“WE AT THE HO-TEL MO-TEL DESAU-TEL!!!” “M-C-G-I double L!! Reppin’ McGill Desau-TEL!!!”
Clad in McGill red hoodies and sweatpants with beanies and scarves to match, team ForceRouge entered the Grand Ballroom of the Delta Hotel in downtown Ottawa on the evening of January 5th, representing McGill University at the MBA Games.
The MBA Games are a series of competitions where MBA schools across Canada compete to win the Queen’s cup. The competitions are spread across three genres – Academics (case competitions), Athletics (sports) and Spirit (school spirit). This year, the theme was More Together, the idea that diversity and inclusion in terms of work experiences, personalities, lifestyles and cultures drive innovation.
By partnering with EDC, Deloitte, Canada Post as well as The Moose Hide Campaign, a grassroots movement of Aboriginals and non-Aboriginals who are standing up against violence towards women and children, this theme was well reflected across all competitions.
The Games kicked off with a dance competition where the participants would show off their school spirit as well as the theme. Several schools had their mascots and other props. Team ForceRouge danced to the tune of Shakira’s Wavin’ Flag. With over 600 students participating, the energy in the ballroom was incredible. As an international student, seeing the distinct identities of universities across the country was a novel experience. Many schools chose a mix of songs from different cultures to highlight their diverse student bodies.
The next two days consisted of the main competitions. Case competitions were held at the EDC offices and the hosting Telfer School of Management. Sport competitions took place at a Curling Club and the uOttawa gym. Spirit activities consisted of social media posts, a video we collaborated on prior to the competition and two competitions – the first a mystery until we arrived at the Games and the second a case competition on improving women’s safety on campus.
The mystery event turned out to be a scavenger hunt across Ottawa. When the weather decided to wreak havoc with -30 deg C temperatures (oh, Canada!), team ForceRouge put its brilliant innovative minds to work and used cars instead of the recommended buses or walking. (Of course, we did check with the organizers!) Naturally, we won the event.
Evenings were occupied with organized events: a cocktail and a dinner on Saturday and a formal dinner with closing ceremony on Sunday, not to mention the impromptu socializing and partying among the students. Socializing was the highlight of the Games for most of us. Making friends with a variety of talented students from across the nation (Saskatchewan included!!) was incredible.
Also, the Games gave us an opportunity to really get to know one another and to get even closer. Sharing a room with the MBAs and part time MBAs, playing curling with them or braving the Ottawa weather together gave us a chance to make new friendships and deepen the ones we had within Desautels.
While we unfortunately did not bring the Queen’s cup home this time, team ForceRouge did an incredible job of representing McGill with their unending enthusiasm and energy. We kept our heads up high and shall keep up our efforts during next year’s Games, which will be hosted by this year’s winners: York University (Schulich School of Business) in Toronto.
About the author
Devashree Gharat studied Marine Engineering (B. Sc.) at Tolani Maritime Institute (University: BITS) in Pune, India. Upon graduation in 2013, she joined the Scorpio Marine Management in Mumbai as an Operations Executive. At Scorpio she eventually became Voyage Manager, wherein she managed all aspects of commercial operations for oil tanker ships. During the MBA program, Devashree is majoring in Global Strategy and Leadership and is actively involved with the One World One Culture Club, a new initiative promoting diversity during the MBA experience. Devashree is now currently doing an MBA internship at SAP and post-MBA, her goal is to work in corporate strategy roles in the transport or renewable energy sectors. During her free time she enjoys reading, traveling and sometimes writing poetry as a way of reflection.
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