BYU students win big in business plan competition

All of that time spent in the classroom paid off for BYU students with more than $100,000 in prizes awarded to three teams of finalists in this year’s Business Plan Competition.

This year’s competition was bigger than ever with a record number of 82 final business plans submitted. Each plan was judged on its product quality, marketing strategy, management and finances by a panel of successful entrepreneurs.

BYU student, Jordan Furniss, is a senior majoring in business and one of the co-founders of the first place winning team Autobid. Autobid won $50,000 in cash and in-kind services for their insurance estimate software that transfers quote information from insurance companies to collision repair shops. Furniss said the team’s BYU education was useful in creating their business plan.

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“We learned it’s not about writing up a business plan,” Furniss said. “It’s about going outside and doing what you say you’re going to do. Our BYU education helped us build a company, not just write a paper about building a company.”

Scott Petersen, marketing director for the Rollins Center of Entrepreneurship and Technology, said the students’ BYU education reflected in their work.

“The quality of submissions this year was phenomenal,” Petersen said. “Our new curriculum and mentoring services program have greatly enhanced our ability to help students navigate the uncharted waters of entrepreneurship.”

With the new changes in the curriculum, students are not just using their education to win a competition. Petersen said the competition is preparing students for their future careers.

“We teach them to commercialize their already outstanding BYU education,” Petersen said. “Then they can go out and make money with what they’ve learned.”