Unilever’s flagship commercial enterprise opposition, ‘BizMaestros’ is lower back for its twelfth edition. This time, it will likely be held in a hybrid layout with Rounds 1 and a pair of taking vicinity virtually, at the same time as Round three may be a closed in-man or woman occasion with a confined audience.
The Top 30 groups from Round 1 will development to Round 2 in which every crew will acquire gruelling mentor periods from commercial enterprise leaders. From Round 2, the Top 6 will compete in Round three in which they may gift their thoughts and shield them in the front of the judges. This yr, the esteemed choose panel consists of Zaved Akhtar (CEO & MD, Unilever Bangladesh Ltd); KSM Minhaj (CEO & MD, Unilever Consumer Care Ltd); Syed Nasim Manzur (MD, Apex Footwear Ltd); Rupali Chowdhury (MD, Berger Paints Bangladesh).
The winners get to symbolize Team Bangladesh withinside the Unilever Future Leaders’ League hung on the global stage. The winners also are fast-tracked into Unilever’s “Future Leaders’ Program”, the control trainee program – a jumpstart into their commercial enterprise profession. The second and third runners-up acquire the elusive possibility to do their internship at Unilever after graduation.
Youth Development
“We do not view BizMaestros as only a commercial enterprise opposition,” says Mrs Shamima Akhter – Head of Corporate Affairs, Partnerships & Communications. “For us, it is a teens improvement initiative. Our goal has constantly been to bridge the distance among teachers and company existence for the younger commercial enterprise leaders.”
“Presenting withinside the lecture room and supplying withinside the boardroom packed with commercial enterprise executives who’ve decades-lengthy revel in are worlds apart. Participating in BizMaestros offers college students the platform to equip themselves with the sensible competencies required to be triumphant withinside the company world. Every yr, we percentage our facts and our ache factors with the college students, and we’re continuously blown away via way of means of their sheer mind and creativity,” provides Sibat Nuhas, Employer Brand and Diversity & Inclusion Manager.
Not your normal commercial enterprise opposition
BizMaestros is one of the maximum prestigious commercial enterprise competitions in Bangladesh. It become evolved preserving in thoughts to offer college students the “the joys of actual commercial enterprise”.
“The component that I cherished maximum approximately BizMaestros,” Rakib Ibnay Hossain, Brand Manager, BAT Japan, and BizMaestros Champion 2016 says, “is that it pushes you to get actual. Unlike maximum competitions, that is prepared via way of means of an corporation approximately the agencies they manage. Thus, the opposition content material is extra sensible, diverse, facts driven, and wealthy with customer insights. You’ll be mentored and judged via way of means of folks that paintings on those merchandise themselves. These by myself make BizMaestros an exceptionally wealthy revel in for any commercial enterprise grad, specifically for those who will begin their expert lives in some months.”
Why you have to take part in BizMaestros
The pandemic has wrecked the activity marketplace in which fantastically certified applicants war tougher now to locate employment, not to mention the maximum appropriate one for them. As a brand new entrant withinside the activity marketplace, turning into a (semi)finalist at BizMaestros provides a massive enhance to one’s CV. Moreover, preceding finalists and winners all rave approximately the effect BizMaestros has had on their transition as professionals.
Md. Ali Zulayer, Co-Founder and CEO, Abelling and the primary BizMaestros Champion, credit the opposition for getting ready him for his transition from undergrad to commercial enterprise and entrepreneurship. “The opposition compelled us to assume like actual commercial enterprise owners. I bear in mind we needed to provide you with a three-yr plan for the these days launched “Pureit”: marketing, operations, and finance. Looking lower back, I recognise that BizMaestros become an early ‘gym’ that helped construct the equal muscle I’ve used during my profession developing manufacturers for Unilever, Heading Product Operations for Uber, and now constructing my personal startup.”
Reflecting on what he has discovered from triumphing each BizMaestros in 2015 and the Unilever Future Leaders’ League in 2016 (the handiest Team so far), Ishmam Chowdhury, Price Specialist, Grameenphone says, “I accept as true with the addiction of handling strain situations, like being in the front of judges, explaining to them your crew’s idea, in a manner to win them over, in reality interprets to stable existence competencies for each actual-existence and activity existence. This consists of persuasion in addition to being cushty to method a person you need to persuade. Lack of self assurance is a actual element and does have an effect on such negotiations.”
How to win
Participating in a huge opposition method that the stakes are better and so are the nerves whilst brainstorming case solutions.
Despite the common student’s assumption that triumphing a commercial enterprise opposition method setting on a stunning overall performance for show, that isn’t the notion system of real winners. “My teammates and I constantly approached competitions as though we have been fixing the commercial enterprise hassle for actual. That mind-set made the inspiration to enhance and thrive, now no longer handiest in competitions however as destiny professionals,” says Rakib.
Ishmam recommends college students to study their environment and make notes early on, even performing some grocery buying on their personal. “Ultimately, a number of merchandise are offered at this stop factor and seeing the distinctive methods groups try and sell their product, even speakme with the store proprietor would possibly offer a few vital perception that won’t be effortlessly to be had on textbooks.”
Suva Karmaker, BizMaestros Semi-Finalist 2020, advises college students to attention at the evaluation standards on every spherical and the marks allotted in every criterion. This method to position extra emphasis at the standards with the better marks.
Open for all
