March
26, 2003
Final
Competitors In Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest To Square Off At April
7 Awards Event Six Teams To Make Three-Minute "Pitch" to Judges
In Pursuit of $50,000 Top Award.
ANN ARBOR, Mich.,
March 26, 2003 - After months of learning, planning and perfecting, entrepreneurs
with the top six business plans in Michigan will have just three minutes
to "close the deal" and convince the judges their
idea beats all others.
At stake is the $50,000 top prize and a total of $115,000 in total Phase
2 awards as the Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest (GLEQ) concludes its
annual business plan competition at 6 p.m. April 7, 2003, at the Hale
Auditorium at
the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. To attend the awards ceremony,
please register at www.gleq.org.
The selected finalists will be asked to make a three-minute business plan
presentation to an all-star panel of judges. From the six finalists, the
judges will then decide the statewide winner of the $50,000 grand prize
and the two runners up, each receiving $25,000. In addition to the final
prizes, three $5,000 Honorable Mention prizes will
be awarded:
* Honorable Mention for improvement from Phase 1 to Phase 2
* Honorable Mention for coach's nomination of Best Team
* Honorable Mention for innovation
A total of 40 business plans have been submitted this year for the Phase
2 competition. Since March 13, the last day of entry for the Phase 2 competition,
all of the plans have been reviewed by a panel of judges, including representatives
from many of Michigan's venture capital firms.
From these plans judges will decide the top six plans in Michigan, to
be announced on the evening of April 7.
The final awards event is the culmination of the seven-month Quest. Now
in its third year, the Quest has provided hundreds of entrepreneurs free
training sessions, experienced coaches and expert judges. "This final
effort by Quest competitors is always an exciting and rewarding reminder
of how the Quest cultivates emerging, high-growth businesses and helps
set the foundation for Michigan's future economic success," said
GLEQ Project Chair Tom Churchwell of Arch Development Partners. "All
of these entrepreneurs deserve recognition for their hard work and dedication.
Though only six teams will be recognized with a financial reward, each
participating team is an important reflection of the depth of Michigan's
entrepreneurial community."
Prior to the evening's
events, there will be a roundtable discussion with Quest alumni to discuss
the competition and its role in assisting emerging companies. Achievements
of Quest alumni will also be highlighted at the
awards ceremony.
About the Great
Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest
The
Michigan Economic Development Corporation is among the many supporters
of this independent organization that serves to unite the entrepreneurial
community and build the critical mass of technology, talent and capital
necessary to make Michigan among the best places to start a high-tech
enterprise. Formerly known as the Great Lakes Venture Quest, the organization
was founded in 2000 and awarded more than $300,000 in prize money during
the first two years of its annual Michigan Business Plan Competition to
encourage and educate entrepreneurs on the creation, start
up, and early growth stages of high-growth technology-based businesses
within the state of Michigan. Grand Valley State University will continue
to co-manage the program with the University
of Michigan's Samuel Zell and
Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies. Additional
information is available at www.gleq.org or by calling 734.615.4423.
|
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Great Lakes Entrepreneur's
Quest Teams With Automation Alley To Host Seminar On Start-Up Financing
PONTIAC, Mich., March 13, 2003 - The Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest
(GLEQ), a statewide business plan competition, today announced that it
will team with Automation Alley, a southeastern Michigan-based consortium
of high-tech businesses and organizations, to host a free seminar entitled
"Preparing Your Company for Funding."
This special event
is scheduled for 6-8 pm, March 20 at the Oakland County IT Building in
Pontiac. The event is free for GLEQ coaches and competitors and members
of the general public who pre-register by Wednesday, March 19 at Noon.
To register, please visit www.gleq.org.
Featuring Bill Orabone,
President of TJ Pulse, the seminar will focus on how startup companies
can prepare for funding, understand what investors are looking for and
develop an effective presentation of their business. In addition, the
seminar will help entrepreneurs in quantifying the market, defining a
sales strategy, developing a product, building a team, writing a plan
and making a pitch.
"Securing funding
is top-of-mind for many entrepreneurs, including Quest participants now
looking to put their business plans into action," said GLEQ Project
Chair Tom Churchwell of Arch Development Partners. "Developing a
collaboration of tech resources for entrepreneurs and start-ups is vital
to our Michigan business community, and we are pleased to be co-hosting
events such as this with a partner the caliber of Automation Alley."
"Funding is an
important issue for all startups and we encourage those in the Michigan
entrepreneurial community to take advantage of this seminar," said
Automation Alley Executive Director Ken Rogers. "This is also a great
example of the continued cooperation across the different resources who
are working to drive growth in Michigan business."
The Great Lakes Entrepreneur's
Quest is in the midst of wrapping up its Phase 2 statewide business plan
competition. Winners of the Phase 2 competition will be announced April
7, 2003, at the Hale Auditorium at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
To attend the awards ceremony, please register at www.gleq.org. |
| Great
Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest Seeks Past Competitors
GLEQ working
to gather former participants for recognition, roundtable at
April awards
ANN ARBOR, Mich., February 18, 2003 - The Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest
(GLEQ) is seeking past competitors for special recognition at this year's
Phase 2 awards ceremony, to be held April 7 in Ann Arbor.
All registered participants
from the first two years of the statewide business plan competition (formerly
Great Lakes Venture Quest) are being sought for the April gathering. Quest
alumni will be honored at the event and invited to participate in a separate
roundtable discussion on entrepreneurship.
Past competitors in
the Great Lakes Venture Quest are encouraged to contact Anne Duncan at
734.615.4423 or abduncan@bus.umich.edu
for more information.
"Those who participated
in years one and two of the Quest are in a unique position to reflect
on the process and its relevance in today's challenging business and entrepreneurial
environment. This perspective can provide valuable insight to both competitors
and administrators of this year's Quest," said GLEQ Project Chair
Tom Churchwell of Arch Development Partners. "We would love to learn
what the past two years have held for all our alumni, and how the Quest
can do even more to prepare our participants for
success."
The Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest's Phase 2 competition is a statewide
business plan competition with a $50,000 grand prize, two runner-up awards
of $25,000 each and $5,000 awards for "Best Demonstrated Improvement"
from Phase One to Phase Two, "Coach's Choice," and "Honorable
Mention for
Innovation."
The deadline for Phase 2 entries is March 13, with winners announced April
7, 2003, in Ann Arbor. Both Phase 1 participants and new entrants are
encouraged to enter the Phase 2 competition by registering at www.gleq.org.
About the
Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest The Michigan
Economic Development Corporation is among the many supporters of this
independent organization that serves to unite the entrepreneurial community
and build the critical mass of technology, talent and capital necessary
to make Michigan among the best places to start a high-tech
enterprise. Formerly known as the Great Lakes Venture Quest, the organization
was founded in 2000 and awarded more than $300,000 in prize money during
the first two years of its annual Michigan Business Plan Competition to
encourage and educate entrepreneurs on the creation, start up, and early
growth stages of high-growth technology-based businesses within the state
of Michigan. Grand Valley State University co-manages the program with
the University of Michigan's
Samuel Zell and Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies. |
| Five-Page
Business Concepts Due Next Week From All Teams
LANSING, Mich., November 5, 2002 - The clock is ticking for Michigan technology
entrepreneurs looking to meet the first key deadline of the third annual
Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest (GLEQ). All Phase One entrants must be
registered and have their five-page business concepts submitted by 5
p.m. Thursday, November, 14th.
The GLEQ business plan competition is divided into two phases. Entrants
may choose to provide a business plan for either phase of the competition,
or both phases. Phase One is a regional competition and education program,
with $10,000 awarded to winning teams from the state's Eastern, Western
and Northern regions. There will also be two runner-up prizes of $5,000
in each
region. The judges will announce the winners on Dec. 10 in Grand Rapids.
The GLEQ competition includes 27 free training sessions held over five
months to help people starting technology-based businesses in Michigan.
A total of $175,000 will be awarded to participants throughout the two
phases. The competition is designed to educate and support Michigan entrepreneurs
in the creation and growth of successful businesses.
The competition's second phase, which begins in December, will be a statewide
competition with a $50,000 grand prize, two runner-up awards of $25,000
each and $5,000 awards for "Best demonstrated improvement from Phase
One to Phase Two," "Coach's nomination for Best Team,"
and "Most Innovative Idea."
Eligibility Requirements:
- Startups
must have at least one team member who lives, works or attends
school in Michigan.
- Existing
Michigan businesses must have less than $500,000 in cumulative
revenues, have not yet received venture capital funding and have less
than
$500,000 in loans and investments.
- Previous
winners of Final Phase competitions are not eligible to compete.
- Spin-offs
and subsidiaries of businesses that do not meet these criteria
are also ineligible.
ALL teams will have the benefit of working with GLEQ volunteer
coaches, many of whom are highly successful Michigan entrepreneurs willing
to donate their time, energy and expertise.
The deadline for Phase Two entries is March 13th, with winners announced
April 7th, 2003 in Ann Arbor.
Experienced entrepreneurs are encouraged to participate as coaches, instructors,
screeners, judges and sponsors. Additional information is available at
www.gleq.org.
About the Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest
The Michigan Economic Development Corporation is among the many supporters
of this independent organization that serves to unite the entrepreneurial
community and build the critical mass of technology, talent and capital
necessary to make Michigan among the best places to start a high-tech
enterprise. Formerly known as the Great Lakes Venture Quest, the organization
was founded in 2000 and awarded more than $300,000 in prize money during
the first two years of its annual Michigan Business Plan Competition to
encourage and educate entrepreneurs on the creation, start up, and early
growth stages of high-growth technology-based businesses
within the state of Michigan. Grand Valley State University will continue
to co-manage the program with the University of Michigan's Samuel Zell
and Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies and Tech Transfer
Office.
Additional
information is available at www.gleq.org or by calling 734.615.4423. |
