TROY, N.Y. — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Lally School of Management and Technology will kick off its fourth annual business plan competition on Feb. 1 with a workshop aimed at teaching area college students the fundamentals of writing a successful business plan.

Budding student entrepreneurs from colleges around the region are invited to attend the free workshop, sponsored by Rensselaer’s Severino Center for Technological Entrepreneurship at the Lally School. Douglas Cumming, director for the Severino Center and associate professor of entrepreneurship, and Andrew Corbett, assistant professor of entrepreneurship and strategic management, will lead the workshop, which will be held from 5:30 to 7 p.m., in room 4114 of the Pittsburgh Building located at 110 8th Street on Rensselaer’s campus.

Rensselaer’s $50,000 Tech Valley Collegiate Business Plan competition is open to all area college students.  The Feb. 1 workshop offers prospective entrants to the competition a jumpstart on their business plan submissions, which are due April 5. Three teams of students will be selected to compete in the final round on May 3. The winning team will receive $5,000 and have the opportunity to receive $20,000 in seed funding, $10,000 in legal counsel and patent application services, and $5,000 in accounting services. The second-and third-place teams will be awarded $4,000 and $3,000 respectively. All semi-finalists will have an opportunity to present a two-minute elevator pitch to the judges. The team with the most effective pitch will win a $1,000 cash prize.

“The Lally School is in the business of advancing technological entrepreneurship and innovation in today’s ever-changing global economy. Our annual collegiate business plan competition is a terrific example of how to make this happen,” said David Gautschi, dean of the Lally School. “From start to finish, the competition gives college students throughout the region the practical experience they will need to launch and grow a business. We are excited about the opportunity to help prepare the next generation of entrepreneurs.” 

Gautschi noted that BullEx Digital Safety, the 2005 competition winner, was one of five finalists in the national 2005 Fortune Small Business Competition.  The company has established an office in the Rensselaer Technology Park, with additional manufacturing space in the Capital Region. 

To RSVP for the Feb. 1 workshop, contact the Severino Center at 276-8398 or severino-center@rpi.edu by Tuesday, Jan. 31. For more information about the Severino Center, visit: www.scte.mgmt.rpi.edu.  

About the Severino Center
Established in 1988, and centered in the Lally School, the Severino Center lies at the core of the school's mission to educate future entrepreneurs in the conversion of technical ideas into new businesses, products, services, and solutions.  The center provides a broad-based platform for entrepreneurs to make the transition from concept to company and serves as an intellectual gathering point for the study, research, and exchange of ideas regarding critical issues in the field of entrepreneurship studies. The center is named in honor of Rensselaer trustee Paul J. Severino ’69 and his wife, Kathleen M. Severino. 

About Rensselaer’s Lally School
Rensselaer’s Lally School of Management and Technology was founded in 1963 as an integral part of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the nation’s oldest degree-granting technological university. Building on Rensselaer’s heritage of more than 175 years of leadership in science and engineering, the Lally School is dedicated to advancing business through innovation. The Lally School’s curriculum is designed to produce leaders who combine creative passion with the ability to integrate technology across business functions. The faculty emphasizes the value of hands-on experience available through campus resources such as the Severino Center for Technological Entrepreneurship and the nation’s first on-campus business incubator. Rensselaer’s Lally School offers graduate and undergraduate degree programs in management, doctoral programs in management and technology, an Executive MBA program, and a joint Sino-U.S. MBA for companies operating in China. For more information on the Lally School, go to www.lallyschool.rpi.edu.

Contact: Jessica Otitigbe
Phone: (518) 276-6050
E-mail: otitij@rpi.edu