After about three hours of intense effort, on November 21 at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess, the Butterfield Student Challenge participants were going neck and neck for the first place prize. It all came down to the judges' final decisions. It was very tough for them as all the schools had done exceptionally well, but they could only choose three schools, which took the first three places.

The winning team was Bermuda High School, which consisted of Catlin O'Doherty, Mariangela Bucci, Jenna Kessaraui and Madeleine Fox. The team were given the case study Roun' D' Worl' Cola with the slogan being "My island, my home, my beverage taste paradise". The team proposed that they would introduce an alcoholic alternative called Bermy Passion and offer island-wide tastings. The team also planned to introduce Liquid Loquat which would be placed in eco-friendly bottles and have low sugar. Despite the technical difficulties they encountered during their presentation, the winners demonstrated their perseverance. After their victory they were asked what three words would describe this whole process. A team member from the winning team (BHS) shared her excitement: "It was stressful, exciting, and rewarding." They were glad that their hard work and dedication had paid off. They also applied what they learned in school to the real world.

The Butterfield Student Challenge: Students for Success, was created specifically for Bermuda's high school students. The primary objectives of the challenge are to challenge students to think creatively and strategically about financial issues in today's economic climate. The challenge also promoted the importance of teamwork in a professional environment. Lastly, it provided the high school students with an opportunity to showcase their schools and allow the public to witness Bermuda's talented young people.

In attendance were former premier Sir John Swan; President and CEO of Butterfield Bank, Alan Thompson; and three vice presidents from the Butterfield Bank, all of whom comprised the panel of judges for the evening. The six high schools involved were CedarBridge Academy, The Berkeley Institute, Bermuda High School, Bermuda Institute, Saltus Grammar School and Warwick Academy.

The schools worked tirelessly throughout the three strenuous hours of the evening. Throughout the night they were asked various questions once they had completed their business plan presentation. In order to come out on top they had to create both a written business plan and then a presentation. The presentation would demonstrate how they would rectify their business's current situation and why they needed a $250,000 injection. Many in the audience were sceptical when they were told students would receive a $250,000 injection. They then introduced the audience to 'NFR' which means not for real, which gave the audience some relief.

Students had been given one of the three case studies from which they created their business plan and had been given about two months to prepare themselves for the competition. The three cases studies were Childz Play, a toy store, Darrell's Delight, a café, and Roun' D' Worl' Cola , a beverage manufacturer similar to Barritts. The students had 10 minutes to deliberate before both the judges and the audience. A range of topics were mentioned throughout the evening from the businesses' SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threats). Each school was uniquely informative and also added laughter in the room. Students from some of the schools also made use of technology by displaying a short video.

In second place was Bermuda Institute, presenting Darrell's Delight as their case study, and in third place was The Berkeley Institute presenting Childz Play as their case study. Although no participants were available for comment from Bermuda Institute, Sharon Sunderaaj, one of the Berkeley Institute team, was pleased with her team's result, and commented, "This whole experience was great and incredible, as we put in time after school to as late as 10 p.m. for about two months and I can really say we deserved it."

Summing up the competition, CEO and President of Butterfield Bank, Alan Thompson, said: "Since the event was such a success, we hope to host this annually, and I thank the management trainees for planning such an astonishing event."