from the competition, Hoang Bao Ngan noted that she gained new knowledge and skills in business conduct and effective financial management. Teamwork requires solidarity and responsibility to achieve the best results.

Hoang Le Hai Dang said the competition gave him insights into the challenging yet rewarding journey of business.

Team's ideas are presented at the competition. Photo: giaoducthoidai.vn

“I have a clearer understanding of key skills, like financial management, sharp decision-making, market analysis, and resilience under pressure,” he said.

Nguyen Tran Phuoc Dung emphasized that the competition helps him better understand his strengths and weaknesses, both in business and personally.

“I now have a clearer idea of my future career goals and direction,” Dung said.

The ABS Business Simulation Competition has been held annually throughout Asia for students in grades 6-12 since 2011.

This year, the Vietnam regional competition was organized for the first time on October 12-13, 2024, with 151 contestants from over 80 schools nationwide, forming 20 competing teams.

The qualification round was hosted by Phenikaa School in Xuan Phuong Ward, Nam Tu Liem District.

The seven team members will travel to China to compete in the ABS Global Final at the World Youth Economic Forum (WYEF) in 2025.