Competition that opens business opportunities for students

Until February 5, 2016, regular and part-time students from the Zagreb area can apply for the competition as part of the ‘Become/Stay an Entrepreneur (POP)’ project. The theme of the competition is – writing a business plan.

All students in the city of Zagreb who have a good idea, are creative and innovative, can also become entrepreneurs. A competition is currently underway, lasting until February 5, for writing a business plan (Student business plan content), as part of the ‘Become/Stay an Entrepreneur (POP) – promoting entrepreneurship and mutual learning for the development of entrepreneurship in the Zagreb area’.

All students who feel the entrepreneurial call, and the need for the development of entrepreneurship among the student population is otherwise increasing, and universities are full of creative people who represent great potential or have entrepreneurship ‘in their genes’, who may not know what, how, and where, can gain a multitude of answers and solutions by participating in the competition. The experience is invaluable, and the opportunity to try their hand at entrepreneurship is ideal.

How to realize an idea

The goal of the ‘Become/Stay an Entrepreneur’ project is to teach students how to turn their ideas into business opportunities, successfully promote opportunities for entering and staying in entrepreneurship in the Zagreb area through entrepreneurship education and campaigns for promoting student and startup entrepreneurship and learning about it. In short, to encourage an entrepreneurial culture. The total value of the project is 242,196.58 kuna, of which EU support from the European Social Fund amounts to 218,865.26 kuna and is being implemented from August 27, 2015, to August 26, 2016. The Development Agency Zagreb is the project holder, and the partners are the City of Zagreb and the Faculty of Economics of the University of Zagreb, in cooperation with SEECEL (Regional Center for the Development of Entrepreneurial Competences of Southeast European Countries).

– The main purpose of the project is to provide students with the opportunity to develop their entrepreneurial ideas and, with the support of mentors, get acquainted with entrepreneurship and educate themselves in order to ultimately realize their innovative idea in the market. That is why we have organized a student business planning competition as part of the project that will enable them to do so. Through the POP project, we will determine students’ entrepreneurial ideas, jointly develop and shape them into promising business plans. We will guide students on how to finance themselves and utilize all incentives available to them, of which they may not have been aware. We are confident that this project will yield positive and sustainable entrepreneurial stories that will encourage other students and young people to take steps towards securing a quality and fruitful existence – emphasizes project leader Lidija Čilić Zadro from RAZA.

Two phases of the competition

So far, the response from students has been great, she says, especially from the Faculty of Economics of the University of Zagreb, and that is precisely why they decided to extend the application deadline so that all interested students could apply. Namely, applications were until January, but they moved the deadline to February; specifically, until February 5, 2016, students can apply for the competition which takes place in two phases. Applications can be made individually or in teams of up to five people, and applicants for the competition must have the status of a regular or part-time student in the Zagreb area.

In a team, students from different faculties can be represented, which is additionally rewarded. The business plan is made according to a predefined template, and a project presentation lasting a maximum of five minutes is also required. After the applications are completed, the mentoring team will evaluate and select the teams that will continue in the competition, i.e., proceed to its second phase. Special attention during the evaluation of applications, notes Čilić Zadro, will be paid to innovation, sustainability, both marketing and financial, then business ideas, competitiveness of the business idea, and the possibility of marketing commercialization. Selected teams continue to develop their business plans with mentoring support.

– We have relevant knowledge and experience and can help them achieve their goal; to become a successful entrepreneur. Through the competition, we want to encourage innovation and creativity among young people so that as future entrepreneurs they become as competitive as possible and ultimately one day be in a position to create new entrepreneurial trends. We invite students to apply for the student competition as part of the ‘Become/Stay an Entrepreneur’ project. Step into the exciting world of entrepreneurship – says Čilić Zadro.

Valuable prizes

Young people, she continues, especially students often have innovative business ideas, but they are not sure how and where to start, they lack courage, knowledge, and money to implement them. The City of Zagreb contributes to creating a positive entrepreneurial atmosphere with its incentives and activities aimed at the development and growth of the economy through entrepreneurial activities, which is actively monitored by the Development Agency Zagreb – TPZ as an entrepreneurial support institution.

– By applying this approach, a platform for the growth and development of entrepreneurship is created, which is necessary for economic recovery. In developed economies, small and medium-sized enterprises are the drivers of the economy and economic growth. Every day in the work of the Development Agency Zagreb, we witness positive trends in the awakening of entrepreneurship. This awakening can be tracked by the growth of companies in the Technology Park of the Development Agency Zagreb in the field of high technology development, as well as through successful entrepreneurial stories of entrepreneurs we have advised and educated through our entrepreneurial center Blue Office – says Čilić Zadro.

Such opportunities are opening up for students – a more successful entrepreneurial story. The best in the competition will also be rewarded, they will receive the opportunity for further education, mutual learning, and even more. The five best teams will receive advanced education for acquiring entrepreneurial skills worth eight thousand kuna, and the best team will receive the opportunity for pre-incubation in the Technology Park Zagreb, which includes workspace and business consulting services, mentoring, networking, and education for a period of six months. The equivalent value of the prize amounts to 15 thousand kuna. At the final conference to be held on March 8, 2016, 25 of all submitted business plans will receive a certificate of participation in the competition, and five business plans will be selected as winners of the competition.