Congratulations to Voiland College students who placed in the 2010 Business Plan Competition:
WSU Business Plan Hosts 52 Teams; Awards More Than $100,000
PULLMAN, Wash. – The Washington State University Business Plan Competition, organized by the Center for Entrepreneurial Studies in the College of Business, took place in Pullman April 23-24. The two-day event included competitors in four divisions, including two WSU divisions, participants from WSU’s international centers in China and Switzerland and high school and non-student divisions. Fifty-two teams presented their plans to a panel of judges from the business community, with the winning teams sharing cash and prizes totaling over $100,000.
Prior to the two-day event in Pullman, 35 teams from the college’s international campuses in Brig, Switzerland, and Chengdu, China, held preliminary competitions judged by WSU faculty and International Advisory Board members. Two teams from Switzerland and one team from China then traveled to Pullman to participate in the main event.
WSU leagues included both undergraduate and graduate teams, with participants from campuses in Pullman, Tri Cities, and Spokane as well as distance degree students, and the college’s international campuses in Switzerland and China. For the second time, the competition included a high school league, consisting of teams from Pullman, Sammamish and Asotin high schools. This is the fourth year that the competition included an open league, sponsored by the Port of Whitman.
“The business plan competition continues to be an outstanding learning opportunity for all of the participants. They learn how to integrate everything else they’ve learned prior to the competition, how to plan for and launch a new venture, how to work with others, and they have the opportunity to work directly with and learn from the judges, who are outstanding leaders in their various fields,” says Len Jessup, Director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Studies. “We expect to continue to see more and more students and community members take advantage of this extraordinary experience.”
WSU teams gave a 15-minute presentation followed by an intense 15-minute question and answer session by the judges while the high school and open league teams gave a 15-minute presentation followed by a 20-minute question and feedback session. The panel of 75 judges included members of the business community: entrepreneurs from successfully launched businesses; those who are currently participating in an innovative business; venture capitalists; angel investors; and bankers. Judges based their evaluations on the following criteria: quality of the team; quality of the concept; quality of the written plan; quality of the presentation; and whether they would invest in the idea. One winner from each of the WSU student leagues continued on to present on the second day; the high school and open competitions were completed in the first day.
Voiland College Winners
Undergraduate Competition:
1st place:www.insttant.com, Joe Langevin (electrical engineering)
3rd place: U2You Technologies, including Paul Wettin (computer engineering), Jacob Murray (computer engineering), Carla Bagnell (electrical engineering), and Jeff Sweeney (business).
4th place: World Assist, including Jessica Jensen, Johanna Feverstein, Ryan Gilbert, and Travis Haines. All are bioengineering undergraduates.
6th Place: Pullsmart, including Corina Chilibeck (bioengineering), Julie Hobson (bioengineering), Jake Grajewski (bioengineering), and Jason Stroker (entrepreneurship)
Best Boeing Team:
Impact Sytems, including Elisabeth Almond (chemical engineering), Tylan Watkins (chemistry), Jaime Laramore (entrepreneurship), and Whitney Patterson (materials science and engineering)
Best Green Teams:
1st place: BrioWorks, including Jaennae Kuykendall (entrepreneurship/marketing), Nic Hoifeldt (mechanical engineering), and Daniel Antal (computer engineering).