Business Plan Challenge
THE RULES
WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?
IE University bachelor students must first have taken Introduction to Management or Organizational Management, and be selected by their professors to represent their class with the best business idea. If the quality of the idea doesn’t meet the minimum standard required, the class may not be represented in the BP Challenge.
WHAT DOES THE CHALLENGE CONSIST OF?
Selected teams will submit an executive summary of their business plan proposal, and present a pitch. 5 copies of the executive summary should be printed out using Arial font (size 12, double spaced) in a Word document format, and should be no longer than 4 pages. Each team will have a maximum of 5 minutes to make their pitch presentation, before taking questions from the jury and the floor for a further 5 minutes (time will be strictly monitored). Only 1 or 2 team members should present to stick to the allocated time. Both the pitch and summary can be done in English or Spanish.
WHAT IS THE PRIZE?
The winning team will receive €500 in cash to help them start their new business. The second prize will be €250, and the third €100. All three teams will have the opportunity to meet with members of the jury (possible investors), and will be considered for further rounds of coaching and funding.
BUSINESS PLAN CHALLENGE 2020 IDEAS!
RAIA Group
Through social media platforms and think tanks, RAIA Group is working to more effectively engage young people in world affairs. The startup offers a fresh look at current events by focusing on subjective decision-making in order to make news more digestible.
ProHere
ProHere offers security in a beautiful way. The jewelry brand not only has a line of earrings that allow women to secretly contact authorities if they feel threatened, but it also offers an online community where women can share their stories. Showing an interest in reaching out to other demographics, this startup has a high ability to scale up in the future.
Farmer’s Basket
With millions of people throughout Spain finding it harder and harder to eat healthily, Farmer’s Basket is offering a solution to this growing problem. This startup allows users to order personalized, healthy meal options right to their doors every Monday, so they can start the week off right. With customers able to place orders online, eating well has never been easier.
smartenUp
smartenUp is working hard to fight the plastic waste problem by promoting more efficient recycling. Diving into the untapped market of upcycling, they handle all of the logistics of turning plastic into new and usable products to help organizations become more environmentally friendly.
ecoopera
ecoopera is making strides against the depopulation crisis facing rural Spain. They are working one on one with farmers, empowering them to grow sustainable food where it’s needed most. And their efforts even go beyond the fields, as they bring together different farmers to build a community to help them reach their goals. When you see the ecoopera label at the supermarket, you’ll know you’re making a difference.
UNIVU
UNIVU understands that many college students feel stressed when looking for a job that fits into their busy schedules. That’s why they’ve created an app to give future leaders a customizable look at how they can have the best career. This easy-to-use app is free—you only pay once you land a job.
LocSki
In order to give customers more peace of mind on the slopes, LocSki is working to create a built-in lock to help prevent skis from being stolen. The team is also developing a way for users to control the locks remotely if a set of skis goes missing. Before expanding around the world, the plan is to first get the startup off the ground in Europe.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
SPECIFIC CRITERIA THAT WILL BE EVALUATED DURING THE BUSINESS PITCHES ARE:
- Clearly identified niche in the market
- Defined target market
- Value Proposition: how does your product or service solve the problem/need?
- Business Model: how does this business make money?
- Management team: how are you prepared to make this business a success?
- Investment needed to start the business, and how much are you requesting from investors?
- Innovation
- Presentation of a prototype
- Web page design
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
December:
Professors announce selected teams representing their group. Selected teams are not obligated to participate
Beginning of February:
Deadline for business plan executive summary submission: to be delivered at the BBA Offices in Madrid or Segovia
Mid February:
Business Pitch presentations, announcement of the winning teams, and award ceremony followed by a cocktail