What is the Business Club?

The St. Georges Business club aims to provide opportunities outside of the classrooms for students to gage themselves in the field of business and entrepreneurship through case competitions, guest speakers, and hands-on experience. Though officially established in 2015, the business club was created to provide an extra medium to satisfy student’s entrepreneurial spirit and savvy business sense. When I asked Ms. Orr, the sponsor teacher of the club, about when and why the business club was created, she enthusiastically responded: “We wanted to do more. We wanted to supplement the learning that was happening in the classroom. In fact, about 5 years ago when the business club was founded, it wasn’t a club, it was an add-on to what we already did. But it hasn’t been a club per say until it was formalized two years ago.”

What do they do?

The purpose of the business club is to provide additional opportunities for keen students outside the class and they currently do that by partaking in a serious of business case competitions and the Junior Achievement (JA) Company program. Business case competitions, for those who don’t know what it is, is a competition where a team of 3-5 individuals is given a package of information about a company’s situation, which they must use plan out a course of action for the company. The plan is then pitched in front of a panel that decides which team has the best presentation based on the delivery of the team members and the effectiveness of the course of action. So far, the business club has run annual case competitions with Richard Ivey and Simon Fraser University (SFU), but are also looking to expand and collaborate with the University of British Columbia (UBC).

On top of this, the Business club is incorporating a new initiative this year aimed at promoting entrepreneurship: the Junior Achievement (JA) Company Program. The JA Company Program is a curriculum that introduces students to a basic introduction of business management and will cover the themes of marketing, general business, and entrepreneurship among others and will be adapted to fit the mold of the Business Club. I interviewed Bruce Li, a senior at Saints and the person in charge of the JA Company in the Business club. He says, “I found out about JA Company online in an attempt to find a platform for teenage entrepreneurs. I gained the experience of creating and running a company with other aspiring team members.

“I wanted to introduce this program to St. George’s as it provides a platform for the boys within the school to make their entrepreneurial ideas become a reality. The JA company program will create a legacy within St. George’s that will benefit many generations to come.”

Confusions and Concerns?

There’s a major confusion prevalent among students, and even some staff, surrounding the differences between the Business Club and the Investment Club. Simply, the Investment club focuses on Finance and analyzes the stock market, whereas the Business Club focuses on Business management and entrepreneurship. Also, a big concern for the club has been finding the right time to meet. Ms. Orr believes that “We keep on losing interested students because the time to meet every week is a big factor. Students are very busy with a broad spectrum of activities.” Due to the other commitment of the students, the business club has found it nearly impossible to successfully determine a date that is available to all interested.

Importance of the Business Club?

Why is the business club important? How will this impact me in the future? These are some questions students have raised regarding the business club. Ms. Orr puts it best when she says: “Upwards of 95% of students here eventually run a business, go into business, or even are affiliated with the business in some way. If they know how to run a company from the perspective of marketing or understand how to analyze cases, this may greatly enhance their decision-making abilities.”

Even if you aren’t going into a career of business, understanding fundamental business concepts may aid you in your ability to succeed in the future. She continues, “The whole skill set of business and what we’re offering in our courses and the business club is interwoven in life in general. Whether you’re a doctor or a lawyer, you still need to have business skills.” In my opinion, Ms. Orr is right. Whatever students pursue as their career choice, having basic knowledge of key business principles may help them in their future endeavours.

Upcoming Events and Information

An upcoming event is the Junior Achievement (JA) Titan game, which is organized by the student executive team of the Business club and will take place on Saturday, November 18th from 9-12. If you have any questions, please contact the Ms. Orr and the student leadership team of the Business Club.

After reading this article, if you’re interested in any aforementioned event or joining the business club, the business club executive team welcomes you to drop by and attend the meetings The club hosts weekly meetings every Wednesday after X-Block at 1:15pm in Norris Theatre.