Unlike traditional business plan competitions, participants will ‘get outside of the building’, talk to customers, pivot from their original business model hypothesis, and identify a repeatable and scalable business model. Each team will submit an oral presentation to pitch their ideas. Eight semifinalists will be chosen and four teams will go on to the finals to be held at Rackham Auditorium on D
ecember 12! The Michigan Business Model Competition is a regional competition of the international Business Model Competition (BMC). The BMC is the first worldwide competition of its kind that utilizes the latest developments in entrepreneurship. Leaders in the entrepreneurial community such as Steve Blank (Professor of Entrepreneurship at Stanford and Author of the Four Steps to the Epiphany), Eric Ries (Author of The Lean Startup), and Alex Osterwalder (Author of Business Model Generation) are championing the change from developing business plans to developing business models. AWARDS
Participants will compete for four top prizes awarded by a panel of judges from entrepreneurship-related organizations. First Place: $2500
Second Place: $1500
Third Place: $750
Fourth Place: $250
EVENTS
Kick off Workshop | 9/20, 7-8 PM, Palmer Commons Auditorium
2nd Workshop | 10/24, 7:30-8:30 PM, Space 2435, North Quad
Submission Workshop | 11/21, 7:30-8:30 PM, Space 2435, North Quad
Submission Deadline | 12/5, Online Submission via competition website
Semifinals | 12/9, North Quad
Finals | 12/12, 6-8 PM, Blau Auditorium
ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
The initial requirement is an oral presentation no more than 10 minutes submitted via online application by Monday, December 5, 2011, 11:59pm. The eight semifinalists will be notified by Thursday, December 8, 2011. Entries will consist of the following slides:
a) Title Slide: Who are you and what does the business do? b) Assumption Slides: What were your initial hypotheses? Did you identify a customer problem? What were the key hypotheses about the business model? Remember some of your most important hypotheses are about customer pain and your solution to that pain. c) Action Slides: How did you test these hypotheses? What specific tests did you conduct? What did you discover? What facts were uncovered? What facts remain to be uncovered? One of the major purposes of the competition is to see if you have truly NAILED THE PAIN—but what data do you have? d) Pivot Slides: How were your initial assumptions proved right or wrong? What pivots did you make? e) Validated Business Model Slides: Diagram your business model and present the facts? How does the business make and deliver value? Consider the following critical points to communicate:
a. Solution Slides: Explain your current solution to the customer problem. What evidence do you have of this solution (customer statements, pilot commitments, purchase orders?)
b. Go-to-Market Strategy: Indicate the decision-makers and influencers of getting to a consummated sale. Share the facts and opinions you have gathered from customers that show you understand and can convincingly communicate with customers. Size of Market: Be able to show TAM, SAM, your target market, and your apex for entry into the market. f) Lessons Learned: Be sure to communicate the lessons learned, including pivots and failure. g) Appendices: Appendices should be included only when they support the body of the model. These additional slides need to be available for giving context and for answering questions judges might have. Because judges might not read all the material in the appendices, the body of the model must contain all information pertinent to the model. Entrants must also submit the names of team members, degrees pursued, and expected graduation date. ELIGIBILITY
1. All Business Model Competition participants from a team hold significant management positions within the company and are degree-seeking university students
2. Each team member has a minimum of at least six (6) credit hours, and is enrolled in the semester of the competition.
3. The business model is original work, done by my student team.
4. The BMC team played a major role in creating the venture.
5. Members of my student team hold 20% or more of the total equity in the venture and hold 50% or more of the total equity allocated to the management team.
6. The company has not booked revenue prior to September 1, of the year.
7. The company has not received angel or venture capital financing before September 1, of the year.
8. The company is not any of the following:
- A buyout - An expansion of an existing company - A real estate syndication - A tax shelter - A franchise - A licensing agreement for distribution in a different geographical area - A spin-out from an existing corporation
