Alumni

Social Enterprise Track

With more than half of HBS alumni classifying themselves as entrepreneurs at some point in their lives, the New Venture Competition is designed to support students and alumni in the process of creating and evaluating new business and social-impact ventures. The 2013 business and social enterprise tracks each award a $50,000 grand prize and $25,000 runner-up prize.

Overview

The Social Enterprise Track is designed to support HBS graduates who are launching social enterprises: nonprofit, for-profit, or hybrid organizations with a central focus on the creation of social value.

Finalists

2013 HBS Alumni New Venture Contest legal services sponsor: Cooley, LLP

india

ApnaCare connects people seeking care for elderly loved ones in India with best-in-class healthcare providers that adhere to high healthcare standards. ApnaCare is building partnerships with world-class primary, secondary, tertiary, and in-home healthcare providers in major Indian cities. ApnaCare's trained medical case managers ascertain families' care needs, review care options with them, and then connect them to a healthcare provider with relevant expertise.

northeastern us

The Green Hotel will pioneer a triple bottom line model in the lodging industry and it will fill a budget-minded, environmentally and/or socially conscious niche not presently served in the greater New York metropolitan area. It will be a limited service and LEED-certified hotel located near Newark International Airport whose mission will be to train local youth on skills relevant to the green hospitality, positioning them to fill vacancies in the Newark Airport ecosystem and beyond. It will also allocate 10% of its profit to a sister NGO charged with helping single mothers pursue higher education.

new england

Tuloko was created as a mechanism by which to address the disproportionately high unemployment and poverty rates among minorities. Tuloko helps minority-owned businesses, the largest private employer of minorities, grow by using our products including: Local Directory Service (LDS) with social networking and user reviews, digital loyalty reward program and location based services, supplier Diversity employment Platform (SDP) aggregated broadly across minority-owned businesses.

northwestern us

Yaso Biotech is dedicated to reducing the global epidemic of sexually transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancies. We are developing a woman-controlled prophylactic product that prevents infections and is contraceptive, providing a new option for women to protect themselves from disease. It is pleasant to use, inexpensive and will be sold wherever condoms are found today.

• Eligibility

  Each team must have at least one HBS alumnus/a member. The HBS alum needs to be a substantive member of the founding team, with a senior management and operating position. In evaluating eligibility, both the role of the HBS alum and his/her participation in ownership will be taken into consideration.

  The competition is designed for projects that are in either the concept or pilot phase, meaning those that have not yet started regular operations and/or those that are testing initial concepts through basic pilot operations. Eligibility will be decided by the Review Committee based on the parameters outlined below:
  

  • Revenues or donations since inception (either earned or contributed) are generally $500,000 or less
  
  
  • Operation generally begun no earlier than February 1 of the year prior to the competition
  
  
  • Fulltime equivalent employee head count is generally no greater than 5.0
  
  
  • Project is a standalone effort and operates independently of existing organizations (including, but not limited to, resources, governance, management, staff, and infrastructure)

  The plan can be a nonprofit, for-profit, or hybrid model.

  Alumni may enter either the Business Track or the Social Enterprise Track of the New Venture Competition, but not both. For questions on which to pursue, contact Alumni Relations.

• Criteria

  Plans will be judged based upon their potential to become the basis of a viable new venture. The evaluation will focus on the idea, its potential for social value creation, and the likelihood of achieving that success based upon the following criteria:
  

  • Idea/Concept: The concept reflects an innovative approach. The business plan demonstrates a clear understanding of the issue the organization seeks to address, the economic and social drivers of the model, and the feasibility of the concept.
  
  
  • Social Value Creation: The business model is likely to make a substantial contribution toward the solution of the issue it seeks to address and can be sustained for a period of time consistent with achieving the desired social impact.
  
  
  • People: The team has relevant skills, contacts, and experience.
  
  
  • Context: The rules of the game (i.e., regulatory, tax, political) are favorable. Market needs, size of opportunity, competitive landscape, and potential risks are identified and manageable.
  
  
  • Resources: The financing plan is sensible in terms of the capital required to launch and operate. Funding sources are identified and a plan for securing start-up investment is articulated.
  
  
  • Performance Measurement: The plan takes a practicable approach to measuring organizational outcomes and provides a clear plan to deliver high performance.

• Prizes

  $50,000 grand prize and $25,000 second prize. One individual from each finalist team will receive round-trip economy airfare to campus for the HBS finals; all finalists' lodging and meals are included.