The £1k Challenge represents the next stage of the Entrepreneurs Business Creation Challenge and is open to all members of the University. New challenge entrants are welcome.  It is not required to have been a 100 word entrant to enter this stage of the contest.  To enter the competition you must submit a 1500 word Executive Summary by the 7th of December. To help you write the best possible entry, CUE is running a £1k Business Training Event on Saturday, 28 November 2009. 

The day will include discussions from experienced industry professionals in the areas of Writing an Executive Summary, Market Research, Corporate Structure, Finance and Intellectual Property. The afternoon session will include a team building building exercise - using the Belbin assessment method. For the purpose of this exercise we will be building and launching a rocket, followed by networking and expert surgeries.

Saturday's speakers include:

• Grant Warell - CEO at GJDW Partners Limited

  Grant has extensive experience reviewing Business Plans of start-ups in the venture capital industry

• Chris Lamaison - Cambridge Resolution 

  Chris has 25 years of experience in marketing high technology products

• Quentin Golder - Partner at Taylor Vinters Solicitors

  With a particular emphasis on start-ups, Quentin deals primarily with sales, acquisitions, venture capital financing and restructuring

• Chris Chapman - Founder and CEO at Sopris - Virtual Accountants

  At Sopris, Chris provides practical, considered advice and support and helps manage all aspects of finances and business development activities to ensure success

• Chris Hirsz - Senior European and UK Patent Attorney HLBBshaw

  With over 25 years of experience, Chris leads the Electronics, Telecommunications and Computing Technology Division at HLBBshaw 

To make best use of the expert surgeries with industry professionals we encourage you to bring along a draft of your executive summary. To help you get started with the executive summary please find useful advice and guidance on www.cue.org.uk/resources.

Also note that there is a separate registration site for surgeries at http://cue1ktraining-surgery.eventbrite.com/.

When: 28 Nov 2009, 10 am
Where: Department of Engineering

Tentative Schedule for the day:

10:00-10:10    Welcome from President
10:10-10:40    How to write an Executive Summary (Grant Warrell, GJDW Partners Limited)
10:45-11:00    Market research (Chris Lamaison, Cambridge Resolution)

11:00-11:30    Networking

11:30-11:50    Corporation life-cycle (Quentin Golder, Taylor Vinters)
11:50-12:10    Finance (Chris Chapman, Sopris)
12:10 -12:30   Intellectual property (Chris Hirsz, HLBBshaw)

12:30-13:30    Lunch

13:30-13:40    Team building exercise - using the Belbin assessment method - Belbin intro
13:40-15:45    Rocket building and launch
15:45-17:30    Drinks reception & Networking

16:30              Surgeries begin