By Assistant Editor Shayna Spiker
TowsonGlobal is holding their second annual Business Plan Competition will be on May 2, 2012. A number of free workshops (see below for details) will be provided by TowsonGlobal throughout October and November in order to help interested participants. The competition is open to the public, and all participants will receive valuable feedback from our judges. The grand prize winner will receive a 90-day Resident Membership in the TowsonGlobal Business Incubator, along with support and advisory services valued at $5,000, on top of a cash prize. To view the timeline and eligibility requirements and learn how you can join the competition, click here.
TowsonGlobal is a part of Towson University’s Division of Economic and Community Outreach (DECO). A goal of DECO is to build strong links between Towson University and the metropolitan community it serves. TowsonGlobal contributes to this vision by helping early-stage businesses bridge global markets.
TowsonGlobal’s mission is to help early-stage companies—both Maryland companies aspiring to sell their products/services abroad and foreign companies looking to market their products and services in the mid-Atlantic region—grow and learn how to compete in the global economy.
Business Plan + Executive Summary – Click here to register
Wednesday- October 19, 2011: 4:00 – 5:30 pm
A written guide/plan to starting and running your business is essential for success. This plan serves as a road map for the development of the business, facilitates obtaining capital, and generally promotes growth. Developing the plan might seem daunting, but in reality anyone can do it! During this workshop you will learn the basics of creating a comprehensive business plan, including the different components, and especially how to create a superb executive summary, which is a comprehensive but short summary of all the key information about your company.
Market Analysis Workshop – Click here to register
Wednesday- October 26, 2011: 4:00 – 5:30 pm
Understanding the market that your business serves is crucial to success. Who are your target customers? Who are your competitors? How large is the market? These questions and more need to be answered with documentable information. This workshop will provide tips and will address the importance of researching and providing a clear description of the industry and the opportunity.
Financial Projections Workshop – Click here to register
Thursday- November 10, 2011: 4:00 – 5:30 pm
All businesses of all sizes are required to supply financial data, whether for prospective creditors, investors and partners. Usually, they will expect to see what your company will to be able to do within the next 3-5 years. This workshop will discuss the importance of the breakeven analysis, forecasted income statements, balance sheets, cash flow statements, and capital expenditure budgets. Also discussed will be the importance of matching your projections to your funding requests.
Presentation Boot Camp
Monday- February 27, 2012: 4:00 – 6:00 pm
Those selected as finalists in the Business Plan Competition will be required to attend this fun and interactive presentation boot camp. Participants will learn the basics of preparing the PowerPoint slides and will receive tips and feedback on actually making a presentation so that they will be better prepared to effectively convey their business plans to the panel of expert judges (just as if they were investors).
For more information on the workshops or the competition, e-mail or call 410-769-6449.