KANSAS HIGH SCHOOL BUSINESS PLAN COMPETITION
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a business plan?
KTEC's business plan competition
will accept any business plan format.
A business plan is the presentation of
an idea for a new business. When a person (or group)
is planning to open a business, there is a great deal
of research that must be done to help insure that the
idea for a business is likely to turn into a successful
business. The business plan explains the idea of the
business and why it will be successful to someone who
has not previously heard the idea.
The business plan will describe the basic idea of the business, what the product is and who the customers will be. It will describe not only what the prospects for success are, but also what pitfalls may lie ahead. It will describe how the business will go from the plan stage to being an actual business. A business plan also describes the financial situation that the company will be facing over the next few years.
In this competition, you will take on
the role of an entrepreneur planning to start a business.
You will come up with an idea for a business and then
investigate to determine what is necessary to make that
business a success. The type of business that you choose
must be a Technology, Science or Engineering related
business, but can be anything that falls within those
categories.
What qualifies as a Technology, Science or Engineering related business?
The definition of a technology, science or engineering based business is fairly broad. In the basic sense, the business plan must be for a company that relies on one of these fields. A technology related business can be one that involves working with computers. A science business may be one that works with developing new types of medicines. An engineering company can be one that designs and manufactures highways. Plans that use a new or different idea than what is common practice also have a new technology and will be accepted. Some examples of acceptable types of companies are below.
| ACCEPTABLE BUSINESSES |
NOT ACCEPTED BUSINESSES
|
| A business that designs and builds video games, and then sells them to consumers. |
A business that sells computers. This is a retail company, not a technological one. |
| A business that builds web sites for local businesses and has computer classes. |
A business that offers lawn mowing and pool maintenance services. |
| A business that creates and sells a new type of wheat harvester. |
A business that sells cell phones to students and parents. |
| A business that develops a new type of healthy soda that has added vitamins. |
|
| A business that makes movies on digital camcorders and edits them on computer. |
|
Who can compete in the business plan competition?
Any high school student in grades 9-12
can compete. Students must be enrolled in a high school
in the state of Kansas.
How long does the business plan need
to be?
It can be any length up to 15 pages, plus no more than 5 pages for financial statements and appendices.
How do I register for the Kansas High School Business Plan Competition?
Just go to the registration page.
Where can I find out more about business plans?
The resource page in this section contains
a number of links that you should find very helpful.
There is also a section of the KTEC web site that is
an entrepreneurial resource guide. Besides these pages
and links, your mentors and instructors are valuable
sources of information. Additionally searching in the
library will give you a great wealth of information.
How will the business plans be judged?
Basis For Judging: Scores will be based
on a two-part scoring system; the business plan itself
and an oral presentation. The scoring of these will
be based on content and creativity.
Business Plan Scoring: Content and creativity
of the business plan will make up 50% of the total score
and should include but is not limited to:
• |
Executive Summary |
• |
Business Description / Explanation |
• |
Description of Product |
• |
Evaluation of Marketing Opportunity |
• |
Sales and Marketing Strategy |
• |
SDescription of Development &
Production |
• |
Management and Operation |
• |
Economics of One Unit |
• |
Financial Statements |
• |
ROI & Exit |
Presentation Scoring: Content and creativity of the formal presentation will make up 50% of the total score and should include but is not limited to:
• |
Business Description / Explanation |
• |
Description of Product |
• |
Evaluation of Marketing Opportunity |
• |
Sales and Marketing Strategy |
• |
SDescription of Development &
Production |
• |
Management and Operation |
• |
Economics of One Unit |
• |
Financial Statements |
• |
ROI & Exit |
• |
Effective use of time |
• |
Oganization of presentation |
• |
Oral presentation |
• |
Response to judges questions |
What are Milestones?
Milestones are how you measure your progress at something. When you drive on the highway, mile markers tell you where you are on your journey. In your Algebra class, you could call the homework and chapters milestones. When you do a homework assignment at the end of the chapter, you have progressed past that point and are ready for the next task. In business, milestones are ways to determine where you are on a particular task, like building a product.
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