Students Shine at the Spring Pompea Pitch Competition and Expo

The conclusion of the Spring 2024 semester saw some amazing business ideas and spirited competition at the University’s Orange Campus. BUSA 1000 is a business course that enables students to compete in groups, develop creative business plans, and pitch these ideas in front of a panel of judges.

BUSA 1000 enables students to showcase their entrepreneurial side in front of the University. After a semester-long training and brainstorming, six out of more than 30 competing teams were selected to present their business ideas to the judges. These six teams were divided into the final round of the pitch competition and the poster competition.

Every year, BUSA 1000 includes exciting themes and requires students to build business ideas that benefit the community, have an eco-friendly vision, and are cost-efficient. Along with their ideas, students present the estimated funding required to implement their business ideas. For the Spring 2024 BUSA Expo, students were challenged to build business ideas around health, education, and technology. Twenty-three teams competed in the poster competition, and seven teams took part in the live pitch presentation.

According to Vasiliki Kosmidou, Ph.D., assistant professor of management, the Spring 2024 Expo was a dynamic display of entrepreneurial creativity. She says it was difficult to select the best teams.

"The selection process was stringent as always, with just one team per section being granted the chance to compete live,” she explains. “Voting among students or a panel of judges within each class added an extra layer of scrutiny in the selection process."

‘A diverse range of ideas’

Students displayed various ideas, such as an application for booking medical appointments, creative lessons around learning American Sign Language, a mobile application to help with the waste crisis, a way to assist college students seeking academic accommodations, and a tool that provides live tracking of public transportation. The final presentation day, the competing teams were ready to pitch their ideas in the hopes of securing funding for their idea's implementation.

On the judging panel were the members of the Pompea College of Business Advisory Board, including adjunct professor George Heudorfer and Pitney Bowers vice president Joe Catapano, who were thrilled to see the ideas coming from the students.

"Students who participate in pitch competitions often present a diverse range of ideas, some of which have the potential to succeed in the market under the right execution,” said Dr. Kosmidou. “While not all ideas will be pursued or ultimately succeed, I firmly believe that the comprehensive experience our students gain from participating in BUSA1000 and the expo is invaluable."

Brian Kench, Ph.D., dean of the Pompea College of Business was present at the BUSA Expo. He said how proud he was of all the teams that made it to the final round of the poster and pitch competitions.

‘Nurture their entrepreneurial mindset’

Sanjal Joshi ’27, a financial analytics major, says the expo was a unique experience. She was part of the team that presented “GasUp” as part of the poster competition on the final day.

"The process started with us brainstorming about how to come up with a new business idea,” she said of the idea for the mobile app that would help combat the waste crisis. “With amazing teamwork, we were able to nail this. The best part was demonstrating everything we have learned about entrepreneurship to solve real-world problems. The BUSA Expo allowed us to understand what it is like to become an entrepreneur."

Students were delighted to display their presentations in front of prominent PCoB supporters, judges, and their BUSA classmates. After a spirited competition, the judges were happy to announce Team GasUp as the 1st place winner for the poster competition and Team Serenity as the 1st place winner for the pitch presentation.

Dr. Kosmidou said all students left the competition with important skills and experience.

"Not only does this nurture their entrepreneurial mindset, but it also hones their public speaking and teamwork abilities,” she said. “BUSA1000 is designed to equip our students with the essential skills to be future ready, entrepreneurially oriented, and successful business owners."