From Books to Petrochemicals: Corvinus Students Take on the Modul Business Championship in Vienna
The team — Gergely Ganyecz, Nurbakyt Myrzagulov, and Veronika Léránt — prepared for months with the support of their mentors, Zoltán Stokinger and Petra Jenei. Their preparation included mock competitions, intensive 24-hour case-solving simulations, as well as workshops focused on presentation and public speaking skills.
As Nurbakyt explained:
“I have always enjoyed case competitions for the challenges they bring, and this time was no exception. We worked on two different cases: one related to the book retailer Libri and another to the oil company MOL, which allowed us to explore fundamentally different industries and types of problems.”
During the online qualifier, the students developed a solution for the Hungarian book retailer Libri, which earned them a place in the competition. At the finals, they worked on a case from MOL Austria focused on transitioning away from conventional heating oil. The Corvinus team proposed introducing HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil) as a cleaner alternative, followed by a long-term strategy to encourage the adoption of heat pumps among customers.
Based on company feedback, the team’s strategic direction closely aligned with MOL’s own thinking. Gergely recalled:
“From the company representative’s feedback, it was clear that our solution was very close to what the company is looking for; we mainly fell short in terms of delivery and clarity of our message.”
The competition also highlighted the importance of communication and teamwork in case competitions. According to Gergely:
“These competitions are just as much about soft skills as they are about technical knowledge, and executive communication and simplicity are areas where we still have a lot of room to improve.”
Beyond professional experience, the competition also had a strong personal impact on the team:
“We started working together as almost strangers and ended up becoming a cohesive team built on professional trust and genuine human connection.”
Congratulations to the team!