Competition

Attending the NIBC Global Investment Banking Competition

Helen Richardson — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 09:13:30 +0000

Attending the NIBC Global Investment Banking Competition

Helen Richardson Tue, 18/02/2025 - 09:13

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MSc Finance student, Mazin Seid shares his experience attending and representing 51�Թ�� Business School at the NIBC Global Investment Banking Competition.

It was an honour to represent 51�Թ�� Business School at the NIBC Global Investment Banking Competition alongside my classmates, Storm Andreas Larsen, Cameron McRobb and Iulia Tertilova. We’re delighted to say that we made it to the final stage of the competition in Vancouver! In this blog, I shine a light on our visit to Canada and give you an insight into what we learned from this opportunity.

What is the Global Investment Banking Competition?

Hosted in Vancouver, The NIBC Global Investment Banking Competition brings together teams of university students from around the world to act as Investment Banking Analysts through two rounds of competition. It is designed to mimic the high-pressure banking environment as competitors are required to pitch solutions to a series of corporate finance problems along the way. This year, both rounds of the competition were set within the Healthcare sector, specifically focusing on Dentalcorp - one of the largest dental support organisations in Canada.

The First Round

The first round case study was relatively broad in nature. The case study introduced the Canadian Dental Support Organisation space as one that is ripe for industry consolidation and mentioned that there were private equity players active in consolidation plays. To add a sense of urgency, we were told that Dentalcorp received an unsolicited takeover offer from another player. Our task was to pitch potential options to Dentalcorp’s board of directors in response to recent industry consolidation activity. Our main recommendation was the merger of Dentalcorp with 123Dentist, one of the largest networks of dental practices in Canada.

There certainly was a lot to cover for the first round! To begin with, all our recommendations had to be strategically sound, which called for an understanding of the industry specifically within Canada and of the other key players in the space. To come up with our recommendations, we had to value Dentalcorp as a business, putting into practice the valuation techniques we learned in our Business Valuation and Corporate Finance classes before the competition. We knew that we would be assessed on our attention to detail, so we were particularly careful when putting together our slides. Alongside the pitchbook, we also had a video submission, as well as the supporting financial models to back our numbers.

The Second Round

A few weeks later, we were surprised to receive an email containing an invitation to the final round in Vancouver! From over 1000 submissions, we made it to the final 54, but we knew this round would be a lot tougher. Alongside our coursework and exam preparation, we agreed to set aside a couple of days to run through practice cases ahead of the competition.

On the 28th March, we arrived at the Pan Pacific hotel in Vancouver where we were briefed on the competition ahead. The final round case was also on Dentalcorp but was more specific this time; our pitch was to a group of private equity sponsors that were considering a management-led buyout of Dentalcorp, or a roll-up of a series of smaller dental practices across Canada. We had to present a case for the venture that would provide our private equity investors with the most value.

The final round was split into three parts; firstly, we were given the final round case early the next morning and were required to submit the pitch in no later than six hours. Following submission, we took a taxi to Scotiabank Tower to present our ideas in a boardroom to a panel of bankers. This stage would whittle down the 54 teams to nine. The remaining teams had another round of pitches to complete, narrowing down to only three teams. The final three teams would present to a panel of managing directors across Investment Banking and Private Equity firms in the Final Gala Dinner. The committee organised a series of speaker sessions throughout the competition.

We only made it as far as the first boardroom presentation in the final stage, but we learned so much in the process. The biggest takeaway was that it’s a lot easier now to imagine what investment bankers do on a day-to-day basis through the valuation exercises and boardroom presentations we participated in. Producing a boardroom pitch in the space of a few hours certainly gave us an idea of the time pressure to expect on the job! It was also an excellent opportunity to get feedback from industry professionals on our approach at the end of our pitches, as well as a chance to meet dozens of students from around the world who all share the same passion for Finance.

Rounding Up

All of this would have not been possible without the support we obtained from 51�Թ�� Business School- we are tremendously grateful that the Business School covered a substantial proportion of the costs for the entire competition. We also had the backing of Dr Jamie Coen, our Corporate Finance professor throughout the competition, who taught us the fundamentals in our first term to be able to participate. Having studied my undergraduate degree at 51�Թ�� London, the choice to return for a Master’s was an easy one; I knew from experience that 51�Թ�� works hard to support and to provide opportunities for its students, particularly in career-related activities.

For those who are considering competing in the future, my advice would be to go in with a game plan. Certain activities will play to certain team members’ strengths, so it is important to understand these well before travelling to Vancouver to be as efficient a team as possible. I would also stress the importance of setting aside at least two or three days to practice cases before doing it for real. You’ll get an idea of what parts of the pitch take the longest to complete, and what the key assumptions and decisions will be in the financial models. Remember to cover all deal types and and not just your traditional merger! Lastly, don’t forget to have fun. As much as you’ll be working hard, the programme is designed for you to get to know your peers informally and to widen your network. While you’re there, be sure to set aside some time to explore what Vancouver has to offer.

Written by Mazin Seid, MSc Finance

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5 minute read

How platforms can win by selling smarter, not harder

Jiahua Wu — Wed, 15 Jan 2025 12:14:02 +0000

How platforms can win by selling smarter, not harder

Jiahua Wu Wed, 15/01/2025 - 12:14

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Many online service platforms - think HomeAdvisor, RatedPeople, or Porch - face a common challenge: they sell job leads to providers who must then compete fiercely for customer attention. Allowing customers to post short-term jobs, these service providers can pay for access. However, if the competition is perceived to be too high, they’ll hold back, hurting both the platforms’ revenues and their growth potential.

We explore an innovative way these online platforms can strategically use information to manage provider expectations, boosting participation and revenues simultaneously.

Understanding provider behaviour

Service providers buy leads hoping to win jobs from customers. However, too many providers chasing a single lead decreases the value of participation. This fear of excessive competition can discourage them from buying leads in the first place.

Platforms possess critical information - the number of providers interested in a particular job -that they typically don’t share openly. This lack of transparency creates uncertainty, often making providers overly cautious.

One of the key benefits highlighted in the study is that partial information disclosure can help manage provider expectations based on the level of competition.

Nudging providers towards participation

Our study uses a framework known as Bayesian persuasion - the strategic sharing of information to influence someone’s decision by shaping what they believe. The framework allowed us to analyse how platforms can optimise the information they reveal about provider competition. The key insight: carefully tailored partial information can significantly increase lead purchases.

One of the key benefits highlighted in the study is that partial information disclosure can help manage provider expectations based on the level of competition. When competition is below a certain threshold, the mechanism allows interested providers to see clear value, as their chances of securing the job remain favourable. Conversely, for leads facing intense competition, i.e., above the threshold, a fixed, limited number of providers are encouraged to purchase the lead, regardless of how many are actually interested. Interestingly, providers respond positively to this consistent approach, perceiving their chances as favourable even in more competitive situations.

Why fixed prices beat flexible ones

Platforms often try dynamic pricing, changing lead prices based on real-time competition. Interestingly, the research finds this common practice is suboptimal. A well-designed fixed-price approach, paired with strategic information disclosure, generates more revenue.

Why? Providers perceive dynamic pricing as a direct signal of competition intensity - higher prices might mean higher demand, but also tougher competition. This direct correlation reduces their willingness to participate. In contrast, a fixed price coupled with carefully managed information reduces uncertainty, minimises coordination failures among providers, and consistently boosts revenue.

Effective real-world implementation

Implementing these insights is straightforward. Platforms need only set clear limits on how many providers can purchase each lead. This is already practiced informally by some platforms, but the study provides a precise method to identify optimal numbers, maximising provider participation and platform profits simultaneously.

By harnessing these insights, platforms can unlock new growth opportunities, sing revenues through smarter management of provider competition, rather than just harder selling.

This article reflects on findings from the paper "Information Design and Pricing in Lead-Selling Platforms with Supply Competition" by Jiahua Wu with co-authors Yanwei Sun, Niloofar Zamani-Foroushani and Zhe Liu from the 51�Թ�� Business School.

This article was updated on 1 August 2025 to credit all the co-authors of the original research paper and their findings cited in the article.

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New research shows how platforms can manage competition more effectively by rethinking how they share information with providers

Main image: Golden Sikorka / iStock via Getty Images Plus

3 minute read

Professor Tommaso Valletti tells the "i" how Vodafone–Three merger could hit your phone bill

Evie Burrows-Taylor — Tue, 12 Nov 2024 14:36:08 +0000

Professor Tommaso Valletti tells the "i" how Vodafone–Three merger could hit your phone bill Evie Burrows-Taylor Tue, 12/11/2024 - 14:36

5 November 2024

Competition

Consumers

The hidden benefits of releasing your product later than your rivals

Mushegh Harutyunyan — Mon, 04 Nov 2024 11:05:22 +0000

The hidden benefits of releasing your product later than your rivals

Mushegh Harutyunyan Mon, 04/11/2024 - 11:05

4 November 2024

The benefits of being first to market are well known. But new research from 51�Թ�� Business School shows that, in certain cases, biding your time could increase your profits.

Conventional wisdom warns against being late to market: a product that launches after its rivals risks losing potential customers and ceding market share to competitors.

And yet, we see some brands aren’t keen to rush to market, despite leaked reports and industry rumours suggesting their products are ready to go. Apple for instance didn’t release its smartwatch until 2015, later than predicted, and a year behind Samsung’s smartwatch.

These delays aren’t new. Back in the mid-1990s, Sony decided to wait four months to release its PlayStation in the US after Sega launched its Saturn gaming console – although Sony’s machine had already launched in some countries.

So, why delay? In the past, researchers have suggested that companies are making last minute improvements to their product or assessing an uncertain market – but consumer technology markets are fairly stable and enjoy healthy demand.

Staggered product release

Our work suggests that deliberate delays in launching can benefit both the early bird and the latecomer. We’ve created a mathematical model to compare two notional firms with shelf-ready products competing in the same market – and the results are surprising.

When a product is launched, some consumers will buy it immediately, but others will wait, safe in the knowledge that their favourite brand will launch a similar model down the line. And if two rival products aren’t competing simultaneously for the same group of consumers, this means they don’t need to compete on price so aggressively. Staggered product release dates mean both the early bird and latecomer can charge a premium for their products – it’s a win-win scenario (although not for the consumer).

Persuading consumers that this is a product worth waiting for is key

Even though a company may be missing out on customers, the higher prices it will charge due to diminished competitive pressure can more than make up for the lower sales, our model shows. We wanted to know if this theory held water across brands with different profiles. Would high-quality brands still benefit from a later launch than their lesser-known or lower quality rivals?

If the difference in quality and reputation between two companies is extreme, we found, both are better off releasing their products early. Delaying entry would significantly harm the low-quality brand because few consumers would be willing to wait. For the high-quality firm, given its huge advantage, the marginal benefit from delaying is again slim.

But for brands with a less pronounced difference in quality, the higher quality brand may have more incentives to delay the product launch. This is because consumers are more likely to wait for a higher quality brand than a low-quality one. The high-quality brand doesn’t lose too many customers by delaying, but gains substantially due to less intense price competition.

Know your market

To exploit these insights to their advantage, companies need to know their markets inside out – particularly if they want to time and price their products for maximum profits. They need to know whether their consumers are loyal, and they need to understand where their brand sits beside rivals in terms of differentiation: late product release can be profitable only when there is enough differentiation to convince some consumers to wait for the product. And they must gauge the size of the market and keep on top of consumer numbers.

We’ve found that the latest time to enter a market with a similar product is before roughly a third of consumers intend to buy an item in the product category – if they wait longer, businesses may lose out. There are tools and analyses available that can equip strategists to estimate the size of a market, and judge whether it will pay to delay the launch of a new product.

Communicate with your customers

And if a brand decides to delay the launch rather than rush to market, then it should make it a priority to communicate clearly to consumers that its own product is on its way, and what makes it superior.

Persuading consumers that this is a product worth waiting for is key. Here, companies can use marketing tactics such as releasing early samples for influencers, holding special events, working with media to highlight features that make this product stand out and flagging the release date.

Companies need to know their markets inside out – particularly if they want to time and price their products for maximum profits

While our findings highlight the strategic benefits of delaying product launches, several questions merit further investigation:

How do varying market conditions, such as rapid technological changes or evolving consumer preferences, affect the success of staggered releases?
What role do marketing strategies play in maintaining consumer interest during these delays?
How does the growing prevalence of second-hand markets influence the dynamics of new product launches and pricing strategies?

Understanding these complexities will help companies refine their strategies to remain competitive.

This article draws on findings from "Don’t Hurry, Be Happy! The Bright Side of Late Product Release" by Mushegh Harutyunyan (51�Թ��) and Chakravarthi Narasimhan (Washington University in St. Louis).

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Draghi is right on many issues, but he is wrong on telecoms: Professor Tommaso Valletti co-authors article in Vox

Evie Burrows-Taylor — Fri, 04 Oct 2024 11:36:51 +0000

Draghi is right on many issues, but he is wrong on telecoms: Professor Tommaso Valletti co-authors article in Vox Evie Burrows-Taylor Fri, 04/10/2024 - 11:36

17 September 2024

Competition

Technology

Climate: 7 articles on solving the crisis

Evie Burrows-Taylor — Tue, 10 Sep 2024 10:50:27 +0000

Climate: 7 articles on solving the crisis

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La Repubblica interviews Professor Tommaso Valletti on the US vs Google landmark antitrust case

Evie Burrows-Taylor — Mon, 19 Aug 2024 10:32:43 +0000

La Repubblica interviews Professor Tommaso Valletti on the US vs Google landmark antitrust case Evie Burrows-Taylor Mon, 19/08/2024 - 10:32

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The New York Times speaks to Professor Tommaso Valletti about the challenges facing regulators

Evie Burrows-Taylor — Wed, 03 Jul 2024 11:29:22 +0000

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24 June 2024

Competition

The art of effective conversation

Michael Yeomans — Thu, 02 May 2024 13:27:37 +0000

The art of effective conversation

Michael Yeomans Thu, 02/05/2024 - 13:27

9 May 2024

Dr Michael Yeomans offers practical strategies for aligning conversational goals with business objectives, ensuring every interaction counts

Conversation matters – nearly every human activity involves conversation, whether spoken or written. But in a business world increasingly defined by remote and hybrid work, and by automated and algorithmic processes, it can feel like opportunities to communicate and converse with colleagues, staff, bosses and customers are few and far between.

And yet the stakes of each of those conversations – an impression, a connection, a decision – are high.

So how do we know if a conversation is going well? There’s no single definition of effective conversation that will apply to all people in all situations, but we can perhaps say that a conversation is successful for one person if they achieve their goals. To do this, though, people first need to be aware of their goals – something that is rarely the case.

The most effective conversationalists take a much more deliberate approach

Our research sets out a framework – the “conversational circumplex” – that can help in this regard, by classifying the different goals people might pursue in conversation. We divide these into two categories: informational (the extent to which a speaker’s motive is to give or receive accurate information) and relational (the extent to which a speaker’s motive is to build the relationship).

A speaker with high informational motivation might ask a lot of questions or give instructions, while low informational motivation might see them tell lies, keep quiet, or dodge questions. High relational motivation might see a speaker apologise, admit an error, or flatter their partner, whereas low relational motivation may lead them to claim credit, assign blame, or avoid laughing at a joke.

Identifying goals in conversation

Conversational goals are complex and multifaceted. They are also changeable – a single comment or a shift in circumstances might alter them completely. Goals can also be incompatible with one another. For example, a manager might want to ask a staff member about the progress of a project but refrain from doing so for fear of being perceived as overbearing.

The same applies to your conversation partner’s goals, and it’s important to recognise that their goals may not be in line with yours. Failure to be aware of this can prevent you from seeking information or finding ways to mutually satisfy everyone’s goals.

A conversation is successful for one person if they achieve their goals

The conversational circumplex can help provide clarity here. It can help you identify your own goals, and plan for how these might come into conflict during the conversation. It can also help you reflect on the other person’s goals, in order to spot potential points of alignment and conflict. This can help you make choices that are more likely to advance both your interests.

The distance between any two goals within the circumplex gives an idea of how compatible they might be, with bridging the gap between informational and relational goals particularly challenging. For example, coordinating plans and brainstorming new ideas might be easier to pair in a single conversation, whereas persuading while also trying to avoid awkwardness may be tougher to achieve simultaneously.

Practical tips for professional conversations

There are two key tips for putting this learning into practice. Received wisdom would have us believe that good conversation is effortless and unprepared. In truth, however, the most effective conversationalists take a much more deliberate approach. So, the first practical tip is to spend time – even if it’s as little as 30 seconds – thinking about your goals and the other person’s goals.

This is because the act of identifying goals ahead of time helps to mitigate stress and allows you to fully focus on the conversation, rather than worrying about what to talk about or what direction it might take. The circumplex can potentially make this more effective, by drawing your attention to potential points of conflict and avenues for agreement.

Conversational goals [...] are also changeable – a single comment or a shift in circumstances might alter them completely

The second practical tip is to ask questions. These should be relevant to the topic at hand and follow from what the other person is saying. Again, the circumplex can be useful here, as a sense of both your own goals and the other person’s goals makes it more likely that you will ask fruitful questions, which either bring you closer to agreement or reveal more information about the other person’s motives.

These might seem like “good to know” tips for everyday life, but they can also be critical tools in the business world. For example, there is a growing demand for interpersonal "soft" skills in C-suite executives. This suggests there is value in starting to hone awareness of different conversational approaches, motives and goals at any career stage.

Over time, as you reflect on how successful different approaches are in achieving different goals, and to what extent you and others lean towards relational or informational goals in certain scenarios, this can help you become a better, more effective, and – ultimately – more successful conversationalist.

This article draws on findings from “The Conversational Circumplex: Identifying, Prioritizing, and Pursuing Informational and Relational Motives in Conversation” by Michael Yeomans (51�Թ��), Maurice E. Schweitzer (University of Pennsylvania) and Alison Wood Brooks (Harvard University).

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Competition

Attending the NIBC Global Investment Banking Competition

Attending the NIBC Global Investment Banking Competition

Meet the Finance Masters' Class of 2026

Alumni Q&A: Malek Gedeon (MSc Finance 2016)

Empowering Futures Scholarship

What is the Global Investment Banking Competition?

The First Round

The Second Round

Rounding Up

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Top business school articles for students 2025

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How platforms can win by selling smarter, not harder

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New research shows how platforms can manage competition more effectively by rethinking how they share information with providers

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The New York Times speaks to Professor Tommaso Valletti about the challenges facing regulators

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The art of effective conversation

Dr Michael Yeomans offers practical strategies for aligning conversational goals with business objectives, ensuring every interaction counts

Identifying goals in conversation

Practical tips for professional conversations

Monthly newsletter

The benefits of being first to market are well known. But new research from 51�Թ�� Business School shows that, in certain cases, biding your time could increase your profits.