Event Article

CCEI Startup Strategy Competition – $40,000 in Prizes

Posted on by Claire Hall

The Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CCEI) at the UConn School of Business will host a Startup Strategy Competition as the second part of a two-event Startup Challenge Initiative. Building off the tremendous success of the Pitch Competition on April 8, the Strategy Challenge strongly encourages interdisciplinary teams—which typically reflect complementary skill sets, knowledge, and perspectives—to participate. There are no restrictions on subject matter or theme. Plans for any type of product, innovation, or service are acceptable.

Entries will be reviewed and judged by experienced professional entrepreneur mentors, and a maximum of ten finalists will be selected to present their ideas to the judging panel. The presentations will be held during the last week of classes (stay tuned for the exact date and place), and competitors will be allowed 10 minutes to present their ideas and five minutes to answer questions from the judges.

This competition is open to all UConn students—all majors, levels, and campuses are welcome and encouraged to participate. Please see the competition entry details below:

Written Entries Due: April 26, 2013

Finalists’ Presentations: Date & Time To Be Announced

Length: 5 pages maximum, plus 1 appendix page (optional). Note: Minimum font size no smaller than 11

Prizes: Total prize money to be awarded is $40,000

  • First Place: $20,000
  • Second Place: $10,000
  • Third Place: $5,000
  • Honorable Mention (2 prizes): $2,500 each

How to Enter: Official competition entries should be uploaded to the Business Plan Competition website. The submission tool will be made available by April 24th.

Entry Requirements:

  • Executive Summary: One or two paragraphs introducing your innovation.
  • Product: What is it that you are developing or proposing, and why is it significant, distinctive, and desirable? What will it cost you to make it and how much can you sell it for? How long will it take to get the innovation set for market and what steps do you need to undertake to make this happen? (One page maximum)
  • Market: What is the size of the overall market, who makes up the target market for your innovation, how do you plan to reach them (marketing and promotion), and what will they pay for your innovation (technology, product, or service)? (One page maximum)
  • Competitors: Who and what else is out there? Why are you better? (Suggested length: half page)
  • Team: Who is your team, and how will you be able to develop and market your innovation? (Suggested length: quarter page)

Questions? Contact Katie Huntington at khuntington@business.uconn.edu

CCEI Startup Challenge – Pitch Competition Winners and Written Plan Competition Announced

Posted on by Claire Hall

On Monday April 8th 2013, students chatted excitedly amongst themselves as they waited in line to register to pitch their business ideas at the CCEI Startup Challenge Pitch Competition. The large classroom in the Gentry Building was nearly filled to capacity with over 60 registered teams and students who attended to watch as audience members. The energy in the room before the competition started was tangible—all of the teams were interested in winning one (or more) of the ten $1000 prizes.

CCEI Startup Challenge Pitch Competition

Prior to the event, participants were able to see five of the ten award categories, but remaining categories were intentionally withheld to add to the excitement of the night. This competition was open to all UConn students (all majors, levels, and campuses), which was clearly reflected in the broad array of ideas that were presented. There were no stipulations about what the business ideas had to be about, and teams were encouraged to get creative. The organizers and judges for this event included former UConn student entrepreneurs who founded their businesses while still students at UConn. It was the intent of the CCEI (University of Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, at the UConn School of Business) for this event to be young, fun, and student-led to add to the sense of camaraderie and creativity.

Teams and individual competitors raced through 90-second pitches. Over the course of four hours, judges listened to and questioned the presenters about their ideas, which ranged from gadgets and websites to new devices and household products. Kathryn Huntington ’06, Administrative Coordinator for the CCEI who served as lead organizer and a judge of the event said, “It was amazing to see all the different ideas that students have and are working on—it is our intent that by hosting this type of event that these ideas will be developed into actual businesses and spur economic development at UConn. During the breaks, you could see teams seeking each other out, exchanging contact information, and starting to talk to each other about teaming up and working on projects—this was exactly what we were hoping for.”

CCEI Startup Challenge Strategy Competition

On a college campus, ideas are sprung constantly, but not all of them come to fruition. Events like the CCEI Startup Challenge encourage students to really develop these ideas, and see how far they can take them. The impressive turnout at this event shows that the entrepreneurial spirit is growing at UConn. Participating teams were invited to take their ideas even further by participating in the other element of the CCEI Startup Challenge: a business strategy competition, which culminates during the last week of classes. It is the CCEI’s intention to offer programming that helps identify student entrepreneurs and bring them together, and to get them to think creatively about new business ideas. “The type of networking and collaboration we saw at this event among the participating teams was exciting, refreshing, and infectious—we hope that these students with the ‘entrepreneurial bug’ will help spread the word to their friends and classmates, and create a real network of collaboration among all of these bright-minded and creative individuals,” said Huntington.

Details on the Startup Challenge Initiative and the upcoming written plan competition can be found on the CCEI Startup Challenge Website.

Entrepreneurship at UConn

“The competition was a great way to get students to start refining their ideas, and preparing for questions they might hear from future investors,” says event organizer and judge Nadav Ullman ’12. “The cash incentive was a great way to get them to come out and pitch, but I think the learning experience was the most valuable part of the event.” Students with entrepreneurial ideas are encouraged to seek out faculty and professional mentors that can serve as resources and guide them through the process of taking something from the idea phase and turning it into a viable business venture.

Organizations like the CCEI, the Office of Technology Commercialization, the Office of Economic Development, and the Innovation East Hub all serve as resources for UConn students, faculty, and staff who are working on developing their entrepreneurial ideas. Event co-organizer and judge Mike Parelli ’12 encourages student entrepreneurs: “We were really surprised with both the quantity of pitches, and the quality. From various types of devices to the next Zumba, we had some great ideas that are being worked on right here at UConn. Our hope is to see these teams follow through and enter some of the other competitions that are happening.”

The CCEI hopes that the ten winners of the CCEI Startup Challenge Pitch Competition will utilize these resources and actualize their ideas. CCEI Executive Director Christopher Levesque ’87 extends congratulations to all of the winning teams and hopes to see written plans for many of the pitched ideas in the upcoming strategy competition. Judge Tom Bachant ’12 sums up this sentiment: “Students really got a chance to show off the passion they had for their ideas. I can’t wait to see where they go from here.”

CCEI Startup Challenge Pitch Competition Winners:

  • Best Pitch Presentation: Spine Fuze
  • Best Product Invention Idea: MacroPod
  • Best Mobile App Idea: KualaApp
  • Most Socially Responsible Idea: The 589 Project
  • Best College Targeted Idea: Meals to Money
  • Best Website Idea: PartsTech
  • Most Fundable Idea: Acetone Breath Analyzer
  • Most Likely to Go Viral: Picture of the Day
  • Best “Green” Idea: Graphine Toothpaste
  • Judges’ Favorite: Advanced Column Solutions

CCEI Startup Challenge Pitch Competition Organizers and Judges:

  • Tom Bachant ’12; Co-Founder, Sobrio
  • Adam Boyajian ’12; Co-Founder, Buses2
  • Kathryn Huntington ’06, Administrative Coordinator, CCEI
  • Mike Parelli ’12, Co-Founder, Buses 2
  • Nadav Ullman ’12, Co-Founder, Sobrio

CCEI Startup Challenge – Pitch Competition – $10,000

Posted on by Claire Hall

The CCEI Startup Challenge Pitch Competition is an event where $10,000 in prize money will be awarded to individuals or teams across multiple categories. Individuals or teams can pitch more than one idea, and you could win in more than one category. This competition is open to all UConn Students (all majors, levels, campuses), and the idea can be for anything – we encourage you to get creative! Five of the prize categories are listed below; the other five will be revealed at the event. Pitches will be limited to 90 seconds and will be followed by up to two minutes of Q&A. Have an idea? Pitch it!

First Five Prize Categories Revealed:

  • Best Pitch Presentation
  • Best Product Invention Idea
  • Best Mobile App Idea
  • Most Socially Responsible Idea
  • Best College Targeted Idea (“Most Likely to Succeed at UConn”)

For more information and rules, please visit the CCEI website.

Sponsored by the University of Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CCEI)
Questions? Email khuntington@business.uconn.edu

Innovation Quest Competition Accepting Applications Until April 1

Posted on by Claire Hall

Idea to Prototype to Company: all University of Connecticut students who have an innovative business or product idea are eligible to enter the second annual UConn Innovation Quest (iQ) competition, which will be accepting applications until April 1, 2013. Winners of the competition and selected runners-up will have the opportunity to build their business as part of an incubator training program called the inQbator, with a grand prize opportunity of $15,000 to put towards the start of a business. Adam Boyajian ’12, whose idea was one of the few chosen for the program through last year’s competition, shares, “The inQbator program finally forced us to sit down and think about how to scale our business.”

The iQ competition was brought to UConn at the encouragement of Keith R. Fox ’80, a longtime entrepreneur, executive and philanthropist who offered to sponsor the contest after seeing its success at Cal Poly. “[Innovation Quest is] really a vision that Carson [Chen] started [at Cal Poly], about fostering innovation and entrepreneurship in our young people, in the students… with a mission of helping them to create companies and ultimately jobs here in the United States,” explains Fox in “What is Innovation Quest,” one of a series of FAQ videos that can be accessed here.

Applications for this year’s Innovation Quest competition will be accepted until Monday, April 1 at 11:59 p.m.

Competition Application –

Innovation Quest Video FAQs –

Questions? Contact Nadav (nadav@sobrioapp.com) or Tom (tom@sobrioapp.com)

UConn MBAs Take 1st Place in Illinois Strategy Case Competition

Posted on by Claire Hall

A team of four University of Connecticut MBA candidates took first place in the fifth annual MBA Strategy Case Competition hosted by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, held February 7-9. Ten schools participated in the competition: Arizona State, Baylor, Connecticut, Hong Kong UST, Illinois, Iowa State, Michigan State, Minnesota, Penn State, and Purdue. Continue Reading

Update: Webcast Recording Available for “Town Hall” Meeting on U.S.-China Relationship

Posted on by Claire Hall

UConn-Stamford Joins 60-City Live Program with U.S. Ambassador to China

The University of Connecticut’s Stamford campus and the Business Council of Fairfield County are teaming to offer a unique opportunity to students, business leaders and other community members to learn about critical U.S.-China relations.

UConn-Stamford will be one of 60 venues nationwide offering the Oct. 29, 2012, presentation of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations’ sixth annual CHINA Town Hall. The live webcast event, “National Reflections, Local Connections,” includes a discussion and a question-and-answer session with Gary Locke, the U.S. Ambassador to China.

UConn-Stamford’s event starts at 7 p.m. and includes a presentation by China specialist Keith W. Abell, co-founder the Sungate Properties real estate investment company. His discussion precedes the webcast of the Town Hall, which starts at 8 p.m.

UConn-Stamford will present the discussion and live webcast in its Gen Re auditorium on the first floor of the downtown campus. Admission is free.

Ambassador Locke will deliver a special address to be broadcast live to audiences in the 60 cities and towns across the United States. He will then respond to questions from audience members nationwide in a discussion, moderated by Stephen Orlins, president of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations.

The presentation of the live webcast at UConn-Stamford is part of the University’s commitment to offering timely, compelling events and resources to students, the region and its business community.

“China is now part of Fairfield County’s daily reality. This event is an important investment in our region’s growing understanding of the US-China relationship,” says Christopher P. Bruhl, President and CEO of The Business Council of Fairfield County.

Ambassador Gary Locke has been U.S. Ambassador to China since August 2011. Previously, he served as the Secretary of Commerce from 2009 to 2011 where he was point person for achieving the President’s National Export Initiative, which achieved a thirty-two percent increase in exports to China from 2009 to 2010.

Before his appointment to the President’s cabinet, Ambassador Locke served two terms as governor of Washington, where he helped double the state’s exports to China, and as a partner in the Seattle office of the international law firm, David Wright Tremaine LLP, where he co-chaired the firm’s China practice.

The National Committee on United States-China Relations is the leading national, non-partisan public affairs organization devoted exclusively to building constructive and durable relationships between the United States and China.

For more information, contact:

Timothy Dowding, UConn School of Business International Business Accelerator
(203) 251-9582 or timothy.dowding@business.uconn.edu

Michael J. Deotte, UConn School of Business Director of Marketing
(860) 486-4478 or mdeotte@business.uconn.edu

Joseph Weed, Director of Communications
National Committee on United States-China Relations
(212) 645-9677, ext. 11 or jweed@ncuscr.org


   

2012 MBA Women International Conference & Career Fair

Posted on by Claire Hall

The 2012 MBA Women International (MBAWI) Conference & Career Fair was held October 18-20 in Phoenix, Arizona. Marlys Rizzi represented the University of Connecticut School of Business at the event and served on the conference planning committee. This year’s theme, “Leadership Trends, Achieving Peak Performance,” was designed to assist women, both students and professionals, as they continue along the journey to develop and enhance their leadership skills. Continue Reading

Innovation for Business Growth in Fairfield County

Posted on by Claire Hall

Over 110 UConn Alumni and business leaders from Greater Stamford gathered at the “Innovation for Business Growth in Fairfield County” event at the Stamford Learning Accelerator last Thursday. The event, hosted by the University of Connecticut School of Business and The Business Council of Fairfield, Connecticut, featured a panel discussion on topics such as new business growth in Connecticut and why companies are relocating to Fairfield County.

Moderated by Dean John Elliott of the UConn School of Business and Christopher Bruhl, President and CEO of The Business Council of Fairfield County, the panel was comprised of UConn alumni business leaders in the area as well as UConn faculty. Panelists included Tim Hunter, Professor and Head, Digital Media & Design Department, UConn Schools of Business and Fine Arts; Lincoln Millstein ’77, Executive Vice President, Deputy Group Head at Hearst Publications; Seth Ruzi, VP & Associate General Counsel, Starwood Hotels & Resorts; and Joseph Parsons ’79, Management Committee Member, Bridgewater Associates.

The interactive discussion was followed by a cocktail party and networking reception welcoming the new Dean, where attendees were also able to chat with panelists directly.

The Business Career Center Breaks the Mold on Career Fairs

Posted on by Claire Hall

On October 12, 2012, the School of Business Career Center hosted its inaugural Business Career Expo during which they welcomed over 480 registered business students and over 100 key corporate professionals to an invitation-only career event. The Expo, held on a Friday during the hours of 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., was marketed to employers and students alike as “Not your Classic Career Fair” and was the first event of this kind for not only the School of Business, but the University as well. Absent from the room were the long tables and employer banners which usually serve as the backdrop of career fairs and which can form a barrier to more personal conversations.

The day was structured around three components: networking, information sessions and personal career placement conversations. The main Expo room, set with bistro style tables, was filled with light and an open energy flow which resonated around both employers and students alike. In breakout rooms across the hall, 17 individual employer information sessions ran concurrent to the Expo and offered students the ability to learn more about individual companies and placement opportunities. “We designed the day in a setting that was intended to foster compelling, impactful conversations with a direct focus on student placement. Based on attendance as well as student and employer comments, the day was such a resounding success that we plan to continue the event in the coming years.” said Jim Lowe, Executive Director of the School of Business Career Center and Assistant Dean of External Relations and Outreach.

The day concluded with a private luncheon for our corporate partners hosted by the Business Career Center. Mary Holz-Clause, the University of Connecticut’s Vice President of Economic Development, and Jim Lowe spoke briefly at the luncheon to welcome and thank all of our corporate partners for their continued support of our students.

NPR Discusses MIS Recruiting with UConn OPIM Department

Posted on by Claire Hall

Dr. Ram Gopal, department head of Operations & Information Management (OPIM) at the University of Connecticut School of Business, accompanied by OPIM faculty members Ramesh Sankaranarayanan, Sudip Bhattacharjee, Dmitry Zhdanov, and students Walid Namane, Imrus Sadiq, Carlo Guerriero, and Lily Elawar chatted with Neena Satija of NPR News about the overwhelming need for MIS (IT) skills in the state job market.Continue Reading