📌About the Event

NXT STEP: The Polycrisis Challenge is a national-level case competition conducted as part of SAMVAAD’26, the flagship business colloquium of the PGDM-BM programme at Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon, in collaboration with ScaNxt. Based on the theme “Thriving in a Polycrisis,” the competition challenges management students to analyse complex business problems, develop strategic solutions and adapt their recommendations when unexpected crisis scenarios change the original case.

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ℹ️ Event Details

• Theme: Thriving in a Polycrisis.
• Mode of Conduct: Hybrid – initial rounds are conducted online, while the grand finale will be held offline at MDI Gurgaon Auditorium.
• Team Size: 2–3 members.
• Round 1 – Assessment: Online assessment consisting of 25 multiple-choice/problem-solving questions with a duration of 30 minutes.
• Round 2 – The Strategic Plan: Shortlisted teams analyse the given business case and submit their recommendations through a 2–3 slide PPT.
• Round 3 – The Polycrisis Response: Finalists receive a new crisis scenario that changes the original case and must rapidly reassess and defend their strategy.

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📅 Important Dates

• Registration Deadline: 16 September 2026
• SAMVAAD’26: 26–27 September 2026 at MDI Gurgaon.
• Grand Finale: 27 September 2026.
• Grand Finale Venue: MDI Gurgaon Auditorium.

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🎯 Eligibility & Rules

• Eligibilty:
• Open to management school students.
• Participants must compete in teams of 2–3 members.
• Each participant can register with only one team.
• All submissions must be the team’s original work; plagiarism, copying or misrepresentation can lead to disqualification.
• Round 2 PPT submissions must be limited to 2–3 slides.
• Generative AI tools may be used for research, information gathering and analysis, but cannot be used to generate the final case submission or presentation deck.
• Participants may use publicly available research and information while developing their solutions.

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🏆 Benefits for the Participants

• Winner: ₹40,000 + Certificate.
• First Runner-up: ₹25,000 + Certificate.
• Second Runner-up: ₹15,000 + Certificate.
• Total Cash Prize Pool: ₹80,000.
• Certificates: Awarded to all five finalist teams presenting offline at MDI Gurgaon.