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Rules of the Competition
Rules of the Competition
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Summary of Competition Rounds and Grades
The MIT Enterprise Forum of the Pan Arab Region is the organizer of the MIT Arab Business Plan Competition. This Competition is modeled after the famous MIT 100 K Competition and accepts entries from all Arab countries. The fifth MIT Arab Business Plan Competition wouldn’t have been possible without the ongoing support of our partner: Abdul Latif Jameel initiative communites. and a joint initiative with GIST.
The MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Business Plan Competition is organized in 3 rounds:
- In Round 1, teams are required to submit an application form. Applications reflecting the best thought of proof of concept ideas or projects are selected. 30 teams are selected from among all entries and proceed to the next phase.
- In Round 2, teams are required to present a full business plan. Solid business plans of innovative, scalable, and impactful projects are rewarded. Nine teams are selected from among the 30 submissions. The business plan (BP) grade accounts for 50% of the final grade.
- In Round 3, teams are required to present in front of the jury. Interpersonal skills are rewarded. The winning teams need to convince the jury of their passion for the project and their ability to sell their idea and carry it through. Three winning teams are selected. The Oral Presentation (OP) accounts for the remaining 50% of the final grade.
Final Grade= 50% BP Grade + 50% OP Grade
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Eligibility
The eligibility rules are as follows:
- At least three team members per application entry;
- At least two of the three team members must be Arab nationals;
- The Business idea should be implemented in one of the Arab world countries with potential to grow regionally and internationally;
Entries not complying with the above conditions will be disqualified by the organizing committee. The organizing committee reserves the right to disqualify any entry at any stage of the Competition.
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Team Composition
The team composition takes an important share of the grade of the Competition. In this respect, the MIT Arab Business Plan Competition requires continuity between the rounds of the Competition. Usually, the team composition declared in the application of the first round could be adjusted but not radically changed while preparing for the business plan in Round 2. Team composition cannot be modified beyond Round 2.
On a business plan level, all the members of the “Management Team” must sign the “Engagement Letter” form.
As seen in the “Eligibility” section, at least two of the team members must be Arab nationals.
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Disbursement of winning prize
A prize money will be awarded to the top three winning teams of the MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Business Plan Competition. The team ranking in first place receives $50K in prize money, while $10K and $5K are granted to the teams ranking first runner-up and second runner-up respectively. All shareholders of the new company need to have been identified previously in the “Engagement Letter” form submitted with the business plan. The MIT Enterprise Forum of the Pan Arab Region will then write the check in the name of the newly established company.
The winning team may be short of money to establish a company. In this case, the MIT Enterprise Forum of the Pan Arab Region will advance USD 5,000 from the award money towards the establishment of the new company. The balance will be received by the newly established company upon completion of the incorporation papers.
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Round 1:
1- Submitting Applications:
Teams interested to join the Competition must sign into the website and secure a username and a password. The application contains 18 questions that summarize the business idea and the means of implementing it. The application should be filled in English only. The user may save the application as many times as necessary to fill it in by clicking “Save and Continue”. Once all entries are dully filled in, applicants should click the “Submit” button to ensure that their application is part of the Competition. Upon submission of their applications, applicants must make sure that an automated message is sent to their e-mail inbox confirming the successful receipt of their application by the system. Only those applicants who have submitted their applications before the deadline will be part of the Competition. On a separate note, applicants are advised to express all business model assumptions stated in their application as clearly as possible throughout the filling in process. This will ensure a better understanding of the business model assumptions by the grader.
2- Grading Round 1:
Every application is graded three times by three business professional jurors, selected randomly. Grades are given on a per question basis as published in the application form. The organizing committee and/or the jury reserve the right to disqualify any application combining invalid/not serious answers. On another note, we estimate that it takes at least two weeks to compose all answers, so applicants are advised to take their time to thoroughly think about their business project in as much detail as possible. The evaluation process is carried out electronically.
3- Deliberating Round 1:
Thirty applications will qualify for Round 2. The MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Business Plan Competition team will convene for two days to review the graded applications and ensure that the grades received are consistent. The jurors and/or the qualifying teams may be interviewed by the organizing committee during deliberation. The names of applicants that qualify for Round 2 are announced on the website.
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Round 2:
4- Submitting Business Plans
After sorting out the 30 best applications, the qualifying teams have until the deadline to submit their full business plan. Submissions are accepted in English only. It is estimated that a typical business plan comprises around 30 pages. Please note that all business plans should follow the structure of the template disseminated by the Organizing Committee.
Grading Round 2
Every Business Plan will receive three grades from:
- A subject matter expert
- A financial Expert
- A businessman
The Organizing Committee will ensure that at least one of the above three jurors has access to the market intelligence of the Business Plan being evaluated. The final grade is the average of the three grades received.
Business Plan Grade= (Grade Juror 1+ Grade Juror 2+ Grade Juror 3)/3
The business plan grade constitutes 50% of the final grade.
Final Grade= 50% BP Grade + 50% OP Grade
The jury follows the grading template determined by the organizing committee. So any team presenting on their own format of business plan will be disqualified without undergoing evaluation.
5- Deliberating Round 2:
The Organizing Committee meets to ensure that all grades have been received and that no major inconsistencies in the grades received are noted. The organizing committee refers to the grading juror for any clarification of the grade. At the end of this round, nine applications will qualify for Round 3.
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Round 3:
6- Preparing Round 3
The nine teams attend a rehearsal in the hosting country of the final ceremony. This rehearsal prepared by Booz & Co. prepares the nine teams for the Oral Presentation. The nine teams are put under the same conditions as if they were presenting in front of the jury of the final round.
7- Grading Round 3
Teams qualifying to the third round, pitch their project or idea to three regionally renowned jurors. The presentation lasts 10 minutes and is followed by 20 minutes of Q&A. The judges are looking for credibility, command and knowledge of the project. Over all, the jurors look for interpersonal skills and the ability of the teams to sell their idea and carry it through to fruition. The presentation should reproduce real life situation when entrepreneurs face bankers and other financial sources to seek funding for their project.
The grade of the presentation accounts for the remaining 50% of the final grade.
Final Grade= 50% BP Grade + 50% OP Grade
Round 3 jurors are given the full business plan for their review and evaluation ahead of time. Some jurors find this necessary. Others prefer relying on their experience and internal senses in recognizing and evaluating talent.
The team should be represented by at least one team member at the oral presentation of the final round in Tunisia. The attendance of the remaining members is optional.
8- Deliberating Round 3
The members of the third jury will convene for 15 minutes after every presentation to deliberate and give their combined grade. Winners are announced during a gala dinner that same day.
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