Participation

Timeline:

• Competition Launch and 1^st Call for Applications: 7^th July 2021

• Information Day: First week of September 2021

• Submission of Executive Summaries: Monday 20 September 2021

• Application screening

• Panel of Judges Review Period

• Announcement of Stage 1 Results: Tuesday 05 October 2021

• Appointment of Mentors: 08 October 2021

• Acceleration Program: 09 October 2021 - 3 December 2021

• Networking Event: Wednesday 06 October 2021

• Video Pitch Submission: November 15^th 2021 *

• Submission of DRAFT Business Plans: Wednesday November 10^th 2021

• Consultation on DRAFT Business Plans: November 15^th - 19^th 2021 **

• Submission of Business Plans (Stage 2): 1^st December 2021

• Pitching Day (closed session): 13^th December 2021

• Final Conference and Award Ceremony: 15^th December 2021

Note: Applicants and participants are strongly encouraged to regularly visit the Competition website for any updates/changes.

CyEC participants will be requested to develop their business plan in 3 incremental stages, with guidance and feedback. This 3-stage iteration enhances the learning experience of participants. Please check Terms & Conditions for participation. All teams that pass Stage 1 will attend Entrepreneurship Seminars and Business Planning Workshops and will be offered Mentoring.

Stage 1:

Participants submit an Executive Summary of a pitch deck up to 4-7 pages long, where they outline:

i) The Business Idea

ii) The Competitive Advantages

iii) The Target Market

iv) Technology

v) The Market Potential

vi) The Qualities of the Team

Application screening: Faculty and staff of C4E will screen applications to determine which will be sent to the judges for review. Applications that are incomplete, do not adequately provide the required information, or answer the application questions will not be sent to the judges for review. The decision of C4E is final.

All selected submissions are then evaluated by the CyEC Jury on their merits in developing successful businesses in the marketplace.

Stage 2:

Participants who pass Stage 1 are required to submit a short video pitch which communicates their venture idea* and undergo an acceleration program organised in the context of CyEC. All teams will be assigned mentor(s). At the end of this program, teams are required to submit a well-developed Business Plan of their project idea. The assigned mentor(s) of each team will deliver a final assessment report to the CyEC panel of judges at the end of Stage 2. Mentors assessment report will be part of the final evaluation by the CyEC panel of judges.

Stage 3:

The finalists are expected to present their Business Plans in a closed meeting with the CyEC Jury and the CyEC Mentors Network. All finalists are also required to present a 3-minute long pitch (live or recorded) of their business plan in an open audience at the CyEC Final Conference. The CyEC Jury evaluates and rates the submitted Business Plans and selects the winning teams. At the end of the Conference, the Award Ceremony will take place with the CyEC Jury announcing the winners and giving the awards.