BYU–Hawaii held its annual Great Ideas Conference on November 28-29 with more than 60 students from all disciplines bringing their best business ideas forward. Each student has exactly 2 minutes to give an “elevator pitch” of their Great Idea to a panel of judges who ranked the ideas on criteria such as creativity, viability, and performance.
Following the elevator speeches, keynote speaker Alan Hall, Co-founding Managing Director of Mercato Partners and former CEO of MarketStar Corporation, spoke on the correct approach to commercializing a good idea. Hall shared a step by step process in cultivating and building a lasting, functioning company. He also encouraged all participants to keep refining their Great Ideas. In closing Hall made an unexpected, generous donation of $100,000 to BYU–Hawaii. “You are all winners, your efforts do not go unnoticed or unappreciated,” he said. “I had five failures before home runs, but you can’t be afraid to get in the game.”
After the judges deliberation the top ideas were announced. Tying in third place was Nathan Cunningham, from Texas, with his space saving suitcase and, Sang Jae Bae, from South Korea, hoping to introduce surfing culture in Korea. In second place was Sery Kouma Kone, from the Ivory Coast, and his business venture to create a free trade coco product to help prevent child slavery in the Ivory Coast. The first place prize was awarded to Ryan Oldroyd, from Texas, and his recyclable pillow case to help prevent acne breakouts. With the prize money awarded students will have the opportunity to take their entrepreneurial ideas and move them towards executable business plans.
BYU-Hawaii’s student body consists of 2700 students from over 70 different countries. Approximately half of the students come from countries outside of the United States, making it the most internationally diverse university in the United States. This diversity creates an atmosphere that fosters development of problem solving skills on an international scale. The Great Ideas Conference is part of a three-step university program sponsored by the Willes Center for International Entrepreneurship that emphasizes Thinking, Planning and Doing. The conference takes place each fall semester, giving students an opportunity to meet with mentors and create ideas toward an actionable plan. These ideas become the basis for the business plans presented in the spring Empower Your Dreams event.
The mentoring and judging at the fall 2012 conference was conducted by successful professionals who came from the university’s broad network of alumni, friends, and philanthropists, helping students take their ideas-turned-business plans and get straight to work. Judges included Alan Hall; Co-founding Managing Director of Mercato Partners and former CEO of MarketStar Corporation, President Steven C. Wheelewright; BYU–Hawaii President, Jonathan J. Johnson, CEO and President of More Good Foundation; Michael Colemere, managing director of the LDS Church Communications Services Committee; and many more.
For more information, visit http://willescenter.byuh.edu/.