UAlbany to Host Annual Regional Business Plan Competition
Area college students will compete in the New York Business Plan Capital Region Semi-Finals on the University’s Uptown Campus on Friday, April 12.
The evening’s activities kickoff at the Massry Center for Business at 5:30p.m.
The competition, hosted by the School of Business, is open to all enrolled undergraduate and graduate students from schools and colleges in the greater Capital Region of New York.
Students would be wise to take advantage of the chance to research markets and develop creative solutions, as well as to learn from and network with industry leaders, said Nilanjan Sen, dean of the School of Business.
"The New York Business Plan Capital Region Semi-Finals provides students with the opportunity to cultivate teamwork and communication skills while engaging with the local business community," said Sen, saying students from all majors and disciplines are invited to compete. "We are excited to once again welcome teams from schools and colleges from throughout the region."
Students pitch ideas or ventures in one of the following six categories:
- Agtech/food
- Energy/environment
- Military/first-responder
- Medtech/well-being
- Tech/entertainment
- Consumer products/services
Each team will have 10 minutes to pitch followed by five minutes of Q&A with a panel of investor judges. Winners of each track will receive a $300 prize. One winner of the regional final across all tracks will receive an additional $500 prize, according to Bob Manasier, entrepreneur in residence at UAlbany.
Manasier said the decade-long tradition of the business plan competition has helped build community among regional college students who are passionate about innovation.
“The exercise [of the competition] alone is invaluable for our students’ personal and professional development as the next generation of entrepreneurs and business leaders,” he said. “The opportunity to engage in cross-campus collaboration, as well as to learn from and network with the business community, makes this a truly unique event.”
The deadline to register for the semi-finals is April 1.
Event sponsors include Innovate 518, the Capital Region’s Innovation Hot Spot, a NYSTAR initiative managed by UAlbany, and the UAlbany Innovation Center.
All winners will be eligible to compete in the statewide final at Sage Armory in Albany on April 26.
More on the NYSBPC
Over 2,500 students have participated in the New York State Business Plan Competition (NYSBPC) since the event’s inception in 2010.
Past winners in the state competition have pitched ideas and ventures ranging from wireless chargers for drones and wearable devices to improve at-home rehabilitation, to prebiotic skin care and black hair salons focusing on the health of natural hair.
The NYSBPC has seeded over $1 million for the more than 100 businesses that the event has helped launch, according to the competition’s site.