Open: NCIIA 14th Annual Conference

Effecting an undergraduate student culture that encourages entrepreneurship and inventorship is a worthy goal, with metrics of success ranging from the gratification of self employment to the economic impact of small business creation. We have started an undergraduate competition called The InVenture Prize to provide incentives, resources, and structure for student innovation in a fun, high-profile event. In our first year, over 200 undergraduates (1.5% of population) expressed intent to compete in the competition. At the climax (March 2009), eight finalists faced a judge panel on stage before an audience of 200. The event was recognized by a front-page article in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, by the state legislature (Representative Bob Smith), and by Georgia Tech interim president Gary Shuster in his opening remarks at the competition. The winners received $15,000, patent applications ($40,000 value), and additional commercialization assistance. Next year's competition will be even larger and more successful.

The results of entrepreneurial idea pitch and research proposal competitions often determine the award of cash prizes (e.g. $100,000 at MIT) and scarce resources. The recipients of these awards are determined by judging processes. These judging processes are rarely audited or evaluated as to quality or consistency. In this session, the competition judging quality issue will be described, the results of calculating Awg for a variety of competitions will be shared, interventions identified as possible causes of higher levels of consistency will be identified, recommendations will be made as to how to produce a higher level of Awg (meaning higher quality competition judging processes), and participation in collaborative application of the recommendations will be solicited in order to continue the research.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Tulane University business students, faculty, and administration have gone through an unprecedented seismic change in the way their economic, social, and civic environments have shifted. The rebuilding of New Orleans has coincided with an increased interest and focus on social entrepreneurship and conscious capitalism. This session will discuss the changes that have occurred through one program of Tulane University's A. B. Freeman School of Business, the Tulane Business Plan Competition (TBPC). Now in its tenth year, the TBPC has evolved from a standard business plan contest into a clearly missioned champion of social entrepreneurship. We will present and discuss the different factors that have led to this evolution.