Competition Guidelines - Global Social Entrepreneurship Competition - Global Business Center - Michael G. Foster School of Business

Global Social Entrepreneurship Competition

Competition Guidelines for Student Teams

Business Plan Themes & Judging Criteria

Judging Criteria

GSEC plans must clearly demonstrate the Social Return on Investment (SROI) in addition to the financial return on investment. Refer to the GSEC Resources webpage
GSEC plans must be for a low or lower-middle income country*
GSEC plans are evaluated on three criteria:

Effect on the quality of life and poverty alleviation in the developing world
Financial sustainability
Feasibility of implementation

Scope & Scale

SROI includes the social good of improved health and two prizes in global health will be offered. GSEC plans eligible for global health prizes:
- Must clearly outline as an impact the benefit to the health of the population;
- May or may not focus on a direct "health" industry (e.g., pharmaceutical start-up, distribution, sales, direct health care provision, health education, or other);
- Must demonstrate quantitative measurement such as illness or mortality reduction, and may use qualitative measurement may be used to describe this impact;
- Examples of non-eligible ventures with health impacts: motorcycle and automobile safety feature improvement, sales and marketing, fire prevention devices, "green" industries, distance education for literacy.

GSEC plans may cover a broad range of subjects, for example: healthcare, education, the environment, energy, information and communication technology, social services, agriculture, and manufacturing.
GSEC plans may be entirely private or it may be a public-private partnership.

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How to Enter

By November 12, 2008, (4 a.m. Pacific Standard Time):

Fill out the online application form.
Submit your business plan executive summary via email to gsec@u.washington.edu. All summaries must conform to the GSEC Executive Summary Guidelines.
Refer to the Timeline for important details and due dates for all required steps.

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Business Plan Submission Format

GSEC business plan executive summaries and business plans are sent via email.
The format requirements discussed below are for both full businesses plans due in January and final business plans due in February. Full business plans are drafts teams and mentors can modify before the competition. Final business plans will be sent to judges prior to the competition for review.
Teams have the option of mailing additional hard copies of their final business plan to the GSEC office. Mailing Instructions.
One emailed document per team. Merge all files into one program, if using more than one program (such as Microsoft Word and Excel). We will not merge any files.
Font: Arial or Times New Roman, even if sending a PDF file. Please note: some fonts, such as Gulim, create problems even in Acrobat Reader.
Document size: 3MB maximum.
Document type: MS Word and other MS Office programs acceptable (Excel and/or PowerPoint).
Document page size: 8 ½ x 11 inches (required). We cannot accept A4 size document formatting.
Layout: pages should be numbered and include a title page, a table of contents, and an executive summary.
Length:

Executive Summary (for application): up to 5 pages, double spaced.
Final Business Plan: 15- 20 pages, maximum, not including the executive summary. Executive summary may be shortened to one page. All pages must be double-spaced. Aim to make an impression quickly while providing with sufficient information.
Supplementary materials (graphs, charts, appendices, etc.): 15 additional supplementary pages, maximum.

A typical business plan includes the following:

Market need: What problem does the company's product/service solve? How significant a problem is it?
Product description: What is the product/service?
Competitor analysis: Who are the competitors and what are their strengths and weaknesses?
Marketing and sales plan: What is the target market? What are the strategies for distribution, sales, pricing and promotion?
Financial projections: Sources and uses of capital, and projected revenues and expenses Intellectual property strategy: What intellectual property exists and can it be protected?
Management team: Who is involved and what is their experience?

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Competition Format & Rules

Format
All GSEC teams are required to participate in the GSEC Week activities, during February 25-27, 2009 in Seattle, Washington. Arranged company visits on February 23-24 are optional.

Mon-Tues Feb 23-24, 2009	Exclusive company visits
Wed Feb 25, 2009	Orientation, Trade Show, Welcome Reception
Thurs Feb 26, 2009	Coaching Round
Fri Feb 27, 2009	Competition Rounds and Awards Banquet

Eligibility

Eligibility Requirement	Additional Information
Students from any accredited academic institution worldwide	Teams may have non-student team members. To find team mates or teams, email gsec@u.washington.edu to have an advertisement posted on the GSEC Student Participation webpage.
No minimum or maximum number of team members.	Individuals are eligible as a “team.” GSEC teams typically consist of 2-4 students.
GSEC plans must quantify social bottom line	GSEC plans may demonstrate an environmental or “triple bottom-line”
Business plans must be for low or lower-middle income countries.*

Rules

Rule	Additional Information
GSEC plans must clearly demonstrate Social Return on Investment (SROI).	Please refer to the GSEC Resources webpage.
Private business or a public-private partnerships eligible.	All plans must generate revenue and demonstrate financial sustainability.
Teams must have at least one currently matriculated university student.	All presenters at the competition must be currently matriculated university students. Non-student team members must be silent.
The business plan may be for a business that will be implemented by people other than the team members.	Students must have an ownership stake in the business or the potential for equity or employment.
Only student team members are eligible to earn prize money.	No payments will be made to non-students.
Multidisciplinary teams highly encouraged.	Please visit the GSEC Student Participation webpage to find team members or a team.
Partial travel scholarships for teams from low or lower-middle income countries* may be available.	Faculty advisors are allowed to attend GSEC Week but are responsible for own expenses and arrangements.
Business plans for an existing business are eligible under these conditions:	1) Total company revenues cannot exceed US $500,000 2) The proposed venture must not have been in operation for more than 2 years, with the start of the venture marked by first income or first patent, whichever comes first.
The same business plan may not be resubmitted in GSEC.	Teams or team members may reapply to GSEC each year.
Only one business plan per team.

* Country income classification by the World Bank, citation

Note: The Director of the Global Business Center reserves the right to make the final determination of the eligibility of submitted business ventures.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at gsec@u.washington.edu. We look forward to receiving a submission from your university.

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General Timeline

November 12, 2008	GSEC Applications due. Applications consist of team registration and an executive summary of the business plan. Refer to the GSEC Executive Summary Guidelines for requirements.
November 2008	Executive summaries reviewed by selection committee. To learn how to participate, contact us at gsec@u.washington.edu.
December 2008	Teams selected & invited to compete in GSEC at the University of Washington in Seattle
December 2008 - January 2009	Mentors assigned to and work with teams
January 15, 2009	Full business plan due. Teams work with mentors to refine the business plan.
February 12, 2009	Final business plan due
February 23-27, 2009	GSEC Week, UW Campus, Seattle, WA. Teams participate in an investment round, coaching session, and competition rounds (required) where they present their business plans to a panel of judges. Winning teams receive monetary prizes. All teams have the chance network with members of the Seattle community, and GSEC staff will help teams arrange optional company visits and regional tours on Feb 26-27 if teams choose to stay in Seattle for the entire week.

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Prizes

GSEC teams compete for prize money totaling up to $20,000 US.

Prizes are subject to U.S. a 30% withholding tax for nonresident aliens, which can be reimbursed upon filing a US IRS tax return after the competition. The GSEC organizers will provide assistance prior to the competition in order to expedite the process. UW Tax Information

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Presentations
Presentations are 20 minutes: Teams have 10 minutes maximum to present their business plan after which time judges have 10 minutes to ask questions. Presentations may be shorter than 10 minutes.

PowerPoint
Audio visual equipment will be provided for team’s PowerPoint presentations during the preliminary and final rounds. In addition to the presentation slides, a team may want to provide extra slides as backup to support answers from judges. Refer to GSEC presentations for examples. Teams should prepare their presentations before traveling to Seattle. During GSEC Week teams will have time to practice and refine their presentations prior to the preliminary and final rounds.

The GSEC staff will request a copy of teams’ PowerPoint presentations at GSEC Orientation. All teams will be required to attend Orientation Please visit the GSEC Week Schedule for specific information.
Tips
- Practice often and in front of others before coming to the Coaching Round.
- The fewer slides, the better: keep it concise.
- Speak slowly and clearly.
- Anticipate & prepare for judges questions.
- Provide a sample of your product, if applicable.

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Technical Support
The University of Washington will provide a laptop computer and LCD projector in each of the presentation rooms during the Coaching Round and on the competition days. You will not be able to use your laptop during the competition or Coaching Round. However, you may use your laptop to practice your presentation in the breakout rooms, which you will have access to prior to your presentation.

Aside from the 2 laptops and projectors used during the presentation, all other additional technical support will be the team's responsibility. It is recommended that each team bring at least one laptop with them to revise their PowerPoint slides and to practice their presentation. Your hotel room will have access to either a dial-up, Ethernet, or wireless connection. There is also a small business center located in the hotel.

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Social Return on Investment (SROI)
A social entrepreneurial business plan needs to demonstrate the Social Return on Investment (SROI) as well as the financial return on investment.


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