DOWNLOADS

Rules | Application guidelines | Executive Summary

RULES

Definitions

• Mind the Bridge (MtB) is a not-for-profit initiative to foster an Italian entrepreneurial eco-system creating an effective bridge between Italy and Silicon Valley.
  
• Mind the Bridge (MtB) Business Plan Competition is the main MtB competition and is open to companies already established or that are planning to incorporate within the year with a structured business plan based on high-knowledge concept.
• The Mind the Bridge Venture Camp is an event to be held in Italy in November 2011. Here a selected number of participating projects will be invited to present to a large audience that will include potential investors. A subset of the presenting startups will be invited to participate to the Mind the Bridge Gym.
• The Mind the Bridge Gym is a mentoring program in the Silicon Valley where the selected entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to showcase their idea to potential partners and investors. Each selected startup will be associated to a Mind the Bridge Mentor who follows the startup during the period of stay. The Organizing Committee will facilitate a direct link between the startups and members of the Silicon Valley community potentially interested in the proposed business idea.

• The Training modules are a set of classes provided by mentors in preparation for the Mind the Bridge Venture Camp and Mind the Bridge Gym. The classes include presentation skills, introduction to the Silicon Valley ecosystem, how to deal with a Venture Capitalist, how to prepare your financials, legal module, tax implications, immigration rules.

• The Mind the Bridge Mentors are passionate, successful entrepreneurs or managers who wish to share and mentor through their own experience. Key activities for a mentor will be to focus and develop the finalist‘s business plans and to prepare it for a successful showcase during the Silicon Valley road show.

Objectives

The objectives of the Mind the Bridge Business Plan Competition are the following:

1. to select, mentor and support the best innovative ideas coming from Italian entrepreneurs;
2. to create a direct link between new entrepreneurs and seasoned entrepreneurs;
3. to use the network of renowned, successful entrepreneurs/managers to train young entrepreneurs, and help focus and professionalize high potential business ideas;
4. to provide new entrepreneurs with direct exposure to potential venture capital investors;
5. ultimately, to create the conditions to foster a sustainable Italian entrepreneurial eco-system, spur more ideas, and subsequently reinvigorate the complex new-venture economy.

Committees

The Selection Committee is the core group that will evaluate the submitted business plans. Its members, appointed by the Board, have significant experiences as entrepreneurs, managers and investors. The Selection Committee has the following powers:
• supervises and coordinates the selection process;
• appoints a minimum of 2 referees to evaluate each Business Plan in the selection phase;
• optionally nominates external judges (field experts) to help with the selection process.

Admission Criteria

1. Participation in the competition requires presenting a business plan for a high knowledge-based company.
2. The competitors are companies already established or planning to incorporate before the end of the year with a structured business plan. Precedence will be given to companies who have been already established.
3. The competition is open to innovative companies with high growth potential and international approach.

Application Rules

1. Participation in the Business Plan Competition is free of charge.
2. Each competitor must submit his/her Executive Summary in the required excel format and his/her Business Plan via email to bpc.selection.2011@mindthebridge.org before the final deadline.
3. The competitor will receive a confirmation email within 3 days. If the confirmation email is not received, please contact information@mindthebridge.org
4. All the documentation presented must be submitted in English in all its parts.
5. By submitting the Business Plan, the competitor declares that all the information provided is truthful and that he/she accepts any decision of the Selection Committee.
6. The lack of information or any failure in complying with the required format (including the length of the documentation submitted) will cause the exclusion of the competitor from the competition.
7. If selected, the participant must present the Business Plan during the Mind the Bridge Venture Camp event.
8. If selected, the applicant commits to attend to the Gym mentorship program in San Francisco.

Deadline

The complete documentation must be received no later than end of day (Italian time) of:

July 31st, 2011

No business plan will be accepted later than the deadline.

Evaluation Process

The Selection Committee will evaluate each proposed project. The evaluation will be based on the following factors:

Business plan evaluation factors

1. Technical feasibility considering the proponent team skills
2. Stage of technical development already achieved
3. Product/service originality
4. Size of the target market
5. Fulfillment of a market need/requirement
6. Competition level in target market
7. Potential international appeal
8. Competitive advantage sustainability
9. Financial/economic growth potential
10. Entrepreneurial team quality and competences
11. Business Plan quality and completeness

Selection Process

Submitted Business Plan and Executive Summaries are evaluated by a Selection Committee. Its members, appointed by the Board of the MtB Foundation, have significant experiences as entrepreneurs, managers and investors.

The selection process will be completed by the end of August.
We will communicate the names of the selected startups (MtB Business Plan Competition Semi-Finalists) not later than September 8th, 2011.

Confidentiality

The only individuals who will have access to your business plans will be the judges who are assigned to read your plan. These judges are largely professional venture capital investors or entrepreneurs, who regularly deal with confidential information in the course of their work. We have asked them to treat your work product with the same care and respect for confidentiality. We also ask them to remove themselves from judging your plan if they have a real conflict of interest. Feel free to mark your plan – or particular piece of it – as “confidential”.

Note that the short description of your idea (5 lines maximum) or part of business plans not marked as “confidential” may be used in public documentation relating to the contest.