The General Category supports plans for new ventures in any area of business. In-person presentations (up to 12 teams) will be held on 5:30PM, March 20, 2012 at the Leeds School of Business Room S210. Top teams win the opportunity to advance to the NVC Finals starting at 5:30PM on April 5, 2012 at CU's Wolf Law Courtroom.

Submissions due by 11:59PM on Thursday, March 15, 2012. Click here to submit your business plan.

For more info, email info@cunvc.org  

Submission Criteria:

  2 page executive summary. The executive summary describes the business idea, and addresses the opportunity, product, target market and industry, business and resources, market strategy, sustainable advantage, financials, and key risks and future needs. Presentation deck. Think of this as a investor presentation. Submit up to 10 slides. In-person presentation. Teams will have 5 minutes to present and 5 minutes for Q&A with a panel of three judges. This presentation should include a creative demonstration of your business idea (e.g. a prototype, video, skit-- impress us!). Presentations will takes place on Tuesday, March 20 starting at 5:30PM in Room 210 of the Leeds School of Business.  

Click here to submit your business plan

 

The business plans will be judged based on the following broad categories:  

Effectiveness of Presentation

• Clear and engaging executive summary
• Easy to follow; well-organized, clear and concise
• Not overly technical, but with enough detail to illustrate the idea
• Within guidelines for length and time

Concept / Vision

• Clear goal expressed with realistic steps to achieve it

Product or Service Does the business idea address a real need? Significance, creativity, feasibility, impact, development risk, product differentiation, IP status, barriers to entry. Market Analysis Relies on evidence and research to demonstrate market opportunity. Validation, sizing, segmentation, trends, scalability, industry attractiveness, value proposition.

• Did first-hand research - spoke to target customers and industry experts
• Researched competitors
• Made a strong link between customer, competitor research and concept
• Anticipated customer demands and competitor advancements

Market Strategy Includes pricing, customer acquisition plan Management Addresses funding strategy, company economics, exit strategy Offering Pay off opportunities to investors Viability and Sustainability Risk management, team commitment and availability Overall

• Is the idea/plan innovative yet realistic?
• Is the plan consistent and well though-out?