The VCU Venture Creation Competition (VCC) hosted by VCU’s da Vinci Center for Innovation aims to provide opportunities for the VCU community to learn about entrepreneurship through the development and presentation of a concept and/or business venture to a panel of judges. The Competition on Friday, April 26, is open to all VCU students, including full-time, part-time, undergraduate and graduate students. Non-VCU students such as students from other universities, VCU faculty, VCU alumni, and local residents also can participate in the April 26 Competition as long as VCU students comprise the majority of the team and only the VCU student team members make the final presentation to the judges. The Pitch Slam Competition being held on the evening of Thursday, April 25 is exclusively for VCU alumni.
VCC participants will have an opportunity to define their ideas in commercial terms and compete for cash prizes that can be then used to further the commercialization of their concepts, inventions, and/or business ideas. In addition to the cash prizes, in-kind services comprising free legal and consulting services will be offered to Competition finishers.
The prize packages are as follows
Student Competition
Undergraduate & Graduate Divisions on Friday, April 26:
| 1st Place | $5,000 |
| 2nd Place | $3,000 |
| 3rd Place | $2,000 |
| Finalist | $1,000 |
| Finalist | $1,000 |
Alumni Pitch Slam Competition on Thursday, April 25:
| 1st Place | $1,000 |
| 2nd Place | $750 |
| 3rd Place | $500 |
| Finalist | $250 |
| Finalist | $250 |
Student Competition
Undergraduate & Graduate Divisions
Friday, April 26, 2013
The Student Competition will comprise three stages: Stage One – executive summary, Stage Two – business plan, and Stage Three – presentation. Prior to Stage One, student teams must officially register for the competition and be certified as eligible to participate. The deadline for registration is February 1, 2013 at noon. The presentation stage represents the Competition finals and will be held Friday, April 26, 2012. Teams making it to Stage Three will compete for cash prizes totaling $12,000 in prize money per division. All teams making it to the final round will win a minimum of $1,000.
Registration
Student teams must register online before noon on Friday, February 1, 2013. The da Vinci will certify that the registering team’s membership comprises a majority of currently enrolled VCU students. Note that any prize money awarded to the team will be equally split among team members originally registered; if a team comprises non-VCU members, any prize money awarded to non-VCU team members will be given to and then distributed through the team leader. Team composition cannot change once the registration period has closed and the Competition has begun; this means that teams cannot add, remove, or substitute team members after registration closes on February 1. The team must check a box declaring that the intellectual property on which the business is based is owned by the team or can be licensed to the team; this will be certified by the da Vinci Center.
Stage One
Teams will complete and submit a two page executive summary. Electronic submission of a pdf of the executive summary is due at noon on Monday, February 4, 2012; the pdf file should be labeled as YourTeamName_ExecSummary2013.pdf and sent to the da Vinci Center at davincicenter@vcu.edu. The two-page executive summary should specifically address the following areas:
- Business Summary – provide a general idea of what the business seeks to accomplish.
- Technology Summary – discuss the technology behind the idea, including the technology itself, the technology’s feasibility, and technology’s uniqueness relative to competitors. The technology section should clarify the competitive advantage and the need for the proposed product or service.
- Market Summary – clarify the customer(s)/market(s) to be pursued. Identify who specifically will be interested in the technology and suggest the market size.
- Product/Service Summary – discuss what product or service will be sold. Issues concerning product attributes, price, channels of distribution, and promotional activities should be considered.
- Financial Summary – suggest the expected financial performance to be generated from the product or service. Also indicate how much money is needed to start the business initiative.
A team of judges will evaluate and select semi-finalist teams from the submitted executive summaries. Only semi-finalist teams will be allowed to proceed to Stage Two. The decision of the team of judges is final.
SAMPLE EXECUTIVE SUMMARIES:
Stage Two
Each semi-finalist team will expand their executive summary into a 10 page business plan document, including appendices. A pdf file of the Business Plan is due by noon on Friday, March 22, 2013; the pdf file should be labeled YourTeamName_BusinessPlan2013.pdf and sent to the da Vinci Center at davincicenter@vcu.edu. The business plan document should specifically address the following areas:
- Business Plan Executive Summary – provide a concise overview of the entire business plan.
- Goals and Objectives – list goals and objectives for your business venture over the next three to five years.
- Market Analysis – define the particular industry your business venture is in. Discuss who are your customers, the market(s) to be pursued, and likely competitors in the market(s).
- Marketing Plan – discuss what actually will be sold as the product or service, along with how that product will distributed, priced, and promoted.
- Operations Plan – describe how the business venture will be implemented. Describe day to day activities of the business venture. If appropriate, describe how the product will be produced and offered for sale.
- Financial Plan and Funding Request – discuss the costs and revenue of the proposed business venture. Show how much money is needed to start the initiative, where the money will be spent, and key assumptions to ensure success.
- Management Plan – discuss who makes up the management team and management team background. Provide details about company ownership and company structure.
- Appendix – provide additional information on specific items that are not essential to the business plan. These could include customer endorsements, sponsorship, logo designs, etc.
The team of judges will evaluate and select finalist teams from the submitted business plans. Only finalist teams will be allowed to proceed to Stage Three. The decision of the judges is final.
SAMPLE BUSINESS PLANS
Stage Three
On Friday, April 26, 2013, finalist teams in the undergraduate and graduate divisions will make a 20 minute presentation to a panel of judges, followed by a ten minute questions and answer period. The presentation should be a synopsis of the submitted business plan, updated based on any previous judges’ feedback and at the discretion of the student team in terms of what they wish to present. The orientation of the presentation should be to convince the judges that they need to invest in the team’s concept/business; in other words, the presentation should demonstrate why your team’s concept/business venture is scalable, destined for success, and thus should win.
Awards will be given based upon the team presentation and the submitted business plan. The official announcement of how finalist teams placed will occur at an afternoon awards reception on April 26. The reception will be held after all presentations have been made.
SAMPLE FINAL PRESENTATION
Alumni Pitch Slam Competition
Thursday, April 25, 2013
The Alumni Pitch Slam Competition will comprise two stages: Stage One – Registration and Executive Summary, and Stage Two – Pitch Slam Event. The deadline for alumni registration and executive summary submission is April 1, 2013 at noon. The Pitch Slam Event will be held the evening of Thursday, April 25, 2013. Alumni selected to participate in the Pitch Slam Event will compete for a $1,000 first prize and other cash prizes.
Stage One
Alumni must register online before noon on Monday, April 1, 2013. The da Vinci Center will certify that the participant is a VCU alumnus. Multiple alumni can register as a team, but all team members must be VCU alumni and any prize money awarded will be equally split among team members originally registered. Team composition cannot change once the registration period has closed; this means that teams cannot add, remove, or substitute team members after registration closes on April 1. The alumnus/alumni team must check a box declaring that the intellectual property on which the business is based is owned by the team or can be licensed to the team; this will be certified by the da Vinci Center.
The alumnus/alumni teams also must complete and submit a one page executive summary. Electronic submission of a pdf of the executive summary is due at noon on Monday, April 1, 2013; the pdf file should be labeled as YourTeamName_PitchExecSummary2013.pdf and sent to the da Vinci Center at davincicenter@vcu.edu. The one-page executive summary should successfully summarize the venture to be pitched. Areas to consider include the venture’s value proposition, objective, technology, market/customers to be served, product to be sold, differentiating factors, and worthiness of being funded. Also refer to the executive summary in the Student Competition.
A team of judges will evaluate and select Pitch Slam participants from the submitted executive summaries. Only selected participants will be allowed to “Make a Pitch” in the Pitch Slam Event. The decision of the team of judges is final.
Stage Two
On the evening of Thursday, April 25, 2013, selected alumni will make 2 minute pitches to a panel of judges and the general audience. There will be no questions allowed. The presentation should intend to convince attendees that your venture is quite unique and worthy of investment. In other words, the pitch should clearly show why you are the best venture and thus should win.
Pitch Slam Awards will be given based upon the pitch given. The official announcement of Pitch Slam participant awards will occur after all pitches have been made and both the judges and audience have deliberated. Note that the audience and judges will determine the winners. The judges will determine the winners if there is a tie. The decision of the judges is final.
Eligibility for the VCC
Student Competition
- All VCU students are eligible to participate in the April 26 Student Competition. VCU staff, VCU faculty, students from other universities, VCU alumni, and local residents may also participate in a team.
- All teams must comprise a majority of VCU students, and only VCU students can appear in front of and make the final presentation to the judges.
- Students cannot be on more than one team.
- Teams in the undergraduate student division must comprise 50% undergraduate students and only undergraduate students are allowed to make the final presentation.
- Teams in the graduate student division must comprise 50% graduate students and only graduate students are allowed to make the final presentation.
- A student team or same venture plan that has placed 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in any previous VCU Venture Creation Competition is ineligible to participate.
Alumni Pitch Competition
All VCU alumni are eligible to participate in the April 27 Alumni Pitch Slam Competition. Alumnus status will be confirmed with the Office of Development.
If individual or team violates the language, spirit or intent of the eligibility rules, the team may be disqualified and any prize money forfeited based on the sole discretion of the organizers, who shall be held harmless due to such actions.
Eligible Business Ideas and Technologies
Each competition participant will pitch a venture and/or create a business plan describing a business idea that is wholly original and based on the independent thinking of the individual or team. If the idea includes or is based on scientific knowledge and developments that might be considered “intellectual property,” the individual/team members must certify and attest to the fact that (a) the science or innovation is the result of their independent work, (b) any collaborators who may have participated in the work have given their permission for the science or technology to be presented in an open forum, and (c) any monies resulting from the Competition are to benefit the team.
The certification of the ownership of the technology must be verifiable. Failure to do so will result in disqualification of the individual/team and/or forfeiture of any prize money won. Individuals/teams will not be permitted to present ideas based on science and technology owned by third parties who are not a member of the team or VCU. The organizers of the competition may disqualify any team failing to comply with the spirit and intent of the intellectual property rule and shall be held harmless due to such action.
Judging Criteria
The Executive Summary will be evaluated on the following criteria:
- Commercial Viability: need for product/service, addressable market size, market growth, competitors, and competitive advantage
- Technical Viability: the uniqueness and features of product/service and intellectual property positions
- Financial Viability: business model, profit potential, and capital required
The Business Plan will be evaluated on the following criteria:
- Commercial Viability: need for product/service, addressable market size, market growth, competitors, and competitive advantage
- Technical Viability: the uniqueness and features of product/service and intellectual property positions
- Financial viability: business model, profit potential, and capital required
- Management team viability: industry experience, current industry advisors, and current technical advisors.
Final Presentations will be evaluated the above Business Plan criteria along with the Venture’s funding worthiness due to evidence that the venture can become a scalable and successful venture. Other criteria for the final presentation include:
- Quality and persuasiveness of the oral presentation
- Professionalism: the clarity, demeanor, and professional delivery of the team and its presentation
- Quality of answers during the Q&A portion of the presentation
Entries that describe exciting technological breakthroughs but fail to show a clear path to commercialization will not do well in the competition. Likewise, winners will not be chosen based solely on the potential size or profitability of the projected enterprise, but instead, on how well the team has prepared its business plan, described the business model, explained the implementation, and presented during the live presentations.
Judges will rely on evaluation forms to guide their decisions, however, the goal of the judging panel is to arrive at a consensus as to which venture they would most likely fund if they were an investment group. Ultimately, the winning team is the team which convinces them to invest in their idea.
Judges
Judges will be drawn from different functional and industry areas to ensure a balance of business and technical expertise. Judges also will have meaningful experience in, or exposure to, the early-stage technology development process and thereby understand the research, development, and business-formation challenges faced by different types of businesses. Judges will include individuals from venture capital and private equity firms, accounting and law firms, corporations, and entrepreneurs.
For a schedule of important dates, click here.
To register for the Alumni Pitch Slam Competition, click here.
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