Deakin Business students showcase their skills – meet the 2025 SCM Case Competition winners!
Deakin Business students demonstrated innovation and excellence at the Victorian Universities Supply Chain Management (SCM) Case Competition, taking out first place!
The Deakin team – selected through a competitive process and consisting of Taha Kawaguchi, Tanisha, Sahil Yadav, and Livroop Gill, with academic mentors Dr Jason Li and Dr Sukanto Bhattacharya – competed against teams from universities across Victoria, including The University of Melbourne, Monash University, RMIT University, La Trobe University, Swinburne University and Victoria University.
What is the Case Competition?
Hosted by University of Melbourne in March 2025, the competition challenged students to develop a strategy for Officeworks to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, a critical issue in today’s sustainability landscape. Deakin’s innovative solution, Officeworks Reworks, proposed a circular refurbishment model focused on repurposing and reselling returned or slightly damaged products.
Reflecting on the experience, Taha Kawaguchi expressed pride in the team’s achievement, said, ‘Our solution was designed to be practical, impactful, simple to implement, and aligned with Officeworks’s sustainability commitment’.
Officeworks site visit
Teams visited the Officeworks Customer Fulfillment Centre in Derrimut, Victoria where they observed automation in action. Deakin team member, Tanisha shared their impressions.
‘Observing Autonomous Mobile Robots, conveyor systems, product segregation, and packaging operations provided invaluable insights into the role of automation in enhancing logistics and distribution efficiency’.
From L to R: Taha Kawaguchi, Sahil Yadav, Tanisha, Livroop Gill
Student reflections
‘The competition was a fantastic platform to showcase our skills and learn from other talented teams,’ says Sahil Yadav, highlighting the value of teamwork and the opportunity to apply knowledge in a real world setting.
Livroop Gill reflected on the experience as an opportunity for personal and professional growth.
‘The contest not only enhanced my knowledge in supply chain management and sustainability, but also improved my problem solving and employability skills’.
Excited by the first-place win, Tanisha Kumar shared how the competition has helped them develop valuable skills.
‘This experience significantly enhanced my research, communication and presentation skills, and I look forward to applying these learnings to future professional challenges’.
Taha Kawaguchi thanked George Panas for coordinating the competition, the judging panel and Officeworks for the tour and for ‘making this such a meaningful and professionally enriching experience’. He reflected, ‘I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to apply what we’ve learned in a real world setting and excited to carry these insights forward into future projects’.
If you are interested in competing in Case Competitions, keep an eye out on the Deakin Bowater Business Challenge. Undergraduate challenge opens Trimester 2, 2025.
You must be logged in to post a comment.