The idea of a business plan competition first started in the 1980's at the initiative of some MBA students from Texas and has increasingly gained popularity. Such events happen yearly and rejoice a great affluence of contestants, which highly increases their competitiveness.
Competitions
Organized by Universities
* Babcock Elevator Pitch Competition - Wake Forest University
* Enterprise Creation Competition - Ball State University
* Moot Corp. Competition - University of Texas
* Duke Start-Up Challenge - Duke University
* IBK Capital Ivey Business Plan Competition - University of Western Ontario
* OFC Venture Challenge - Clark Atlanta University
* Venture Adventure - Colorado State University
Held by business organizations
* Jungle Business Plan Challenge - Jungle Media Group
* S.E.E.D. Business Plan Competition - TechKnowledge Point Corp.
* Venture Bowl - National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Carrot Capital
You will wonder probably what exactly do these competitions consist of and where does their popularity come from?
Organizers
Although the organizers and sponsors are usually universities, there are several business organizations that host business plan competitions.
Contestants
Business plan competitions are student entrepreneur events. The contests are organized either for graduate or undergraduate students and it does not necessarily have to be MBA students. The contestants may be student scientists, engineers, MDs or other specialists who strive to create a viable business plan hoping to enter such competitions.
The popularity of such contests also reached some other layers: business plan competitions are also organized with the purpose of giving people the possibility of starting a business. Business plan competitions usually happen as intercollegiate events, but this contest formula has also been taken over by companies who want to facilitate the founding of new businesses.
It is also the case of Ford Motor Company that sponsored the Ford BEST (Building Entrepreneurial Success Today) Business Plan contest in association with SCORE "Counselors to America's Small Business" and DiversityInc. The BEST Business Plan contest took place in the winter of 2004 and addressed all U.S. citizens over 18. All the submitted business plans were judged by an advisory panel from SCORE.
Why the need to participate in such events?
Besides the cash prizes, that, although quite important, will rarely suffice for financing the foundation of a company, there is the advantage of learning from this experience - this will enrich students' knowledge in a greater degree than the mere theoretical aspects they learn from lectures.
Not in the last place, there is the valuable opportunity of pitching the business plans to quite a lot of investors in a very short time.
How Do Winners Benefit?
Innitially started as a valuable opportunity for the students with bright business ideas to express them within contest conditions, the business plan competitions have become a resource for some investors. There are two categories of results of such competitions:
You would say that choosing from purely theoretical plans would be highly improbable for a venture investor. Yet, that's how many successful firms came into being.
1-800 Contacts
A mail-order contact-lens-replacement company in Draper, Utah. The business plan won the 1995 Brigham Young University tournament in Provo, Utah.
Attorneys @ Work
An Internet recruiting and placement service in Atlanta. Competition: 1996, University of Georgia. SensAble Technologies Inc.
In Cambridge, Mass., won the MIT competition in 1995. Epotec Inc.
Competition: 1997, University of Chicago.
However, having good results in an important competition does not necessarily imply launching a company successfully. There is the risk that some investors consider your plan an academic exercise before really studying it and thus the percentage of trust is substantially reduced.
Laura Ciocan writes for http://www.businessplanning.ws where you can find more information about business planning
Please feel free to use this article in your Newsletter or on your website. If you use this article, please include the resource box and send a brief message to let me know where it appeared.
Contact:lauracio@gmail.com
The program should be one term, two terms or three... Read More
Still struggling to pay off the college loan? Have you... Read More
Online degree program is a good choice for busy individual's... Read More
The Get Into Uni personal statement writing guide contains systematic... Read More
Online education is steadily gaining acceptance in the academic world... Read More
You've already decided that you're ready to author online and... Read More
The first step to getting your online degree is to... Read More
Have you long wanted or needed to increase your level... Read More
Distance Learning Makes the GradeDistance Learning might make all the... Read More
With the rising cost of books, tuition and housing, it's... Read More
Many public universities play the "Low Expectation Game" (see article... Read More
Whatever you want to label "learning at home" and however... Read More
When we write for college courses, we write for an... Read More
Now I remember being a freshman in college, and let... Read More
Everybody lies, and storytellers are some of the best liars... Read More
The Student Financial Guide website is divided into categories pertaining... Read More
IntroductionWhilst it is recognized that South Africa is still in... Read More
As with any field, there are good technical training schools,... Read More
It is highly recommended that early in the college selection... Read More
What is happening on the campuses of secular universities across... Read More
Getting into college is a stressful experience for most high... Read More
The idea of a business plan competition first started in... Read More
Get motivated! ('Why do I write this paper?")This is a... Read More
We're going to college, and we need cash. We have... Read More
High School Ion Minulescu, Slatina, Graduates 1991.Clasa XII A, Baboi... Read More
Academics from Oxford University have mathematically proven long held suspicions... Read More
Physical Therapy Schools administer course instruction to potential physical therapists.... Read More
It's that time of year again when global issues take... Read More
Many have a tough time listening to the scientists debate... Read More
The University of the West Indies (UWI) has often been... Read More
In an era when professional opportunities are diminishing, one area... Read More
Scindex's Instant Publishing Service is about empowerment. The price of... Read More
There are many reasons people seek degrees in today's day... Read More
What is the average cost of college tuition? This is... Read More
Some of us fill a page with a wall of... Read More
Congratulations on your move toward a college degree. And congratulations... Read More
After presenting these ideas at the NAREN (National At-Risk Education... Read More
In order to do well on a exam, you must... Read More
Stanford University's Online Lessons Learned Stanford University's Center for... Read More
The problem with student and any small move comes when... Read More
On March 12, 2005, high school juniors across the country... Read More
The driving factor of any university is to make the... Read More
Higher education in the university gives students a chance to... Read More
The reason to study the flows of civilization is out... Read More
The introduction of the Government's Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) in... Read More
Distance Learning is a priority for most who have already... Read More
Online degree program is a good choice for busy individual's... Read More
Some people are calling it distance-free learning for the Medical... Read More
With the rising cost of books, tuition and housing, it's... Read More
IntroductionWhilst it is recognized that South Africa is still in... Read More
A generation ago few would have given much thought to... Read More
If rising tuition costs or personal concerns have made you... Read More
Scindex's Instant Publishing Service is about empowerment. The price of... Read More
Whether you're a freshman or a senior, studying abroad or... Read More
Attend ClassGo to class, every class, every time. It is... Read More
A college degree gives a person a guarantee of higher... Read More
Do best friends make the best college roommates? Not always!... Read More
Embrace the secrets of the body-mind connection and tap into... Read More
In modern society passing educational examinations becomes an increasingly important... Read More
An online associate degree is a two-year general studies degree... Read More
When you speak, do residents listen or ignore you? If... Read More
If you run a home business, you know that budgets... Read More
Many parents and students I counsel confuse Early Admission, Early... Read More
Sending your kids to college has never been more difficult... Read More
Now I remember being a freshman in college, and let... Read More
Distance Learning Makes the GradeDistance Learning might make all the... Read More
College & University |