Following in the pioneering traditions of Strathclyde Business School, a group of Strathclyde MBA students has established a venture capital competition, the first of its kind in Scotland.
The competition – the Scottish Investment Den – is a Dragons Den-style event, bringing together entrepreneurs with business angels/venture capitalists and MBA students.
Serial entrepreneur and Strathclyde graduate Shaf Rasul of Dragon's Den online fame has been confirmed as one of the venture capitalists involved in the event, acting as both judge ad potential investor. Open to MBA students from AMBA-accredited business schools in Scotland, teams from Edinburgh, Glasgow, Robert Gordon and Strathclyde universities will be taking part in the event on June 11 and 12 at Strathclyde Business School.
While there are other venture capital competitions running in other business schools, the differentiating factor for SBS is the involvement of high technology spin-outs and start-ups from within the Scottish university sector. Such a competition is aligned to the wider University of Strathclyde strategy of focusing on technology and innovation.
The competition will see university entrepreneurs looking for financial investment pitching their business ideas to teams of MBA students, who will act as potential venture capitalists and determine the terms for their investment. Shaf Rasul and other venture capitalists will judge the event. The judges will award prizes to the winning team based on the quality of their investment proposal. The competition provides an opportunity for MBA students to learn about the activity of venture capital assessment and investment.
MBA student Varun Ghatge initially came up with the idea of setting up the competition. The full-time MBA class established an organising committee comprising Ashley Almeida, Josh Sauter, Marianne Nimmo, Anupamanath Kumble and Rohit Sharma. Initially working with Michael Cooper, a graduate from last year's full time MBA programme, they have been guided throughout by Dr George Burt, the Director of MBA. Everyone is busy finalising the arrangements for the two-day competition, with a website set to go live soon.
Varun said, "Entrepreneurs will get to refine their pitch and find out what areas they need to improve, and they will also get to interact with the venture capitalists throughout the course of the competition.
"The students involved will get the chance to develop their skills in evaluating real business plans and ideas, interact with other high calibre MBA students and venture capitalists and, overall, the competition is a great opportunity to showcase talent and gain recognition for the teams and their universities."
Dr George Burt said, "The Scottish Investment Den benefits all involved. As well as giving MBA students a fantastic opportunity to gain first-hand experience and learn from some innovative entrepreneurs and business angels, those who pitch get the opportunity to sharpen their presentation skills and expose their business ideas to potential investors.
"Scotland has a rich history of producing innovative and successful entrepreneurs who have made an impact on a global stage. Strathclyde Business School understands the importance of investing in future Scottish business leaders and we believe this pioneering event will act as a genuine learning experience for the students and entrepreneurs taking part, and potentially facilitate new and profitable business relationships."