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E-Factor launched with £10,000 to play for

Wednesday 18 November 2009

E-Factor

Budding entrepreneurs gathered at the Knowledge Dock Business Centre on Monday 16th November as the University of East London celebrated Global Entrepreneurs’ Week by launching its premier business plan competition, E-Factor.

The competition, which is sponsored by London City Airport, Tate & Lyle, Knowledge East Entrepreneurs Network (KEEN) and Blue Sky Media, pits students and graduates against one another to win a top prize of £10,000 to turn their business idea into a reality.

Martin Chan, Knowledge Dock Communications Manager, said: "The purpose of the competition is to stimulate a culture of enterprise amongst our students and provide them with a platform to develop their entrepreneurial skills and knowledge."

E-factor has been running for four years and has helped develop the entrepreneurial skills of hundreds of students, whether they win or not. The attributes students learn from the competition help them in their future careers, either within a company or if they decide to start up their own businesses in the future.

As part of the competition, students pitch their business idea to a panel of judges. Entrants whose ideas have some commercial potential are asked to write a 500 word summary outlining the key points of their plan. These applications are whittled down to just ten finalists who take part in mentoring and Masterclasses from industry professionals to help them develop a strong business case. In the final stage of the competition, students present their plan to the panel judges, as well as pitch their idea to an invited audience who vote for their favourite.

Martin Chan, concluded: “The £10,000 top prize is a great motivator for students to test their business idea with conviction, as they could potentially turn it into a reality. The competition rigorously examines all entrants’ ideas, and the fact that all our previous winners are still trading in these difficult economic conditions is testament to the robustness of the competition. Even more pleasing is that the competition has also encouraged a number of participants to press ahead with their business ideas despite not winning the competition."

Notes to Editors

The University of East London (UEL) is a global learning community with over 28,000 students from over 120 countries world-wide. Our vision is to achieve recognition, both nationally and internationally, as a successful and inclusive regional university proud of its diversity, committed to new modes of learning which focus on students and enhance their employability, and renowned for our contribution to social, cultural and economic development, especially through our research and scholarship. We have a strong track-record in widening participation and working with industry.

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