JUDGING CRITERIA

What to know for the 2025 Business Black Box Preliminary rubric.

OVERVIEW

BBB is a two-tiered tournament, in which senior mentors judge the preliminary rounds and invited business professionals, including a guest from the sponsor company, to judge the final round. To ensure fairness, mentors will not be able to judge their mentee’s teams.

Presentations will be judged holistically. This means that judges will not be giving a grade or calculating points based on weighted criteria. Rather, judges will be relying on a set of general criteria to guide their overall evaluations of the presentations (please find descriptions of our general criteria below). For instance, some presentations may be selected for their authentic and innovative proposals while others may be selected for strong reasoning, applicability, and feasibility. However, from our experience, successful presentations typically find a balance of these various criteria while also demonstrating strong communication skills.

A PowerPoint presentation in English (up to 10 minutes) followed by a brief Q&A session will be judged. There are no requirements on format, number of slides, and other specifics regarding the presentation (except for the time limit as mentioned above). For compatibility purposes, it is strongly recommended that participants use Windows (not Mac) when compiling the final presentation. We also recommend submitting a .pdf file over other formats. W-KUBS will not be responsible for any formatting errors or technical difficulties arising from different file types.

CRITERIA

Judging criteria for content and presentation is broken down into three categories each:

CONTENT (Each category worth 8 points)

Innovation and Originality
1. To what extent does the proposal demonstrate a unique and genuine approach, and how does it stand apart from traditional or well-known concepts?
2. How effectively does the team employ creative strategies in the allocation and use of resources to constructively address the challenge presented?
Implementation
1. Is the proposed solution realistically achievable within the context and capabilities of the sponsoring organization?
2. How convincingly did the team validate the practicality of their solution and present a clear, actionable execution roadmap?
Research and Evidence
1. To what extent does the team support their arguments with evidence that is both directly relevant and substantively convincing?
2. To what degree has the team conducted comprehensive research on the sponsoring organization and the pertinent industry?
3. How effectively does the team substantiate their proposal with compelling evidence, including thorough research, data, and incisive analysis?

PRESENTATION (Each category worth 6 points)

Structural Coherence
1. How well does the presentation's structure facilitate a clear understanding of the proposal and its supporting evidence?
2. Was the presentation designed in a way that was easy to follow, visually engaging, and displayed content in a clear and accessible manner?
Delivery
1. How coherently and confidently did the team deliver their presentation, maintaining focus and audience engagement throughout?
2. Did the team exhibit professionalism in their language, gestures, stage presence, vocal tone, and overall delivery?
3. Were the transitions between speakers seamless and well-coordinated, contributing to the overall smoothness of the presentation?
Answering Question
1. How thoughtful, well-prepared, and eloquent were the team's responses to questions?
2. Was the team's answer factually correct and based on accurate information?

In addition to content and presentation, teamwork will be judged for a total of 2 points.

Did the team demonstrate effective collaboration, with all members contributing to problem-solving and task delegation?

Points are totaled out of 50.

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