Sharjah, UAE, April 29, 2017:  Universities from the UAE and Sultanate of Oman have participated in the 3rd Inter-university Business Plan and New Idea Competition organized by the Skyline Entrepreneurship and Innovation Club (SEIC), Skyline University College (SUC) and supported by Dubai Technology Entrepreneur Centre (Dtec), Sharjah Entrepreneurship Centre (Sheraa) and The Hair Crafters Company LLC on April 17, 2017 at SUC campus. SUC team bagged the title for the Business Plan category while Amity University won the Marketing Pitch category. The New Idea category received more than 200 entries from the public and the title went to Mr. Sanjith P. who proposed recycled tar for tires and other rubber products.

SEIC Annual Business Plan and Idea Competition served as a platform for university students to set forth their entrepreneurial skills, business strategies, and out of the box ideas that are feasible and significant to the environment and to the society. The competition also witnessed entries that are relevant to the issues of today as they put forward ideas and solutions in areas such as enhancing happiness and well-being of UAE residents, enhancing transportation and improving traffic situations in UAE, and developing vibrant SME sector in UAE. SUC Dean, Dr. Amitabh Upadhya mentioned that events like the SEIC Business Plan Competition provide the necessary skills to the students in order for them to hone their knowledge and talents as future businessmen and women. 

Guest of Honor, Mr. Craig Moore, CEO of Beehive stressed on understanding the contextual requirements of real time entrepreneurship as he shared his views and years of experience to the students in his speech. The esteemed judges from the industry of this year’s competition included Mr. Hans Henrik Christensen, Director of Dubai Technology Entrepreneur Centre and Silicon Oasis Founders (Dtec); Ms. Janine Bensouda, President of Bensouda Consulting; Mr. Sukant Mishra, Managing Director of Octagon Ventures; Mr. Faizan Sangani, Brand Marketing Manager of ABC International (Cool & Cool); Ms. Ruchika Singhal, Managing Director of BBlunt Dubai; and Ms Sana Rahim, Freelance Branding and Marketing Consultant. 

Runner up winners of the competitions were Amity University Dubai-1st Runner up and Middle East College, Sultanate of Oman -2nd Runner up for the Business Plan category while Heriot-Watt University-1st Runner up and Al Dar University-2nd Runner up for Marketing Pitch category. 

The official sponsors of the event were Octagon as a Venture Capital Firm and Cool and Cool UAE with a special focus on the Marketing Pitch category.