Do you have a business concept that has the potential to alter the world? Do you aspire to be a successful entrepreneur? If you are worried that you can’t get into action because of a lack of essentials on the knowledge and tactics to startup, then, Jumpstart is the right place to be!
JUMPSTART, the Rotaract Club of Achievers Lanka Business School’s hallmark Professional Development project, was established with the goal of providing chances for budding entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka to Jumpstart their business journey. Jumpstart has taken several exciting turns since its debut in 2017, bringing up countless chances for its members and resulting in significant improvements in their professional lives.
Everything you need to know about Jumpstart 2021 is right here!
Embracing the theme ‘UNFOLD.IMPLEMENT. REVOLUTIONIZE’, Jumpstart 2021 would be staged under the following two categories.
- Pitch it, Win it
- Shark Tank
*Due to the prevailing situation in the country, Jumpstart 2021 will be conducted completely online via the platform ‘Zoom’, up until the finales of each category. In the case of team participation, participants may join from one location or separate locations.
GAME PLAN
Jumpstart 2021 will be held in two categories. The Pitch it! Win it! category will include a workshop series and Pitch it! Win it! round. The finalists chosen will be mentored further and compete in the Grand Finale. Furthermore, we will conduct Shark Tank exclusively for growth-stage startups to present before a panel of investors, seeking to obtain investments.
Introduction session
An introduction session will be held before the commencement of Jumpstart, as an awareness session to potential ideators, educating them on the importance of Entrepreneurship and how it will support the economy of the country. This will be held on the 13th of December 2021
Workshop Series
The goal of the series of workshops is to educate participants on certain crucial issues that should be considered in order to increase the candidates’ knowledge and abilities in developing their company ideas and eventually reaching success. These seminars will be crucial in preparing and equipping the participants as
- This will provide an overall knowledge on aspects of Entrepreneurship, starting from the basics.
- This will be of aid to the participants who will be registering for Pitch it! Win it! to present themselves and their business in the best way possible.
The series will be held from the 14th of December till the 28th of December 2021.
They will be based on,
- Problem identification – 14th Dec.
- Business canvas model – 16th Dec.
- Finance and bookkeeping, fundraising – 17th Dec.
- Legal aspects and business registrations – 20th Dec.
- Digital marketing – 21st Dec.
- Preparing a proper business plan – 27th Dec.
- Pitch perfect – 28th Dec.
Participants will have a tremendous opportunity to improve their knowledge and abilities prior to the preliminary round, and all participants of Pitch it! Win it! are encouraged to attend the workshop series.
Registration Link to enroll yourself for the workshop series: https://tinyurl.com/RACALBS-Jumpstart
Pitch it, win it!
A forum for early-stage businesses and idea wizards to pitch their company ideas to a panel of judges and win cash prizes to help jumpstart their venture. Individuals or teams with an early-stage business venture, or even a business idea, may fall into this category. All ‘Pitch it! win it!’ contestants are expected to attend a series of workshops designed to help them do well in the preliminary round.
Following that, the participants will pitch their businesses at the ‘Pitch it, win it – Preliminary round’ on the 8th January 2022. Participants are welcome to use Sinhala, Tamil or English according to their preference. A presentation would be followed by a Q&A session with the judges. Participants will be questioned about aspects such as their company idea’s applicability, viability, and return on investment. The teams with the most innovative business concepts will advance to the finals.
In addition, if selected for the finals, each finalist will be allocated a mentor who will help them prepare for the Finale.
The finalists will participate in the ‘Pitch it, win it! – Grand Finale,’ which will take place on the 30th of January, 2022. Each team will be given tasks to test their skills in strategic thinking, decision making, and many more. The exact procedure of the Finale will be notified after the Preliminary Round.
The winners of ‘Pitch it, win it’, will be decided based on a final score comprised of 50% brought forward from the preliminary round, and the other 50% from the points gained through the grand finale.
The first three places of the ‘Pitch it, win it!’ round, will receive valuable prices to escalate their Business. The winners of this category will be awarded prices worth LKR 100,000, which will include all or some of the following.
- Cash Prices
- Co-working space
- IT solutions
- HR solutions
- Portfolio solutions
- Web hosting
- Mentorship
Registrations for ‘Pitch it, win it’ will be open from the 12th of December till the 6th of January 2021.
Registration Link to enroll yourself for the Pitch it! Win it! Round: https://tinyurl.com/RACALBS-Jumpstart
Jumpstart 2021 has joined hands with ICTA – 10,000 Ideas where tech startups will be presented to a special program conducted by the ICTA Sri Lanka where they will get many more valuable opportunities. The tech startups among the finalists of Pitch it! Win it! will be advanced to this program.
Shark Tank
This will be a straight Finale, done in the guise of a networking event, where development stage firms will be able to interact with possible investors from a variety of areas who may be interested in granting them financing in exchange for a return of equity in their businesses. Individuals or teams who own a growing business may be included in this category.
There will be a selection process to participate in this category, and competitors will be requested to present an overview of their start-up on the following criteria after registering.
- Existing revenue generation
- Scalability
- Profitability/impact
- Business Model
- Traction
The certified might pitch their commercial enterprise to the investors, following a few rounds of discussions. The groups may be evaluated grounds including feasibility, boom and return on investment, and the participants stand a risk to receive investments for his or her groups. The members might also benefit from expert recommendations for their commercial enterprise and create long-lasting contacts with buyers. The Shark Tank round will be held on the 23rd of January 2022.
Registrations for ‘Shark tank’ will be open from the 10th of January until the 21st of January 2022.
Jumpstart 2017
Jumpstart 2017 was staged under two categories; the Cooperate Awards and Enterprise Awards. The Corporate Awards category took a similar approach as the ‘Pitch it, win it’ category in 2020, rewarding many valuable prizes for the top three talented entrepreneurs. The first place walked home with,
- Prize of LKR 100,000/=
- Working space at Business Hubs Sri Lanka.
- ICT solution (app or website), entrepreneurship mentoring and a collection of tech tools from Revolution Portfolio.
- Y club membership and networking opportunities from Youth Business Sri Lanka.
The Enterprise Awards category focused on the CIMA foundation level students of Achievers Lanka Business School and took a similar approach as the Board Room Challenge in 2020. Mainly serving as an eye-opener for the students who were just stepping into the business world, the competition awarded certificates for participation as well as the first 3 places.
Jumpstart 2018
Jumpstart was back in 2018, to seek the next best start-up in town! It followed a similar approach as the ‘Pitch it, win it’ round this year. This year, Jumpstart brought in many more exciting prices to the table, for the winners to escalate their Business Journey. The first place was awarded,
- Cash prize of LKR 100000/=
- 1-month free Coworking at any co-working space through Million spaces
- 6 months free Coworking at Business hubs
- ICT solution (app or website), entrepreneurship mentoring and a collection of tech tools from Revolution Portfolio.
- Membership to the Y- club – Premier entrepreneur gathering & mentoring network for the finalists.
- Providing a linkage to Social Media platforms and Marketing opportunities for the winners of JumpStart. (Based on the product feasibility and scale-up opportunity)
Networking opportunities with investors for the winners of Jumpstart
Jumpstart 2019
Jumpstart expanded its limits in the year 2019, catering to Business ideators, early-stage start-ups as well as Businesses in the growth stage. The business ideators and early-stage startups competed in the ‘Pitch it, win it!’. The first four places received many valuable prices with the winners being awarded,
- A professional website developed worth over LKR 100 000 from Dawn Developments, which includes 8 Dynamic Pages, .com Domain, 5 Email accounts along with 5 hosting space, Server Security, Website Backup and maintenance for 2 years and Technical Support of any sort (IT related).
- Discounts up to 75% on Dynamic Website for any number of pages, Static website over 10 pages, Any Domain, Additional Emails (after 5 free emails), Mobile Application, POS System, ERP Systems, Chatbot, Dashboard with data analytics, HR System, Help Desk System and Consultation startup support for the website from Dawn Developments.
- Co-working space of 6 months from Collaborate Co-working
- 30 hours of Mentorship from StartupX Foundry
- An article in the ‘Chokolaate’ Magazine
The Shark Tank round focused on Business in the growth stage, and took the same approach as it will this year. It opened the floor for the competitors to connect with reputed investors in the country in various fields.
Jumpstart 2020
Jumpstart 2020 banged stronger than ever with a different platform of conducting all the rounds and the finals.
Finalists from the Pitch it! Win it! round was offered prizes worth LKR 50,000 consisting of 20 hours of mentoring from Startup X Foundry and Discounts up to 30% on IT solutions from Shopbox.
The 1st runner-up was awarded 40 hours of mentoring from Startup X Foundry, 75 hours of Coworking space from Hub9 Coworking, Legal Consultation worth of LKR 25,000 from E-Law Chambers and Discounts up to 30% on IT solutions from Shopbox.
The winner was awarded 50 hours of mentoring from Startup X Foundry, 150 hours of coworking space from Hub9 Coworking, Legal consultation worth LKR 25,000 from E-Law Chambers and a professional website worth LKR 60,000 with IT support from Shopbox.
The SHARK TANK round comprised of, the growth stage startups which got the opportunity to connect with potential investors. The investors evaluated their business ideas upon presentation, based on areas such as feasibility, growth and return on investment. Investments were offered based on the above criteria along with expert advice.
After the completion of four successful editions, JumpStart has proven time and time again that it is the ideal platform to Jumpstart your business journey. Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity and the rewards the team has in-store, to make your business dream a success.
Unfold your business plan, Implement strategies and Revolutionize the corporate world, with Jumpstart 2021!
RACALBS