The MonsoonSIM Enterprise Resource Management Competition
MonsoonSIM Enterprise Resource Management Competition, otherwise known as MERMC, is an annual international competition hosted by MonsoonSIM and its partners. This yearly event dynamically involves students and educators with the objective of exposing students to the concept of ERM through challenging and engaging simulation games.
MERMC, hosted annually online, aspires to bring together students worldwide in the spirit of sportsmanship, entrepreneurship, and friendship. During the MERMC 2021, over 6,000 students from over 100 universities participated. Among these teams of outstanding students, some of the countries represented include Australia, USA, China, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, and Malaysia.
This yearly event dynamically involves students and educators with the objective of exposing students to the concept of ERM through challenging and engaging simulation games.
MonsoonSIM strives to support students with the knowledge of business integration and developing the soft skills to support them as they enter the job market.
Our 2021 Runner Ups
Team Muzzafar Zayn placed second in the 2021 MERMC. Representing Universitas Islam Indonesia, Team Muzzafar Zayn has an ELO of 1542 and consists of 5 remarkable team members, namely Nicho Kurniawan Santoso, Farhan Kamil Rabbani, Valdo Maggri Alani, Agnes Aura Anisha, and Imerina Zuhara.
It is their perseverance, drive, and collaboration, along with the guidance of their coach, Muhammad Fadhly Rizky Octavio, that pushed them to soar high into second place in this international competition.
Back to the Present
An interview with some members from Team Muzzafar Zayn shared some insights into the current interests and pursuits, life after MERMC 2021, and how it has shaped the role they have today.
“My current work is as an SAP FICO consultant,” Valdo informs, adding, ““I want to become a professional SAP consultant because I have an interest in business process integration.”
Coming from an accounting background and having learnt ERP through MonsoonSIM, the three members of the team—Valdo, Agnes and Nicho—state that they want to pursue careers related to SAP.
As for Agnes, she explains her new challenge, “I just graduated from my university 3 months ago and am currently pursuing a full scholarship to continue my master's degree.”
Based on the team’s answers, consultancy and ERP seems to be in the cards, and that is indeed what MonsoonSIM strives to support students with, having the knowledge of business integration and developing the soft skills to support them as they enter the job market!
How Their MERMC 2021 Experience Has Shaped Their Current Path
When asked about some takeaways they got from the competition, Agnes was the first to say, “There are many takeaways from the competition that I carry with me until now. For example, the eagerness to always learn. I just graduated from my bachelor's degree, and I was a little bit confused deciding what to do for the next step. But I didn't think too long about that problem. Right now, I am currently pursuing a full scholarship to continue my master's degree because I want to always learn new things.”
For Agnes, she also finds that she learnt a lot from taking part in MERMC, having developed good teamwork skills, time management abilities, analytical thinking and other relevant skills.
Valdo responded that it was more about learning to work as a team, understanding the business flow together, and how that has greatly supported him in his current pursuits. He says, “Participating in the MERMC was fun and we learned a lot of new things about how to manage a business. I am used to working with a team, and I have come to understand how the business flows. Participating in the MERMC really gave me more knowledge about business process integration, so keep an open mind to learning all these things.”
As for Nicho, he remarks that discipline was one of the traits that he got to train on when putting in the hard work and effort into preparing for the MERMC 2021 with his team and the satisfaction and pride they felt when they performed incredibly during the games. Nicho adds that it was a great experience to gain more knowledge and skills, and that he recommends it to everyone as a valuable learning experience.
Final Takeaways
When asked about some words of wisdom or advice that the Team Muzzafar Zayn representatives would like to convey to their fellow MonsoonSIM enthusiasts and more relevantly, the MERMC 2022 competing teams, they had a few things to emphasize.
“It’s important to work hard and practice and study all the components of the assessment.” Nicho advises a thorough approach in the preparations.
Lastly, Agnes adds some final tips and tricks, listed below:
1. Communication with your own team is a key. So, make sure you say it loud when you need help!
2. Practice every day. Practice makes perfect, people said.
3. Always do an evaluation with your coach after the game.
4. Make sure your team is ready 30 minutes before the game starts. Discuss your strategy first!
5. Don't be too shy to ask. We are all still learning :)
Among the common themes of the victors, dedicated practice and hard work seem to be the key.
Among the common themes of the victors, dedicated practice and hard work seem to be the key. With that said, MonsoonSIM wishes the best of luck to all future MERMC participants the best of luck! and sincerely hopes that the student feature interview series such as this one with the Muzzafar Zayn team can be a source of inspiration and encouragement for us all!
