Entrepreneurs Network Launches Business Opportunity Pitch Competition; Encourages Penn State Student Submissions

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA (October 5, 2004)—The Penn State Entrepreneurs Network invites undergraduate and graduate students across the University Park campus with ideas for potential business ventures to enter its inaugural Opportunity Pitch Competition. Winning entrants will have the chance to partner with Smeal College of Business MBA students to develop full-fledged business plans for entry into one or more national business plan competitions, which offer opportunities to pitch ideas to venture capital and private equity investors and compete for prize money.

“Each year, our MBA students pitch unique business ideas at a variety of events, each of which offers exposure to potential investors and thousands of dollars in seed money,” said Tony Warren, director of Smeal’s Farrell Center for Corporate Innovation and Entrepreneurship. “But entrepreneurial vision at the University is not restricted to business school classrooms alone. Through the Opportunity Pitch Competition, we hope to leverage the business creativity of Penn State students across all disciplines.”

Submissions in the form of one-to-two page “opportunity pitch documents,” targeted at someone interested in providing funding for a new venture, will include details about the central business idea, target market, market opportunity, competitive environment, and potential return on investment.

The deadline for submissions is Nov. 1. A judging panel of Smeal faculty members and external business leaders with entrepreneurial backgrounds will determine the best ideas by mid-November, with the winners receiving all-expenses-paid trips to one or more business plan competitions.

The panel will judge submissions based on a variety of criteria including clarity of presentation, realistic understanding and quantification of the target market, substantial revenue and profit potential of more than $10 million within three years, a minimal time-to-market, and most importantly, potential for high return on investment.

For more on the Opportunity Pitch Competition and to view a sample of an “opportunity pitch document,” students can log onto Angel. Search for the "Smeal Business Opportunity Pitch" under "My Groups—Find a Group."

About the Penn State Entrepreneurs Network
Comprised of Smeal MBA students and students with entrepreneurial aspirations across campus, PSEN works to provide members with access to a network of local, regional, national, and international business leaders and entrepreneurs through workshops, speakers, trips, course work alternatives, internship opportunities, and business resources. For more, visit http://entrepreneurship.psu.edu/psen.html.