Prime employer for women, Caterpillar, hosted a fabulous competition for university students in Human Resources and related fields. The competition focused on a real Caterpillar business problem - healthcare consumerism in the United States of America. There were ten student teams who all came from multiple universities across the United States, who participated.

Solutions with impact

A team of cross-functional judges from across Caterpillar judged the competition, and based their analysis on the problem and the impact of the solution for improving employee healthcare consumer decisions and the external healthcare market. In addition, the students were also judged on the implementation and communication plan for their proposed solution. 

A variety of the ideas generated by the case competition are planned to be implemented by Caterpillar, including working with local communities to increase collaboration on health and wellness topics, leveraging community support to encourage more transparency from providers and facilities, and also using multiple types of communication to increase engagement across a broad employee population.

Students worked to address real world problems

The experience was beneficial for all the judges and students alike, providing an external perspective to an internal Caterpillar business problem. Students mentioned that the competition and the experience overall was certainly "a great way to share theoretical knowledge in the HR field for practical use" and it provided them with valuable insight and "great real world experience before graduation."

Case sponsor Stephen Robertson, North America Compensation and Benefits Manager, said that "Rising healthcare costs continue to be a challenge for employers and employees in the U.S. It was evident the students participating in the university case competition thoroughly understood the challenges for employers, and for the employees who pay for healthcare. It was difficult to pick winning teams as each group presented solutions which may be incorporated into Caterpillar benefits strategy. We would like to thank everyone who participated."

Excellent career opportunities at Caterpillar

Learn more about Caterpillar and the ways they support students, their employees and customers. And see if there are some relevant job vacancies that match your own skills.

Or check out some of Caterpillar's Student Programs where you can have the opportunity to grow and develop - on a global scale. Thousands of Caterpillar employees come into work every day. While they perform their daily tasks or work on projects, they’re really contributing to the work of a powerful global team. We don't just build great products, they're paired with the newest digital technologies and analytics to solve problems and help communities.

Every employee plays a vital role, including you. Caterpiallar's internships and development programs are a terrific opportunity to gain valuable on-the-job experience and contribute to real-world projects. 

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