The biannual challenge, sponsored and run by Chicago-based simulation and assessment firm Capsim, is open to students in an associate, undergraduate, or graduate program with an academic institution. They must have completed a Capsim Simulation in their course in the past 12 months.
Mackinaw was a student in Dr. Larry Chasteen’s Strategic Management (BPS 4305) class, where students use the Capsim simulation to see how all parts of a business work together to be successful. Chasteen, PhD’03, is a lecturer in the Jindal School’s Organizations, Strategy and International Management Area and uses the Capsim Simulations in his class.
For her solo challenge, Mackinaw, who said she never expected to be a finalist, used Capsim as a practice tool.
“I tried some new ideas to help me learn how the simulation works,” Mackinaw said. “When I finished I had a better understanding of how the different areas of a business, such as advertising, finance, and compliance are all connected. My goal is to become a chief financial officer so it was helpful to be exposed to all of the different parts of the business.”
The Fall 2023 Challenge attracted students from universities in Australia, Canada, China, Egypt, England, India, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, South Korea, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey and the United States.
A desire to strengthen her understanding of Capsim after completing a class group project moved Mackinaw to sign up for the challenge, which is voluntary.
According to Chasteen, Mackinaw’s decision to participate is a perfect example of resilience.
“Angellina really demonstrated it during the semester,” he said. “The first part of the simulation is played by student teams against other student teams. Angellina’s team did not score very well during the team rounds. However, once the team rounds were over, students repeated the simulation on their own. Angellina worked hard during the individual rounds to master it.
According to Capsim President Reda Chafai, resilience — the capacity to bounce back after a challenge and to learn from the experience — is an invaluable trait in a business leader.
“It is having the flexibility to take that learning with you into the next problem, but to allow it to evolve and change as the next crisis unfolds,” Chafai said. “Winners of the Capsim Challenge have gone much further than their course requires to ensure they hone their adaptive and responsive decision-making skills for the future.”
As a student at the Jindal School, Mackinaw has completed an internship at Lane Gorman Trubitt and will start another at Crow Co. in the summer. Her favorite things about her experience at the Jindal School are the teachers.
“They were kind and welcoming and fostered a sense of community,” she said. “It is a professional environment as well as educational with things like the business center available for students. I have had a great experience here.”
